On June 3, the Swiss broker industry will gather at the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute in Rüschlikon for the Finanz und Wirtschaft Insurance Broker Forum. The agenda shows that it is no longer just about products and policies, but also about regulation, technology and the future of the profession.
The industry is in a phase of structural reorganization. Since the partial revision of the Insurance Supervision Act came into force, advisory services have become more formalized, documented and verifiable. Further training obligations and recertifications are therefore no longer just a sign of quality, but a prerequisite for market participation.
The Insurance Broker Forum 2026 is positioned precisely at this interface. The event brings brokers, insurers and regulators together in a common discussion space. The need for this is obvious: while regulation increases transparency, it also changes the cost structure and day-to-day work in companies. Brokers are increasingly becoming regulated financial intermediaries with a compliance infrastructure.
Digitization becomes operational
At the same time, the debate about digitalization is shifting. While strategic visions have dominated in recent years, operational implementation is now coming to the fore. The focus is on applications that change specific work steps: automated data collection, digital customer platforms or AI-supported pension analyses.
This raises a pragmatic question: which technologies actually reduce administrative effort and which merely create additional systems that need to be maintained? For brokers, this directly determines the profitability of their business model, as margins are primarily generated through efficiency in the preparation of advice.
The personnel issue as a business risk
Even more fundamental, however, is the demographic trend. Many brokerage firms are facing a generational change, while qualified young talent remains scarce. The industry is increasingly competing with banks, consultancies and technology companies for the same profiles.
The forum therefore addresses topics such as corporate culture, employer attractiveness and new working models. This is less an HR trend than a strategic necessity: without new consultants, a people-oriented consulting model cannot be maintained in the long term.
From policy salesman to risk consultant
The thematic expansion beyond traditional specialist issues is also striking. Cyber risks, decision-making skills under pressure and mental resilience are also included in the program. This signals a change in self-image. The broker is increasingly moving in the direction of risk manager and trusted advisor, whose value lies less in product knowledge than in classification and orientation.
The Insurance Broker Forum is thus becoming a barometer of the mood in an industry that needs to redefine its role. The central question is no longer how insurance is brokered, but what function advice will fulfill in the future in a market that is both more regulated and more automated.
Binci Heeb
Read also: New audit regime, old uncertainties – How the VAG revision is shaking up the industry
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