Florine Roche
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Aug 4: There was a time when people used to flee the moment they cited an LIC agent for the fear of getting looped, compelling them to give an LIC policy. This is mainly because generally an LIC agent is looked down upon by the society and it is perceived that only those who are incapable of doing any other job become LIC agents just to lead a life of sustenance. Times have changes and so have perceptions to a great extent. The success story of Robert Ronald Fernandes of Naravi known to everyone as LIC Rony who started his career as an LIC agent during his college days to earn some pocket money, will certainly change the perception of many people towards this unorthodox career choice.
"It is a business of rejection," says Rony who has overcome such negativism of people towards LIC agents and insurance policies. But despite this he earns a huge pay packet for his hard work, which could be the envy of even top notch professionals and is laughing his way to the bank. The icing on the cake is the recognition and respectability that comes with the success of having a rewarding career as an agent and now as Chief Life Insurance Advisor. The toppings on the icing is that Rony is one among only the eight agents from Karnataka who has achieved the rare distinction of becoming the Corporate Club Member of the Corporation to join the elite group of 140 members all over the country. He is also first LIC agent to achieve this rare honour in the entire Udupi Mangalore division. Club Membership is the highest honour bestowed upon the agents for their exemplary business performance and Rony is the Corporate Member for the last two years. The criterion to get that elusive membership is by reaching a business target and the personal earnings an agent earns out of that business.
Enjoyable Addiction
It has been 19 years since Rony got addicted to this career without investment in terms of money. But he did invest on his time and efforts and today that investment of his hard work is paying him rich dividend. With an annual earning of Rs 29.5 lakhs as the first year’s business commission alone for this year Rony says he is satisfied with his achievements and attributes his success to "trying to understand the needs of the family or person and offering them a plan that suits them based on their financial position. Money is not the only criterion that guides me when I approach my clients for a policy. Mine is the multiple role of an agent, financial advisor and social worker," he says with a broad smile. He further adds: "When I say it is a social service I only mean to say that the policies I have done have helped many families to overcome the hardships they faced in life in instances of untimely loss of life and during old age”.
Success hasn’t come to Rony on a platter. It is the result of his hard work and sweat, the long hours of cycling he did during those early days to meet his clients and the follow up on them. Rony was born in Surathkal but was educated in Naravi and he started his initial business from Naravi. It was Kishore Kumar Shetty a leading LIC Development Officer who introduced him initially as part time agent in 1997 when he was doing his graduation in Bhuvanendra College Karkala.
He continued to be a part time agent even when he joined for PG Diploma in Computer Application at St Aloysius College. Initially he faced the usual problems of rejection but that did not deter him. He put his Hercules cycle to best use touring the entire village reaching home at midnight or early morning. Being the only, naturally his parents discouraged him coming home late, as they feared he might fall into bad habits. He had visited almost 2 to 3 thousand families during those initial years. "I believe the ground work I did during those years have been like a sturdy foundation for my career as an agent. The strong foundation has been the key to my success," he declares.
Rony’s father was an NRI and then he was an agriculturist. Soon after graduation there was a pressure on Rony to go to the gulf in search of better career prospects. But by now Rony had realised that being an agent is big and gratifying business. He also understood that people working in gulf put in more hours of work to improve their earnings and he was confident that he could do the same staying back in India. "As I was already an agent I realised that it can be a rewarding career and that I can work on my own pace. That realisation kept me rooted here and I became a full time agent," he declared.
Hard Work – The Magic Wand
After nearly two decades in the business Rony has proved he has taken the judicious decision to continue with the career he chose. In the process he learnt many aspects of his business and its humane side. Initially he did not sell insurance among his friends and did not even guide them to pay their premium to keep the policy alive. But the death of one of his friends, a few years senior to him jolted him reminding him about his responsibility as an LIC agent. His deceased friend had failed to pay his regular premium and therefore the policy had lapsed. The wife who wasn’t aware came to him to after his death to get the insurance claim and Rony told her the reality. The wife then told him that if he had informed the family about this they would have paid the premium. It was quite a shocker for Rony and from then on he decided to take his responsibility seriously. The bitter truth also helped him to stay back in Mangaluru and continue to be an LIC agent. Today he has his personal office in Naravi and also an office in Moodbidri.
Rony is quite vocal when he agrees with the general belief that buying insurance is like a dead investment. It is wrong if people treat insurance on life as an investment. That is exactly the reason why it is hard to sell insurance to the people in our country. While successful LIC agents like Rony are very few what is the success formula that has brought him name, fame and fortune? "Normally people try to sell the product immediately to the clients the moment they meet them. I employ patience and I listen to the people and understand the needs of my clients. I give them the options of protection of life, social security and also children’s education, depending on their needs and financial portfolio. I give the example of my own father who was a NRI and then he is an agriculturist. But he has nothing left for his retirement period. I give such examples and people who accepted my advice have expressed their gratitude to me. That really makes me proud of my work as an LIC agent," he recounts.
Taking Success in his Stride
For the last five years Rony has been designated as "Chief Life Insurance Advisor, an honour given to some of the best performing agents. As Chief Life Insurance Advisor he is able to recruit other agents under him. This is a five year contract term with the company as the Chief Advisor with variable incentives and Rony has 22 agents working for him. Does he face competition from his own agents? "That is part of the business risk which we have to accept and I believe we can grow only if we are broadminded to give an opportunity for others to grow," he reasons. It is this attitude of ‘grow and let others grow’ that encapsulates the unusual success story of Rony. Today he has a client list spread across the globe – US, UK, Canada and gulf countries apart from different parts of India. Social media also has helped him spread his tentacles as an insurance agent far and wide.
The growing premium from new policies has pushed him to the global professional association called Million Dollar Round Table League open to insurance and mutual fund professionals. This association is of great help to agents to improve their technical as well as business knowledge in addition to giving them global exposure. He has achieved this feat for the last 11 years and he is the first and the only one from Udupi Division to qualify for Court of the Table Membership of MDRT. As a member of this prestigious League he has attended six international conferences held in different parts of US and Canada, thus giving him global exposure.
Despite success coming knocking as a reward for his backbreaking efforts Rony remains humble and prefers to keep a low profile. However, he says that his wife Reena plays a crucial role in his success as she shoulders the entire responsibility of running the house and taking care of his children – 11 year old Reon and 4 year old Reeva. As his clients are spread across the globe he has to be constantly on the move travelling within the country and abroad. But he reserves weekends for the family and they prefer to go out during weekends.
Rony deserves kudos for his accomplishments which is the result of his toil and diligence. Let us hope his addiction will be able to protect many more families.
Contact Rony :
Mobile - 0091 - 9448216661
Email : ronylic@gmail.com