Η Sofos Insurance Agency dynamically continues its development in Crete, which it considers a pivotal point for its further strengthening in the wider region of island Greece. The new Regional Directorate, in Giofiro, Heraklion, confirms once again the Company's human-centered attitude, but also its desire to stand by its partners, wherever they are active. Its goal is a long-term presence on the island of Crete with competent and reliable executives, who follow its philosophy and respond to the requests of partners.
The new Regional Director, Mr. Kon/nos Kampaklis, answers our questions about his role in Sofos Insurance Agency and the way in which the Company supports its partners even in the midst of a pandemic. Referring to how the impact of the work of insurance intermediaries will be improved, he develops the… necessary thing and thus foreshadows us on how he plans to achieve the development of Sofos Insurance Agency in the wider area of Crete and the Aegean islands.
| Interview with Soula Korma |
Mr. Kampaklis, tell us a few words about your beginnings and your career so far as an insurance executive.
K.K.: I have been active in the insurance market since 1993, when I started working as an insurance consultant for Scoplife, and until 2001 I went through all the ranks up to the position of assistant agency manager. Then, from July 2001 until 2013, I joined the staff of the Regional Directorate of Crete & Rhodes of the insurance company International Union, as Head of Other General Insurance Branches. In November 2014 I first assumed the position of Sales Inspector and then Head of Sales for Insular Greece for Interlife, where I remained until September 2020. In October 2020 I agreed with Sofos Insurance Agency and was assigned the Regional Sales Department of Crete & Islands Aegean.
Tell us more about your "acquaintance" with Sofos Insurance Agency, but also about the Regional Directorate you lead.
K.K.: When in 2001 I was assigned the position of the head of Other General Branches of the Regional Directorate of Crete & Rhodes, Mr. Christos Sofos he was Technical Director of the International Union. In the context of my new duties as well as the position of Mr. Sofos, we worked closely together he imparted his valuable knowledge and experience to me training me in this particular insurance subject, mainly in the assumption and management of insurance risk.
In 2018, while I was now in another position, Mr. Sofos had already developed the Sofos Insurance Agency in particular, creating an extensive network of partners and sales throughout Greece, including Crete and the rest of the Greek islands where I operate, and that's how we met again.
At the end of October 2020, we agreed for me to join the Sofos Insurance Agency as a Regional Sales Director for Crete and the Aegean, taking over a Regional Directorate that has 3 offices in the region of Heraklion, Crete and is an important pillar of further development for Sofos Insurance Agency. The human resources of the Regional Directorate consists of 7 people, who have constantly growing experience and expertise in the field of private insurance and mediation.
The authorities of the Regional Directorate could not be other than those governing the Sofos Insurance Agency. We always try to be there family climate and human relations, not only with employees but also with our partners and customers, so that they grow relationships of trust and cooperation.
Professionalism is our non-negotiable principle. For this reason, one has been created high level organizational structure with specialized computerization, so that the professional support of partners and customers is appropriate and provided reliably, timely and validly, covering every need of partners and customers.
We support the training and development of our partners. We have real interest and respect for our partners and try to set solid foundations for our cooperation, so that it is not only stable and healthy, but also forms the basis for further development of the work of our partners.
We have been living in pandemic conditions for a year now. How and how much has the insurance activity and production in your area been affected?
K.K.: The pandemic created unprecedented conditions for all of us and strongly affected all economic life and of course private insurance as well. As is well known, the economic activity in Crete and especially in Island Greece, where I operate, is to a large extent connected with the tourism, either directly in sectors such as hotels, rooms for rent, rental vehicles, seasonal shops, seasonal catering, either indirectly, through intermediary services and impact of tourism on local income. Also, in the above regions, the everyday life and economic activity of the residents have important pillars rural, livestock and commercial sector, which were affected both in terms of the volume of transactions but also in terms of the way of operation and supporting activities.
The result of all this is to observe one drop in consumption but also liquidity, which directly affects the insurance industry, as a tendency to limit the range and amount of coverage, changes in payment methods and duration of insurance policies appeared. At the same time, however, there are also signs of potential growth, taking into account the ever-increasing interest of consumers in the Health Sector, especially after the inclusion of the pandemic in the coverage offered by insurance companies.
