We spoke to Mr Joseph Janer, President (2017- 2019) of the Professional Insurance & Financial Advisors Association of the Philippines (PIFAAP) in an exclusive interview.
PIFAAP is an independent association founded by life agents and has been around for more than 16 years. Members of the association comprises of top producers who have a minimum of three years in the insurance business.
Joseph explains that PIFAAP focuses on education and professional development of its members because the industry is dynamic and constantly evolving. As there’s a greater demand for better service and more sophisticated products, insurance agents and advisers need to upgrade themselves and never stop learning in order to meet the evolving needs of the clients.
Agents and advisers can always look forward to PIFAAP as a learning platform as the association houses practitioners from different companies, agencies, and come from all walks of life. Joseph said the learning advantage comes from topics and special interest sessions that are outside of what they normally get from their companies. “I think that the outside and non-bias perspectives or insights are important in the overall development of an agent, and that’s what particularly PIFAAP provides”, Joseph said.
As an 18 year practitioner, a 10 year member, and 3rd year running as President, Joseph assumed the role of president knowing that it’ll take away personal time that he can spend with his family and loved ones. When asked why he goes beyond his duties, he said, “ It’s a very small way of giving back to the industry that has taken care of me and my family for the past 18 years. So, if it means that I have to share my time and effort and a little bit of expertise to move this forward and to keep these objectives and aspirations of the association alive –at least in our generation- then I think I’ve done my part, my little share in trying to help give back to the industry.” He added, “At the end of the day, it’s all worth it.”
Advice for younger self
This goes out to all the new agents who are just starting out in the profession. You might be young and inexperienced, and even clueless about the trends in the industry. But here’s someone who has been practising the last 18years, and has the necessary experience and wisdom to share with you his thoughts on starting out.
Recalling that he started this profession young, Joseph would have told his younger self to “be more ambitious. Really go for your dreams early on, because looking back, 18 years after, I realised those 18 years is very short, feels very short. And I could have done a lot more, and helped a lot more, could have achieved a lot more.”
“But at the same time, I would like to focus my practise into not being just an insurance sales person, but as a person who develops relationships, who nurtures and takes care of these relationships to allow me to grow my business organically in a way I could have never imagined many years ago. Which is happening right now,” he added.
Qualities of successful agents
Joseph observed that successful agents tend to have quality work which often produces quality results. A measurement of success also comes from high production numbers, high persistency, and a steady stream of income. He also stressed that these should be met with no compromises on values. “Because, insurance is a business that’s anchored at trust. And trust is very hard to earn and keep. And once you’ve earned it, you should strive very hard not to lose it,” he said.
Here’s the timeline of the video if you would like to skip to revisit some parts:
Start: Tell us more about PIFAAP
0:48: Why should agents join PIFAAP?
1:47: How long have you been President?
1:58: What are you most proud of in your 3 years as President?
3:02: Why do you sacrifice personal time to serve as President?
3:53: Any advice for your younger self?
4:46: What are some qualities of successful agents?
5:29: What can be done to change the stigma of agents?
6:42: What’s your motivation these 18 years?
If you are interested in attending PIFAAP’s upcoming conference “P2P: Profit to Purpose”, which will be held on the 27 February 2020 at the Sofitel Manila, do click the link to register and reserve your slots:
https://pifaap.org/events/profit-2-purpose-2020/
More on PIFAAP and the scene in Philippines:
PIFAAP annual congress:Re-Centre - Shine from Your Core
From sales promotions assistant to CEO - Philam Life ex-CEO Ariel Cantos shares the lessons learnt in his journey
Philam Life CEO on narrowing the protection gap in the Philippines
Filipinos have the lowest retirement savings in Asia
Mr Joseph Janer is part of the esteemed panel of judges for the 5th Asia Trusted Life Agents & Advisers Awards. For more details on the Awards, click here.
5th Asia Trusted Life Agents & Advisers Awards is now open for nominations. It is the region's most prestigious Awards recognising the best in financial advisory with an independently-audited judging process, and an esteemed panel of judges consisting CEOs, Senior Executives, Association Presidents and industry experts.
The search for stars has begun. Click here for more