Prudential Singapore is set to hire up to 500 financial consultants in 2021 as the Covid-19 crisis increases awareness about the significance of insurance.

Among the new hires are up to 200 mid-career individuals chosen for its new talent management programme, where the firm is investing S$1m ($740,000).

The two-year programme will cover technical training, product knowledge, and leadership development.

Effective communications and social media content creation will also be included in the programme. Participants will get up to S$10,000 every month pegged to relevant work experience for two years.

The firm is also supporting young job seekers by enabling them to join as financial consultants.

They will get an in-house training programme which will include diverse areas including financial planning, plan construction, financial needs analysis, investment and retirement planning.

For the initial two years, they will also get a monthly transition allowance to begin their insurance career.

Prudential Singapore chief agency officer John Soong said: “As one of the largest insurers in Singapore, we want to offer support to both mid-career job seekers and young people who face limited employment opportunities in this tough climate.

“We are also expanding our agency force to meet rising demand for medical and protection solutions, as the pandemic has brought into sharp relief the importance of insurance.”

The move is a complete contrast to other insurers who have announced job cuts amid rising cost pressures triggered by the pandemic.

In July 2020, UK insurer Saga said that it will lay off around 300 people due to the impact of Covid-19 on its business.

Earlier this year, a report said that US auto insurer Allstate is planning to lay off thousands of its employees in a bid to cut down costs.