Generally speaking, do you think that the insurance companies in our market have supported their insurance intermediary partners during this period of the health crisis? What else do you have to suggest to the management of insurance companies?
K.K.: I find that most insurance companies have tried to reach out to their partners by providing support tools so that they can continue to produce, despite the special conditions of this period and the forced restrictions, especially on movements and personal transactions. Also, the payment policy it was differentiated and adapted, enabling the insured to have financial benefits.
Furthermore, it has been observed that in the Automobile Sector supplementary coverage programs were formed with an appropriate pricing policy, which resulted in the maintenance of portfolios instead of cancellations.
At this point we should emphasize that the insurance companies showed very good reflexes and adaptation to the new conditions. The improvement changes sales regulations they gave mediators tools to be able to respond, professionally and financially, to the challenges of this difficult period. The organizational structures, especially for the service of the sales network as well as the insureds with whom I have direct contact, were quickly adapted so that the work of the companies continued unhindered.
If I were to suggest something to the management of the insurance companies, it would be to continue to strengthen these efforts, so that by modernizing the structures the crisis becomes a transition to an era with better coverage and service for the consumer. In this way, I believe that the insurance market will be able to strengthen and take its rightful place, not only in the economy, but mainly in society, providing at the same time to the thousands of intermediaries the possibility to recover and also to develop their sales.
In the midst of a pandemic, what kind of support and service does Sofos Insurance Agency offer to clients and partners?
K.K.: As I mentioned above, our main goal is to support our partners. We aim for them to be able to work, produce and develop under any conditions. THE Sofos Insurance Agency, having created solid foundations and organizational structures even before the pandemic, immediately responded to the needs created by the pandemic. It immediately adapted its operation according to the dictates of the crisis, continued its uninterrupted operation and the services offered were maintained at the same high level of service that existed before the pandemic, as the structure and computerized organization already existed and continued to function in the new data.
The Sofos Portal continued to be combined with direct communication and service, as well our priority is the immediate resolution of the issues faced by our partners. We strive for our partners to be able to meet the consumer needs of customers by providing increased sales opportunities by offering a variety of insurance program options. Customer service continued uninterrupted, either through partners and the tools we provide them or by communicating with the company's departments.
Also, the Sofos Insurance Agency in the new conditions of the pandemic continued to emphasize the continuous training of the network of partners in products, organizing itself and also providing access to webinars of insurance companies.
How do you experience the changes that have occurred in our insurance market? Do you see risks for the future of insurance intermediaries due to digitization, online sales, etc. and if so how do you prepare?
K.K.: The change in the needs of the market and also of consumers has had a significant impact on insurance mediation. The insurance broker now must have extensive knowledge of the subject, in order to meet the needs of our profession. In the past, more than 20 years ago, each company provided the intermediary with training in their products and sales. Now education is multi-faceted and provided from many sides.
I think the level of mediators and services provided is steadily improving. As in other professions where personal contact and relationship are important – such as doctors, lawyers, accountants – so too the insurance intermediary, when he operates with the right cooperation and customer service in mind and invests in them, has nothing to fear in the future.
The certification of mediators' knowledge according to the supervisory and legislative rules makes the mediator's role not only relevant to the sale, but mainly to the specialized knowledge and personal service, which the consumer cannot obtain from the internet, which offers more general and not more specific information. Digitization, therefore, is a service improvement tool and not a competitor to be feared.
The Sales Office in Pateles, Heraklion
In conclusion, what do you think needs to be done, by each professional individually but also at a collective level, to improve the impact of the work carried out by insurance intermediaries?
K.K.: Each individual professional and the industry as a whole should be activated, dynamically: to explain clearly and in detail to existing and new customers who it is, what it does, why the purchase of an insurance product is suitable for the specific customer, what it will secure for him or what it will protect him from. To talk about all branches and not only about compulsory insurance. To serve in a timely manner and to provide valid information. To organize his work and his office and operate with planning. To apply the legislation and to set rules himself which he follows. Not to operate illegally.
My opinion is that, based on these, in the long run the result is always positive. A satisfied customer not only remains a customer but also recommends their insurer to others and respect for customers and the institution of private insurance resonates with each of us individually and the industry as a whole.
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