Laura Van Vliet, CIP, CRM

Assistant Vice President, ALIGNED Insurance Inc., Waterloo, ON

In her first few years in the industry, Laura has emerged as a natural leader and mentor with noteworthy “integrity for the work she does, the company she works for, and the career she is thriving in,” says her nominator.

From her first role in the industry, as a Data Entry Clerk with McFarlan Rowlands, and with each successive role in her career, Laura has an inclination and aptitude to go above and beyond. When McFarlan’s acquired another brokerage, she volunteered to help transition the new staff on McFarlan’s policies and procedures and to provide training on their broker management system.

During Laura’s time at Cowan Insurance Group, as a Commercial Account Administrator, Construction, she stepped up to help with Cowan’s annual construction event for their clients and prospects. She led a team of 5 in preparing and managing the event, increasing attendance at the event by 100+ clients and prospects.

“In working with Laura, I found her to be a very pro-active, self-disciplined, engaging young professional. She is highly committed to her insurance career and demonstrates passion in everything she does,” comments one of her references.

Now as Assistant Vice President with ALIGNED Insurance Inc., Laura’s commitment to excellence and dedication and showing initiative was most recently noticed when she temporarily relocated to Calgary to assist with the launch and development of a new Calgary office, establishing the growth and expansion of ALIGNED’s business into Alberta, “Her commitment and passion for taking on the Calgary office is an excellent tangible example of taking on large challenges and task and we have no doubt she will be successful!” says Laura’s nominator.

Laura is a graduate of Conestoga College’s Business of Insurance program and has earned her Chartered Insurance Professional (CIP) designation, her Canadian Risk Management (CRM) designation, and is a licensed broker in ON, AB, and BC. One of Laura’s instructors from Conestoga College says: “I witnessed first-hand a young person with a desire to succeed, a willingness to learn, and a capacity to involve herself in the insurance community to better not only herself but all those she comes in contact with.”

Laura is passionate about the insurance industry and has presented to high school students, and sat on panels at Conestoga for new students in the General Insurance Program, promoting the benefits of a career in insurance. And when Career Connections was looking for a college graduate to be videotaped about their career in insurance, she didn’t hesitate to be featured in one of Career Connections promotional videos.

Outside of the insurance industry, Laura has a passion for sports and volunteering her time with charities. Laura created, and continues to coordinate, a memorial baseball tournament for a friend who passed away from cancer. In its five years, the tournament has raised $25,000, which has been donated to children’s cancer charities. She has also canvassed door to door for the Canadian Cancer Society and travelled to Thailand for Habitat for Humanity.

Laura has been described by one of her supporters as a “polished gem in our industry,” and for her exemplary dedication and mentorship, it is the CIP Society’s honour to recognize her with a National Leadership Award as an Emerging Leader in 2016.