What Empower Development does

Empower Development is an award-winning UK-based training consultancy that delivers professional development services exclusively to the insurance industry. Founded in 2018 by Samantha Ridgewell and headquartered in London, the company operates a physical training facility at 123 Minories in the EC3 insurance district and serves individual insurance professionals as well as enterprise clients including Hiscox, Lockton, Markel, CFC, Gallagher, Aon, and Hannover Re. Its product portfolio spans four pillars: (1) a Digital CII Revision Platform hosted on Teachable providing self-paced exam preparation with video lessons, practice questions, and study aids; (2) Skills Training covering leadership, DEI, psychometrics, and soft skills including the award-winning Women with Presence course; (3) Technical Training covering underwriting, claims, broking, reinsurance, and London market fundamentals, supported by bespoke simulation games (Morotania and Farmageddon); and (4) the Springboard community of free networking and speed-mentoring events hosted by major London-market insurers, alongside the Into Insurance talent pipeline, Leto maternity returners programme, and Empower Talks podcast.

The company generates revenue through five distinct streams: per-delegate fees for public courses (ranging from £245 for half-day workshops to £895 for the two-day Women with Presence course and £395 for simulation workshops); bespoke corporate/in-house training programmes priced on enquiry; monthly subscription access to CII revision courses via Teachable; standalone and packaged coaching (with the Leto programme priced at £1,295–£3,450 across Bronze/Silver/Gold tiers); and free Springboard events that function as a top-of-funnel brand and pipeline mechanism. Distribution combines direct e-commerce bookings via the empowerdevelopment.co.uk website, a global self-serve digital channel through Teachable, and direct enterprise sales for in-house delivery across the UK and internationally.

Go-to-market is event-driven and content-led, leveraging founder Samantha Ridgewell's personal brand (3M+ TikTok views, CII Journal cover feature) alongside organic social media, an email newsletter, blog content, webinars, the Insurance Times media partnership, and a multi-channel community strategy. The company has no external funding, no disclosed parent or subsidiary structure, and operates as an independent founder-led limited company (Empower Development Ltd, company number 11074441, registered in England).

Name

Empower Development

Legal name

Empower Development Ltd

Website

https://empowerdevelopment.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Empower Development is a UK-based, founder-led training consultancy that delivers CII exam preparation, technical insurance courses, soft-skills training, and networking events to insurance professionals and corporate clients including major Lloyd's-market insurers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Insurance Training & Professional Education

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430), Educational Services (611), Technical and Trade Schools (6115)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Project, Process & Quality Certification Prep (PMP, PRINCE2, Lean Six Sigma, ITIL) (EDANAIAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

DEI, Culture & Employee Engagement Training (BPACANAE), Leadership, Character Education & Values Development (EDAMAIAG)

Keywords

• Insurance training
• CII exam preparation
• Professional development
• Soft skills training
• Corporate training

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Public Course Fees: Individual professionals pay per-course fees to attend scheduled public training sessions in London covering insurance fundamentals, technical skills, and professional development topics.
2. Corporate/In-House Training: Organizations purchase bespoke training programmes delivered in-house to their staff, with content tailored to specific organizational needs and internal processes.
3. Digital CII Revision Platform Subscription: Self-paced online courses for CII professional qualifications including video lessons, practice questions, and study materials available through the Teachable platform.
4. Coaching Services: One-on-one coaching sessions available as standalone purchases or as part of programme packages (e.g., Leto programme Gold tier with 6 coaching sessions).
5. Springboard Events: Free networking events for young professionals including evening socials and speed mentoring sessions, hosted by industry employers and open to insurance professionals.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Empower Development is an insurance-industry specialist training consultancy that delivers public courses, bespoke in-house corporate training, and a digital CII revision platform to insurance professionals. Offerings span CII exam preparation, technical insurance subjects (underwriting, claims, broking, reinsurance, London market), soft skills, leadership, early careers, and immersive insurance simulations, sold individually or as part of corporate programmes.

