By Kelvin Egerue (08111813020)
There are two aspects of life worth paying attention to: our actions and the space between our actions. Dr Japhet Ogueri Duru is perhaps one of the few insurance practitioners in Nigeria who have made deliberate efforts at paying attention to both his actions and the space between every of those actions to the extent that his measured steps have always produced the desired results.
For Dr Japhet Duru, at the heart of sweetness is the conviction that there is always something positive to be found. Jeff as he is fondly called by friends and professional colleagues has always exhibited sweetness and positivity along his career path as an insurance professional of over three decades standing.
In his current position as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Universal Insurance Plc, Jeff is marching ahead with confidence which can only come from a huge depth of technical competence and infectiously admirable human relationship skills and finesse. Jeff is a likable person, a humble executive officer who has never allowed his glorious successes in the insurance market place to suck the better part of his humanity.
For those who have come to terms with the fact that insurance business is all about service and service delivery, they will find in Jeff Duru an overdose of satisfaction when dedication to industry rule, ethics and practice matter the most. Jeff maybe new on the saddle as the Managing Director of Universal Insurance Plc considering that he assumed office January this year, he has been long enough in the business of insurance as to qualify as one of the best practitioners. This and more is what he has brought to bear on the fortunes of Universal Insurance, a first generation insurance company which prides itself in containing generation of loyal and satisfied customer base.
Jeff has good reasons to accept leadership position at Universal Insurance Plc with its challenges as opposed to his comfort zone at Heirs Insurance Group where he held plethora of executive positions. Jeff likes taking on challenges because it is the outcome of such tasks that usually make him a better person.
“As at the first quarter of this year, we have produced N8.07 billion in terms of Gross Written Premium, and that was about 130% of our first quarter target. We are progressive, we are highly innovative, and bringing insurance to the doorstep of our customers with seamless operations, accessibility and affordability. Our products are highly affordable. You can try us and you will get the best service with peace of mind.”. This is a promise that Jeff has re-echoed at every of his sermons; a promise which he has never felt to keep, a standpoint which have continued to precipitate greater goodwill and increased customer base for Universal Insurance Plc.
With two Doctorate degrees from Lead City University, Ibadan and Charisma University in Turkey respectively, Jeff is a versatile and accomplished insurance industry executive with over 30 years of comprehensive experience within accomplished roles as Ag.MD/ CEO, Executive Director (Technical)/COO, GM/COO, Group Head, Technical, Head of Underwriting among other top executive appointments. He has successfully demonstrated expertise in strategic planning, operational leadership, risk management, and technical innovation within numerous organizations. Jeff possesses excellent ability to lead cross- functional teams, drive business growth, and ensure regulatory compliance. In all these, he is skilled in optimizing processes, enhancing client experience and implementing cutting-edge techniques to achieve organizational goals and objectives.
Those who have had the fortune of working with him in his numerous assignments will confess to the fact that the new helmsman at Universal Insurance Plc is very well experience in business policies, strategic development, planning and execution. He is excellent in operational management, leadership, process improvement and optimization. Jeff is good in stakeholder management and communication as well as change management control. Above all these, he is great in sales innovation and regulatory compliance just as he is in company risk management. He appears to be excellent in managerial planning, client relationship management and Industry-standard software operation
It is not as if Jeff dropped from the sky to inherit leadership position of Universal Insurance Plc for he had for five long months covering August to December 2024 understudied the immediate past Managing Director of the company. He it was that provided hands-on leadership and coaching on technical and all operational matters within the organization during that period. He developed, implemented and managed organizational strategies and initiatives for technical group as to increase profitability, he managed technical and administrative functions of the organization just as he was challenged with building and maintaining strong relationships with key stakeholders including customers, regulators, and underwriters to ensure the growth of the organization. Perhaps the high point of his services then which have come to aid his performance in his new position is that he was able to identify opportunities for process improvements and implemented solutions to enhance operational efficiency and costs reduction within the organization.
“Our initiatives and products include Shop insure cover. The shop insure cover was basically designed for shop owners and businessmen that operate businesses at a Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) level. It provides them with fire insurance cover, burglary, cover for personal injury and alternative accommodation during relocation. We have OkadaPass. This product was designed for companies, organisations that are into delivery, people that deliver products and services through bike. It’s an online or digital service provision for the delivery business. It covers the bike, the rider and the package, because the package can be of great value to the service providers and personal injury to the riders.
“Our initiatives also include our digital customer portal, mobile app through which our customers can access our products, get quotes, initiate renewals, and initiate claims. We have our digital chatbot or Artificial Intelligence (AI) driven chatbot and visual assistant. That is 24/7 services that will take the position of our service centers at any point in time. Our chatbot will deliver fantastic experience to the customers both chat and voice services” Dr Jeff had explained on the various factors which tend to be driving growth at Universal Insurance Plc.
These are knowledge which Jeff have had to draw from his many years of serving many insurance companies and serving clients of various background who present different risk profile. Jeff had previously worked for International Energy Insurance, Old Mutual Nigeria Insurance where he served as Executive Director Technical and acted as MD/CEO. He was the Chief Executive Officer of Heirs Insurance Brokers; he was an Executive Director at Heirs General Insurance up till 2024 when Universal Insurance Plc contracted his services.
Hear Dr Japhet Ogueri Duru talk about Universal Insurance Plc’s services; “We have our digital pre and post loss survey, especially for motor vehicles. Now the manual intervention in surveying or inspecting vehicles is no longer there, once you want to insure your vehicle. Our survey team will deploy the digital portal for the AI driven portal to you through your phone, and you will use your phone to do the physical inspection of your vehicle. Even when there is a claim, it will still be deployed to use it to do your inspection, and the information will come to our database, and we can see everything. It cut down fraud, cut down manpower and reduce cost and give you that excellent touch with speed of service for our claim delivery, these are part of the advantages that come from that service.” This can only come from someone like Jeff who understands his turf.
Newslinedaily…Your path to credible news
