Insurance Business 8.05

insurancebusinessonline.com.au Issue 8.05

WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A CYBER PACKAGE

Essential coverage options your clients should know about

PREMIUM FUNDING AND TRADE CREDIT

The scoop on two often overlooked insurance products

THE KEYS TO REVENUE GROWTH

How the world’s biggest brokerages are driving results

INSIDE A MEGA-MERGER Behind the scenes of the AXA XL tie-up with executive Kelly Lyles

YOUNG GUNS 2019

Get to know 25 of the industry’s most promising young superstars

ISSUE 8.05

CONNECT WITH US Got a story or suggestion, or just want to find out some more information?

CONTENTS

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UPFRONT 02 Editorial

Why insurtech isn’t the enemy

FEATURES

34

HELPING CUSTOMERS STAY SHIPSHAPE How brokers can better service marine insurance clients

04 Statistics

Key data that should be on your radar

06 Head to head

The industry’s main takeaway from the royal commission

08 News analysis

What’s behind the impressive results from the world’s largest brokerages?

10 Intelligence

Aviso Group expands its reach in Sydney

12 Insurer update

Total catastrophe losses are down, but underinsurance remains a problem

14 Underwriting agencies update SPECIAL REPORT

YOUNG GUNS 2019

44

Move over, baby boomers – these 25 young professionals are quickly climbing to the top of the industry

FEATURES

PEOPLE

Cyber coverage is no longer optional – so what should businesses look for in a cyber insurance package?

AHEAD OF THE PACK

DEALING WITH DIGITAL THREATS

16 Opinion

Embracing the latest technology means stepping out of your comfort zone

FEATURES 38 Building a better broker network

Australian Broker Network has found success by prioritising collaboration

40 The dirt on Yellow Cover

Helping to oversee one of the biggest insurance mergers in history is no easy task, but AXA XL executive Kelly Lyles has risen to the challenge

18

Brooklyn Underwriting gears up for a massive expansion

The scoop on a tailored offering in the mobile plant and equipment space

FEATURES

47

BRINGING OUT THE BEST FOR CLIENTS

Often overlooked, premium funding and trade credit insurance can provide a cash flow lifeline to SMEs

PEOPLE 55 Career path

Early in her career, Rebecca Zhang was hooked by reinsurance

56 Other life

Head across the outback with broker and off-road racer Morgan Appleby

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UPFRONT

EDITORIAL

Modernisation is for you, too

I

nsurtech is no longer a fantasy or a vision of the future – it’s very much the here and now. For proof, look no further than Willis Towers Watson’s latest Quarterly Insurtech Briefing, which reported 69 insurtech deals with a total value of US$1.41bn during the second quarter of the year – the fourth quarter in a row in which funding has topped the US$1.2bn mark.

“Technology as a strategic vertical is now commonplace in nearly every single insurer and reinsurer across the globe,” Dr. Andrew Johnston, Willis Re’s global head of insurtech, said in the report. He added that while Willis Towers Watson believes in the value created by some insurtechs, it will maintain its position of “realistic pragmatism”, suggesting that tech firms in the space still have plenty to prove. But what approach should the smaller insurance broker take?

“Technology as a strategic vertical is now commonplace in nearly every single insurer and reinsurer across the globe” There is good reason for brokers of all size to re-evaluate the insurtech landscape.

Many are stuck with legacy systems that are slow and inefficient, making access to data difficult and leaving them without solutions for today’s clients, who want to get the information they need when they need it. Yet many brokers continue to dismiss insurtech, seeing it as more of a threat than an opportunity.

In fact, the majority of insurtechs have a different narrative – focusing not on disrupting or displacing the broker, but on enabling them to do business better.

The possibilities for collaboration are seemingly endless, from using data to improve sales campaigns, to streamlining processes in order to cut costs, to boosting customer satisfaction by providing 24/7 access to information, to finding problems more efficiently via data-driven KPIs. The insurance industry is moving forward. Customer expectations are changing, rules and regulations are getting tougher, and the sector is now awash with increased competition. Embracing technological solutions will soon no longer be a differentiator, but an expectation. So don’t view insurtech as the enemy to your brokerage – treat it as the next evolution of your business.

The team at Insurance Business

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EDITORIAL Managing Editor Paul Lucas Editor Bethan Moorcraft Journalists Nicola Middlemiss, Alicja Grzadkowska, Lauren Ingram, Ksenia Stepanova News Writers Lyle Adriano, Terry Gangcuangco, Roxanne Libatique, Gabriel Olano Staff Writers Tom Goodwin, Libby MacDonald, Joe Rosengarten, Ryan Smith Copy Editor Clare Alexander

CONTRIBUTORS Simon Oddy, Brian de Haaff, Aytekin Tank

ART & PRODUCTION Designer Martin Cosme Production Manager Alicia Chin Traffic Coordinator Freya Demegilio

SALES & MARKETING General Manager Peter Smith Commercial Development Manager Sophie Knight Global Head of Communications Lisa Narroway

CORPORATE Chief Executive Officer Mike Shipley Chief Operating Officer George Walmsley Managing Director Justin Kennedy Chief Information Officer Colin Chan Human Resources Manager Julia Bookallil

Editorial Enquiries nicola.middlemiss@keymedia.com Subscription Enquiries subscriptions@keymedia.com.au Advertising Enquiries sophie.knight@keymedia.com.au peter.smith@keymedia.com.au

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Insurance Business is part of an international family of B2B publications, websites and events for the insurance industry Insurance Business America cathy.masek@keymedia.com T +1 720 316 0151 Insurance Business Canada john.mackenzie@kmimedia.ca T +1 416 644 874O Insurance Business NZ peter.smith@keymedia.com.au T +61 2 8437 47OO Insurance Business UK gemma.powell@keymedia.com T +44 20 7193 0935 Insurance Business Asia peter.smith@keymedia.com.au T +61 2 8437 47OO

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UPFRONT

HEAD TO HEAD

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UPFRONT

STATISTICS SHIPPING LOSSES DECLINE

16

IRELAND

88.2 13

CANADA

90.2

10

UNITED KINGDOM

91

46

19

BELGIUM

86.8

Number of large ships lost worldwide in 2018

SCANDINAVIA LEADS THE WAY IN RESILIENCE

98

Number of large ships lost worldwide in 2017

The Nordic nations beat the field when it comes to the resilience of their business environments, according to the FM Global Resilience Index, which scores countries on a scale of 0 to 100 based on factors such as economic productivity, political stability, corporate governance and natural hazard exposure. Haiti, Venezuela and Ethiopia came in at the bottom of the list. Australia managed to crack the top 20, coming in 17th with an overall score of 88.2.

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UNITED STATES CENTRAL

92.4 11

UNITED STATES EAST

91

NO LONGER A GRUDGE PURCHASE?

10

Weather-related shipping losses in 2018

20

Weather-related shipping losses in 2017 Source: Safety & Shipping Review 2019, Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty

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In a recent study of millennials’ attitudes toward insurance, Cake & Arrow and Coverager found that this generation does value insurance and the financial stability it brings – but very few are excited about purchasing it.

MILLENNIALS’ ATTITUDES TOWARD INSURANCE Insurance protects me and my family

42%

I buy insurance because I have to

38%

Insurance is worth every penny

4% 0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

Source: Millennials and Modern Insurance, Cake & Arrow/Coverager, 2019

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M&A CLAIMS BECOMING MORE SEVERE

NETHERLANDS

89.1 5 1

FINLAND

94.3

NORWAY

The number of M&A claims above the US$10m threshold has more than doubled in the past year (from 8% to 15%), according to AIG’s latest analysis of warranty and indemnity claims. At the same time, the sector has seen declining rates and broadening terms and conditions, which has presented challenges for insurers.

100 4

GERMANY

96.6 2

DENMARK

97.2

M&A WARRANTY AND INDEMNITY CLAIMS BY SIZE

20

CZECH REPUBLIC

15%

86.7 7 6

18 LUXEMBOURG

Over $10m

HONG KONG

88

94 SWEDEN

44%

94.1 8

3

AUSTRIA

NEW ZEALAND

90.4

97

93.6 14

12 SWITZERLAND

$1m to $10m

FRANCE

91.1 17

41%

AUSTRALIA

88.2

$100,000 to $1m Source: Taxing Times for M&A Insurance, AIG, 2019; all figures in US dollars

Source: FM Global Resilience Index, 2019

OVERCOMING THE PRICE EXPECTATION

WHAT’S DRIVING M&A CLAIMS?

In order to change consumers’ attitudes about insurance, the industry has to move beyond marketing on price, Cake & Arrow and Coverager concluded in their report. Currently, the most popular insurancerelated Google search terms on a monthly basis are either brandless or focused on frugality.

The most common claims in the M&A space revolve around financial statements, tax and compliance, although AIG’s analysis of the sector found some regional variations: Tax tends to dominate in Europe and the Middle East, while litigation is a major driver of claims in Asia-Pacific.

HITS PER MONTH FOR INSURANCE-RELATED SEARCH TERMS ON GOOGLE

1,830,000 CAR INSURANCE

450,000 CAR INSURANCE QUOTES

246,000 AUTO INSURANCE

15%

301,000 INSURANCE QUOTES

M&A WARRANTY AND INDEMNITY CLAIMS BY TYPE 20%

10%

66%

550,000 CHEAP CAR INSURANCE

Source: Millennials and Modern Insurance, Cake & Arrow/Coverager, 2019

5% 0%

19%

18%

Financial statements

Tax

15%

13%

9%

7%

7%

6%

4%

Compliance Material Employee- Intellectual Litigation Operations- Environwith laws contracts related property related mental

1% Fundamentals

Source: Taxing Times for M&A Insurance, AIG, 2019

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UPFRONT

HEAD TO HEAD

What’s the key lesson from the royal commission?

In a post-royal commission world, what should the general insurance industry’s focus be?

Gary Dransfield CEO Suncorp Insurance

“Following the royal commission, we need to consider the complex cultural issues highlighted that are driving mistrust in our industry. We must better serve our customers by designing products people understand and can easily compare. More than anything, we must be there for the most vulnerable members of our community by having skilled staff trained to listen to the signs, hear a customer’s concerns and be able to provide a solution that suits their needs.

At this pivotal point, we need to rebuild trust, demonstrate our value and always deliver on the promise to be there for our customers and communities.”

Mark Lingafelter

President, Australasia Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance “The key is getting the fundamentals right: maintaining a set of principles and building a culture that will establish ‘true north’.

While new regulations and policy responses to the royal commission are still emerging, if you get the culture right and establish a strong set of values, you can drive the right outcomes and avoid the types of product and distribution issues highlighted by the commission.

The importance of operating with integrity and taking a long-term perspective has been hardwired into our business; from there, we operate with humility and continually test if the business is delivering the right behaviours.”

Prue Willsford CEO ANZIIF

“The key lessons from the Hayne royal commission are to listen and to act. Internally, lessons can be learned from the front-line teams and other key indicators such as claims resolution data, complaints, IDR data, and risk and audit controls, which will assist in meeting community expectations. Listening and then acting on the data to constantly improve will make a consistent difference.

Externally, community expectations must be heard and acted upon. Increasingly, the regulatory approach will provide stronger guidelines focused on active oversight, proactively improving processes and reducing consumer harm. Overall, this will support truly customer-centric businesses to succeed.”

A CHANGE IS GONNA COME The report from Australia’s Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry included 15 recommendations aimed at bringing insurance in line, with other more stringently controlled areas of financial services. Perhaps most notable were the elimination of commissions on life insurance and the ominous recommendation to “review the exemptions” on general and credit insurance products. The most recent recommendation from the royal commission to move closer to being enacted is a ban on cold-calling for life and consumer credit insurance products, which was addressed in a recently announced ASIC proposal.

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We support more than 320,000 businesses We protect more than 3.2 million workers each year

We care for more than 60,000 injured workers each year

We’re delivering positive change

icare.nsw.gov.au/positivechange

UPFRONT

NEWS ANALYSIS

Brokerage growth spurt The Big Four brokerages all performed well in the second quarter of 2019. IB takes a closer look to find out what’s driving the rosy results

IT WAS a bright and temperate summer for the Big Four insurance brokerages. In the flurry of second-quarter financial results, all four of the largest brokerages in the world – Marsh & McLennan Companies, Aon, Gallagher and Willis Towers Watson – delivered positive results, suggesting that times are good in the brokerage world.

The quarter included two major acquisitions: Marsh finalised its US$5.6bn purchase of JLT in April, and Willis Towers Watson completed its US$1.2bn purchase of TRANZACT, a direct-to-consumer healthcare firm that links individuals to US insurance carriers. Meanwhile, Gallagher snapped up 13 smaller brokerages, representing US$195m of annualised revenue.

director of North American insurance at Fitch Ratings. “As they continue to invest in risk management and consulting services, their revenues keep increasing.”