Product overview

Empower Development is an award-winning insurance training consultancy offering a comprehensive portfolio of training products and services for insurance professionals. The core offering comprises a digital CII Revision Platform (accessible via Teachable) for exam preparation, supported by Fast Start (a 12-month early careers programme) and an Insurance Starter Kit for new entrants. Skills Training covers leadership, management, DEI, psychometrics, and soft skills (including the award-winning Women with Presence course), while Technical Training includes structured courses (underwriting, claims, broking, reinsurance, London market, commercial and personal lines) and immersive simulations (Morotania and Farmageddon). The Leto Maternity Returners programme supports women re-entering the workforce. All offerings are delivered through in-person, virtual classroom, and self-paced online formats, with the CII digital revision courses (R01, R02, and others) hosted on the Teachable platform. Public courses, workshops, and networking events (Springboard) are also available.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Into Insurance: Programme designed to help those new to the insurance industry secure their first role
• Fast Start
• Springboard
• Women with Presence
• Leto
• Morotania
• Farmageddon
• Empower Talks

Products and services

• Digital CII Revision Platform Award-winning online platform providing video summaries, practice questions, mind maps, and study aids for Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) exam preparation, accessible 24/7 via the Teachable online school for insurance professionals.
• R01 – Financial Services Regulation and Ethics (Digital CII Course) Digital self-paced course covering 11 chapters aligned with CII R01 learning outcomes, featuring video presentations with animations, voiceovers, and practice questions for CII exam preparation.
• R02 – Investment Principles and Risk (Digital CII Course) Digital self-paced course covering 11 chapters and 9 learning outcomes on investment strategies, market risks, and portfolio management, with interactive video content and practice questions.
• Fast Start — Early Careers Programme Market-wide 12-month early careers programme designed to help new entrants make a fast start in the insurance industry.
• Women with Presence Award-winning two-day (10:00-16:30) in-person or in-house course (£895 per delegate + VAT) helping women progress their insurance careers through coaching on influence, brand building, career conversations, and overcoming career barriers.
• Leto Maternity Returners Programme Hybrid programme (Bronze £1,295, Silver £2,500, Gold £3,450) of workshops, coaching, networking, and information sharing for women returning to work after maternity leave, targeted at insurance professionals.
• Skills Training (Leadership, Soft Skills, DEI, Psychometrics) Behavioural and soft-skills training for insurance professionals covering leadership and management, early careers, business soft skills, psychometrics, and diversity/equity/inclusion (DEI), delivered in-person or virtually.
• Technical Training (Introductory Insurance Courses) Insurance technical training including introductory courses covering underwriting, claims handling, broking, reinsurance, the London market, commercial lines, personal lines, and delegated authority.
• Morotania — Digital Insurance Simulation Strategic business simulation (£395 per delegate + VAT) in which teams manage a general insurance company, making decisions across product development, pricing, channel management, marketing, HR, and finance; judged on profitability, market share, solvency, and customer satisfaction.
• Farmageddon — Immersive Insurance Simulation Game-based training simulation (£395 per delegate + VAT) where teams manage a simulated agricultural business, making strategic investment and insurance choices while responding to market conditions and unexpected risk events.
• Corporate / In-House Bespoke Training Bespoke training programmes delivered directly to insurance organisations for their staff, with content tailored to specific organisational needs and internal processes.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 3 million TikTok views and influenced at least 20 people to pursue insurance careers through social media
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Insurance TimesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with Insurance Times to power industry news headlines on the Empower Development website and provide brand visibility. The Insurance Times logo appears on the website with a dedicated page for 'Empower Development & Insurance Times: Your Industry Edge'.
• TeachablecoreTechnology or IntegrationOnline learning platform hosting Empower Development's digital CII revision courses. Provides the technical infrastructure for video content, course materials, practice questions, and student progress tracking. Courses include R01, R02, and other CII qualification modules.
• Amwins Global RisksminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosting partner for Springboard Speed Mentoring event on 9th April 2025 at 22 Bishopsgate, London EC2N 4BQ. Provides venue and promotes networking opportunities for young insurance professionals.
• AonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosting partner for Springboard Evening Social events (August 2024 and August 2025) at The Leadenhall Building, London EC3V 4AN. Supports young professional networking in the insurance industry.
• MclarensminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosting partner for Springboard Evening Social events (October 2024 and May 2026) at Forum House, 15-18 Lime Street, London EC3M 7AN. Supports early career networking for insurance professionals.
• HowdenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosting partner for Springboard Evening Social on 5th November 2025 at One Creechurch Place, London EC3A 5AF. Supports young professional networking events.
• Markel InternationalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosting partner for Springboard Evening Social events (July 2025 and July 2026) at 20 Fenchurch Street, London EC3M 3AZ. Supports networking for young insurance professionals.
• Allianz CommercialminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosting partner for Springboard Evening Social (February 2025) at 60 Gracechurch Street, EC3v 0HR, and Quiz Night (April 2026) at 15 Bishopsgate, London EC2N 3AR. Supports early career professional development events.
• InigominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosting partner for Springboard Speed Mentoring on 22nd January 2026 at 25 Fenchurch Avenue, London EC3M 5AD. Provides venue for young professional networking event.
• Crawford & CompanyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosting partner for Springboard Evening Social on 8th May 2025 at The Hallmark Building, 106 Fenchurch Street, EC3M 5JE. Supports young professional networking.
• Chartered Insurance Institute (CII)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProfessional body providing insurance qualifications that Empower Development supports through CII revision courses, study materials, and exam preparation. The company's digital platform aligns with CII exam syllabi and learning outcomes.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• Deloitte (UK): Big Four professional services firm with a sizeable insurance practice that delivers training and advisory to insurer clients. Comparable as an ecosystem participant that absorbs portions of insurance corporate training budgets.
• PwC (UK): Big Four professional services firm with insurance industry consulting and learning offerings. Comparable as an ecosystem participant competing for corporate insurance training and development spend.
• Skillsoft: Global online learning platform providing compliance, leadership and professional development content, including insurance-relevant modules sold to enterprise L&D teams. Comparable as an enabling training platform that competes for digital learning budgets alongside Empower Development's Teachable-hosted courses.

