Education: key to success moving forward

You may have recently been made aware of a review of the insurance and insurance broking qualifications, via a media release. You may or may not be aware, the Managing Director of the Financial Services School is a member of the Financial Services Industry Skills Committee (“IRC”) and Project Working Group for review of the Insurance Broking qualifications.   Val has had significant involvement with PwC in the development of this, and have put together a suggested training framework for review by a number of industry members.  

As you know, both Val and I are more than just a little passionate about changing the current qualification framework to one that is a more practical in meeting the needs of the general insurance industry, and the professionals that work within it. This of course, includes the requirement for technical training. At the moment, as a Registered Training Organisation (“RTO”), Val and her team from the Financial Services School, with the help of those from LMI Education, have to undertake quite a lot of contextualisation in our courses to fit the current framework, and meet –what we perceive are– the industry needs.

I know everyone is busy, however it would really help if you could provide some feedback on the current proposal, good or bad. It is important the new qualification framework is based on industry feedback, and not just on RTO’s (like ourselves), dictating what should be in there.  

I have attached an excel spreadsheet which outlines the proposals. 

In brief these are as follows: –

Diploma of Insurance Broking

• Amend some of the units of competency in the Diploma of Insurance Broking, include a requirement to ensure product knowledge and insurance law, which is a key driving factor.
• Introduce new units as core units to cover Insurance Products and Insurance Law.
• Amend the current recommended ASIC unit to ensure that pre-requisite units cover these new ones (Insurance Products and knowledge of Insurance Law), together with broking skills.
• Amend the current ASIC unit to specify it relates to Commercial Retail Products/SME Wholesale Products. The purpose being, to ensure learners who undertake the program have commercial insurance knowledge.
• Amend the current training package, to ensure the recommended ASIC units go from being an elective unit to a core unit (meaning if RTO’s want to deliver the full Diploma course, they have to include the recommended ASIC units).
• Add an additional claims unit to cover claims handling (with focus on technical aspects). 

Certificate IV in Insurance Broking

• Introduce Cert IV in Insurance Broking in lieu of Cert III Insurance Broking.
• Transfer some units of competency which are Level 4 from the current Cert III to Cert IV, and make some amendments
• Add additional units to ensure product knowledge and basic insurance law, compliance requirements are addressed.
• Focus more on domestic products at Cert IV level.
• Amend claims handling unit to focus on smaller claims and process.
• Amend Tier 2 ASIC unit to be more prescriptive, e.g. include Insurance Broking with a focus on domestic products.

Certificate III in Insurance Broking

Whilst there is some take up of traineeships, this is very limited. We understand some employers will engage school leavers or younger staff, we suggest a skills unit/s covering foundation knowledge and skills could potentially replace the Cert III IB.

You can either send your comments to Val at val.p@thefss.com.au, or to me at Allan.Manning@LMIGroup.com.

Val and I, thank you in anticipation.