Marsh & McLennan Companies [MMC] is the largest of the four organisations, generating annual revenue of nearly US$17bn. It’s also the only organisation to score a negative A- outlook from Fitch Ratings. This is largely due to the JLT acquisition and the financial leverage it required, explains Douglas Pawlowski, senior director of North American insurance at Fitch.

However, Pawlowski notes that MMC’s Q2 results “looked pretty good” and its revenue growth “was right in line with their expectations between 3% and 5%.” MMC president and CEO Dan Glaser said he was pleased

“As [the big brokers] continue to invest in risk management and consulting services, their revenues keep increasing” Martha Butler, Fitch Ratings Aside from M&As, Q2 saw all four brokerage giants continue to reinvest in their businesses to drive organic growth through additional risk management and consulting services. “The big brokers’ revenues are not solely dependent upon pricing in the insurance space,” explains Martha Butler, senior

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that the brokerage was able to generate “solid growth in underlying revenue and adjusted EPS while welcoming 10,000 new colleagues” via the JLT merger.

Despite that impressive start, Pawlowski says it’s “way too early to call [the Marsh/ JLT merger] a success”, adding that “our

rating sensitivities depend on how quickly and successfully they can de-lever. I found it interesting how they’re expected to have diluted earnings this first year and break even next year, so we won’t see any actual growth in earnings from this transaction until 2021.”

Aon, the second largest brokerage in the world by revenue, recorded “strong organic revenue growth” of 6% for the second quarter, which Butler attributes to the group’s divestitures and subsequent restructuring.

“Everything they’re doing in terms of restructuring their business is going to make them more profitable in terms of growth moving forward,” she says.

Butler’s stance mirrors Aon CEO Greg Case’s comment in the company’s Q2 earnings release: “The steps we are taking to lead Aon United in response to increasing client demand, combined with significant investment in content and capability, is not only

THE BIG FOUR’S SECONDQUARTER RESULTS TOTAL REVENUE, Q2 2019 $5bn

$4bn

$3bn

$2bn

$1bn

$0

$4.3bn

$2.6bn

$2.05bn

$1.3bn

Marsh

Aon

Willis Towers Watson

Arthur J. Gallagher All figures in US dollars

amplifying our ability to serve clients, but also our ability to deliver improved operational and financial performance that we believe will unlock significant shareholder value creation over the long-term.”

adjusted operating income growth, recording US$299m for the quarter.

Like Marsh, Willis Towers Watson completed a major acquisition in the quarter.

At the time, CEO John Haley said, “This

“It’s way too early to call [the Marsh/JLT merger] a success … Our rating sensitivities depend on how quickly and successfully they can de-lever” Douglas Pawlowski, Fitch Ratings Six percent seemed to be the magic number for the London-headquartered brokerage behemoths in the second quarter.

Willis Towers Watson also delivered organic revenue growth of 6% in Q2 for a total revenue of US$2.05bn. The company also achieved a double-digit increase (14.6%) in

acquisition, coupled with our highly differentiated capabilities and disciplined management of the business, leaves us confident in our ability to continue to drive sustainable, profitable growth and deliver value for our clients and shareholders.”

From Fitch’s perspective, WTW’s “margins

look good, their EBITDA to interest expense is marking up, and their debt to EBITDA is going down,” Butler says. WTW currently has a rating of BBB (stable) from Fitch but will remain under scrutiny after taking on around US$1.1bn in new debt via the TRANZACT acquisition. However, WTW has announced plans to reduce its financial leverage.

While Fitch doesn’t provide a rating for Gallagher, it’s clear the fourth largest brokerage is “acquiring a lot, and their margins look good,” Butler says. In addition to completing 13 mergers in Q2, the company posted total revenue growth of 13%, organic revenue growth of 5.8% and a net earnings margin of 12.2% – results that Gallagher chairman, president and CEO J. Patrick Gallagher described as “outstanding”. The firm’s brokerage segment performed well, reporting net earnings of US$138m, up from US$127.5m the year prior.

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UPFRONT

INTELLIGENCE CORPORATE ACQUIRER

TARGET

PRODUCTS COMMENTS

360 Underwriting

eSentry

The acquisition adds construction capability to 360’s rapidly expanding portfolio

Aviso Group

Wagecover, Eagle Eye Insurance and Eighteen33

Aviso has merged the three acquired firms to create Aviso All Points

Claim Central Consolidated

Hello Claims

Claim Central has acquired motor claims specialist Hello Claims after four years of co-development

IAG

Carbar

The insurer was part of a $16.8m capital-raising round to fund the car subscription platform’s expansion

Tokio Marine

AHI

Tokio Marine purchased the specialist accident and health underwriting agency from IAG

Willis Towers Watson

Risk Capital Advisors

The deal includes Risk Capital’s New Zealand and South Africa operations

Chubb adds coverage for professional services firms

Chubb has launched a new coverage to address the risks faced by professional services firms.

The new Pro ERM product combines miscellaneous professional liability, media liability, cyber liability and first-party cyber coverages with extensive loss mitigation and incident response services. “With Pro ERM, professional service firms now have access to a more fully integrated solution, enabling them to better mitigate, manage and insure their constantly evolving exposures in today’s technology-driven environment,” said Chubb SVP Christopher Calnon.

Aviso Group expands yet again

Brokerage group Aviso has added a 10th partner business to its everincreasing portfolio via the merger of three Sydney-based firms. The newly created Aviso All Points brings together specialist personal accident broker Wagecover with the portfolios of Eagle Eye Insurance Solutions and Eighteen33. Aviso All Points will be led by Mark Finn, who previously served as MD of Quattro Risk Services and Finn Foster.

“We are looking to grow Aviso Group with partners that align with our culture and long-term strategies,” said CEO Craig Robson. “Aviso All Points allows us to continue our growth in the Sydney market.”

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Blockchain-based app helps brokers catalogue assets

Melbourne-based Asta Solutions has rolled out a blockchain-based app that aims to reduce underinsurance and ease the claims process. The DayByDay app enables brokers to catalogue and register their clients’ assets and valuables, thereby making it easier to prove ownership. The platform can be rebranded with the broker’s brand to reinforce their value to customers. “By having visibility of assets captured, brokers will be able to discuss the correct sum insured and coverage requirements for current and ongoing needs,” said Asta Solutions’ Scott Wilford.

PEOPLE Markel launches international cyber product

Specialist insurer Markel International has launched a new cyber product, offering protection to businesses in Australia, New Zealand, Europe, Canada and Asia. The holistic Markel Cyber 360 product is backed by a 24/7 helpline and offers coverage on a stand-alone or add-on basis with multimillion-dollar limits. In addition to vulnerability assessments and recommendations, Markel Cyber 360 gives businesses access to experts in breach response, incident management, legal support, forensic investigation, credit monitoring, loss control and public relations.

ICA backs building product comparison tool

As Australia’s construction crisis continues, an online building product comparison tool is winning industry support, including from the Insurance Council of Australia. Launched with backing from the ICA, the BPI Rating website is a searchable database of information about building materials and products.

The site aims to provide central repository of data on the environmental, social, economic, resilience, compliance and performance characteristics of various building products and materials, in addition to reviews and ratings.

Claims manager introduces new TPA solution

Claim Central Consolidated has launched Insurx, a full-service third-party administration offering designed to provide a connected and transparent claims experience. The platform uses technology such as automated claims, live video streaming and real-time customer sentiment to manage property, motor, cyber and SME claims from start to finish. “Insurx has a unique advantage, housing insurance expertise and leading edgetechnology, built on a culture of a customer-first approach,” said Claim Central’s Brian Siemsen.

NAME

LEAVING

JOINING

NEW POSITION

Maha Awada

AIG

Lockton Australia

Manager, trade credit, surety and political risks

Liam Berry

AIG

Lockton Australia

National manager, trade credit, surety and political risks

Justin Delaney

TAL

Zurich

CEO, life and investments

Matthew Frost

BHP

Willis Towers Watson

Head of risk advisory, Australasia

Jason Hawksworth

N/A

Chubb

Head of distribution

Mike Hooton

Calibre Commercial Insurance

Chubb

Head of small commercial and middle-market division

Peter Horton

TransGrid

IAG

Group general counsel

Mathew Kaley

Allianz

McCabe Curwood

Principal

James Lee

Allianz

Emergence

Business development underwriter

Emma Levett

Procare

Sedgwick

National manager of corporate

Mark Nunn

N/A

Markel International

Energy underwriter

Markel appoints APAC energy underwriter

Markel International has named Mark Nunn as the latest addition to its Asia-Pacific energy underwriting team. In his new role, Nunn will work closely with Markel’s global energy team to manage and further develop the specialist insurer’s energy portfolio in the Asia-Pacific region. Nunn joins Markel following a two-year career break; prior to that, he spent 12 years with broking giant Marsh, most recently as VP of energy sales in Asia.

“We are delighted to welcome Mark, whose strong energy market experience will bring great value to the team as we continue to embark on our underwriting expansion and growth ambitions,” said Christian Stobbs, MD of Markel International in Asia.

Former Calibre CEO joins Chubb

Mike Hooton, the former CEO and director of Calibre Commercial Insurance, has joined Chubb as head of its newly created small commercial and mid-market division after spending 10 months as a consultant for the insurer. The development of the small and mid-market division comes less than a year after Chubb launched its major account division.

“The logical next phase of this development is for mid-market businesses,” said Chubb country president Jarrod Hill. “We intend to craft product solutions for this segment and find efficiencies in how we service them while we continue to maintain focus on distribution via our broking partners.”

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UPFRONT

INSURER UPDATE NEWS BRIEFS IAG reports 16% growth in net profit for 2019

IAG has posted net profit growth of 16% for 2019, driven by strong results in personal insurance and an improvement in commercial insurance in Australia, as well as strong profitability and sound growth in New Zealand. The insurer’s $1.07bn overall profit included a $200m gain on the $525m sale of its Thailand and Indonesia operations to Tokio Marine. IAG’s GWP also rose 3.1% to more than $12bn, mainly due to higher rates. However, its insurance division profit dipped 13% to $1.22bn, partly due to large claims from natural disasters such as the Sydney hailstorm.

QBE shares rise on the back of strong half-year results

For the half-year ending 30 June, QBE has reported a cash profit after tax of US$520m, an increase of 35% on the previous half-year period. The insurer’s GWP, meanwhile, rose by 1% to US$7.6bn, and statutory net profit was up 29% to US$463m. The strong results pushed QBE shares up by 2.5% to $12.38 in mid-August, and the insurer confirmed it will be continuing its strategy of minimising costs and offloading overseas businesses in order to simplify its structure.

Suncorp profits slip after sale of life insurance business

For FY19, Suncorp has reported an 83% slide in its net profit after tax, to $175m, due to a $910m non-cash loss on the sale of its Australian life insurance business. However, its cash earnings were up by 1.5% to $1.1bn, and group top-line growth rose by 2.3%.

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The Brisbane-based insurance giant said its FY19 results show that its core businesses remain resilient, despite a year of higher natural disaster costs and a significant rise in regulatory spending.

Suncorp also revealed changes in its organisational structure aimed at strengthening its digital foundations and announced the creation of a new customer and digital function.

Zurich enjoys best half-year results in a decade

Swiss insurance group Zurich has announced its best half-year results in a decade. In the six months to 30 June, Zurich reported a 16% rise in business operating profit, from US$2.4bn to US$2.8bn. The insurer attributed the increase to underlying growth across the business, as well as strong underwriting performance in property & casualty, which saw a BOP surge of 46% to US$1.7bn. In addition, GWP and policy fees in the P&C segment amounted to US$18.6bn.

Protestors target AIG over Adani mine project involvement

Protestors targeted AIG offices across Australia in late August, calling on the insurance giant to rule out coverage for Adani Group’s Carmichael coal mine.

Organised by advocacy group Sum of Us, the protest aims to apply further pressure to AIG, which is one of the few remaining insurers yet to deny coverage to the controversial Queensland project. “There are now 14 insurance companies which have either directly ruled out insuring the Adani mine or have excluded themselves through their coal policies – so the writing is on the wall for AIG,” said Sum of Us campaign manager Nick Haines.

Catastrophe protection gap persists While disaster-related losses were down for the first six months of 2019, a significant coverage gap remains in some areas Insurers got a break from catastrophe-related losses in the first half of 2019. According to a recent report from the Swiss Re Institute, the cost of global economic losses fell to US$44bn, well below the 10-year average of $109bn for first-half economic losses. Losses are also down from the US$51bn figure reported for the same period in 2018.

However, only 42% of global economic losses – US$19bn – were covered by insurance during the first half of 2019, down from 52% in the first half of 2018. That’s primarily due to the fact that several large-scale disasters, including as Cyclone Idai in southern Africa and Cyclone Fani in India, occurred in areas with low insurance penetration.

Cyclone Idai claimed more than 1,000 victims, making it the deadliest natural disaster of the year thus far, the Swiss Re Institute said. Economic losses from the cyclone are estimated to be at least US$2bn, of which only about 7% was insured.

