Get to Know: Jason Brock, Account Director
I’ve worked for ABL Group for over six years and I recently moved to the role of Account Director, working primarily from our Armagh office. I’m enjoying the autonomy of running my own accounts and the deeper insight I’m gaining into our client’s businesses.
I work from home a couple of days per week and I actually find these days to be my most effective when it comes to the ‘deep work’ of prepping insurance documents and managing the admin of client accounts. The added flexibility of working from home means I can squeeze in a bit of exercise at the end of the working day or even a bit of DIY on the new house I’ve just recently moved into!
In my previous position as Commercial Account Handler, my ‘office days’ were much more likely to be in the office but now it’s incredibly varied.
I spend a good portion of my time now travelling to clients for meetings and it’s great to really get a sense of their business by seeing how they operate and meeting their wider team.
I also regularly meet up with my fellow Account Directors and ABL management to share best practice and industry knowledge and to report on what’s happening with key accounts.
It’s always a challenge to find the balance between being always available to meet your client’s needs and doing the detailed work required in the insurance industry. And that’s before you add the need to keep developing your skills and knowledge! I’m currently working towards the conclusion of my Diploma in Insurance from the Charted Institute of Insurance through the ABL Academy. The flexibility of working from home is great as it allows me some additional time to study and write up my assignments.
Thankfully, my commute to our new office at Formation Works isn’t too arduous and it’s such a nice place to work from and to host some of our clients for meetings when required.
Earlier in my career I worked as an underwriter, so I have a good level of understanding and appreciation for the work involved on the insurer side also.
As I’m now the liaison between client and underwriter, I think this gives me a better understanding of how to prepare a client’s business case. I’m particularly aware of the workload of an underwriter and the importance of ensuring we, as brokers, have all of our ‘ducks in a row’ and ready to present. That little difference in preparedness makes a huge impact on achieving the right result for our customers.
I’m proud to work for an organisation that has evolved so much in the past few years. As well as growing through acquiring other brokers, we have ourselves been acquired by one of the world’s largest insurance brokerages, Brown and Brown. They thankfully share the same ethos of customer focus and integrity that runs through ABL Group.
Flexibility and adaptability to change have allowed ABL Group to navigate all of their recent changes and I’m not sure if those qualities are necessarily the default for businesses in the insurance sector.
With change comes opportunity and everyone at ABL has grasped that opportunity and has seen the potential ahead. It’s exciting to be part of.
Given how dynamic the company’s growth has been in recent years, there are so many opportunities and directions to take in a career with ABL.
It’s great to see that, as an organisation, we haven’t lost focus on our people, so it’s easy to keep developing yourself with programmes like The ABL Academy.
ABL are great at recognising your achievements by running Team Mate of The Month Awards, for which I have been a previous winner having been nominated by my fellow colleagues for having ‘gone that extra mile’ in assisting both our customers and team members alike. I also have the privilege of being part of one of the most experienced teams of insurance professionals in the country and benefit from all that knowledge and experience around me!