When did you first hear about Equipsme?
I’ve known about Equipsme from the very beginning, and I’ve known some of the team including Matthew Reed and Gavin Shay for many years. So I’ve been watching the business grow from the sidelines with great interest.
Introducing any new product to an established market is a long, hard slog, but Equipsme’s growth story - particularly over the last couple of years - has been remarkable.
It’s now on the radar of and working in partnership with the biggest benefits brokers in the business, winning huge contracts from the jaws of PMI competitors - and winning awards for its innovation and delivery.
What made you decide to take on the role of chair?
Well for one thing, I was asked, which was very flattering, but it also seemed it was the right moment for me to actually add some value as Equipsme continues to scale up.
What are your priorities for the role?
It’s my role as Chair to steer the business to where it needs to go. I’ve been in the industry for longer than I care to admit, and I have lots of contacts around the industry. My job is to push where the business needs to push, pull back where it needs to pull back - and be that grey hair, I suppose, helping the business grow.
Equipsme has been a bit of a best kept secret for quite some time, but it’s now time for us to shout about what we do, how we do it - and who we’re doing it for. The opportunities are endless.
Why is now such a great moment for Equipsme?
Well a combination of things. It doesn’t sit well, but the NHS is not doing the job we would all want it to do, and people are struggling to get the attention they need. Workplaces are feeling that very acutely - and they want to step in to do more for more of their people.
That’s where Equipsme comes into its own. It takes up this middle ground between traditional PMI and things like cash plans.
What makes Equipsme special?
Equipsme is great because it’s providing cover to those employees who are all too often left out of such an important health and wellbeing benefit.
One of the weaknesses of PMI is that it has typically been the preserve of the executive and board of directors. The rest of the workforce have been left to fend for themselves – and that just doesn’t cut it anymore.
There has been a lack of innovation, and the market needs to evolve with the needs of modern businesses and modern workforces. What Equipsme has done is create a new product that sits right in the middle, and helps plug that gap.
Equipsme plans offer choices to help make it cost-effective enough to cover more or even all employees, and practical enough to really respond to those key causes of sickness absence.
What’s the message for the insurance industry?
PMI has always been on the periphery of the insurance industry, and not really thought about alongside those core commercial products – but that’s changing, I think. For so many businesses, the health of their people is now a core concern, and brokers are waking up to the fact they need to be talking to them about PMI alongside other business and protection products.
The fact Equipsme has something that’s different to what they’ll have known about PMI before is reason in itself for the wider industry to take another look, and have another conversation with us.
What’s the message for businesses?
HR Directors should be looking at Equipsme because it’s a potential solution for so many of the challenges they face, from sickness absence to recruitment, retention and staff engagement.
Equipsme helps get people back to work quicker, but it’s also a great attraction to get great people to join you – and encourage them to stay once they do.
I think that double benefit is incredibly valuable, because with a happy and healthy workforce your business is going to go further, faster.
What does the future look like?
Well the future bodes well, as I recently put in my Chair statement! The uninsured population in the UK is huge, and there’s just so much business for us to go for – and so many businesses that really need these plans to protect their people.
It's a tremendously exciting time, and I’m delighted that I get to be a part of it.