“The experience of the first half of this year has once again exposed the existing protection gap issues in emerging countries,” says Martin Bertogg, head of catastrophe perils at Swiss Re. “For example, Cyclone Idai showed just how fragile African coastal communities are. And in India, Cyclone Fani inflicted widespread damage and large insured losses. Similarly, the nature and location of the events underline the theme of

secondary perils taking a larger share of the overall loss burden.”

Natural disasters accounted for US$40bn of the total economic losses, down from US$45bn in the first half of 2018. In many regions, including Australia, Europe, the US, Canada, China and Iran, secondary perils such as thunderstorms, snowmelt and torrential rains caused the highest losses

“The first half of this year has once again exposed the existing protection gap issues in emerging countries” through wind and water damage. The Swiss Re Institute estimated the total economic losses of these events at US$32bn, of which around US$13bn was insured. Several parts of the world also experienced heatwaves and dry weather conditions in the first half of 2019, and temperatures set new records in several locations.

“Intense heatwaves and dry spells of the like we’ve seen over the last few years are expected to become more frequent, exacerbating the conditions conducive to wildfires and agriculture losses,” Bertogg says. “We also expect more variable rain patterns as rising temperatures load the atmosphere with more vapour. Society will need to adapt and prepare for these increasing occurrences.”

Q&A

Patrice Nigon Head of engineering and construction, Asia Pacific SWISS RE CORPORATE SOLUTIONS

Years in the industry 24 Fast fact Nigon was appointed to his current role in June, charged with overseeing a regional team of engineering and construction underwriters based in Australia, China, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore

Taking on the construction crisis What trends are you seeing in the Australian engineering and construction sector?

During the current year, the Australian construction market has been changing. With London capacity drying up since the end of last year, local players have changed their outlooks, and Australia has been disproportionately affected. We’ve seen a series of large and mid-size insurers withdraw from the corporate sector, and MGAs have seen their available capacity reduced. Some local insurers have also played a role as reinsurers for large projects, which have been affected by large losses which also contributed to the current difficult situation.

We expect the engineering and construction market in Australia to continue to be under stress during the next few years because of the long-tail aspect of the business and because the large infrastructure projects underwritten in the recent past years have been done so at very competitive terms and conditions.

Are there any emerging risks brokers should be particularly wary of?

From a risk angle, one key trend we are seeing not just in Australia, but across Asia, is that the complexity of construction projects is on the rise. Today, there is more risk-sharing with the private sector through alternative project delivery forms such as public-private partnerships and build-operate-transfer. As a consequence, there are more stakeholders involved with sometimes conflicting interests.

On the other hand, innovation and new technologies are playing an ever more important role on construction sites. While new project management techniques such as building information modelling – which provides a digital representation of physical and functional characteristics of a facility – provide increased quality in the design and execution of construction projects, they also significantly change the way the contractors, architects and principals interact.

The future is not exempt from risk, and we’ve seen challenges arise, for example, from pre-fabrication of elements on some large Australian projects. With globalisation, there is increasing complexity of supply chains. Projects increase in complexity and risk as more parties across the world get involved, and supply chain management becomes of increasing importance. As an industry, it’s crucial we continue to keep abreast of these trends and new technology and evolve our underwriting and risk survey methodologies.

How can brokers secure better outcomes for their clients in this sector?

Engaging early with the necessary underwriting information is key so, as a partner, we can together discuss client needs and requirements to find the appropriate solution. In certain situations, this may require a certain level of creativity from both sides to explore alternative solutions that match the needs and budget of the client.

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UPFRONT

UNDERWRITING AGENCIES UPDATE

Brooklyn Underwriting set to double in size With support from parent company AXA XL, the underwriting agency is gearing up for a big expansion

According to Brooklyn head Tim Fairbrother, the investment will enable the agency to service more brokers without sacrificing on standards. ‘’Our brokers love our underwriting team’s responsiveness and fast turnaround times, as well as the fact that claims are all handled in Australia, so they can actually speak to a decision-maker when they need to,” he says.

“With a couple of dozen extra heads, we’re

“With a couple of dozen extra heads, we’re going to be able to offer more products to more brokers in more places”

In August, AXA XL revealed plans to significantly expand its SME division, bringing in an additional 24 employees to double the team at Brooklyn Underwriting. Robin Johnson, country head for AXA XL’s Australian operations, confirmed that the company is in the process of recruiting more than two dozen additional underwriters and claims staff.

“This major investment in the Brooklyn team is a testament to their tremendous hard

NEWS BRIEFS

work and success since acquisition in 2016,” Johnson says.

The new positions will be based across Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, but Johnson said AXA XL hasn’t ruled out plans to expand Brooklyn’s geographical footprint.

“We visit WA and SA constantly and have a lot of brokers over there,” he says. “As a lot of our business is done via an online portal, we service brokers from all over the country.”

Emergence moves into Western Australia

Cyber underwriter Emergence has expanded its national footprint once again, opening up a new office in Western Australia. The company’s new Perth location is its fifth and will be headed by former Allianz account manager James Lee. “Emergence has listened to WA brokers,” said MD Troy Filipcevic. “Having expertise on the ground is the best way to support our WA broker partners and enable Emergence to be the leading cyber insurer in Australia with innovative, market-leading solutions for brokers and their clients.”

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going to be able to offer more products to more brokers in more places, all with that same great service.”

Johnson also revealed that while Brooklyn currently writes financial lines, casualty and hard-to-place property such as expanded polystyrene [EPS] and tropical strata, it is set to move into the cyber space.

“We’re launching what we consider to be a world-class cyber product at the moment, and that’ll be available on the online portal as well as via underwriters,” he says. “We’re looking at bringing some of our other AXA XL specialty capabilities to Brooklyn in the coming months, so watch this space.”

Solution launches cyber cover designed for SMEs

Melbourne-based Solution Underwriting has rolled out a new cyber liability product aimed at the SME market.

The robust policy offers coverage for cyber crime, telecommunications fraud, business interruption (including voluntary shutdown), payment card compliance, social engineering fraud, betterment costs and reward expenses. It also includes an emergency incident response hotline via phone, email or app, as well as a broader definition of ‘computer systems’ and an expanded business interruption loss calculation.

Q&A

Vanessa MacDonald

Overcoming obstacles in professional indemnity

Underwriter PRORISK

How do you expect the professional indemnity market to evolve over the next 12 to 24 months?

Years in the industry 8 Fast fact A specialist in professional indemnity, MacDonald has worked as a financial lines underwriter for some of the biggest names in insurance, including Chubb, Berkley and now ProRisk

I expect the market to become more challenging for all parties; however, those with a sound understanding of professional indemnity and the unique exposures of the product will ultimately rise to the top.

The market is hardening, and Lloyd’s are reducing their capacity, resulting in some underwriting agencies needing to remediate their portfolios or even losing their capacity. Some market segments have become distressed: engineers and construction professionals, real estate agents, lawyers, and financial services. These hard-to-place and distressed risks, which were typically placed direct into London, are now coming back into the Australian market. While there will always be a place for online portals for vanilla risks, online platforms do not cater to everything, and the hard coating of underwriting rules will lead to fewer markets for small complex risks.

More focus is being placed on the client’s internal procedures and risk management controls when considering a submission. We will begin to see more pushback on risks that don’t have adequate controls or systems in place, putting the onus on the insured to have procedures to mitigate their risk, rather than relying on insurance first and foremost.

How is ProRisk responding to the challenging market conditions?

Offering as affordable policies as we do, you need to

CHU goes green with environmental initiative

Strata specialist insurer CHU has lent it support to a high-profile tree-planting project in an effort to cut its carbon footprint. The Forktree project, led by environmental scientist and explorer Tim Jarvis, aims to regenerate farmland in South Australia by bringing native trees back to a degraded property on the Fleurieu Peninsula.

“Climate change and biodiversity loss are the biggest threats facing us,” said CHU CEO Bobby Lehane. “The Forktree project involves restoring and reforesting an area of degraded farmland to help combat these threats.”

make sure everything runs smoothly and that there are effective efficiencies in place. After suffering a cyber attack in the middle of June, we had to come up with a way to serve our brokers, ensure our clients were covered and make sure our underwriters weren’t in the office at all hours.

This was the catalyst for us launching our fast-track renewal process. Now a client will receive a quote with their renewal invite, which can be bound on by the receipt of a completed one-page declaration and a closing. This process provides underwriters time to review exceptions and consider new opportunities and reduces overall touch time.

How can brokers work with underwriters to secure better outcomes for their clients?

I believe it comes down to three words: know your client.

When I get a less straightforward risk, I will call the broker and have a chat about the overall submission. If you can give me a story about the client, their needs and your expectations, I can work with you to get the best outcomes for the client.

When sections of proposal forms are blank or incomplete, it makes it very hard for the underwriter to get a complete picture or even rate the risk. I always encourage brokers to give me a call if they are unsure about a risk or if they have a short timeframe.

Ultimately, the best way to help your clients get the best terms is to be open and honest with your underwriter.

Agile Underwriting teams up with Cynch Security

Agile Underwriting has partnered with cybersecurity firm Cynch Security to give Cynch’s small business clients access to Agile’s CyberCare product, which provides coverage for crisis management and data breach notification costs and access to a 24/7 emergency response team. Cynch co-founder and CEO Susie Jones said the alliance will give businesses “an economic way” to reduce the impact of cyber attacks. In addition, Agile said it plans to add three new products to its online cyber offering in the coming months.

360 Underwriting Solutions buys stake in eSentry

With support from QBE, 360 Underwriting Solutions has bought a 50% stake in eSentry, a specialist underwriting agency that provides solutions for brokers in the construction risk space. The new venture will offer annual and single construction products for residential owner-builders. “Having QBE support our new construction venture reflects the capability we are building at 360 and the confidence we have been able to establish with all of our capacity providers,” said 360 co-founder and director Denis Morrissey.

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UPFRONT

OPINION

GOT AN OPINION THAT COUNTS? Email ibo@keymedia.com.au

Death of the spreadsheet Keeping up with the latest technology requires surrendering the comfort of established systems, writes Simon Oddy “TECHNOLOGY. I don’t get it.” Those were the words of my father, an accountant, many years ago. His mental arithmetic was outstanding, and his understanding of his clients’ issues was excellent.

But his career pre-dated today’s technological world, where we use spreadsheets, software and other technology by default.

I watched him resist the shift to computers and spreadsheets, fearing that users would simply accept answers and wouldn’t know how to explain the outcome.

With the launch of Microsoft Excel in 1985, spreadsheets became a staple in the field of finance. But to a large degree, my father’s fears were unfounded. Excel still requires the user to understand the problem and the calculations behind the outcome.

My colleagues and I still need to understand the inputs, outputs and the theory behind our calculations.

Recently, I’ve noticed major change once again in the way we use technology.

Surprisingly, I’m now that person I described above, because part of me wants to resist the change. Yet I realise I must embrace it.

Where I work, we have an innovation group that is well on its way to improving and enhancing how we use and leverage technology. We are making huge leaps in the way we work and how we deliver our product, responding to clients’ needs and their habits.

I sense that, with these changes, we are entering the phase where the spreadsheet will be replaced. But will that take us further

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away from fully understanding the mechanics of the problem we are dealing with? Will we get to a place where we enter data into a system and blindly accept the outcomes?

The way in which we and our clients absorb data has changed: both the how and the when. The speed with which people want updates, revisions and data analysis

We must provide the tools for them to achieve that – quickly, accurately, efficiently and in the way they want. To provide this kind of service level, we will need to look to technology advancements in what we do and how we deliver. The race is on to create the best app, client platform, algorithm or artificial intelligence platform.

In all sectors, we are looking for apps, software and programs to get us to the answers and help us with decisions. We need to start asking our clients of the future what they would like our deliverables to be. And we need to gather the knowledge of our younger staff, listen to their concepts and ideas, and bring them into the discussion.

We know that our clients want charts, data maps and models, and are happy to place faith in such things to make decisions. They don’t necessarily need to know the mechanics – just that the technology works and the conclusions are accurate. That does concern me.

Will we stop fully understanding the work

“Our clients want solutions and resolution.

We must provide the tools for them to achieve that – quickly, accurately, efficiently and in the way they want” is driven by our lifestyle habits. Lead times are shrinking as everything is delivered on demand. Within our firm and across the industry, we must meet the new needs of the client.

Delivery is changing, too. No longer will a client request and receive data from the service provider. They want access to it on their time, without the need for interaction.

We can tell ourselves that the face-to-face client relationship is still important, but sadly, its significance is shrinking. I watch my younger colleagues IM one another from adjacent desks. The need for interaction is fading, it seems. That scares me, but they seem happy with life that way.

Our clients want solutions and resolution.

we do? Will our ability to truly understand and explain the problems we are handling lessen? I have to hope not. I do think that a full understanding of the problem will still be needed if we are to explain it.

