A Multidimensional Universe
By Dean Lambert, Executive Director, LIC
I am just enough of a nerd to stop channel or Internet surfing when Neil deGrasse-Tyson or Michio Kaku pop onto my TV or mobile device. Especially when they talk about multiple dimension theories. I am engrossed by "twin world models, M-theory, cyclic theories and black hole cosmology. Rooted both in quantum mechanics and philosophy, discussion revolves around the physical existence of different configurations or histories of our universe.
Meaning: Another version of you and everyone you have ever known exists or has existed simultaneously in another dimension of our universe. You don't have a doppelganger… you have 12 or more "gangers" living versions of your life right now.
What in the h-e-double-toothpick does this have to do with life insurance? Have I truly lost it?
Hear me out, I am getting to a strategic planning analogy...
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Industry News
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U.S. Annuity Sales Surge to Strongest First Quarter Ever
Total U.S. annuity sales were $113.5 billion in the first quarter of 2024, 21% above prior year results and just shy of the quarterly sales record set in the fourth quarter 2023, according to preliminary results from LIMRA's U.S. Individual Annuity Sales Survey, representing 84% of the total U.S. annuity market. This is the highest first quarter sales results since LIMRA started tracking sales in the 1980s.
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Principal Announces New Apprentice Program
Principal Financial Group has created the Principal Apprentice Program, a 12-month immersive program that provides pathways to full-time employment at Principal for individuals without a four-year degree.
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Axel André Joins RGA to Succeed Todd Larson as Chief Financial Officer
Reinsurance Group of America announced today that Axel André will join the company as Executive Vice President on June 24, 2024. Following a brief transition period, effective August 5, the company expects to name André Chief Financial Officer, the role currently held by Todd Larson. Larson will transition into the role of Special Advisor to the CEO and will serve in that capacity until his retirement on December 31, 2024.
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LIC's Final Expense Workshop Contributes $940 to Operation Food Search
LIC's Final Expense Workshop, hosted by RGA in St. Louis, partnered with Operation Food Search as part of LIMRA and LOMA's #MeetingsThatMatter initiative to leave a lasting impact in the communities where conferences are held. Attendees participated in contributing a total of $940, enough to provide over 3,700 meals to families in need through the St. Louis area.
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Sammons to Acquire Bestow Life Insurance Company
Insurance NewsNet covered the recent announcement that Bestow Inc. will sell its life insurance company to Sammons Financial Group.
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TruStage Enhances Zone Income Annuity Product with Greater Flexibility
TruStage announced enhancements to its Zone Income Annuity underwritten by MEMBERS Life Insurance Company. The changes help allow TruStage to better meet modern client expectations for customized investment and income options.
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LIC Strategy Execution Series Continues
"Brand, Marketing and Sales Impact," a webinar presented by Heaton Consulting, is coming up July 25, 2024, 2:30-4 p.m. Eastern as part of the LIC Marketing & Distribution Virtual Meeting that starts at 1 p.m. Eastern. Participants can sign up for the webinar only or the full Marketing & Distribution Meeting.
This session will examine the role of Brand Management, Marketing, Sales, and Distribution Systems in revenue generation. Presenters will discuss how customer assessments (customer preferences, segmentation, buyer personas, and prospect profiling) coordinated with corporate planning creates stronger internal alignment-enhancing performance and strengthening the brand promise with external stakeholders. Finally, three executives will review strategic decisions and actions taken when they pursued direct to consumer distribution in addition to using independent agencies.
Part 1 of the series, "Brand Promise + Strategy Execution = Positive Outcomes," presented April 24, 2024. View Recording
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LIC Forum Focuses on CEO Excellence
LIC member company CEOs and Presidents are making plans now to convene in Nashville, August 26-28, 2024 for the Summer LIC CEO Forum. In addition to networking, discussion, and an exclusive Backstage Nashville event, attendees will hear from LIMRA LOMA and InsurTech NY on the latest technology and insurance trends and join in an executive book review of CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets that Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest.
This event is reserved for CEOs/presidents of insurance companies and fraternal organizations.
