Insurance underwriter to insurance risk consultant
An insurance underwriter already meets 58% of what the insurance risk consultant role asks for. The move turns on 6 required skills not yet in the profile.
41.8/ 100
1 How much of what an insurance risk consultant is expected to do is already part of an insurance underwriter’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the insurance risk consultant role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An insurance risk consultant role treats 8 of its required skills as things an insurance underwriter already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- actuarial science
- analyse financial risk
- analyse insurance risk
- estimate damage
- insurance law
- obtain financial information
What stands in the way is 6 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 19 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An insurance risk consultant role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an insurance underwriter background worth leading with.
- already held calculate insurance rate information skills
- already held create underwriting guidelines information skills
- already held decide on insurance applications management skills
- already held claims procedures business, administration and law
- already held review insurance process information skills
- already held create insurance policies communication, collaboration and creativity
All 19 carried skills, including the 8 the insurance risk consultant role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 13 missing skills fall into 4 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn conduct financial surveys required
- still to learn advise on risk management required
- still to learn perform risk analysis required
- optional, not held compile statistical data for insurance purposes optional
- optional, not held create risk maps optional
- optional, not held produce materials for decision making optional
- optional, not held apply statistical analysis techniques optional
- optional, not held perform debt investigation optional
- still to learn risk identification required
- optional, not held debt systems optional
- still to learn survey techniques required
- optional, not held statistics optional
- still to learn prepare survey report required
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an insurance risk consultant role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 conduct financial surveys practise this
- 02 advise on risk management practise this
- 03 perform risk analysis practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 19 skills that carry over
- already held actuarial science knowledge
- already held analyse financial risk skill
- already held analyse insurance risk skill
- already held estimate damage skill
- already held insurance law knowledge
- already held obtain financial information skill
- already held principles of insurance knowledge
- already held types of insurance knowledge
- already held calculate insurance rate skill
- already held claims procedures knowledge
- already held collect property financial information skill
- already held create insurance policies skill
- already held create underwriting guidelines skill
- already held decide on insurance applications skill
- already held modern portfolio theory knowledge
- already held organise a damage assessment skill
- already held provide support in financial calculation skill
- already held review insurance process skill
- already held synthesise financial information skill
7 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held compile statistical data for insurance purposes optional
- optional, not held create risk maps optional
- optional, not held produce materials for decision making optional
- optional, not held apply statistical analysis techniques optional
- optional, not held debt systems optional
- optional, not held perform debt investigation optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
33 held skills the insurance risk consultant role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role analyse insurance needs skill
- not needed by the target role apply technical communication skills skill
- not needed by the target role assess customer credibility skill
- not needed by the target role assess financial viability skill
- not needed by the target role assist in loan applications skill
- not needed by the target role business loans knowledge
- not needed by the target role communicate with customers skill
- not needed by the target role compare property values skill
- not needed by the target role conduct financial audits skill
- not needed by the target role create a financial plan skill
- not needed by the target role create cooperation modalities skill
- not needed by the target role credit control processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role develop investment portfolio skill
- not needed by the target role ensure proper document management skill
- not needed by the target role examine credit ratings skill
- not needed by the target role explain financial jargon skill
- not needed by the target role financial statements knowledge
- not needed by the target role handle financial disputes skill
- not needed by the target role identify clients' needs skill
- not needed by the target role inform on renting agreements skill
- not needed by the target role insurance market knowledge
- not needed by the target role interpret financial statements skill
- not needed by the target role manage contract disputes skill
- not needed by the target role manage contracts skill
- not needed by the target role manage financial risk skill
- not needed by the target role market analysis knowledge
- not needed by the target role negotiate loan agreements skill
- not needed by the target role perform property market research skill
- not needed by the target role prepare financial auditing reports skill
- not needed by the target role property law knowledge
- not needed by the target role real estate market knowledge
- not needed by the target role real estate underwriting knowledge
- not needed by the target role review investment portfolios skill
4 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn risk identification required
- still to learn survey techniques required
- optional, not held debt systems optional
- optional, not held statistics optional
Common questions about this move
Can an insurance underwriter become an insurance risk consultant?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. An insurance underwriter already covers 58% of what an insurance risk consultant is expected to do: 19 skills carry over, 8 of which the insurance risk consultant role treats as required.
What skills does an insurance underwriter need to become an insurance risk consultant?
6 required skills are missing, plus 7 optional ones. They fall into 4 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is conduct financial surveys.
How hard is the move from insurance underwriter to insurance risk consultant?
Its learning distance is 41.8 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.