I don’t have all the answers, but I’m watching for opportunities to embrace the next change. And I’m doing my best to recognise that those around me may have the answers. After all, they are the clients of the future, and we must meet their needs.

Simon Oddy is a partner in the global forensics practice at accounting firm Baker Tilly Virchow Krause. He specialises in quantifying large, complex losses in insurance, fraud, liability and cyber claims cases.

UPFRONT

OPINION

GOT AN OPINION THAT COUNTS? Email ibo@keymedia.com.au

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PEOPLE

THE BIG INTERVIEW

AHEAD OF THE PACK As AXA XL continues to merge divisions across the globe, insurance veteran Kelly Lyles is leading her teams to success

IN MORE THAN three decades in the insurance industry, Kelly Lyles has seen her fair share of market-moving activity. Currently the London-based chief executive of client and country management for AXA XL, Lyles was there for XL Group’s acquisition of Catlin Group back in 2015, as well as for French insurance giant AXA’s blockbuster acquisition of XL last year.

Lyles’ responsibility of overseeing client relationships and country operations in Asia, Europe and the Americas is no easy feat; doing so as part of the leadership team charged with creating the number-one P&C commercial lines platform in the world is another challenge altogether. But her years of insurance expertise have prepared Lyles for this monumental task.

“I started at AIG in 1985 when I joined their graduate program right out of university,” she says. “I had a really good training basis at AIG. They put you through all the different functions, [and] you spend a little time in each. I started as an underwriter, and then I moved to London in 1990, again as an underwriter, to write UK D&O.” At the time, AIG didn’t have many underwriters working on the D&O line in that market, which made the task of crafting policies that much more interesting.

“It was really exciting to move here at a time when UK D&O was just taking off,” Lyles

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says, recalling how the team was creating a need for the product while also developing a theory of liability. “It was fun to be at the front end of a nascent market and on the cutting edge of creating something new. I often look at that as one of the most creative and rewarding times in my career.”

Climbing the ladder Even though Lyles admits she knew little about insurance before she entered the industry, she says it ended up being the perfect match for her skill set.

From D&O, Lyles made her way to running financial lines and then commercial lines.

After a four-year stint in Paris with AIG, she joined XL, drawn by the calibre of the company’s leaders.

“At the time, I just fell in love with leadership at XL, which was growing quite a bit, and I thought that [CEO] Mike McGavick and [president and COO] Greg Hendrick packed a punch in terms of their leadership,” Lyles says.

“I thought that was the type of innovative, nimble company that I wanted to [be a part of ], so I joined them in September of 2014.”

“One of the neat things we did is we decided to invest in a client management function.

We didn’t have one ‘AXA XL way’ of handling clients, so that’s one of the things we’re building for next year” “I wanted to do something that was a mixture of analytical skills and your own sales skills and personality,” she says, although she quickly learned about the value of insurance.

“It never occurred to me that businesses couldn’t exist without insurance to take away the volatility.”

Today, in managing AXA XL’s insurance presence around the world, Lyles leads teams in units such as strategic client and broker management, global programs, captives, and portfolio solutions. She is also an award winner, recently walking away with the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation and

PROFILE Name: Kelly Lyles Title: Chief executive, client and country management Company: AXA XL Based in: London Years in the industry: 34 Industry accolades: Lyles was recently named Insurance Woman of the Year by the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation and Association of Professional Insurance Women

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PEOPLE

THE BIG INTERVIEW

Association of Professional Insurance Women’s 2019 Insurance Woman of the Year Award.

Merging of the minds The process to combine AXA Corporate Solutions, AXA Art, AXA Matrix and XL Catlin is still ongoing. Much like AXA XL’s focus on innovative solutions, this move has required an out-of-the-box approach to problem-solving.

“We’re still very much in integration,” Lyles explains. Since October 2018, about a month after AXA’s acquisition of XL was finalised, the company’s executives have been consulting

Now we can start implementing.”

As part of this merger of teams, particularly for those that Lyles oversees, all country leaders will be putting operations in their countries together and will now be charged with determining a single process for how to deal with captives and global programs and introduce new functions.

“One of the neat things we did is we decided to invest in a client management function,” Lyles says. “We didn’t have one ‘AXA XL way’ of handling clients, so that’s one of the things we’re building for next year.”

Ultimately, AXA’s purchase of XL was

“So far, we’ve been really successful, and that’s without really being able to do very much ...

That bodes well for the future when we’re able to roll up our sleeves and start working with the legal entities” with AXA XL’s works council, which represents the interest of workers and is affiliated with a trade union. The executive team has had to outline to the council what the company’s target operating model will look like, where the overlaps were and whether there would be redundancies. That consultation process only wrapped up earlier this summer, giving AXA XL the go-ahead to kick off its global integration.

“We’re just coming out of it now, which means we can start to name [leaders] in countries, but we had to navigate the challenges of integrating different teams and systems while operating as separate companies,” Lyles says. “At times that’s been tough, so I think the first thing is, bravo to all of our colleagues who navigated a challenging time.

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predicated on revenue synergies – the company recognised the fact that as AXA XL, it can do even more for its global clients.

“There’s the ability now for XL Catlin to offer an AXA motor product to clients, or to provide them climate or parametric products, or to offer clients employee benefits – all of the things that AXA has that XL Catlin didn’t have, as well as some of the specialty products that XL Catlin has that AXA didn’t have,” Lyles explains. “We’re very involved in that cross-sell initiative and how we just write more business. So far, we’ve been really successful, and that’s without really being able to do very much because of the consultation period. That bodes well for the future for when we’re able to roll up our sleeves and start working with the legal entities.”

THE PATH TO AXA XL

1817 The Ancienne Mutuelle group, which would later become AXA, is founded in France

1985 AXA adopts its current name

1986 EXEL Limited, the precursor to XL, is founded in the Cayman Islands

2010 XL changes its name to XL Group

2015 XL Group acquires Catlin Group and becomes XL Catlin

2018 AXA acquires XL Catlin and renames the company AXA XL

2020

Nathan Sommer National Product Manager, Ryno Insurance Underwriting Agencies Council Underwriting Agency BDM of the Year - 2018

Friday 1 May 2020 The Star Sydney www.ibawards.com.au

Nominations open 7 October

SPECIAL REPORT

YOUNG GUNS 2019

YOUNG 2019 GUNS Meet 25 young professionals who are taking Australia’s insurance world by storm INSURANCE IS a field that breeds intense loyalty among its adherents. But although insiders are already aware of its charms, the industry must always be thinking about what – and who – is coming next. Insurance needs more exposure to younger professionals – and who better to promote it to the next generation than the industry’s Young Guns?

On the following pages, you’ll meet 25 up-and-comers – all

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35 and younger – who were named by their colleagues, managers and mentors as symbols of excellence in the field despite their young age. They are the future of the Australian insurance industry, with up-to-date knowledge that industry veterans can benefit from and leadership skills that will make them role models for the brokers of tomorrow. Remember their names and faces, because you’ll probably be seeing a lot more of them soon.

YOUNG GUNS 2019 INDEX NAME

COMPANY

PAGE

Tanushree Arora-Sopori

Imperium Insurance

28

Dean Bowen

DLB Insurance & Risk

26

Andrew Clark

Berkley Insurance Australia

26

Emily-Rose Clark

Austbrokers Canberra

31

Neeroo Conhyedoss

QBE

30

Joseph Cuzzocrea

Maxton Insurance Brokers

23

Brad Dawson

Dawson Insurance

28

Fiona Fong

Marsh & McLennan

27

Brylee Jaghbir

Marsh & McLennan

23

Gerald Lodewick

Tony Bemrose Insurance Brokers

28

Chris McAuliffe

Sedgwick

30

Katie McGettigan

TIO

24

Lior Maisner

LMI Group

24

Beau Munn

Origin Insurance Brokers

25

Linh Nguyen

Sedgwick

32

Brack Norris

Evari

32

Daniel Quinn

BizCover

26

Lauren Reeves

Guardian Insurance Brokers

30

Alen Sinanovic

Clyde & Co

24

Heather Sippel

Gallagher Bassett

24

Mathew Skinner

CHU

32

Katie Stephenson

Marsh & McLennan

32

Melissa Tan

Norton Rose Fulbright

30

Eli Tatarka

Scott Winton Insurance Brokers

28

Ananya Tiwari

Proclaim

26

BRYLEE JAGHBIR Head of FINPRO, corporate – Australia MARSH & MCLENNAN Age: 33

Brylee Jaghbir has spent more than 15 years in the insurance industry – an impressive tally for someone so young. As head of FINPRO at Marsh & McLennan, she gets the chance to work with some of the top insurance executives at Marsh, as well as some of Australia’s most iconic companies.

Jaghbir’s favourite piece of advice she’s received is “to always make it better – whatever you are doing, make sure you are making it better for clients, better for colleagues.” Given that the insurance business is continually evolving and there’s always something new to tackle, Jaghbir is likely to keep “making it better” for many years to come.

JOSEPH CUZZOCREA Broker MAXTON INSURANCE BROKERS Age: 29

Since 2012, Joseph Cuzzocrea has been a broker at Adelaide-based Maxton Insurance Brokers, where he takes satisfaction in rising to challenges and exceeding client expectations.

Well aware of the risk of complacency and the importance of bettering himself, Cuzzocrea stays connected with peers, undertakes study and participates in the NIBA mentoring program. “I’m grateful to have received mentoring from senior brokers who have provided their wisdom, helped boost confidence in my abilities and highlighted the importance of continuing to learn and be adaptable throughout my career,” he says.

Cuzzocrea thrives on the thrill of finding coverage for hard-to-place risks and managing complex claims. “This has resulted in me developing my experience and capability and creating great networks through overseas placements,” he says. “By applying myself, I’ve discovered the satisfaction that comes from exceeding client expectations at claims time.”

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SPECIAL REPORT

YOUNG GUNS 2019 HEATHER SIPPEL Operations manager – catastrophe response GALLAGHER BASSETT SERVICES Age: 34

Managing a busy catastrophe team and making a difference in her customers’ lives is all the motivation Heather Sippel needs each day. As the catastrophe operations manager at Gallagher Bassett, Sippel is able to influence and encourage her staff, customers and clients daily to achieve positive outcomes. Her competitive nature ensures she is constantly pushing her team to provide customers with the best service and outcomes.

Having entered the industry at the age of 16, Sippel is quick to recommend an insurance career. “With the variety of insurance products in the market and associated specialist roles available, no industry comes close in being able to offer such diversity, support and guidance for new entrants,” she says.

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LIOR MAISNER

ALEN SINANOVIC

KATIE MCGETTIGAN

Claims preparer and loss adjuster LMI GROUP

Senior associate CLYDE & CO

Production underwriter TIO

Age: 34

Age: 29

Age: 34

Since joining LMI Group in 2015, Lior Maisner has marked himself as a significant figure in the world of claims. In addition to his insurance expertise, Maisner also boasts knowledge of how a claim might play out in court. He provides advice and support to a broad variety of clients, from householders to top ASX 200 companies, enabling them to develop reasonable expectations and plan their recovery from potential loss.

Maisner believes embracing education is key for young professionals. “Experience

For Alen Sinanovic, navigating the constant changes in the insurance industry is all in a day’s work. As a senior associate at Clyde & Co, Sinanovic advises insurers on policy coverage and handles claims across a wide range of industries, including finance, construction and local government.

His clients benefit from his commercial mindfulness and professional approach, along with his expertise in contractual disputes, coronial inquests and claims for defamation.

Katie McGettigan puts her success in insurance down to embracing every opportunity, volunteering for tasks outside her normal role and seeking development opportunities. “Don’t sit and wait for it to come to you,” she advises. “Get involved in professional committees to build your confidence, your network and your brand. “ For the past four years, McGettigan has served as president of the YIPs NT committee. She has also taken over management of the NT Insurance

will come with time, but in a toughening market where training is costly to employers, increasing your qualifications will not only position you best for that next big opportunity, but make you a more effective future leader for our industry,” he says.

Sinanovic says relationships are key to his approach. “Take the opportunity to get to know your peers and clients to better understand the different types of risks and the industry as a whole,” he advises fellow young professionals.

Conference. “This has given me excellent insight and opened my eyes to the wonderful work being done not only by insurance professionals, but also by our service providers such as builders, brokers, doctors, lawyers and more,” she says.

www.insurancebusinessonline.com.au

BEAU MUNN Executive director ORIGIN INSURANCE BROKERS Age: 23

Being young is sometimes seen as a barrier to letting your inner entrepreneur thrive, but Beau Munn believes nothing is too big or too small to tackle, no matter your age. “What I have found is that senior people within the industry quite like the frontward approach, and it somewhat reminds them of themselves at a young age,” he says. “And if anything, you learn from mistakes … and this can only make you better as a person and business.”