Direct peers

• BPP Professional Education: One of the largest UK providers of professional qualifications training, including CII exam preparation. Directly competes with Empower Development's digital CII revision platform and broader professional development catalogue.
• Kaplan Financial (UK): Major UK provider of CII and financial services exam prep and professional training courses. Offers comparable revision materials and structured study programmes targeting the same CII candidate pool as Empower Development.

Broad incumbents

• Willis Towers Watson (WTW): Global insurance, reinsurance and advisory broker with established learning and development functions serving large corporate clients. Comparable as a large incumbent offering overlapping professional development content to insurer and broker employers.
• Marsh: Global insurance broker and risk adviser with significant internal training infrastructure for underwriting, broking and claims professionals. Comparable as a large incumbent whose internal L&D function competes for corporate training budgets.
• Aon (UK): Global insurance and reinsurance broker with substantial in-house L&D capabilities and a Springboard event-hosting client of Empower Development. Represents the kind of large incumbent whose internal training academies can substitute for external providers.
• Lloyd's of London: The London insurance market infrastructure operator that runs its own training programmes for market participants and sets standards for market education. Comparable as a market-wide incumbent shaping London insurance training demand.
• Chartered Insurance Institute (CII): The UK professional body for insurance and personal finance that sets the CII qualification framework. Provides its own learning content and approved-provider ecosystem that Empower Development both supports (via revision courses) and competes against.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC
• Facebookfacebook.com/empowerdevelopment
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/empower-development
• Instagraminstagram.com/empowerdevelopment
• Xx.com/empowerdvlpmt

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Empower Development