Canada’s insurance industry is grappling with a deepening talent shortage as experienced professionals near retirement and too few younger workers enter the field, according to Ray Chaaya (pictured), vice-president and head of talent at Zurich Canada.
“I think the industry definitely has a talent challenge,” Chaaya said. “There is a wide proportion of the industry that is looking at retirement right now, within the next five years, and we just don’t have enough of the younger generation coming in through the talent pipelines.”
That demographic imbalance, he explained, is creating a shortage across much of the sector. The challenge becomes even more acute in technical and specialist areas that were already difficult to staff.
He pointed to actuarial roles and specialized underwriting lines – particularly marine and energy – as areas where employers face severe recruitment pressure. “You already had a limited pool, and now that pool is even more limited; you have almost nobody in it,” he said.
As more experienced workers approach retirement, the shortage of qualified replacements could have long-term implications for the industry’s expertise base. Chaaya noted that niche technical positions are especially vulnerable because they rely on accumulated knowledge that takes years to build.
From Zurich’s perspective, Chaaya said the causes of the talent shortage run deeper than demographics. The problem, he explained, begins with access – who can realistically enter the insurance industry in the first place.
Chaaya said the insurance industry operates within a long-standing cycle that limits who can enter it. In many cases, opportunities are available only to people who already have industry connections, prior knowledge of insurance, or a post-secondary education, leaving others effectively excluded from the field.
That limited entry path, Chaaya noted, effectively narrows the talent pool before recruitment even begins.
If you don’t have an education, it automatically becomes very difficult for you to get a job in insurance, he said. “And if you don’t have an education, and you don’t have any awareness about the industry, you are not likely to ever have a job in insurance,” he said.
“There’s an access issue there that we have to look at broadening,” Chaaya said. “We need to make sure that individuals have access to our industry talent pipelines.”
In addition to access, he identified awareness as an equally significant barrier. “If you don’t know that the insurance industry exists, you can’t aspire to be part of that industry,” he said. He explained that for many people outside the industry, insurance isn’t even on the radar – they search for jobs without realizing that viable career opportunities exist in the sector at all.
He emphasized that the industry must take greater responsibility for raising awareness beyond its existing networks, reaching people who have little exposure to or understanding of insurance as a career path.
Chaaya said Zurich recognized the industry’s access and awareness gap several years ago and began developing initiatives to address it. One of the company’s longest-running efforts, the Zurich Insurance Pathway (ZIP) Program, partners with the United Way to connect underrepresented and equity-deserving youth with entry points into insurance careers. The program combines 12 weeks of foundational training with a 12-week paid internship at Zurich or participating broker partners, giving participants industry knowledge, practical experience, and professional connections that are often out of reach for newcomers.
Chaaya said that bringing new entrants into the industry is only the first step – ensuring they are supported and developed once they arrive is just as critical. Accessibility alone, he explained, does not guarantee inclusivity or long-term retention.
“Accessibility is not inclusivity,” he said. “Just because you bring somebody into the industry and into the company doesn’t mean that the company is ready to support, grow, and develop that person in an inclusive manner.”
He emphasized that organizations must be intentional about identifying and nurturing potential rather than relying solely on prior experience or education. That process, he noted, starts with defining what potential looks like – the skills, values, and behaviors that signal long-term capability – and then embedding that understanding into recruitment and development practices.
Once new hires enter the workforce, he added, their growth should be supported through structured learning pathways that turn early promise into expertise over time. The goal, he said, is to take individuals from entry-level recruits to seasoned industry professionals through deliberate, consistent development.