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LIC Preneed and Final Expense Surveys Under Way
Companies involved in selling preneed and final expense are invited to participate in LIC's annual sales reports. This year's Preneed Survey is completing data collection. Final Expense leaders provided input at the June 2024 LIC Final Expense Workshop, and LIC is asking companies involved in final expense to confirm who should receive the survey form. LIC Executive Director Dean Lambert issued this video message encouraging all final expense companies to participate in this year's survey. Contact lic@loma.org for more information.
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Columbian Mutual Ceases New Life Policy Sales
Columbian Mutual Life Insurance Company announced June 7, 2024, that it will not be issuing any new life insurance policies and will be laying off 25% of its employees. The company reported that a planned acquisition deal with Constellation Insurance Holdings is no longer being completed.
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Park Lawn Announces Going Private Transaction with Homesteaders and Birch Hill
Park Lawn Corporation announced June 3, 2024, that it has entered into an arrangement agreement with Viridian Acquisition Inc., an affiliate of Homesteaders Life Company and Birch Hill Equity Partners Management Inc. to acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Park Lawn.
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Upcoming LIC Events
LIC Home Service Summit - Virtual
July 18, 2024, 2-4 p.m. ET
www.loma.org/LICHS
LIC Webinar Series #2:
Brand, Marketing, and Sales Impact
Presented by Heaton Consulting
July 25, 2024, 2:30-4:00 p.m. ET
www.loma.org/licbrandmarketingwebinar
LIC Marketing & Distribution Virtual Meeting
July 25, 2024, 1-4 p.m. ET
www.loma.org/LICMKT
LIC CEO Forum
Reserved for Insurance/Fraternal CEOs & Presidents
Virgin Hotels Nashville
August 26-28, 2024
www.loma.org/LICCEO
LIC HR Committee Conference Call
September 12, 2024, 2-3:30 p.m. ET
www.loma.org/LICHR
LIC Laws & Legislation Committee Conference Call
September 20, 2024, 2-3:30 p.m. ET
www.loma.org/LICLLFALL
LIC Operations Committee Meeting
Hosted by Baltimore Life, Owings Mills MD
September 24-25, 2024
www.loma.org/LICOPS
LIC Technology Committee Meeting
Hosted by Puritan Life & Benekiva, Scottsdale AZ
October 2-3, 2024
www.loma.org/LICTECH
LIC Investment & Capital Management Committee Meeting
Hosted by Catholic Order of Foresters, Naperville IL
October 16-17, 2024
www.loma.org/LICINV
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LIC 2024 Premier Sponsors
Thank you to these LIC Premier Sponsors, who support all LIC events throughout the year.
Parkway Advisors
Parkway Advisors is focused on being the best most respected provider of service in the insurance industry. Parkway offers asset management, consulting, and statutory investment reporting services that are customized to the needs of each insurance client. Through Parkway's emphasis on personal service, custom solutions, and strong communication, our clients have enjoyed historically strong performance success, especially during the financial crisis and the low interest environment that has followed. www.parkwayadvisors.com
iPipeline
iPipeline is a leading provider of low code, cloud-based software solutions for the life insurance and financial services industry. Through our SSG Digital, end-to-end platform, we provide process automation and seamless integration between every participant in our ecosystem including carriers, agents, general agencies, advisors, broker-dealers, RIAs, banks, securities/mutual fund firms, and their consumers on a global basis. Our innovative solutions include pre-sales support, new business and underwriting, policy administration, point-of-sale execution of applications, post-sale support, data analysis, reporting, user-driven configuration, consumer delivery and self-service, and agency and firm management. www.ipipeline.com
thinktum/illustrate
thinktum and illustrate inc (merged in 2023) provide powerful, cloud-based end-to-end solutions for life insurance carriers to energize, automate, simplify, and streamline the application process for virtually any life insurance product or distribution channel.
