The Direct to Consumer Model Is Disrupting the Traditional Life Insurance Business Model

Only available as part of a package

Several key market trends have encouraged the development and launch of direct to consumer business models over the last few years. The presenters will look at the impact this is having on traditional business models and the potential it has to open up growth paths to target markets. They will cover several new entrants coming to market aiming to solve specific industry gaps and/or create new opportunities in distribution, risk assessment, customer engagement and the consumer buying experience.

At the conclusion of the session, attendees will understand the degree to which innovation in data and technology is transforming the industry and positioning it for new growth opportunities, for example in the health and wellness space. They will have a perspective on the need for the industry to embrace change and partner with players from within and outside the industry to succeed in a changing landscape.

Manisha Dias, FSA, CERA, FCIA (Moderator)

AVP Business Development, Strategic Partnerships, SCOR

Manisha Dias, FSA, CERA, FCIA, leads the end-to-end development of new protection offerings for the U.S. Market by bringing together carriers, distributors and other ecosystem partners through the stages of ideation, strategy, distribution, pricing, underwriting design, tech and execution. She is focused primarily on creating direct-to-consumer and digitally-enabled solutions for underserved markets. Dias holds a bachelor’s degree in actuarial science with finance from the University of Waterloo. She is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries (SOA) and of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries (CIA).

Bruce Fuller, FSA, CFA, MAAA

Vice President, M Financial

Bruce Fuller, FSA, CFA, MAAA, has spent his entire career within the life insurance field, focusing primarily on finance and risk management. In his current role, he is a vice president for a distribution owned financial services organization. Fuller is primarily responsible for overseeing the daily operations of the M Financial Group’s agent-owned reinsurance company, providing support for product development efforts, and managing aspects of the distribution owner relationship within M.

Christopher John Hessenius, FSA, CERA, MAAA

Sr Pricing Actuary, PartnerRe

Christopher Hessenius has extensive experience in life insurance product development and pricing. He is currently a Senior Pricing Actuary at PartnerRe where he is responsible for a broad range of tasks including business development, pricing, and research. Christopher specializes in the development and pricing of new products and his interests bringing innovative solutions to market that will enable more individuals to purchase life insurance and reduce the protection gap in America Prior to joining PartnerRe, he was head of product development and pricing for John Hancock’s direct to consumer (DTC) life insurance business. He led a team that was responsible for all aspects for DTC product development from application to issue. This included application simplification, streamlining of underwriting, and methods to drive customer engagement post-issue. Prior to leading DTC product development, Christopher supported specialty product development at John Hancock which included proprietary products for high net worth clients, COLI/BOLI, and international universal life products. In addition, Christopher has led pricing initiatives for VUL and joint-life UL products. Christopher is a graduate of Providence College where he studied mathematics and quantitative economics

Jason M. Krasula

Jason Krasula is the Head of Distribution and Strategy at Haven Life. He holds his Bachelor's degree from Miami University and his Master's in Business Administration from University of Connecticut. He also holds a CLU and is currently finishing his MIT certificate in Strategy and Innovation.

As head of Distribution and Strategy, Jason is actively looking for new partnerships who wish to provide their customers an all digital and modern type of life insurance.