Munn sees insurance as a vehicle for positive social impact. As the executive director of Origin Insurance Brokers, a majority-owned Aboriginal business, he’s able to work with organisations to create a positive change and redirect the narrative around Aboriginal stereotypes. Munn’s long-term goals are to continue to grow Origin’s business with the support of corporates and SMEs, and to continue to employ and help grow future community leaders.

Shape the future

You’re a visionary. You have big ideas on how to take your business further.

We’re the insurance partner with new ways of thinking, the latest technology and an agile approach to creating risk management solutions that can help make your vision a reality.

Know You Can

axaxl.com AXA XL is a division of AXA Group providing products and services through four business groups: AXA XL Insurance, AXA XL Reinsurance, AXA XL Art & Lifestyle and AXA XL Risk Consulting.

AXA, the AXA and XL logos are trademarks of AXA SA or its affiliates. © 2019 AXA SA or its affiliates.

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SPECIAL REPORT

YOUNG GUNS 2019 DANIEL QUINN

ANDREW CLARK

Head of sales BIZCOVER

Senior claims adjuster BERKLEY INSURANCE AUSTRALIA

Age: 28

As the manager of a team of nearly 40 people, Daniel Quinn knows the importance of staying focused on the task at hand and setting

ANANYA TIWARI Senior professional risks account manager PROCLAIM Age: 31

People often talk about falling into insurance, but for Ananya Tiwari, a career in the industry was an active choice, driven by her passion for microinsurance and the transformative impact it can have on the lives of people living below the poverty line.

“I feel that using micro crop insurance to uplift poor farmers or micro life insurance in high-risk areas, for instance, truly showcases what insurance is all about: rebuilding the world,” Tiwari says.

At Proclaim, she’s found nothing but support for her ideas and initiatives. In 2017, Tiwari founded the CET Forum, a construction insurance organisation; Proclaim supported her efforts by offering office space for committee meetings, marketing assistance and even sponsoring an event. “This support led to greater recognition and support from the industry at large through AILA and ANZIIF awards,” says Tiwari, who was also a finalist for the 2019 ANZIIF Young Insurance Professional of the Year Award.

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an example. To help with this process, he sticks to a daily routine and maintains a positive and productive mindset by viewing challenges as opportunities to develop, learn and produce results.

His advice to other young professionals?

“Be hungry to learn detailed product information. Be customer-centric and base your actions and decisions on improving their experience. Don’t wait for feedback or new tasks to come to you – be proactive and consistent in seeking feedback for self-improvement and growth.”

Age: 27

Having been involved in the insurance industry since 2010, Andrew Clark takes pride in being part of a high-quality claims team and sharing his knowledge with his team members to assist them in reaching their goals. Clark thrives on learning, actively seeking advice from both internal and external sources.

“I believe that having an appreciation of the bigger picture, in respect of my company’s goals and our stakeholders’ needs, enables me to deliver a service that exceeds expectations and achieves timely results for our clients,” he says.

DEAN BOWEN Managing director DLB INSURANCE & RISK Age: 31

At 31, Dean Bowen has already clocked more than a decade in the insurance industry.

Starting as a sales team leader, he’s climbed the ranks to become managing director of his own business, DLB Insurance & Risk. “[It was] a brave decision to leave behind a stable job and company to go into the world of AR broking and start my own business,” he says. “There were no guarantees it would work out; however, I had a plan and some great support around me, which helped me gain initial momentum and succeed long-term.”

Bowen is a huge believer in continuous professional development. His advice to other young professionals is to “always be open to feedback, try to learn something new every single day and align yourself with the right mentors who will nurture your development.”

FIONA FONG Senior claims advocate MARSH & MCLENNAN Age: 29

Fiona Fong has already made a name for herself in the insurance industry, winning the ANZIIF TurksLegal Claims Scholarship in 2017 and being named ANZIIF’s Young Professional of the Year in 2018. In the process, she has become a thought leader on the topic of cyber claims, thanks to her dedication to keeping up-to-date on industry news and always going a step further and asking ‘why’.

Fong’s ultimate goal is to become a chief claims officer. “In order to achieve this goal, I recognise the importance of working hard to polish my technical and professional skills – and, in the process, building a reputation as a knowledgeable, trustworthy and efficient claims handler,” she says.

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SPECIAL REPORT

YOUNG GUNS 2019 BRAD DAWSON General insurance broker DAWSON INSURANCE Age: 33

Getting started in insurance isn’t always easy, but Brad Dawson believes that for those who are ambitious, patient, humble and open to learning, there is room to excel. “I’m constantly setting boundaries to tackle things that I believe I can do well, and then setting goals to be better at the things I do that need improvement,” he says. “I think it’s important to do this, no matter how busy I am or how much I have on my plate. I find this a great way to reduce or cut out any ego.”

Dawson also takes time to read about the industry and his clients’ occupations and to network with other insurance professionals. He’s even started his own podcast, The Insurance Podcast, where he discusses matters of importance to the wider industry.

GERALD LODEWICK

TANUSHREE ARORA-SOPORI

Account executive TONY BEMROSE INSURANCE BROKERS Age: 30

Account director IMPERIUM INSURANCE

With a decade in the industry already under his belt, Gerald Lodewick has marked himself out as an account executive to be watched. His long-term goal is to ascend to a national sales role, where he can use his strengths and passion for sales to grow and maintain relationships with clients and business partners.

Lodewick stresses the importance of having a good mentor. “Throughout my various roles in underwriting and broking, I have been lucky enough to have a handful of amazing mentors to learn from,” he says.

“Meeting and working with these people has been a collection of defining moments which I feel have propelled me forward.”

Age: 35

Tanushree Arora-Sopori believes her experience with different cultures and backgrounds has made her resilient, patient and understanding with her clients. “When you experience different cultures, it definitely sets you apart,” she says.

Throughout her career, Arora-Sopori has been focused on her own professional and personal development, as well as that of her team, to optimise their combined performance.

She encourages other young professionals to choose their career paths and progression wisely and to commit to what they do. “Always act in the best interest of the client and be honest and fair in your dealings,” she advises.

ELI TATARKA Account manager SCOTT WINTON INSURANCE BROKERS Age: 27

For Eli Tatarka, insurance has always been about putting people before profit. “I attribute my career thus far to building strong, genuine connections with both clients and staff,” he says. “I make it a priority to ensure that each client, whether small or large, walks away with the right product and the peace of mind of knowing that I’m always there for them.”

Tatarka sees nothing but opportunity for young people in insurance. “This industry is interesting; no two clients are the same,” he says. “Relationships formed with clients, underwriters and staff make it a very exciting and stimulating profession.”

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SPECIAL REPORT

YOUNG GUNS 2019 CHRIS MCAULIFFE Senior loss adjuster SEDGWICK Age: 33

Chris McAuliffe’s goal is to become a leading expert in managing heritage property claims – and he’s well on his way. Thus far in his career, he’s managed claims for Kilruddery House in Ireland and the General Gordon Hotel and Kirribilli House in Australia.

His advice for other young professionals is to remember that insurance is a people-focused industry. “Throughout your career, you will encounter all types of people, and you will often be the first person to speak to them after they have experienced a significant loss, be it to their home or their business,” McAuliffe says. “In my view, you have an opportunity to make a positive impact when they may be at their lowest. You should strive to understand the people you deal with and to build your emotional intelligence and compassion.”

NEEROO CONHYEDOSS Multinational property underwriter QBE Age: 33

MELISSA TAN Senior associate NORTON ROSE FULBRIGHT Age: 34

The trust, communication, competence, dedication and commerciality Melissa Tan brings to her job have earned her a reputation for having a “safe pair of hands” and a great work ethic. Tan’s supervisors and clients commend her innovative approach to solving legal problems, particularly the complex insurance matters she’s developed a successful track record in over the past year.

Tan advises other young professionals to start building their personal brand now. “Think about what it is you can bring to the table for your clients which differentiates you from others,” she says.

“A good personal brand is key to building trust; earning the respect and recognition of your clients, colleagues and peers; and attracting opportunities. It will keep your career thriving.”

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Setting professional and personal goals has kept Neeroo Conhyedoss continuously motivated to be at the top of her game. She prides herself on staying engaged with new perspectives on current topics via books and podcasts. She also puts a priority on maintaining a healthy work-life balance by taking regular time off to fully recharge and find new inspiration.

Conhyedoss notes that the insurance industry’s ageing workforce presents a perfect opportunity for ambitious young professionals who have a thirst for knowledge and the drive to seek out mentorship. She also touts the benefits of the international market, which allows young insurance professionals to experience different work cultures and gain different perspectives, contributing to both their industry knowledge and their own personal growth.

LAUREN REEVES Account broker GUARDIAN INSURANCE BROKERS Age: 27

Lauren Reeves considers herself fortunate to have had great mentors thus far in her career, both through the NIBA mentoring program and her involvement on the NIBA YP committee. These avenues have provided her with the opportunity to meet like-minded individuals. “It’s an exciting experience having someone invest in you and take time out of their day to share their knowledge,” she says.

Looking to the future, Reeves would like to remain in broking, either managing a portfolio or through internal management. She describes the ever-changing insurance industry as “the working world’s best kept secret … There are so many different avenues and specialties. It is challenging, ever-changing, fun, and there’s a lot of industry support.”

EMILY-ROSE CLARK Broker AUSTBROKERS CANBERRA Age: 30

Insurance is an ideal career for those with an inventive but practical nature – and that’s where Emily-Rose Clark of Austbrokers Canberra shines. Clark says making the transition from underwriter to broker two years ago was the defining moment of both her career and her life.

Having spent the previous 11 years working with global insurers, she says the move diversified both her skill set and her personality.

The development of young insurance professionals is key for Clark – outside of Austbrokers, she serves as the vice president of the ACT branch of Young Insurance Professionals. Her advice for new brokers: “Push your limits, go outside of your comfort zone and challenge yourself wherever possible.”

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SPECIAL REPORT

YOUNG GUNS 2019

BRACK NORRIS

KATIE STEPHENSON

Chief digital officer EVARI

Business development specialist MARSH & MCLENNAN

Age: 29

Age: 33

While working in a retail business, Brack Norris found himself frustrated that his insurance cover didn’t move up and down like his stock levels did. This fuelled his desire to develop tech-enabled insurance solutions that can integrate into customers’ lives in a meaningful way. Today, Norris oversees the growth and marketing of the Evari brand whilst also leading the development of digital platforms and industry-leading innovations.

Looking ahead, Norris believes the use of technology and data will be essential to the evolution of the industry. Going forward, he says, insurance will be reliant on technology to deliver the business models and customer experience needed to increase growth and reduce costs.

As a business development specialist, Katie Stephenson is charged with connecting with her community to build a client base.

She does this by engaging in meaningful ways and developing trust, as well identifying key risks and suitable solutions for each client.

Stephenson is also passionate about “leaving the ladder down” for other young professionals as a way to pay forward the mentoring she’s received in the industry.

Looking ahead to 2020, Stephenson hopes to take a fresh new approach in YIPs, expand Marsh & McLennan’s footprint to regional areas of Australia and keep climbing the insurance ladder by gaining experience in other areas of insurance outside of broking.

Senior claims consultant CHU Age: 29

In her two years at Sedgwick, Linh Nguyen has continually demonstrated a commitment to deliver on projects and exceed customers’ expectation. As

The year and a half he’s spent working in claims has made Mathew Skinner realise that this is his ideal career path. Skinner has a genuine passion and drive to be the best he can for his fellow claims consultants and their clients, and he has his eye on a managerial or leadership role as a way to bring about real changes in the claims space to keep it relevant in an ever-evolving insurance market.

His advice to other young insurance professionals? Never be afraid to ask questions. “Early in my career, I shied away from seeking help from fellow employees, but this limited my ability to learn and develop as an insurance professional,”

manager of Sedgwick’s prize draw business, Nguyen has been integral to the company’s unequalled growth and recognition as a market leader in this field. Instrumental to Nguyen’s success has been her ability to transfer key customer service skills from her previous career to the insurance world, along with her flexible and unflappable nature, which has allowed her to take the often bizarre requests of the prize draw world in her stride.

Skinner says. “I quickly learned that asking questions of those around you will, at the least, give you a different perspective on a situation [and] will ultimately allow you to grow and educate yourself on many different insurance topics and challenges.”

LINH NGUYEN National manager, prize indemnity and entertainment SEDGWICK Age: 28

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MATHEW SKINNER

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FOR RISKS FROM A TO Z Visit www.insurr.com/au

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SECTOR FOCUS: MARINE INSURANCE

Helping customers stay shipshape Marine insurance is a key product for many Australian businesses, yet it often goes overlooked. Zurich Australia’s James Butchart tells IB how brokers can help close that gap

MARINE INSURANCE is a key feature in the modern insurance landscape. James Butchart, commercial manager of marine at Zurich, has spent the past eight years helping to develop products and best practices within the insurer’s marine division, and this has given him a variety of unique insights into the partnership between insurers, brokers and customers in the marine space.

