About Md. Kazim Uddin
Mr. Md. Kazim Uddin is a renowned person in life insurance sector in Bangladesh. He started life insurance career in May 1987 in the development-side in National Life Insurance Co. Ltd. Mr.Kazim is a popular motivational speaker in Life Insurance industry in Bangladesh.
He worked in National Life Insurance Company in various senior positions. Prior to being the CEO (Chief Executive Officer) he had been serving as DMD (Deputy Managing Director) in the same company. National Life is a leading Life Insurance Company in the Life Insurance Market of Bangladesh.
Mr.Kazim obtained higher training both at home and abroad. He completed his MBA from The University of Cumilla. Mr.Kazim travelled various countries and participated in many life insurance Seminars and Training sessions.
In December 2021, Mr.Kazim Uddin awarded as Best CEO of South Asia in Insurance sector which has been given by South Asian Partnership Summit (SAPS).
Q. Recently you were awarded the best CEO award in Insurance Sector. What has been your recipe of success?
Ans: Any award is recognition of work; these two international awards will motivate me to work harder. The COVID-19 period from 2020 to 2022 had a damaging affect on Bangladesh’s insurance industry, but National Life Insurance was amongst the few to achieve positive growth by 12% and 19% respectively – indicating the sturdy financial base it has developed. No insurance company in the whole South Asia has had premium growth like National Life, only National Life has achieved unprecedented success during this time of Corona. National Life paid around Tk. 882 crore and 1051 crore insurance claims in the year 2021 and 2022. Hard work and quick claim settlement is the recipe of our success.
Q. National Life Insurance is one of leading private life Insurance company in Bangladesh. How has been the journey so far and future plans of the company.
Ans: National Life began operation with 11 staffs with a head office covering few hundred sq. ft. of area at Segunbagicha, Dhaka; but today manpower enrollment has reached more than 4,500 office staffs and one lac field forces covering about 1200 zonal, regional, branch and block offices all over the country. The head office of the company is at the ‘NLI Tower’- own high rise building at Kawranbazar, at a significant artery point of Dhaka metropolitan.
The company has grown & developed massively and substantially over a period of about 38 years. The company has diversified its products to match customers’ needs and preferences. Currently it provides multifarious life assurance products to cater the aspirations & needs as well as religious beliefs of the clients. Benefits to the policyholder of NLI are high as they are now enjoying high level rate of policy bonus compared to other competent companies.
My future plan for life insurance is to bring more people under insurance by providing maximum customer service. As you know, the program of bringing 400 low-income people under National Life Insurance in Kalsindur village of Bogra was completed on 4th November 2021 in the presence of the Hon’ble Planning Minister under the Governments Rural Development and Poverty Alleviation Programme. In this way, through insurance premiums, the small savings of people across the country will be mobilized to accelerate the country’s economy and increase the contribution of the insurance sector to the GDP.
Q. The insurance penetration rate is very low in Bangladesh accounting to only .5%. According to you what is the major reason of low penetration and what opportunities you see in future to bring more and more people under insurance net.
Ans: No one can deny that insurance penetration is low in Bangladesh. The main factors contributing to low penetration are
- Lack of financial literacy in general and apathy towards insurance in particular.
- Product development capabilities have not been upgraded.
- Alternative Channels are not properly used.
- Insurers feel, more the agents, greater should be the business.
- Insurers believe that an insurance company is nothing but a marketing organization.
- Insurers are neglecting rural/social sector.
- No co-operation among insurers alongside the competition.
National Insurance day is very important in the development of insurance sector. In view of this the day is officially celebrated every year in a grand manner, in which the higher administration of the government is involved and the people of all levels are also involved, as the promotion campaign of the insurance sector is increasing a lot, as a result this day will help in increasing the penetration of insurance.
Q. Good Customer Service is the backbone of any life Insurance company. What is the philosophy of your company in proving good customer service and what’s stands you apart from other life insurers in Bangladesh.
Ans: National Life is trusted in the life insurance sector by our commitment to customer service in providing professional, friendly, timely service and especially timely payment of insurance claims. We are trying to handle all customer queries and complaints. To provide better service to the customer we are using multiple communication channels. We have already started customer call center, one stop customer service and mobile apps for deliver quick service to our valuable customer. Our company always implements and conducts activities with the cooperation of the government. Hence, National Life has won the ICSB National Award for Corporate Governance Excellence and ICMAB Corporate Award by the Institute of Chartered Secretaries of Bangladesh and Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of Bangladesh respectively for best claim settlement service, National life has received prestigious award from Honorable Prime Minister.
Q. The recent pandemic was a tough time for any business in the world. How did you manage to continue your business and provide seamless service inspite of lockdown and other challenges?
Ans: Corona has had a negative impact on the insurance sector like other sectors. But we are an exception. During the Corona period, we reached out to most of the customers and paid their cheque. In this, how long ago the customer had the insurance, how much money he got back with the bonus now, as the claim was paid in the presence of the customer’s relatives and prominent people of the village, as a result of which everyone present became interested in the insurance after seeing the benefits of the insurance. During corona, we paid Tk. 799 crore of claims of 1 lakh 88 thousand customers, due to which we earned Tk. 1201 crore of premium and in 2021 we paid Tk. 872 crore of claims of 2 lakh policyholders. As a result of which I was able to earn a premium of Tk. 1422 crore in 2022. Companies that have paid their claims on time have not been affected by Corona and our company has not been affected by Corona.
Q. What is the turnaround time for launching a new product in Bangladesh with regulatory approvals? Is your company planning to launch any innovative product soon?
Ans: The turnaround time for launching a new product in Bangladesh with regulatory approvals approximately 02(two) months. Recently we have launched monthly deposit insurance by rating sum assured against multiple premiums for term 5 years to 25 years. Now we are working to introduce insurance for senior citizen, online term insurance, and extended coverage life insurance products. Moreover, in near future we will modify our product by using Bangladesh Assured Lives Mortality Table(2015-2018) and Bangladesh Morbidity Table(2015-2018).
Q. In current scenario technology is the backbone for better product distribution, good customer service, timely claim management and efficiency in operations. How is your company planning to utilise technology to give your customers a better experience.
Ans: Digital services in the insurance sector have grown more than before. IDRA informs customers about insurance through Unified Messaging Platform (UMP). In today’s era of digitalization, all information of insurance companies is dependent of IT. Policy related information of any company is known on the website and customers get policy information and services through Apps as well. After COVID-19 we are trying to build a digital business environment like digitalization in sales(E-marketing), underwriting and consumer service, seek new market opportunities like specific simple and cheap short-term online-based product.
Q. Continuous Training and development of employees and field force is the core for growth of Life Insurance Company. What is the philosophy of your company to empower your people with latest tools and techniques so that they are well equipped to face the market challenges and grow as well?
Ans: Today, the major challenge for the Life Insurance Company is to develop the special skills and competencies in their employees to meet effectively and efficiently with various technological advances and increasing company competencies. We are trying to take necessary actions for the development of various skills employees like, how to deal with a potential customer to sell life insurance policy..
Q. Any other development you would like to share
Ans: Every person being covered by insurance means being financially secure. To contribute to the economy and increase employment by increasing the contribution of the insurance sector of the GDP of the country by taking effective initiatives to increase the penetration of insurance. I want to see a happy, prosperous and insurance friendly developed Bangladesh, where people’s economic security and fundamental rights will be upheld.
