National Transport Insurance (NTI) is to create an eight-strong “sustainability team”, providing insights, advice and value-add services as the underwriter readies for an industry shift towards more personalised insurance.

Chief Customer Officer Chris Hogarty will head the new team, which begins work in July, alongside Head of Claims Staci Clark – who recently celebrated 15 years at NTI – and six others.

“Ultimately, this is to make our strategy more competitive for the long term,” Mr Hogarty told insuranceNEWS.com.au.

“We’re trying to lead what we think insurance should look like in the future because it will change from annual policies based on aggregate information. It will become much more personalised and, as a result, it will have to be more tailored as well.”

NTI has already engaged with long-term customers on an experimental basis and has identified customers who are willing to discuss its culture and people advisory program.

The precise details of propositions to be offered and how they will be delivered are still being established.

But NTI says the sustainability team’s propositions will be designed to foster business resilience, and are not built around insuring assets but around engaging with customers to make sure their operations are stronger and their people safer.

Offering services to mitigate “people risk” in human resources and industrial relations is a possibility.

“We don’t believe insurance is going to become irrelevant, but insurance is going to very much change,” Mr Hogarty said.

“We’re playing a long game and this is a purpose-driven effort. We want to demonstrate how investment in technology and culture will have a positive benefit.

“We want to have demonstrable impact back to the industry and to say, ‘With new insight about how your business is performing, how can we support you?’ ”

The team hopes that by engaging with customers and encouraging better cultures and risk management, there will eventually be a bottom-line impact for the insurer.

“Long term, it is about actually providing insights, advice and hopefully more value-added services,” Mr Hogarty says.