Are you an introverted learner?

At least one-third of the people we know may be too shy to raise their hands to this question. 

All of us are introverts to some degree. We may quietly listen to our peers while our fellow students rake in the group participation grades. We sweat buckets at the idea of presenting our ideas and research in front of a classroom. The very idea of teamwork fills us with dread and anxiety.

If you are an introvert, or even if you are an insanely busy extrovert, independent study at the Insurance Institute is an excellent way to continue your professional development and earn a Chartered Insurance Professional (CIP) designation. 

“We understand at the Institute that people learn in different ways and that you are all very busy with your schedules,” CIP instructor Annette Palalas says in a video explaining various learning options at the Institute. “We have [independent study] for those people who want to learn at their own pace, or just prefer to learn on their own.” 

Register for a CIP course through independent study and get all of your course materials by mail. For the truly shy among us, introverted learners can communicate with the Institute — and even submit tests — by email. The only time you’ll be among the crowd is when you write the same CIP national exam as the Institute’s in-class and virtual learning students.

The Institute can accommodate many types of learners, whether introverted or extroverted.

Maybe for you as an extrovert, group participation is how you roll. Perhaps nothing is better for you than engaging in a rollicking classroom discussion, or bouncing ideas off course instructors and facilitators, whether in person or online.

For those so inclined, the Institute’s many learning options can bring people together to learn from each other. If you like learning with your peers, for example, but your work schedule is crammed, virtual learning is available for those who are too busy to attend a physical classroom. In a virtual classroom, you can log in to a course and speak to classmates online or talk to your instructors on chat. 

And of course you can get the live physical experience in Institute classrooms across the country.

Have any questions? Don’t be shy (seriously!). Contact us and we can help you match your learning preference with our independent study program or other modes of learning.     

Insurance is a knowledge-based business.

Thanks to your Chartered Insurance Professional (CIP) designation, you have a solid technical know-how of Canada’s property and casualty insurance industry. But should your knowledge stop there?

Expanding your network of professional relationships is bound to give you a broader appreciation of the strategic intricacies of p&c insurance business. Talking to people knowledgeable in their fields is also an important part of developing yourself personally and professionally.

That’s why insurance professionals like Kelly O’Keefe and Jacob Wagner have taken the plunge to become FCIPs.

The Insurance Institute’s Fellow Chartered Insurance Professional (FCIP) designation program offers a comprehensive p&c business education. The six-course program culminates in a ‘Capstone’ project, in which you apply everything you learn and lead a highly relevant research or business project at your workplace. 

O’Keefe, a section manager of accident benefits at Desjardins General Insurance Group, was initially nervous about the online structure of the FCIP program. She had been out of school for 15 years, and was used to doing independent study as a means of professional development.

With the support of her company’s leadership, she signed up for the FCIP. Having completed the first four courses of the program, she has learned a great deal from the online group work and communication with colleagues from across the country.

“I had to reach out to executives, to people on the Desjardins banking side,” said O’Keefe, whose expertise lies mainly in the claims side of the business. “I’ve learned from conversations I’ve had with other class participants who represent a wide range of areas, experiences, and tenure. There are people from all different aspects of the industry in the FCIP program. It’s been really fascinating to talk to them and learn from them.”

Jacob Wagner, an aviation underwriter at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty Americas, just finished the FCIP course work. He came up with a successful growth strategy for his company’s aviation line based on online discussions with his fellow FCIP candidates, as well as the concepts he learned in the course materials.

“The strategy course was tremendously applicable to the [Capstone] project I was doing, because I was able to take those theories, the data we have in the marketplace and those discussions with other FCIP candidates and combine all of those things to come up with a strategy,” said Wagner. “And so far I feel that strategy has been successful. That was the coolest thing to see, applying what you’ve learned.”

Are you interested in learning from the national conversation of FCIP candidates across the country? Want to know what’s involved?

Join our national FCIP webinar on Tuesday, May 16 at 1.30 pm EST. 

Kelly O’Keefe and Jacob Wagner will be on hand as webinar panelists to answer your questions about how the FCIP can help you develop yourself personally and professionally.

Plus, Bob Tisdale, president and chief operating officer of Pembridge Insurance Company, offers his insights as a leading insurance executive on the benefits of an education beyond your CIP.

Please see the Institute’s website for more information about the FCIP program     

Since its launch in May, our report, Automated Vehicles: Insurance Implications for the Insurance Industry in Canada, has received over 2,000 downloads and national media attention.

The report raises many important questions that the insurance industry will need to address in the next 5-10 years to prepare for automated vehicles on Canadian roads. While 5-10 years seems far away, recent announcements like Uber’s plan to test its ridesharing service with driverless cars as an experiment in Pittsburgh and the fatal Tesla crash in early July shows that while automakers and consumers are ready for automated vehicles, the insurance industry still has many questions to answer.

The purpose of the report is to address the burning questions that will affect road safety, the cost of repairs, and the ethical issues related to automated vehicles. It is important for the insurance industry to begin now to prepare for the extensive changes automated vehicles is expected to ultimately bring to the industry.

These articles reference our report and provide you with even more insight about the insurance and road safety implications of automated vehicles in Canada:

Interactive media and articles related to automated vehicles

What will an accident free future look like? View an interactive timeline exploring what the future may look like if driverless cars take over the roads by the middle of the century. (works best on Chrome)

Google Self-Driving Car Project - Watch the Google car navigate through city streets

Steeri self-driving car parody – You’ve already seen what Siri can do for your phone; watch this video to see what Steeri can do for your car

Are humans prepared for the driverless car? Listen to this podcast that discusses the fascinating phycology behind the way humans respond to technology.

Driverless cars in movie and television history. See the top 10 most memorable driverless cars in movie and television history.

Consumers are ready for automated vehicles, but is the insurance industry? Read about the new
Tesla Model 3 and the consumer support behind its semi-autonomous “Autopilot” hardware. Learn more about the report, Automated Vehicles: Implications for the Insurance Industry in Canada.

Keep the conversation going on Twitter at #automatedishere.

If you have any questions or comments about the upcoming automated vehicles report, contact us at iicmail@insuranceinsitute.ca.