The life insurance provider has announced the recipients of the inaugural MDRT Grant Programme for New Zealand's Independent Financial Adviser (IFA) channel. The grants are designed to support advisers to develop innovative ways to support customers and accelerate their service provision.
MDRT is a global, independent association of the world's leading life insurance and financial services professionals with 95,000 members from more than 700 companies in 80 nations and territories.
It supports members with professional development, ethics and upskilling on client service, with membership recognised internationally as the standard of excellence in the life insurance and financial services business.
"Asteron Life commends its advisers who prioritise professional development. Attending the MDRT Annual Meeting is a wonderful way to provide exposure to the latest international thinking on best practice customer service and help raise the bar of professionalism in the IFA channel," said Asteron Life National Manager of Advice & Professional Standards Kevin Turnock.
"This year, attendees who travelled to the event in Vancouver were invited to apply for one of four $5,000 grants aimed at bringing their innovative ideas to fruition. We received a remarkable response, with half of the 31 attending advisers submitting grant applications outlining their plans."
"Each submission was carefully evaluated by a panel from Asteron Life and MDRT New Zealand. The ideas presented demonstrated significant potential benefits for the advisers, their businesses, and their clients.
"The proposed initiatives from the MDRT Annual Meeting encompassed a wide range of innovative strategies, including the integration of AI and cutting-edge technologies into business processes, targeted marketing and retention strategies, and initiatives aimed at enhancing work-life balance.
"Regardless of grant application outcomes, the feedback we’ve received is that advisers found the application process invaluable in transforming their ideas from concept to reality," said Mr Turnock.
The four 2024 Asteron Life MDRT Grant recipients are:
- Advice Plus (Auckland) - Heath Cleland / Jamie Lester - Integrating AI into the business;
- ICIB Financial Independence (Tauranga) - Steve Freeman - Integrating AI into the business;
- SHARE NZ (Auckland) - Aaron Baker - Increasing support staff and implementing functional changes within the business; and
- Plan B Financial Services (Christchurch) - Travis Hamilton - Deploying cutting-edge technological marketing strategies and tools.