When Philip Kewin started out as a clerical assistant in a reinsurance company in Sydney 35 years ago, the industry looked very different to what it does today. 

‘The role of the broker or adviser was to take care of everything, including all the paperwork and the transactions, and it was very manual-intensive. It was also expensive, because there were staff behind the scenes doing all of that,’ he says. 

Nowadays, many of these processes have been automated and, as a result, they are carried out much faster and with fewer errors. However, the emergence of digital brokers has left some worried about their long-term future.

‘There’s a lot of discussion around whether technology is replacing many of the functions of the broker, but I think it’s actually highlighted the value of personal advice,’ says Kewin.

‘I think the use of AI [artificial intelligence] is fantastic, and anything we can do to make the delivery of personalised cover more efficient is an advantage. It doesn’t replace the value of personal advice.’ 

People person

Kewin spent just six months in his financial services entry role before the penny dropped about where his real interests lay and he took up an opportunity at an insurance company.

‘I started to realise very early in my career that when I had direct contact with clients, I felt as though I was part of the solution — and that it was very fulfilling.’ 

Throughout his career, Kewin has sought out roles where he feels he can make the most impact. This, of course, includes his current role as CEO of the National Insurance Brokers Association (NIBA), which he describes as being a ‘senior servant’ to the association’s members.

‘I deal with the numbers because I have to — it is people I love dealing with most,’ he says.

Better together

Prior to taking the helm at NIBA in November 2021, Kewin was CEO of the Association of Financial Advisers (AFA). He took on the role when the industry was navigating a difficult time and adviser numbers were shrinking. Under his stewardship, there was significant growth in AFA membership.

‘I came in at a very fractured time, both for the industry and the association,’ he says. ‘The life insurance framework legislation and professional standards legislation had just been introduced. Some members felt that it wasn’t in their best interests and that the association hadn’t represented them.’

Kewin sought to repair some of the damaged relationships and to create a more cohesive industry voice. He approached federal minister Stuart Robert and was basically told, ‘You’re a fractured industry; we don’t know what you represent.’ 

Recalls Kewin: ‘I said, “Well, if I bring the other industry associations with us, will that enhance things?” The answer was yes. Then, when Jane Hume became the Minister for Financial Services [in 2020], we were all trying to get a meeting with her. And we said, “If we come together with the Financial Planning Association [FPA], would that make it easier?” And the answer again was yes. 

‘We agreed on a list of issues that we wanted to raise with the minister, and I believe this was a major factor in achieving the necessary extension to the deadlines for education standards.’

For the first time in a very long time, the industry came together to work collaboratively, including a host of different industry bodies such as the FPA, the Self-Managed Super Fund Association and the Stockbrokers and Financial Advisers Association. 

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