“When brokers are looking for a marine insurance partner to work with, the key attributes they should be looking for are service and expertise,” Butchart says. “A lot of the time, an out-of-the-box insurance solution will suffice. But given the complexity that often exists in the marine insurance

sector, it’s important an insurer can be flexible and tailor their offering to suit the customer’s needs.”

One of the unique challenges that clients and brokers alike tend to face when insuring cargo is getting their heads around a solid understanding of everything that can impact goods when they move from point A to point B. There are often several links in the chain of responsibility, and the cargo owner, their broker and insurer must have a good understanding of what recovery path they might be able to take.

“Responsibility for the goods can change hands several times during a transit,” Butchart explains. “A freight forwarder may

ABOUT ZURICH AUSTRALIA Zurich’s general insurance business in Australia and New Zealand is known for its strong risk management, excellence in claims handling and intermediary-focused distribution strategy. Locally, Zurich offers insurance solutions to small and medium-sized enterprises, large corporations, and multinational companies. Globally, Zurich Insurance Group is a leading multi-line insurer with about 53,000 employees. It provides a range of general and life insurance products in more than 210 countries and territories.

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have arranged the movement, so in the event of a claim, and if liable for the loss, the freight forwarder’s liability policy may respond.

Likewise, if the movement of the goods was undertaken by a logistics operator, then the logistics operator’s policy may respond.”

But this is just one of the potential challenges that can arise – and that’s why Butchart is heavily committed to educating brokers so they have all the tools they need to discuss their clients’ specific situation and ensure they have the most suitable marine coverage in place.

“We understand that for most brokers, marine makes up only a small proportion of their overall portfolio, so isn’t always front of mind,” Butchart says. “But most of our marine team have more than 20 years of experience in the industry and love spending time with brokers.”

Butchart also points to the company’s risk engineering service as an additional value-add for both brokers and clients.

“Whether it’s desk assessments or site visits, Zurich’s dedicated team of risk engi-

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neers will actively work with both the broker and their customers to identify areas of the customer’s business that can be strengthened,” he says. “This helps to build strong, long-term partnerships between us, the brokers and their customers, based on a common understanding of the risk the customer faces and their marine coverage requirements.”

Shifting with the tides Given the influx of new entrants to the field and the continually changing state of the insurance market, Zurich continually reviews its marine lineup to ensure it’s offering the most relevant products.

Sailing into the future Butchart sees a variety of changes ahead for the marine insurance industry; some are reflective of social change, while others are simply challenges inherent to the industry.

One example in the former category is coal. Despite the capacity in the Australian market, many insurers are now taking a strong stance on the use of thermal or ‘dirty’ coal, applying enhanced risk screening on new or existing clients to decide whether they will offer insurance to companies with exposure to these industries. Zurich has been an industry leader in this space.

“We’re seeing a shift towards renewable

“Given the complexity that often exists in the marine insurance sector, it’s important an insurer can be flexible and tailor their offering to suit the customer’s needs” James Butchart, Zurich Australia “We’re committed to underwriting through the market cycle,” Butchart says. “This allows our customers to plan effectively for their own insurance costs, which is essential for the small business sector.”

In practical terms, this means Zurich works to remain consistent in its approach to pricing. Additionally, Butchart points to the organisation’s keen understanding of the importance of an effective claims service.

“We were recently recognised at the Insurance Business Australia Awards as the General Insurer Claims Team of the Year,” he says, “so we understand the importance of an effective, experienced and service-focused claims team to assist our marine customers when they need it most.”

energy sources, and the marine market is evolving to offer cargo solutions to renewable energy projects, such as wind and solar farms,” Butchart says.

In terms of upcoming challenges, Butchart also believes that the tightening general property market will have an influence on the marine space in the next 12 to 18 months.

“We’ ll experience the movement of harder-to-place components, such as stock throughput and static risks, into the marine market,” he predicts.

Additionally, the London market has been contracting over the last year and a half, and a number of Lloyd’s syndicates have withdrawn from the marine market altogether.

“A significant amount of Australian

WHO IS JAMES BUTCHART?

James Butchart joined Zurich in 2012 as national manager of marine hull insurance and has since gone on to fulfil a variety of other roles within the organisation. Today, he acts as a commercial manager, overseeing the organisation’s various marine insurance products. With more than 21 years of experience in the insurance industry, Butchart has marked himself out as an expert within the field.

marine business is placed in the London market, and we’ve recently seen this return onshore,” Butchart says. “This is good news for the local marine market, as it shows we have the capability and capacity to successfully underwrite such risks here in Australia.”

However, he also notes that marine underwriters shouldn’t simply strive to be seen as a cheaper alternative to the property market.

The increase in the number of underwriting agencies, coupled with international insurers trying to get a foothold in the local marine

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SECTOR FOCUS: MARINE INSURANCE

SEA TRANSPORT IN AUSTRALIA

99%

Percentage of exports from Australia that move via sea transport

$218.8bn

Value of Australian exports by sea in 2015–16 (the most recent year for which statistics are available)

1.597m

Tonnes of cargo that moved through Australian wharves in 2015–16

“A significant amount of Australian marine business is placed in the London market, and we’ve recently seen this return onshore. This is good news for the local marine market” James Butchart, Zurich Australia market, means that brokers have plenty of options to place their marine risks.

“The challenge this presents is that underwriters need to remain disciplined in their approach to risk assessment, coverage and pricing to ensure the market remains sustainable, consistent and profitable for the

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8.7%

Average annual increase in cargo between 2010 and 2016 Source: Department of Infrastructure, Regional Development and Cities

long term,” Butchart says.

Doing otherwise is a short-sighted approach that could potentially undervalue the importance of marine expertise – a threat to the future of the industry.

“One risk in the industry is the potential loss of marine expertise in both broking and

underwriting,” Butchart says. “Given that marine insurance plays an integral role in the overall transport and logistics industry, it is critical that we continue to educate and develop talent to ensure we don’t create a knowledge gap – and that we keep pace with the ever-evolving insurance industry.”

SAFE TRANSIT WITH THE MASTERS IN MARINE.

Zurich’s expert marine team has over 300 years of combined experience across marine liability, logistics and cargo insurance.

For tailored marine insurance solutions no matter how complex, talk to the experts at Zurich.

CALL YOUR ZURICH REPRESENTATIVE TODAY.

ZURICH INSURANCE. FOR THOSE WHO TRULY LOVE THEIR BUSINESS.

This information is general advice only and does not take into account your objectives, financial situations or needs. You should obtain and consider the relevant Product Disclosure Statement and Policy Wording (as applicable) from zurich.com.au before making a decision. The issuer of general insurance products is Zurich Australian Insurance Limited (ZAIL), ABN 13 000 296 640, AFS Licence Number 232507 of 5 Blue Street, North Sydney NSW 2060. ZU23774 V1 0818 - LEWG-013705-2018

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BROKERAGE INSIGHT

Building a better broker network Relationships are everything in broking – that’s why Tremayne West started Australian Broker Network back in 2017. West sat down with IB to discuss the current state of the organisation and its plans for the future

BROKING IS difficult work. Few people know that better than Tremayne West, founder and managing director of Australian Broker Network [ABN].

“Brokers need to know a lot about a broad range of products, you need to have intimate knowledge of your clients, and you need to constantly keep up-to-date with compliance activities,” West says. “Some of that is inherent to the role, but ABN was also born out of a desire to ease that strain on individual brokers.”

Spotting a gap in the AR market, West realised there was room for a partnership-style model that would allow small, specialised licensees to collaborate with one another – and in 2017, ABN was born.

“I wanted to create a brokerage that would allow the industry to work together to create a true partnership, give equity to brokers and work together to grow their business,” West says. “We wanted to be a contrast to the ‘golden handcuffs’ model that a lot of brokers find themselves trapped in.”

As West sees it, the real value in broker networks is not the licence; rather, it’s the broker books that are associated with the individual businesses. Every partner involved with ABN has a specialisation, whether at the

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geographic, product or industry level. That way, West says, if an ABN member has a client with a need outside of their immediate capabilities, they can easily refer it to a trusted source within the network and likewise receive referrals of their own.

“Under ASIC definition, we are an authorised rep model,” West says, “but we tend to think of ourselves as essentially a large-scale brokerage with specialised branches.”

West also notes that referrals can go well beyond simple discussions around products.

It’s all about how to help other partners thrive and expand.

“I see referrals as encompassing a whole world of opportunity that will help a partner

grow,” he says. “As an example, recently a broker partner presented to an association to pitch themselves as a potential advisor to the association’s board.” The partner enlisted West’s help; the pair presented as advisor and licensee and secured the position.

In such situations, having the resources of the licensee to stand steadfast with the broker partner adds real value to ABN’s proposition and can make a significant difference. West points to numerous other examples where members have helped each other with tricky client needs, resecured business or even aided each other in their personal lives.

“From ABN’s perspective, our customers are our broker partners, so we want to do what-

AN ACTIVE PARTNER Given that ABN is all about developing successful relationships, it’s no surprise that Tremayne West prides himself on remaining active as a broker. “The traditional hierarchy we see in workplaces tends to remove the upper tiers from the coalface,” he says, “but I think it’s critical that I can walk in the shoes of both broker partners and clients.”

West sees himself as a resource for others; given his extensive experience in the industry, he’s more than willing to share. “We always want to give our broker partners the appropriate tools for success,” he says, “whether that’s through sending an idea or response via email, just being on the end of the phone, spending some face-to-face time with the partner, or supporting them with clients – that’s what I do.”

FAST FACTS: AUSTRALIAN BROKER NETWORK

YEAR FOUNDED 2017

HEADQUARTERS Sydney

LEADERSHIP Tremayne West, managing director

“We wanted to be a contrast to the ‘golden handcuffs’ model that a lot of brokers find themselves trapped in” ever we can to help them grow and build positive engagement,” West says. “Our mantra is to make it easier, whatever that looks like.”

Of course, West is also realistic about the difficulties brokers can face; the industry is undergoing constant evolution, and new challenges are emerging rapidly as technology changes. Developing innovative solutions to

these challenges is an area where West sees ABN as playing an increasingly important role, thanks to the organisation’s discretionary mutual and underwriting licences.

Realistically, he says, it’s about creating alternative risk structures in a hard market to meet client needs. Accordingly, ABN is also investing heavily in support services – staff and

BUSINESS MODEL Based on the authorised representative model but more akin to a specialty brokerage that connects brokers across the country in mutually beneficial relationships

programs alike – that will help increase capability for broker partners. West remains confident that the network is well equipped for the challenges of the future.

“Every new risk is also a new opportunity to help a client,” he says, “and ABN’s purpose is to assist the broker to make this process as simple as possible.”

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FEATURES

SECTOR FOCUS: MOBILE PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

The dirt on Yellow Cover Effectively engaging with the construction industry means building close relationships with the right insurers. IB spoke with NTI’s David Kidd to find out what its Yellow Cover product has to offer

THOUGH SPECIALIST insurer NTI is best known for its transport insurance offerings, it has been writing mobile plant and equipment [MPE] insurance within its motor book for more than 40 years. Yellow Cover came to life under the NTI umbrella of brands in 2015, giving NTI’s MPE and CPE customers a niche product that has been tailored specifically around the mobile plant industry.

“Technically, we’re considered a new player,” says David Kidd, national portfolio manager of mobile plant at NTI. “But we’re drawing on a wealth of historic experience, and we’ve already established ourselves as a market leader.”

Under Yellow Cover, Kidd explains, NTI offers a broad variety of insurance products for the mobile plant and equipment space, primarily in the civil, construction, agricultural and mining industries.

“We’ll do just about everything from owner-operators and SMEs, up to the big corporate organisations,” he says. “In terms of exposure, we handle anything up to about $500m. Beyond that point, we’re still happy

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to help, too – but we’d probably be bringing in our reinsurers as well.”

Kidd himself has been with Yellow Cover since the beginning and has extensive experience in the MPE space. As an industry veteran, he’s keenly aware that it’s a sector with great complexity, and he points out that determining the correct mode of insurance is often more nuanced than brokers realise.

“I always try to encourage people to try and look at things from an exposure standpoint,” he says. “A construction business might have vehicles, but when you look at them more closely, you realise that their

actual day-to-day business is earthworks, so you need to find the product that actually matches those needs, rather than simply looking at external appearances.”

Accordingly, Yellow Cover aims to work with brokers and clients alike to create insurance products that address the client’s particular needs. This is made easier by Yellow Cover’s close alignment with NTI – the company’s background with large-scale commercial and heavy motor insurance helps to create a more comprehensive product.

“We don’t just cover mobile plants and equipment; we cover trucks, too,” Kidd says.

“Depending on the customer’s individual needs, they can often have all of these assets covered under the one policy – it’s a more tailored approach.”

Constructing an effective claims process Kidd is keenly aware of the important role brokers play in educating clients in the everevolving MPE space. He believes the level of service Yellow Cover provides is a key differentiator in the market, and he views it as a guarantee of the company’s efficacy in paying claims. The insurance business is the business of paying claims, Kidd points out, and clients need to have the confidence that their insurer can deliver.

