To attract Gen Z, insurance must rewrite its story

As the insurance industry tackles solutions to its talent gap crisis, one expert says it simply hasn’t done a good enough job leveraging its greatest selling point to Gen Z: the potential for change.

“The question isn’t whether the talent is out there or not — it’s whether the insurance industry can evolve its story and culture fast enough to attract it. Because if they can, there is a generation of very passionate, ambitious folks out there that are certainly ready to build that next chapter with insurance,” Josh Levine, founder & CEO of UX design agency Cake & Arrow, said.

He spoke with InsuranceNewsNet on the heels of a Cake & Arrow study that found Gen Z is generally reluctant to work in the insurance industry, although they acknowledge it can have some benefits.

“To me, the surprise is always that people, especially Gen Z, know that insurance does have stability to a certain extent, and you would think they’d be attracted to it. But the reason why the message of insurance isn’t quite resonating is pretty relevant,” Levine added.

While it still holds true that young people view insurance as “boring,” an increasingly major concern is the perception that it’s untrustworthy. Levine suggested that successful recruitment should capitalize on messaging that empowers the younger generation to change that perception, ushering in wholesale evolution of the industry.

Most Gen Z have never even considered insurance

Cake & Arrow’s research found 79% of Gen Z have never considered pursuing careers in insurance. Nearly 50% said they are not interested in the insurance industry at all and 14% said nothing could ever change their mind about that.

At the same time, most are aware of the benefits insurance can have. Fifty-five percent of the Gen Z respondents in the study had a generally positive view of the insurance industry, and stability was ranked as the most appealing benefit an insurance career could offer.

The disconnect, however, lies in perception. The study found that while insurance offers what Gen Z professionals prioritize in a career — stability, benefits and long-term opportunities — most dismiss the industry because of what they think a job in insurance looks like.

“The talent is there and everything is ripe for the taking. Many recent graduates are struggling to find entry-level opportunities. The challenge is that the insurance industry hasn’t made a compelling enough case for itself,” Levine said.

Ethical concerns increasingly matter

It should come as no surprise that 67% of respondents found insurance to be “boring” or outdated, but a perception of insurance as an unethical business practice has become a significant concern among the younger generation.

“This is particularly relevant in the past few years — people have seen how often insurance doesn’t come through for them or for others when they need it. Over and over we hear, and in this research too, about bad claims experience… Gen Z is seeing this play out online right in front of them in the news, and they’re absolutely taking note,” Levine said.

He said while Gen Z as a whole recognizes the value of insurance as a way to  protect themselves and their families, “they’ve seen or heard way too many stories to really trust it.”

“If they don’t trust insurance to do right by people, they’re unlikely to want to build a career in it… Until the industry can really start rebuilding that trust and being more transparent, fair and human in how they show up, the message isn’t going to land,” Levine said.

Offering purpose

However, Levine sees this perception challenge as an opportunity for the industry to offer young professionals a career with purpose — which is precisely what the research indicates most of them want.

“I’d rather go in an industry, and this should resonate with most young folks, where there is a lot of opportunity to change, where it isn’t that advanced. To me, that’s a selling point: let’s go where we can provide value and make a difference. There’s a lot of ground to make up there, and there’s a positioning that can really resonate with younger generations,” he said.

In insurance, that can look like reframing roles “not as salespeople but as guides or consultants who can help people understand their coverage, make really informed decisions and shape customers’ financial well-being and peace of mind.”

“We’ve got to flip the script and change because, as is, even if we do recruit, the issue is going to be retaining… I think that’s the big goal of making insurance back to being a career role that people can grow in and feel challenged and have the flexibility and openness to make change and contribute to a better customer experience,” Levine said.

Cake & Arrow is a UX design agency that describes itself as being “human-centered,” offering organizations in the insurance and financial services industry digital experience solutions. Its research surveyed 519 Gen Zers, aged 18-28.

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