The no-code/low-code LIZ and OPUS platforms combine to provide a comprehensive, adaptable, and client-focused solution for life insurance carriers, with a particular emphasis on the needs of small to medium-sized carriers. The goal is to provide not just a technological solution but a partnership that understands the unique challenges and ambitions of each client. www.thinktum.com
QLAdmin Solutions
QLAdmin Solutions is a leading technology partner for the small to mid-sized insurance company offering traditional life, health, annuity, preneed, final expense, and Medicare Supplement products. QLAdmin serves the entire policy lifecycle from new issue to termination with expert policy administration processing that is both comprehensive and easy to use. QLAdmin continues to evolve based on product and client needs ensuring extreme client longevity and satisfaction with QLAdmin products and support. QLAdmin is your proven partner in policy administration. www.qladmin.com
Equisoft
Equisoft is a business-first technology company dedicated to helping insurance and wealth management organizations reach their goals. Specialized expertise: Over 25 years of experience helping small and mid-sized life insurers & fraternals solve their biggest challenges through digital transformation. www.equisoft.com
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About The LIC Bullet
The Bullet is the official e-newsletter of the Life Insurers Council, which has been providing networking and practical business solutions for life insurers since 1910. As a council of LIMRA and LOMA, LIC serves the unique needs of small to midsize member companies, offering a personal network of peers with practical solutions to shared challenges. The Bullet delivers immediate and relevant industry news and editorial.
LIC E-News Online Community: As a networking organization, we welcome dialogue and input from our readers - therefore we are transitioning The Bullet to its new home in the LIC E-News online community at LICConnect. All Bullet subscribers have access to this forum, and others can request access by contacting lic@loma.org.
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Feature Editorial (Full Text)
A Multidimensional Universe
By Dean Lambert, Executive Director, LIC
I am just enough of a nerd to stop channel or Internet surfing when Neil deGrasse Tyson or Michio Kaku pop onto my TV or mobile device. Especially when they talk about multiple dimension theories. I am engrossed by "twin world" models, M-theory, cyclic theories, and black hole cosmology. Rooted both in quantum mechanics and philosophy, discussion revolves around the physical existence of different configurations or histories of our universe.
Meaning: Another version of you and everyone you have ever known exists or has existed simultaneously in another dimension of our universe. You don't have a doppelganger… you have 12 or more "gangers" living versions of your life right now.
What in the h-e-double-toothpick does this have to do with life insurance? Have I truly lost it?
Hear me out, I am getting to a strategic planning analogy.
What if multiple versions of your company existed in parallel dimensions? Despite being multiple duplicates, there may be variations based on conditional differences that influenced decision-making at certain points in the organization's lifespan. Not enough to materially change the company, but that may have caused different success curves or other trajectory characteristics. Can we apply this to strategic planning and tactical decision-making?
As mid-year approaches, some companies choose to perform an environmental scan for which several analyses are performed:
- Where did we want to be at this juncture of the year?
- Are we on track to achieve our overarching strategic plan?
- Is the plan still viable based on what is happening in the market today?
- Do we have the right people in the "right seats on the bus?"
- Any unanticipated barriers?
- Has anything distracted us to the point we inadvertently changed course?
These are the things that help your company in this universe moving in the intended direction. Failure to ask these questions and to address potential issues-including overachievement-can result in a version of your company you may not like. If you're a Seinfeld fan, you'd know this as "the Bizarro world." In the Bizarro world, things are different but maybe not better.
What I am talking about boils down to scenario planning. Actuaries and risk managers do this all the time; they model and re-model almost continuously, to quickly identify trends that may disrupt a company's financial plans. Strategic planning should examine multiple scenarios in the competitive and regulatory marketplace, so executive teams can be agile in responding to circumstances that are not necessarily under their control. Think about COVID and how quickly we had to develop and enable remote selling systems. Now, few could have ever imagined a disruptive event such as a pandemic-but we can now!
Multiple-dimension theories address the existence of versions of realities in the observable universe. Scientists use specialized technologies to predict and even see into these dimensions. What can you use to peer into your observable universe? In a way, other life carriers are versions of your company. Their cultures, operations and financial capabilities may vary, but their successes and failures are observable and useful indicators of what's going on "out there." Take time to think about all of the indicators that make up your guidance system. You'll be much more capable of determining if you should remain on course, need to make small moves, or try something more aggressive to achieve desired success.
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