Published on January 05, 2023
In the last five years, Tata Motors Insurance Broking and Advisory Services Limited (TMIBASL), a 100% subsidiary of Tata Motors, has not only transformed itself into a full-service, composite insurance broker covering the general, life and reinsurance segments, but it has also become one of the fastest-growing players in the business today.
Revenues have grown nearly three-fold from Rs 107 crore in 2017-18 to Rs 293 crore in 2021-22 and are expected to touch Rs 390 crore this year on the back of a higher-than-industry growth rate of 30-35%. Premium placed has increased from Rs 1,585 crore in 2017-18 to Rs 3001 crore in 2021-22, and policy count, from 7,91,672 to 11,34,424 in the same period. All this while head count has remained steady at around 280-290.
How did the company achieve this? TMIBASL’s Managing Director and CEO M Ravichandran shared insights on the remarkable ‘Transformation Journey of TMIBASL’ at the 380th EDGE Webinar.
Need for transformation
TMIBASL’s troubles first arose when faced with revenue headwinds, it turned unprofitable in 2015. Then, in 2017, it was hit by a regulatory change in the distribution fee and commission structure for motor insurance service providers (MISP). As a result, its brokerage was hit, and the Company also had to convince all the dealers of Tata Motors and Ford to get sponsored by the Company as its MISP.
“While many brokers handling Motor Insurance have lost revenue, we had a fantastic team which converted the challenge into an opportunity,” said Mr Ravichandran.
TMIBASL made up its lost income by getting all its dealerships to become its MISPs and by increasing its new business penetration and renewals business. It also reassured employees that there would be no attritions.
More importantly, it embarked on a transformational journey.
Strategic intent
As a first step, TMIBASL spelt out its strategic intent and Vision-Mission-and-Core Values.
The company felt it was “uniquely placed” to play across the retail, corporate and reinsurance space since it was part of the Tata group, had trusted relationships with insurers and customers, strategic alliances to cater to niche segments, and a stellar claims management process as key differentiator.
It also believed that consulting was the future of insurance broking. “We want to be counted as the best consultant in insurance. We want to be a knowledge partner providing customised risk management solutions,” said Mr Ravichandran, adding that a broker is the only insurance intermediary who represents the customer’s interests.
Accordingly, TMIBASL stated its strategic goal to rank among the top three Indian brokers by 2025, and become a full-service player across industry segments, verticals and practices.
It upgraded its broking licence from a direct to a composite licence, and set up a corporate vertical. “We want to be a one-stop solution provider for all insurance needs from auto to aviation and People to Property,” said Mr Ravichandran.
TMIBASL also identified its strategic pillars as:
- Diversification of Lines of Business
- Enhance the profile of TMIBASL within the Tata ecosystem and by increasing the bar on technical capabilities
- TIMBASL Way, which includes customer centricity and being an employer of choice and innovator
- Leverage Tata ecosystem
- Talent acquisition and management
- Customer centricity, and
- Strengthening the gap
Proposition, Approach and Commitment: 3Cs, 3Ds and 3Es
To achieve these goals, the company defined its customer proposition as 3Cs: Cost, Coverage and Claims. This entails offering optimum premium with minimised hidden costs, best-in-class coverage suited to the customer’s risks, and hassle-free claims settlement with the ‘Right amount at Right Time’.
The company has achieved this by adopting a 3D or Develop, Deliver and Delight approach. This entails developing an understanding of the customers’ pain points, delivering customised insurance options for the risk at hand, and delighting customers with best-in-class solutions and services, including handholding for end-to-end claims management.
According to Mr Ravichandran, the company’s commitment to 3Es – Experience, Expertise and Excellence – has enabled it to achieve these 3Ds. Thus, it has highly experienced hand-picked teams with diverse competencies. Its verticals are managed by people with domain expertise. And it has robust processes and systems for excellence and the digital transformation that it has achieved in the last few years is helping the organization deliver best in class services.
The building blocks of customer centricity, a strong leadership culture that rewards merit, and a result-oriented thrust on profitability with regulatory compliance have also powered the company’s transformational journey. Plus, it has invested in talent management and leveraged digitalisation.
Today, TMIBASL is well on its way to achieving its goals. The company has created a strong value proposition within the Tata group, where it intends to be the sole broker of choice, and outside too. And it expects to keep beating the industry growth rate, going ahead.