Foresters Financial and Canada Protection Plan’s sales teams will be promoting both firms’ product lines as of January 1, 2021.
Michael Aziz, Chief Distribution Officer and Co-President of Canada Protection Plan, explained to the Insurance Portal that “The sales teams will become one come January 2021. We’re going to leverage both companies’ strengths.”
Foresters acquired Canada Protection Plan in October. The mutual life and health insurance company has insured the simplified and regular products designed by CPP for several years. The new company will operate under the brand Canada Protection Plan, a Foresters Financial company, and will be responsible for distributing all Foresters products in Canada.
“We’ll leverage our distribution to promote Foresters and the same will be done on the other side. It’s going to be a win-win situation for everyone, including the advisors and the consumers. Our goal is to make our advisors grow and to make sure to have more people serve our existing accounts,” Aziz explains.
The plan for 2021
He adds that the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted both companies to accelerate both their digital shift and the adoption of technology solutions by financial advisors.
At CPP, examples of this trend include the advent of e-signatures and electronic insurance policies. “Technology is the way to go,” Aziz says.
Aziz, who will retain his title of Chief Distribution Officer after the merger, declined to provide further details on the company's definite schedule for next year. He did stress that one of the priorities in 2021 will be to evaluate options for selecting the best technology systems for the combined company.
Shawn Hughes, Regional Vice President for Ontario Region at Foresters Financial, echoes this view. “I think the focus next year is really looking at the synergies, technology wise, and finding what’s the best technology platform that we can utilize going forward for both companies,” he told the Insurance Portal.
The two executives add that new products are in the pipeline for the new entity, but had no details to share for now.
