Analysis of A Case on Symbiotic Structures of Insurance Agents

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this study more than half of the total annual premiums in the insurance industry operating in Turkey and in the realization of (TSB, 2021), with a significant share of the insurance agencies, central agencies, and establishing the structure and nature of associations between the branches created between them “Symbiotic” (symbiosis) whether in the form of, if any, is to investigate what kind of structure. Design/methodology/approach – Qualitative research method was used in the study. For the purpose of the study, one of the insurance agencies operating in the Eastern Marmara Region and predicted to be suitable for the research subject was selected by the "Purpose and Easy Sampling" method and a "Case Analysis" (Situation Analysis) covering the center and 28 branches between 6 March 2021 and 6 June 2021 has been made. The data were collected by conducting semi-structured interviews, primarily by observation. Within the scope of the research, the data obtained from a center and its branches were evaluated by content analysis method. Results – At the end of the research; The organizational structures between the central agency and its branches were examined and it was seen that a structure based on symbiotic relations emerged between the parties. According to the data obtained, it is understood that insurance agencies prefer a structuring consisting of symbiotic relations between the central agency and the branch due to reasons such as job sharing, competition, primarily to provide location advantage in order to survive. Discussion – The fact that no such study has been conducted on whether such associations, which may arise due to the force of market conditions, can be evaluated as "symbiotic structuring", is important in terms of having the features that could be the first in the field of this research. It has been observed that such associations provide survival advantages to both parties in the intense competitive environment in the sector. For this reason, it is expected that the study will contribute to the relevant literature.