In tough times, searching for a new job is uniquely difficult because many organisations are laying off employees and traditional ways of hiring have been disrupted.

Massive job loss was observed in many industries, especially in travel and tourism-related job markets during the pandemic-marred years. 

Malaysia's unemployment rate ballooned to its peak at 5.3% in May 2020 - from 3.3% in February 2020 - during the first Movement Control Order (MCO), which was implemented from March to May last year, and the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) contracted in the second quarter by a staggering 17.1% year on year.

For 2020 as a whole, the year ended with an unemployment rate of 4.5%, the highest recorded since 1993, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).

The prospects for local employment remain bleak this year as Malaysia greeted 2021 with a return to another MCO (MCO 2.0) in January. This was followed by the imposition of MCO 3.0 in early May and the subsequent total lockdown starting from June 1, which has been extended until June 28, to stem the surge in Covid-19 cases and prevent more clusters from developing.

Yet, the pandemic has not stopped Allianz Life Insurance Malaysia Berhad (Allianz Life) from expanding its talent pool of agents. It has offered a carefully curated programme - the Allianz C.E.O (Career of Excellence and Opportunity) Programme - for those looking for a life-long career with the company.

Joseph Gross, CEO of Allianz Life, a subsidiary of Allianz Malaysia Berhad, says: "In Malaysia, we believe this is a good programme right now because there is a lot of insecurity in other industries and also retrenchments. So, people might say, 'I'm going to switch now and change my life, and move into insurance and become one of these CEO agents because I will represent a highly reputable company like Allianz Malaysia. I know they won't just throw me into the deep end and say, Go and sell, but they will train me and help me perform gradually."

The 24-month professional development programme will offer guaranteed monthly financial support of up to RM12,000 throughout the sessions, and participants will receive personalised coaching and mentoring from Allianz Life's management team. In return, the company will gain a high-quality agency force to grow the business, says Gross.

He notes that those who join the Allianz C.E.O programme are likely to be productive in sales, as they will be trained using proven success models by experts.

Despite the participants coming from different segments of society, with our support and training, they will have a high success rate to become a competent agent.

These are some of the statistics of the participants who signed up for the Allianz C.E.O. programme.

Allianz Life is also offering Malaysians a chance to earn passive income through another programme called Friends of Allianz programme, especially during these trying times.

Gross says all Malaysians are welcome to join the Friends of Allianz programme by signing up on the company's website. No exams, qualifications or commitments are needed to join the programme, and participants can earn uncapped potential income based on referral fees. 

This programme has been well received by Malaysians, with up to 20,000 participants having signed up for it. This programme has enabled Allianz Life to expand its distribution reach and ultimately grow our business, says Gross.

"This is a very suitable model for both Allianz Malaysia and Malaysians because, with the Covid-19 crisis, many people will have a cash crunch. It's normal to have economic distress as many sectors have closed. Even if a sector does not close or people are not unemployed, many people have to work with half or one-third of their salary. They cannot get full employment benefits because cash is being held back right now. This programme is therefore, a very convenient and helpful way to help people augment their income in today's world."

Gross hopes there will be more participants who can generate interest among their families and friends who, through this programme, may eventually consider becoming insurance agents as part of their future career path.

He stresses that the importance of the programme is to allow its agents to obtain new leads through the recommendation of participants, especially during the lockdown period when it is difficult to reach out to the community.

Gross says Allianz Life is looking to build a community for participants of the programme to keep the energy levels high. It plans to introduce a marketing campaign to motivate the participants that includes a session in which people can share tips, tactics and success stories.

Amid the pandemic, Allianz Malaysia has also introduced Allianz We Care Community initiative, which offers health and wellness rewards for Malaysians in facing the pandemic.

Members of the Allianz We Care community will receive among others, free access to telehealth support for medical advice via Allianz Careline, digitl health coaching programme and complimentary access to general practitioner consultation. 

For more information, you may speak to our agents or can visit here