Younger brokers will be able to gain presentation skills and mentoring strategies through a new professional development program offered by NIBA College.

The half-day program in September will contain a technical and a soft skills component, with two streams:

• For those new to broking, the soft skills session will focus on written and verbal communication, including how to present to clients and managers.

• For young brokers with several years of experience and who are managers or preparing for a management role, the soft skills emphasis will be on mentoring and strategies to guide staff.

Vero is sponsoring the program, and will provide specialists for the technical topics who will use real-life claims examples and tailor their presentation to the needs of each group.

National Insurance Brokers Association Professional Development Executive Linda Evans says the program has been developed in response to requests from members.

She says many younger people want to gain skills in client management while upgrading their technical skills, and others who have been in the industry a while and are moving into management roles want to learn about mentoring and coaching staff.

Suncorp EGM Intermediated Distribution Andrew Mair says the program, as well as Vero’s sponsorship of the Warren Tickle Memorial Award for the NIBA young professional broker of the year, is a way to invest in the future of the industry.

The sessions will be offered between September 6-8 in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.