“I like to describe us as top-heavy from a claims perspective,” he says. “We’re an Australian-based service, so we can easily

ABOUT YELLOW COVER Yellow Cover is a leader in mobile plant and equipment insurance and is part of NTI, Australia’s specialist insurer. With more than 45 years of specialist experience in heavy motor insurance, we know what it takes to operate in the specialist space. It’s about living and breathing the industry you serve and leading the way – in every way. That means delivering tailored cover for heavy machinery across complicated and specialised ranges of exposures.

Whether you’re an owner-operator or the biggest name in the business, we’ve got you covered with outstanding service, unparalleled expertise and innovative policies that come with industrial-strength protection. For more information, visit yellowcover.com.au.

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“Our whole process is built around getting repairs started and completed quickly for operators without them having to dig into their own pockets for reimbursement later” David Kidd, NTI provide support over the phone if an accident occurs. Our staff can check in to make sure that the people affected are OK, not just the equipment.”

Brokers have 24/7 access to Yellow Cover via Sunrise; according to Kidd, it was the first

product of its kind to be available on the platform. Additionally, specialist underwriters in each region across Australia can provide support as necessary.

“At a base level, we have tools like our online platform for brokers working with SMEs,”

Kidd says. “That obviously makes it easier to get hold of a quote; you punch in the information, and you can get one instantaneously.”

To help boost broker knowledge, NTI also holds monthly webinars across all of its products – Yellow Cover, Marine Protect and National Transport Insurance – in order to keep its partners up-to-date with the latest developments in the industry.

“Collectively, we’re all in the transport arena, irrespective of which field we’re working in specifically,” Kidd says. “All of these areas are more intertwined than you might initially suspect, so it’s always beneficial for brokers to learn about the different facets of the business.”

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MOBILE PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

NTI is also heavily involved with industry associations and events, working to make brokers aware of its services so they can relax when there is a claim.

“We also pride ourselves on speed of claims,” Kidd says. “Our specialists make fast decisions, so if we’re able to get all the necessary supporting documentation, we can have settlement times as short as five days. We take care of everything; our whole process is built around getting repairs started and completed quickly for operators without them having to dig into their own pockets for reimbursement later.”

A key part of this is the company’s use of trade-qualified mobile plant and heavy motor internal repair managers rather than external assessors, who often introduce delays and higher fees.

“We also have trading accounts with most P&E dealerships and manufacturers, which allow us to supply parts more efficiently to customers, even if they are doing their own repairs,” Kidd says. “These agreements are unique to us, and all repairs authorised by NTI are covered by our Yellow Repair Promise.”

THE YELLOW REPAIR PROMISE

In an industry with such stringent equipment demands, David Kidd is keenly aware of the importance of repairs being carried out effectively and without error.

“We have 100% trust in the workmanship by our authorised repairers,” he says.

“That’s what our lifetime guarantee is all about – it also means our policyholders know that should a problem ever arise, we’ll get things back on track fast at no cost to them.”

Perhaps most significantly, Yellow Cover’s Yellow Repair Promise guarantee isn’t limited solely to the original owner. It covers the life of the plant of equipment, even if it’s sold to a new owner.

“Clients seem to be keen to deal with brokers and insurers who are local ... They feel as though they’re more likely to understand the challenges they’re facing day to day” David Kidd, NTI The local advantage With 15 years of experience in the industry under his belt, Kidd is well aware that the mobile plant market is subject to shifts and changes, just like any other field. One particular trend he’s seen over the last few years is the larger syndicates gaining signif-

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icant growth, largely on the back of cheap pricing. However, he notes that this appears to be coming to an end.

“We’ve seen recently that a lot of the London-based syndicates are starting to pull out of the Australian market,” he says. “We’ve seen similar trends in other areas of insur-

ance, too – big names set up shop and look very impressive initially.”

Kidd believes the syndicates have simply realised that they’ve been pursuing unsustainable pricing models. Given the hardening currently occurring in the market, their largescale approach is no longer a viable option.

Still, Kidd is confident in the ability of local organisations to step in and take their place.

“Clients seem to be keen to deal with brokers and insurers who are local and on the ground,” he says. “They feel as though they’re more likely to understand the challenges they’re facing day to day. That’s something we feel we can offer with our products, and with the capabilities we offer to our brokers, we’re quite confident in our position.”

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SECTOR FOCUS: CYBER INSURANCE

Dealing with digital threats In 2019, cyber insurance isn’t an optional extension – it’s essential for any business that takes online security seriously. James Crowther of Agile Underwriting tells IB what brokers need to know 44

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CYBERSECURITY IS an often misunderstood proposition. Unfortunately, this tends to mean that cyber insurance gets overlooked, even by businesses and brokers who should know better. But cyber insurance is becoming an increasingly essential risk-transfer asset, and those who ignore it do so at their own peril, says James Crowther, general manager of emerging risks at Agile Underwriting.

“Ten years ago, when I first moved into cyber insurance underwriting, the market was obviously much less sophisticated,” he says.

“Cyber insurance tended to be purchased as an add-on to existing products, like management liability or professional indemnity, rather than its own stand-alone product.”

Today, cyber insurance is far more specialised – not only are there many stand-alone

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products, but they generally also include crisis management or incident response costs as part of the package. In fact, many modern cyber insurance products actually provide breach remediation capabilities rather than simply reimbursing clean-up costs. This is particularly important for SMEs, as many don’t have the capabilities to deal with a fullblown cybersecurity crisis.

“Brokers have a real responsibility to work through these issues with their clients,” Crowther says. “What sort of security measures do they have in place already? Are they prepared for when a breach does occur? For example, is there a breach response management plan in place, and how should they notify their insurer? Given the world we live in, being uninformed or unprepared just isn’t an option anymore.”

Businesses also need to keep in mind that there are legal implications in play, too. In 2018, changes to the Privacy Act 1988 introduced the Notifiable Data Breach [NDB] scheme, which requires mandatory notifica-

ABOUT AGILE UNDERWRITING Established in 2015, Agile Underwriting Services is an underwriting agency and Lloyd’s coverholder. Our team is composed of Lloyd’s and insurtech veterans with experience in both the local and international insurance and reinsurance markets. We write accident and health, aerospace and aviation, cyber and emerging risks, financial lines, marine, and retail travel portfolios through binding authorities written at Lloyd’s of London.

Our suite of cyber risk insurance solutions is simplified and offers wide-ranging cover, designed to work alongside traditional insurance to protect businesses and individuals against the cyber risks they face from day to day. These solutions provide both financial reimbursement and value-added benefits, including a pre-approved expert incident response team that reacts quickly when cyber events impact our customers. For more information, visit agileunderwriting.com.

often not aware that they need to maintain their own robust security beyond what their cloud service providers offer.

“The biggest thing we’re seeing at the moment is business email compromise, or BEC, which seems to have risen in frequency along with the use of software as a service [SaaS] email software such as Office 365,” Crowther says. “Essentially, a cybercriminal gains access to the user’s login credentials,

“Given the world we live in, being uninformed or unprepared just isn’t an option anymore” James Crowther, Agile Underwriting tion to affected individuals and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner following certain data breaches. Additionally, companies with clients or customers in the EU also need to be compliant with that region’s new data protection laws.

The cyber threat landscape has significantly evolved since Crowther first entered the field. With the increased emphasis on cloud computing, he explains, many businesses are at far greater risk of a breach because they’re

usually via a phishing email, and they can then log into the email account. The hacker often then impersonates someone from inside the business and tricks other staff into handing over compromising information or, in some cases, the business’s financial assets.

“If an outsider is able to gain access via BEC, it’s frequently possible for them to gain access to the whole network from there. The compromised email account might be used for resetting passwords for other critical services

or launching attacks – it’s a security issue that brokers need to be aware of in order to educate their clients and own staff.”

Crowther also notes that having an effective cyber fitness or resilience program, which takes into account staff training, breach response planning and insurance, is crucial for any business looking to update its cyber­ security risk profile. To this end, Agile provides updates to current security threats via social media and LinkedIn, along with updates on trends and education materials via its website.

Having close ties to Lloyd’s of London enables the underwriting agency to stay at the forefront of developments in available cyber insurance products.

“We also have frequent discussions with our IT security vendors to stay up-to-date on the threat landscape, and we are always looking for ways to improve customer education through partnerships,” Crowther says.

Through these channels, as well as partnerships with firms such as Cynch Security and the Optus Macquarie University Cyber Security Hub, Agile is able to assist brokers in answering customers’ queries and meeting their needs.

“The broker is the client’s trusted advisor,” Crowther says. “They need to be ready to answer questions when they arise. Proactive management is key, and we are always here to help.”

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FEATURES

SECTOR FOCUS: PREMIUM FUNDING AND TRADE CREDIT

*Source: All Best VPN (www.allbestvpn.com/cyber-security-stats-of-21st-century)

43% of cyber crimes target small businesses

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FEATURES

SECTOR FOCUS: PREMIUM FUNDING AND TRADE CREDIT

Bringing out the best for clients Premium funding and trade credit insurance are both crucial aspects of modern business finance. So how can brokers best leverage them for their clients?

PREMIUM FUNDING and trade credit insurance are key tools organisations can use to smooth out the ebbs and flows of the business cycle and better manage their cash flow. Within this space, Elantis Premium Funding and NCI have worked together for around a decade to help provide brokers and their clients with the tools they need to succeed. Insurance Business sat down with Elantis CEO Nick Cunningham and NCI managing director Kirk Cheesman to find out more about premium funding, trade credit insurance and the intersection of the two products. As industry veterans, both Cunningham and Cheesman have key insights to offer brokers, whether they’re new to these fields or have long been advising clients on the process.

Premium funding The funding industry’s ability to support

SMEs in Australia is a point of pride for Elantis CEO Nick Cunningham. First and foremost, he says, premium funding allows for businesses to have more effective cash flow by allowing them to spread out premiums over a year or more.

“At Elantis, we take the complexity out of premium funding to offer a low-cost solution to businesses,” Cunningham says.

“We understand small businesses, and we

know that when a small business is required to pay a lump sum upfront, that it can be hard for them to manage. When the cost is spread across 12 months, it’s much more manageable – premium funding is all about helping people manage their cash flow.”

Elantis works on the concept of the return premium for security; they don’t require other security. Loans are generally able to be processed more quickly than by banks, and while checks are required, they’re typically not as stringent, which better facilitates funding for those who need it.

“We put a lot of emphasis on what I like to call ‘kick-ass customer service’, and this is really just a logical extension of that,” Cunningham says. “We can’t claim to be supporting SMEs effectively if we’re making them jump through all the same hoops that the big banks would.”

Of course, premium funding is a lending industry with risks like any other, Cunningham points out. “My assessment is we’re heading into some uncertain times with the economy slowing,” he says. “We’re prepared for this, and we’re here to help small business through the tough times.

“There’s the usual default risks,” he adds. “If a business collapses and goes into admin, we’re like any other creditor trying to get their money back.”

Strong partnerships with brokers can make all the difference during difficult

ABOUT ELANTIS PREMIUM FUNDING At Elantis Premium Funding, we see ourselves as part of your team. We seek to earn your business and your trust, and we offer a personalised, dependable and flexible premium funding service, combined with a commitment to building genuine, rewarding partnerships with you. We have a long and proud track record and have a reputation for financial strength, integrity and reliability. With representatives in 12 locations across Australia and New Zealand, there will always be a team member on hand, close to your brokerage, to provide you with the support you need and expect. To find out more, visit elantis.com.au.

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FEATURES

SECTOR FOCUS: PREMIUM FUNDING AND TRADE CREDIT

times. Elantis works closely with brokers to provide them with current information around industry developments and premium funding options for clients.

Academy, holding a series of face-to-face and online sessions for brokers each year.

Cunningham feels that skills like being able to read balance sheets and P&L state-

“Value-adds are increasingly common … things like support for collection costs, overdue debt recovery and legal action” Kirk Cheesman, NCI Cunningham stresses that providing educational tools about the financial component of premium funding is crucial. Elantis facilitates this through its Elantis Learning

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ments are essential for brokers who want to provide a holistic solution to their clients.

“Just like in any other area of life, risk and reward are very closely linked,” he says.

“The more information we have, the better we’re able to calculate effective premiums.

Brokers need to ask for information from clients in order for us to assess the loan and price it. The more information brokers can provide to Elantis allows us to assess the risk better. If we understand the risk, this can translate to better premiums for the clients.

“All businesses go through cycles,” Cunningham adds. “Where premium funding hasn’t been required the previous year, it’s always a good for the broker to have the conversation with their clients again to ensure that, together, we’re meeting all of their business needs and supporting them when they need it.”

Trade credit insurance Trade credit is a high-touch, high service product that requires daily contact with clients – but it’s arguably one of the bestkept secrets in the industry. The simple truth, says NCI’s Kirk Cheesman, is that many businesses aren’t aware of the ways it could benefit them – especially in higher-risk industries like building and construction, where chasing payment can be a very real issue.

