Headquarters: Ottawa, ON
Website: bmsgroup.com/canada
Tell us a little about your brokerage.
BMS Canada Risk Services was established in 2013 with a focus on delivering specialized insurance solutions and brokerage services. Through client referrals, we also launched and became the headquarters for BMS’ Global Affinity division, leveraging our value proposition and Canadian experience to build out teams and expand similar services into Australia, New Zealand and Spain. More broadly, BMS is a global specialist broker. We recently celebrated our 40th year of operation and continue to successfully expand and diversify each year.
What are your specializations?
BMS delivers specialized insurance solutions and brokerage services specifically in relation to structured programs and alternative risk facilities. We work with more than 70 national and provincial partner organizations, representing hundreds of thousands of policyholders. Over the past several years, we have continuously diversified our specialty-focused Canadian business, most recently adding a private equity M&A team. We also provide wholesale solutions and deliver consultancy and advisory services on alternate risk transfer opportunities.
What differentiates your brokerage from the competition?
Our business and culture are centred on our people, and as a professional service firm driven by human capital, our people are our greatest asset. By building a team of professionals with diverse skill sets and backgrounds, both within and outside of the industry, we have been able to deliver service and value to our clients and partners that is unique and authentic.
In addition to our focus on workplace culture, from the onset, we have empowered our employees through investment in technology with quote-and-bind platforms that enable a seamless and education- based user experience. This allows us to deliver value and remain focused on being a true specialist while supporting ongoing service delivery and positioning us for continued growth.
What accomplishments are you most proud of?
Since launching our operations in 2013, we have consistently maintained a more than 98% client retention rate and a 90% staff retention rate. We know these two metrics are closely linked and credit our success in large part to our exceptional and dynamic team.
What made 2020 a banner year for your brokerage?
In what was arguably the most challenging year for almost every profession, business and individual, it became more important than ever for a brokerage to deliver genuine and compassionate support, exceptional service and timely information. This is exactly what BMS Canada delivered to our clients and policyholders.
From mid-March 2020, BMS began working collectively with strategic partners to develop a suite of content to support a range of professionals and businesses. [We] worked with our partners to create and distribute more than 50 tailored resources to thousands of clients and across BMS’ wider network. In addition to providing written resources, we partnered with content experts to deliver a webinars and virtual information sessions on topics ranging from business and practice risk, health and well-being, and cyber and privacy considerations, reaching over 10,000 insureds.
Feedback has been incredibly positive, and we continue to see not only strong retention across our business, but also new business growth as a result of these efforts.
What’s the biggest challenge facing brokers in 2021?
Effective communication and the ability to manage client expectations. The shift in the market, along with changing client demo-graphics and expectations, brings both challenges and opportunities. Open and honest dialogue that is supported by evidence and communicated in advance of renewal dates is fundamental to maintaining longstanding relationships and to building sustainable growth.
Ongoing investment in technology is also essential, but not at the expense of human capital, which will continue to be at the centre of our business value. Brokers need to find the right combination of human interaction and technology to continue to deliver value in a timely and meaningful way.
