ARC PEOPLE: MAISIE BURWOOD, SENIOR PARTNERSHIPS MANAGER

Hi Maisie, firstly could you explain your role and what it entails?

I’m a Senior Partnerships Manager and my role within the team is to manage several of our key partners, including Ageas, Aviva and Markerstudy. In addition, I support the wider team by sharing the knowledge that I’ve gained throughout my career in the insurance industry, and during my time with Arc Legal.

The frequency of communication with our partners varies between daily and weekly, so it’s very regular. As the first point of contact for my key partners, it’s important to build relationships with them so they can reach out to me if they have any questions or need support.

Could you also tell us a little bit about your background?

I cannot say that I had my heart set on joining the insurance industry; I didn’t leave school thinking I’d love to work in insurance. I actually left school and trained as a beauty therapist, something completely different!

I ended up in insurance by getting a summer job in a call centre with AXA in 2012 and spent a year there. When I was 18, I then took the plunge to work in the city with the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), where I developed my key interest and passion for the customer experience. I’d seen customers in really challenging situations and gaining that experience in the early part of my career has really helped me keep the customer at the heart of everything I do.

After working in London for three years, I joined Towergate in 2016 as a Development Executive, which was a little closer to home, and a year later joined Arc Legal as a Partnerships Executive. In 2022 I was promoted to Partnerships Manager and in 2023 I received a further promotion, to Senior Partnerships Manager.

What is Arc Legal’s approach to training and education and why is it important?

Training and education are a really important focus for Arc Legal. Changes within the market, specifically legislation, can have an impact on products, which can affect customer behaviour and claims performance. Regular training keeps our partners updated in terms of future claims trends, and provides them with insights into how our products need to change to adapt to new legislation, to ensure customers are receiving the best possible cover.

Product training is key. Before I started working in Legal Expenses Insurance (LEI) and ancillary insurance, to me, it was an add-on option to the wider insurance products that I had limited knowledge of. Providing training to our partners really helps increase awareness of how valuable LEI and ancillary insurance products are to customers.

What is the key to building a strong partnership with your insurer partners?

Building trust, because the conversations you’re going to have are not always going to be easy ones. It’s important for me to know my partners as individuals. You don’t jump straight into business; you need to know the client and build up their confidence in you.

What is your advice for people coming into the industry, and more specifically, what is your advice for younger people entering the market?

I would say take every single opportunity that comes your way. There are so many different avenues in insurance that you can explore; for example, throughout my career I’ve worked in various roles within claims, underwriting, complaints and relationship management. Definitely explore those opportunities so you can learn as much as possible and build up really strong industry knowledge.

The insurance industry is continuous learning, I still feel like I learn every single day. This is why when people fall into insurance, they often end up here forever. It’s very rare for someone to change industry once they’re in, there are many different roads the insurance industry can lead you down.

Why do you enjoy working at Arc Legal Group?

Without sounding too cliché, it really is the people. In every single department at Arc Legal there is a strong culture, and we’re all in it for the same end goal; to provide our partners, and by extension their customers, with a first-class service.

Specifically in my role, I enjoy interacting with different people. I’m a people person and get a lot of job satisfaction out of building strong relationships with my partners, working together with them to ensure we are providing customers with the best possible outcomes

It’s amazing that even though the company has rapidly grown in the last 20 years, everyone I speak to still refers to the fact that the three founders, Helen Withers, Frank O’Malley, and Richard Finan have created something special and it’s great to work in a business where their legacy is still felt today. It’s unique that the core values have remained the same since the beginning.

Finally, what are looking forward to getting up to this year?

I have a little cockapoo puppy who is seven months old, called Winnie. I’m looking forward to finding lovely new dog walks and having lunch in dog friendly pubs. We’re also hoping to go on our first doggy friendly staycation!

For further details on our products and services, please contact your Partnerships Manager or email enquiries@arclegal.co.uk.