Interview: Ricardo Madrid Janeiro - MAWDY and the Mexican market
Ricardo Madrid Janeiro, General Manager at MAWDY Mexico, speaks with Michelle Royle about insurance trends in Latin America, the company vision, and new tech solutions
You have been General Manager at MAWDY Mexico for over three years, but you’ve worked for the company for much longer. What are the biggest changes you’ve seen in that time?
My adaptation process at MAWDY has been very quick in terms of the business philosophy, company mission, and the vision and values of the group. However, the scope in terms of responsibility has varied significantly.
The main change that I have experienced is the General Management’s scope, which demands a 360-degree vision. It is essential to evaluate each decision with an impact analysis in the different areas, as well as their significance, their consequences, and the visibility that it must have in its execution, not only from the company’s management, but from any area that it is involved in.
On the other hand, customer service is the most relevant; it is essential to achieve the alignment of all the company’s collaborators to meet the requirements of attention, quality, and timeliness, as well as to satisfy the customer’s needs.
Finally, Mexico’s responsibility in global collaboration has a very important weight for MAWDY in MAPFRE. For this reason, it is important to set guidelines aligned with the global strategic plan, to permanently follow progress and results, and to have a clear vision of the future of our business.
What does a typical work day look like for you?
Our business is highly dependent on the quality of the service we offer, that’s the reason it is important to have clarity about the evolution of operational management indicators, which is one of the main activities that require attention. But not only that, the normal work day begins with monitoring the evolution of the business, the commercial management, and evaluating the progress of our opportunities.
Obviously, participation in meetings allows us to have clarity about what is happening in the company, to evaluate relevant topics and make high-level decisions. Every time I’m in touch with the directors of the different areas of the company it allows me to be clear about the current status and to participate in the strategies, their execution and, where appropriate, their calibration. Fortunately, we have the tools to promptly monitor the comprehensive evolution of the company, allowing us to identify risk situations and strengths in a timely manner.
What have been the biggest challenges and successes you’ve experienced since you started with MAPFRE?
I have been fortunate to manage different business areas of the insurance company, and this has allowed me, on the one hand, to have an extensive knowledge of the Mexican market from its different angles, and on the other, to manage different strategies according to the marketing channel – from individual sales through the agent network, to very high-level institutional relationships with corporate clients.
Regarding this last point, one great achievement was when we worked with a big company that marketed three well-known brands of vehicle. The relationship was excellent, as was the penetration of our product, and there was great management in terms of KPI service. This allowed us to consolidate a great relationship with this group and was the spearhead to detonate relationships in other countries.
Another big challenge was as Executive Director of the Agency Network, where despite the difficulties of the market, we managed, together with the territorial team, to consolidate a great commercial structure and achieve the established goals – a great achievement by a great team.
MAPFRE launched MAWDY (a new brand for your assistance division) last January. Why is this so important, especially for Latin America?
The launch of this new brand is the beginning of a new and promising stage in our company, which is now more digital and in which we have carried out a geographical reorientation. As part of this reorganisation, it’s given more weight to Latin America, a region in which we have great experience, a powerful business, and important synergies with MAPFRE’s general insurance units.
The launch of this new brand is the beginning of a new and promising stage in our company, which is now more digital
Our company has a clear international vocation, something that we underline with the launch of MAWDY because it unifies our brand in more than 20 countries in which we operate, both in Latin America and in the rest of the world. With this, we want to reinforce our image and global identity.
On the other hand, we wanted a modern name like MAWDY, which expresses technology and innovation, because it reflects the evolution we have carried out. Today, digitalisation is an essential part of our activity and is present in our entire offer, something that we wanted to convey with our new brand.
What are the main challenges in the Mexican market?
The Mexican market is very dynamic and highly competitive. Price is generally the main trigger for the consumer, but there are also factors that allow the generation of trust in the client, such as the brand, the level of service, prestige, and the ease of contact with the company. That is why the digital offer now plays a determining factor for the consumer, and not only for the purchase, but also when using the services. Digital solutions must be easy to manage and efficient, accompanied by a great structure of service that allows us to consolidate a great experience for the client.
On the other hand, the market demands innovative products that cover specific needs, for example, car insurance by use – where a premium is paid only for the time, kilometres travelled, etc.
What new tech solutions is MAWDY deploying?
There are specific needs in our business model – on the one hand, satisfying customer needs with timeliness and clarity, and on the other, improving the internal processes of the company itself.
Regarding the first point, we have developed tools that facilitate the acquisition of our products digitally, we have APIs focused on sales, and web channels that also allow acquisition. In terms of service, we have implemented various tools that allow us to interact with our clients, mainly through progressive web apps (PWAs). They are very agile and the relationship with the client is direct and live.
We know lots of businesses are finding it challenging to retain and motivate staff in the current climate. How are you responding to these challenges?
Attracting and retaining talent is undoubtedly one of the great challenges we face, and success in this field depends on a combination of factors. We have, of course, the economic remuneration, and its adaptation to merit. Benefits such as health insurance or the employee pension plan are also important, something that we know is highly valued by our employees and helps to build a good employer brand.
Furthermore, measures beyond the economic are increasingly important. In addition to traditional benefits, there are others that are gaining weight because they represent progress towards conciliation, such as hybrid teleworking and flexibility. There is even a growing tendency to want to work in companies that offer purpose – the possibility of working on interesting projects and a motivating environment – which we can provide in an international and leading company like MAWDY. These are factors that create an emotional bond between employee and company.
What do you think the future of insurance looks like?
The future of insurance continues to be promising. In the Latin markets there is a long way to go to achieve greater awareness in the population about the advantage of being insured, both in their property and in their people, having guarantees that allow the continuity of life, health and the conservation of assets or permanence of companies.
I visualise much more digitalised processes that allow products to be brought closer to the market, with solutions that make it easier to clearly identify risks. Model and subscribe insurance policies will be tailored to the client’s needs, with a friendly process that provides real value to the insured.
These guidelines that are included in our labour policy resulted in MAPFRE Mexico being named as a Great Place to Work for the 15th consecutive year. We are the only large multinational company (over 500 employees) in the sector to hold this recognition.