The day of reckoning draws near

You can be excused for thinking the “day of reckoning” to which I refer is the 30 June 2012 Regulatory Examination deadline… But it is not. Instead, I am talking about the coveted FIA 2012 Awards evening that will take place at the Sandton Convention Cent

The FIA 2012 Awards announcement is the culmination of a lengthy selection process to determine which of South Africa’s product providers are rated “best in class” by the financial intermediaries they represent. It is an opportunity for the financial professionals at the coalface of the industry to acknowledge the companies and brands that assist them to trade profitably and show value to their clients.

The intermediaries who spend each and every day immersed in the “treating customers fairly” principles the regulators swear by, have a chance to tell the industry which providers are getting things right. And the winners walk away with the ultimate accolade for financial services product providers.

The value of consistent selection strategies

Consistency is among the many factors that distinguishes the FIA Awards from other industry accolades. Thursday’s awards ceremony is the 11^th since inception, the fifth under the FIA banner, and the seventh compiled under the consistent methodologies of Bluestream Research. The group placed a staggering 23 000 telephone calls to assess 6 000 contracts (between intermediaries and product providers in the employee benefits, healthcare, insurance and investment industries) during a stringent eight-week assessment period.

A team comprising 10 call centre staff, a call centre manager and project manager carefully considered the perceptions, views, expectations, awareness levels and opinions of thousands of FIA members. Interviewees were asked to rate product providers in their different product categories based on product quality, service quality, relationship quality and overall satisfaction. Pieter Aucamp, executive director of Bluestream Research, believes the results will confirm both the detail and consistency of the selection process.

The FIA 2012 Awards recognise the contributions made by South Africa’s top product providers in the employee benefits, healthcare, insurance and investment space, with a particular focus on the needs and requirements of financial services intermediaries.

Categories contested in the FIA 2011 Awards include:

· Short-Term Insurer of the Year – Personal Lines
· Short-Term Insurer of the Year – Commercial Lines
· Short-Term Insurer of the Year – Corporate
· Underwriting Manager of the Year
· Long-Term Insurer of the Year – Risk Product
· Investment Product Supplier of the Year – Retail Investments
· Long-Term Insurer of the Year – Recurring Savings
· Employee Benefits Product supplier of the Year
· Health Care Product Supplier of the Year

Catch the results on FAnews Online...

FAnews Online will be among the guests enjoying the FIA 2012 Awards ceremony this Thursday evening. We will update you of the category winners as soon as possible after the event.