ICMIF

Participation in Young Leader
Program (Report)
JCIA Research Department

This is a report about the participationof the ICMIF Young Leader Program on26 May 2021.
This program was the first to be held at
the ICMIF Biennial Conference 2017 inLondon, and the second to be held at theConference 2019 in Oakland.

1.Introduction
The Young Leaders Program is mainly targetedat young leaders (18-35 years old) who areexpected to be leaders of the member companies ofthe ICMIF. The purpose of the program is toprovide opportunities for youth leaders in theICMIF to expand their networks and learn about
various issues affecting the insurance industry, as
well as the philosophy and strategies of member
organizations.
The past two programs were actually held, but
this time it was held online due to the influence of
COVID-19, and the program was limited to
exchanging opinions with the CEO of the member
companies.

P.44 Cooperative and Commercial Insurance 2021.10

Shinya Kuga

The meeting was 16 CEOs from members fromall over the world, and about 150 young leadersfrom over 50 member companies (from Japan, fivemember organizations and 14 young leaders).
The Participants were divided into 16roundtables and exchanged opinions with the CEO.
It was a roundtable I attended of 12people intotal, the CEO was Mr. Chris Black of the Farmers
Mutual Group (FMG) in New Zealand, and theyoung leaders were 3 people from the Philippines, 1
people from Hong Kong, and 7 people from Japan.
The breakdown of Japanese participants wereZenkyoren(2), Kokumin Kyosai Coop (2),Kyosuiren(1) ,JCIF(1) and JCIA(1).

2. Exchange of views with CEOs
At the roundtable, CEO answered eachquestions from all leaders in turn. I was not goodat English conversation, so I could rely on aconference interpreter.
Young leaders asked Mr. Black various
questions such as SDGs efforts, differentiationfrom other companies, response to COVID-19,
and how to become a good leader.
In Mr. Black's comment, theone that most touched my heart
was, "In the end, the good
person will win. That is, theperson who has a good
personality and good values
will be the winner. It's also
important to keep things simple
and not make thingscomplicated”. " Keep it simple
with good values.” I felt that itYoung Leader Program Report

was exactly same as the spirit of mutual aid ofcooperatives and the Kyosai business itself.
of the cultures of their respective countries.

3. Impressions of participation in theprogram
As mentioned above, the program wasequipped with simultaneous interpretation, so I
was able to participate without feeling too
much of a language barrier. However, if I could
convey my thoughts well in English, I think I
could have made the content more fulfilling by
not only receiving explanations from the CEO
but also deepening discussions on them.
In addition, it was a little regrettable that wewere not able to interact with each other. It wasimpossible to create a network among theyoung leaders, such as past two meetings.
Online events may have limitations. I think it
would be better if the participants have theopportunity to share the differences and ideas
Questions from Young

I had never had the opportunity to discuss directlywith the top management, and staffs of ICMIF
members outside Japan, so it was a very valuable
experience.
There are differences in environment and culture
between countries, but I was able to infer throughtheir questions that, the spirit of mutual aid in cooperatives and mutual organizations is important,like we do so. And they are also working on thebusiness while having challenges such as how torealize insurance that seems to be a cooperative.

The Young Leader Program is a valuable
opportunity for direct discussions with CEOsaround the world, and I hope many young leaders
will take an active part in the program.

Comments from Chris Black

Staff

Efforts of the SDGs

It is important for the SDGs to start by selecting the areas (closest tothe 17) in which they can be found within the business, rather than byfocusing on many areas of performance.

About leaders

There are many types of leaders, so anyone can become leaders. It is
important to be a better listener. My leadership style is positive,active, and hard work.

Differentiation from othercompanies and winning thehighest customer satisfactionaward

We value direct relationships with our customers. We strive torespond quickly to customer calls within 10 seconds and to form ateam that can reach the customer immediately by car. In addition to
the free advice, we also actively held events to provide opportunities
for young farmers to gather.

P.45 Cooperative and Commercial Insurance2021.10