SIFM Young Professionals represent a growing and dynamic group within our organization. “Spotlight 2024” articles are a series of interviews with some of these outstanding young leaders in the insurance industry.
Here’s what Julia Paromchik has to share:
UNIQUE INSIGHTS
When thinking about success, what really propelled me early in my career was the thirst for continuous challenges and learning to say yes to opportunities I encountered. I have had many mentors at Deloitte, QBE as well as mentors outside of the professional world. They always provided very insightful perspectives and advice. The top three insights I gleaned are:
You are the architect of your own career.
I have carried that motto with me throughout my life by being proactive, enthusiastic and vocal in what I want to do and get involved in.
Build your personal board of directors.
I have embraced that advice, and my board consists of people with very different skill sets and careers who are my advocates and advisors.
Always ask for constructive feedback and embrace failure.
I believe that if I don’t receive constructive feedback or fail then I am not learning and growing. The toughest experiences that I have encountered (and not all of them were successful) helped me the most professionally and made me more resilient.
I try to share some of the best advice I received by mentoring others within QBE and in my personal life. I truly enjoy being a mentor seeing how younger professionals attain success and ultimately, happiness in their careers.
FAVORITE PROJECTS
My favorite project right now is reshaping the people strategy for the internal audit group – we are focusing on establishing clear career pathways and learning opportunities for our global team while keeping in mind individual’s wants and needs, their various career levels and geographies.
Broadly speaking, the insurance industry has such potential to change through the advancements in technology and GenAI. For example, the roll out of the Cyber Submissions Al assistant at QBE, an application available in a centralized portal, has significantly improved the company’s underwriting process, speeding the submission evaluation process and enhancing the accuracy and consistency of risk assessments.
Not to fall behind, our internal audit team is actively working on use cases to help integrate Al into the auditing process, automate routine tasks and ensure broader overall audit coverage to help management mitigate operational and financial risks.
2024 VISION
I have always been a big picture visionary person with an eye to what’s next for me. Having said that, I stay very active with professional networks and organizations, including SIFM, dedicate a portion of my time weekly to study industry trends and market changes and network, inside the company and externally. I also look for opportunities to speak and present to audiences, big and small.
SUCCESS PATHWAY
When growing up, I always thought that I would either be a medical doctor or a professor because so many family members have embraced those professions. Yet, my life played out differently – I emigrated to Tampa, Florida from Belarus at age 17. There, I focused on my education with a goal of earning a business degree and tapping into the corporate world. I earned a master’s in accounting and passed the CPA exam.
The journey into the insurance industry was not a conscious choice: as a first-year audit staffer at Deloitte, I was assigned to the MetLife engagement, the largest audit account for the firm, and it ultimately shaped the rest of my professional career while at the Big Four. Over the years, I most enjoyed the opportunities that are available in the insurance industry. For example, one could become an expert in investments given the extent of the insurance companies’ portfolio, or in the myriad types of insurance products, each with its own nuances.
I began focusing on life & annuity insurance as an external auditor, then took an internal opportunity to join the Deloitte Group Audit team in New York City and subsequently made a pivot into the P&C world as an internal auditor.
With ever rapidly advancing technology and Al, there is an overabundance of information. It is critical to keep up by continuously educating oneself and the team while not being afraid to try new ways of doing the work. I have adapted this mindset many years ago and it continues to carry me through my professional journey.
My life passions have always been animals (especially Bengal cats!), fashion, interior design and travel. Over the years, I have traveled to over 25 countries (and counting), collected upwards of 300 pairs of shoes and redecorated at least 10 homes. I like to think that it is my Eastern European side that stimulates me to stay creative in how I dress, look and things I surround myself with.