“In Australia, there’s still very much a ‘she’ll be right, mate’ type of attitude

trade credit insurance policy will offer 90% cover of the amount owed in the event of a loss.”

Trade credit insurance premiums enable customers to pay their premium over a number of months, allowing the client to smooth out their premium costs and assisting their annual cash flow. It can also work in conjunction with premium funding to bring down overall costs.

“Clients from small SMEs to large ASX-listed companies find premium funding an excellent offering to support their business,” Cheesman says. “We support

“We can’t claim to be supporting SMEs effectively if we’re making them jump through all the same hoops that the big banks would” Nick Cunningham, Elantis Premium Funding towards customers paying on time,” Cheesman says. “In other zones, especially in Europe, trade credit insurance is heavily used to protect business profits.”

The debtor’s ledger, Cheesman explains, is often the largest current asset of a business and has more risk attached to a potential insolvency than other insurance claims on fixed assets. Given that any business that sells goods or services on credit, domestically or internationally, can take advantage of trade credit insurance, Cheesman feels it should be used much more widely.

“Trade credit insurance offers protection against non-payment – insolvency – from a debtor who owes the supplier money for goods or services,” he says. “Typically, a

Elantis with debtor risk management and monitoring of their customers. This helps keep an eye on credit risks and enables them to react when changes or adverse effects occur.”

When it comes to selecting an insurer,

Cheesman points out that different trade credit insurers will have a wide variety of products, terms and conditions, so brokers must investigate closely to ensure they achieve the best result for their client.

“We’re dedicated to being a specialist trade credit insurance broker,” he says, “so NCI offers support and co-relationships with general brokers to assist them in highlighting to their customers the credit risk elements that could apply to their business.

We talk through the questions to ask to see if trade credit insurance is a viable option for them. We also provide regular updates on the credit environment, and the NCI quarterly Trade Credit Risk Index gives insights into trends across various elements of credit risks.”

Cheesman notes that marketing a potential client to trade credit insurers needs to be a comprehensive process that analyses the full credit risk and cover requirements of the prospect.

“Insurers have differing appetite on credit risk in various industries,” Cheesman says. “Value-adds are increasingly common, too – things like support for collection costs, overdue debt recovery and legal action.

It’s all about finding out the intersection between client needs and available product offerings.”

ABOUT NCI NCI was established in 1985 as a specialist trade credit insurance broker. Our business has grown steadily to become the leading trade credit insurance broker throughout Australia, New Zealand and Asia. Over the years, we realised that while our product was ultimately trade credit insurance, our business was actually about protecting our client’s profitability. While credit insurance is the ultimate safeguard against bad debts, better business practices in trade credit management can also help to improve profitability on a day-to-day basis. We have therefore developed a complete range of trade credit services for our clients. For more information, visit nci.com.au.

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FEATURES

MEETINGS

Are you drowning in meetings?

If meetings are taking up most of your day and preventing you from doing your real work, Brian de Haaff explains how to regain control

YOU VERSUS your calendar: you’re fighting for time to get your real work done.

Nervously eyeing the clock. Each day is a relentless sprint from meeting to meeting, but the calendar always wins. It goes something like this: 8am: Start work 8.15 – 12pm: Booked with meetings 12.15 – 12.30pm: Lunch (while catching up on email) 12.30 – 5pm: Booked with meetings You wearily plead with your boss for help, but he’s just as busy with his own meeting schedule. Eventually, you resign yourself to the fact that you won’t begin your actual work until the end of the day, when the meeting reminders mercifully cease (at least

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until the morning). You surrender your workdays to an endless loop of meetings.

There’s a reason these meetings all seem the same. The organiser has no agenda, no clear goals, no questions or action items for attendees. The meeting drags on and on, wasting valuable time for everyone involved.

These meetings are stealing something valuable from you – the time to think deeply and be productive.

Now, I’m not suggesting we say goodbye to meetings overall. On the contrary, I think it’s important for teams to connect often – sometimes even daily. The problem arises when meetings are consuming more time than the actual work.

I recently faced this problem myself. My calendar was filling up fast. I expect this as the CEO of Aha!, even though we spend as little time in meetings as possible. I enjoy checking in with the team, customers and

potential job candidates.

But I had less and less time to think through the big issues that affect the team and the company. So I blocked off Wednesdays as meeting-free on my calendar.

I call it Wonder Wednesday. It’s my time to work and think deeply about the business.

I realise that not everyone is able to block off a full day on their calendar. But here are five things you can do to lighten the load when you’re drowning in meetings.

Block off time You might not be able to block off an entire day each week, but I bet you have a few hours here and there. It’s reasonable to carve out chunks of time to do your work (or even to take a lunch). This doesn’t mean being inflexible if a teammate needs you during one of these chunks. It’s simply ensuring that you have enough time to get work done or take a needed break.

Hit pause Before you automatically hit ‘accept’ on an invite, take a moment to think about why you’re needed. If this isn’t totally clear, ask the organiser why they included you: “What is the purpose of this meeting? How can I help specifically?”

You might find that your attendance is not actually necessary to move the work forward. For example, the organiser might need information that you could easily share via a document or report. Or perhaps they’re looping you into a project that you’ll only have peripheral involvement in. In this case, ask for meeting notes instead.

Set parameters Even if you’re not the organiser, you can help keep things productive by

you have one of these on your calendar, think about what you could do to improve it. Maybe it’s automating a report for a weekly status meeting or emailing ahead with prepared talking points to help encourage others to stay on track. Also, consider asking the organiser if you’re still needed at these meetings.

Perhaps there’s a recurring meeting that no longer requires your attendance or only needs you for a few minutes at the beginning or end.

Talk to your boss

Before you automatically hit ‘accept’ on an invite, take a moment to think about why you’re needed. You might find that your attendance is not actually necessary to move the work forward setting parameters — show up on time, stay on topic and follow up with any tasks that come out of the conversation.

Also, consider asking the organiser for an agenda beforehand. Even if it’s not a formal document, simply having some bullet points about the topics of discussion and desired goals for the meeting can help move things

along. Don’t be afraid to kindly redirect the conversation back to the agenda when it takes a turn.

Evaluate regularly Everyone has experienced the ‘standing meeting’ that starts off as necessary and grows ineffective over time. If

If you’re truly drowning in meetings each day, talk it over with your manager. Have an honest conversation about how these meetings are impacting your schedule and explain that you need more time to get work done. Who knows – maybe your manager is struggling with the same issue. The epidemic in your workplace may be symptomatic of larger organisational issues, and your honest assessment could help prompt action.

You may not be able to overhaul a meetingheavy culture, but you can protect your own corner of it. Do what you can to ensure you’re getting to the work that really matters.

It’s worth it to take steps to protect your time and work. Is attending that meeting the only way you can learn something critical?

Are you crucial to decisions that need to be made in that meeting? If not, don’t go. The calendar may be a mighty force, but it doesn’t always have to win.

Brian de Haaff is the co-founder and CEO of Aha! and the author of Lovability. His two previous companies were acquired by well-known public corporations. De Haaff writes and speaks about product and company growth and the adventure of living a meaningful life. For more information, visit aha.io.

Author photo by Chris Yeh

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CONFLICT

How to get what you want from difficult people Difficult people are a fact of life. Aytekin Tank offers three guidelines that can help you defuse even the most uncomfortable confrontations

ACCORDING TO Dr Rick Brinkman and Dr Rick Kirschner, authors of Dealing with People You Can’t Stand, there are several challenging personality types that make our lives harder: The Tank: Confrontational and angry The Sniper: Makes you look foolish The Grenade: Explodes into fury out of nowhere The Know-It-All: Authoritative and must have things done their way The Whiner: Points out everything wrong in vague terms You might be thinking of a person to put

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one of these labels on. They could be a friend, co-worker, customer or family member.

Still, according to executive consultant Tim McClintock, only about 10% of the people you encounter are categorised as difficult, even if some days that number feels much larger.

The other day, I was standing behind a guy dressed in a tan suit at a coffee shop. He was on his phone while simultaneously rambling off a complex drink order. Between the mumbles at the barista and the chatter into his wireless earbuds, I think all of us waiting in line knew what was going to happen next.

At the end of the bar, he picked up his coffee, took a sip and immediately lost it over the ‘extra foam’ now destined to ruin his day. Unkind words were exploded across

the counter, leaving the barista temporarily frozen. A Tank – confrontational and angry – was on the loose.

I watched as the barista listened to what he said, put his head down and redelivered the order to the man in just a few moments.

He handed the cup over kindly, watched for his approval, nodded and then went to his next order as the man walked out the door, still talking on his phone.

The barista had gotten what he wanted.

He kept his goal in mind, and by listening and then taking action in the face of verbal accosting , he got him to leave.

When you’re communicating with any difficult personality, being in the moment is hard. At JotForm, we have 4m users, and some of our users give us a difficult time

Listening, combined with the intent to understand what is being sought, gives you a prime opportunity to end the interaction while achieving your goals almost every single day. The following guidelines help me defuse situations, from handling our customer relations to managing our team of more than 108 employees.

1

Listen and understand the end goal

At first, the barista froze to avoid conflict. We’re all hardwired like that. Every

last one of our brains still defaults to fightflight-freeze when something highly stressful or unsettling occurs. However, when a person is acting unreasonably right in front of you , being like the barista works perfectly.

He was able to not only move through this automatic response of fight-flight-freeze, but also get clear on what he wanted and execute flawlessly. Listening, combined with the

intent to understand what is being sought, gives you a prime opportunity to end the interaction while achieving your goals.

The barista understood that no matter what the man said, what he really wanted was to have his coffee the way he asked for it. He listened past all the yelling to delineate how he could fix the situation while achieving his goal of watching him walk out the door.

The feedback was harsh, but this barista was a pro.

2

Focus on what you can do

You might not be able to avoid what difficult people have to say, but you have control over what you do and, more importantly, what you ask. Asking questions puts you in the driver’s seat to let the person air what

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FEATURES

CONFLICT

Asking questions puts you in the driver’s seat to let the person air what they have to say while guiding them to what you can do anything about they have to say while guiding them to what you can do anything about.

Difficult people, especially the ones Dr. Brinkman and Dr. Kirschner refer to as Whiners, require a lot of directed questioning so you can understand their desires and what actions are available to you. On the flip side, during this intense questioning, you might end up uncovering something about yourself you wouldn’t have known otherwise.

We decided to test this process by conducting face-to-face interviews with our users. In one of our first interviews, we came up close and personal with the Whiner. This person drained our time, providing vague descriptions while sprinkling them with unpleasant commentary.

We didn’t give up – we kept digging, always keeping in mind our goal of how we could create a better product. An hour later, we struck gold. We found out this customer

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had been using JotForm as a productivity tool. Customer after customer shared similar tales as our interviews continued over the following weeks.

By continually asking deeper questions of a difficult customer and not giving up, we not only found a new focus, but we also discovered the difference between challenging people and unpleasant comments.

3

Make a distinction between a difficult message and a difficult person

Earlier this year, a customer made several new feature requests and was pretty adamant about their unhappiness with our functionality in a support thread comment. Good news: They felt comfortable enough to let us know where we didn’t meet their expectations. Bad news: Yikes.

I didn’t take the grievances shared on our

forum personally. I did, however, take them seriously. I don’t usually jump into support discussions, but this was a critical moment to examine whether this person was being difficult or giving us an opportunity for improvement. Further, what if by challenging our platform and strategies, this customer was giving us a huge gift? I needed to find out.

I saw this as an opportunity and stepped into the forum to respond to the customer’s experience. I provided details on what was going on with the platform that could be causing their issues and also offered my email address for further discussion.

It always helps to get clear on the difference between a difficult message and a difficult person. What couldn’t be seen on the thread was us listening to their issues and ascertaining their end goals through deepdiving questions.

You will always come across challenging people, but by listening to them, asking questions, understanding their goal and focusing on your actions, you can put yourself in the best position to succeed in getting what you want. It won’t always happen in the most pleasant way, but keeping these guidelines in mind helped us handle challenging moments both with our users and within our organisation, and hopefully they’ll help you grow, too.

Don’t freeze and walk away, but instead engage head-on with these personalities.

They will push you to innovate, make things better and fill in gaps you didn’t know were there before they arrived. I’d say that’s a gift worth getting at the expense of an uncomfortable confrontation, wouldn’t you?

Aytekin Tank is the founder and CEO of JotForm, an online form creation software with 4m users worldwide and more than 100 employees. A developer by trade but writer by heart, Tank shares stories about how he exponentially grew his company without any outside funding. For more information, visit jotform.com.

PEOPLE

CAREER PATH

GROWTH MINDSET

Rebecca Zhang’s career journey has taken her a long way – both geographically and professionally

Despite her interest in economics, finance, philosophy, history and literature, Zhang ultimately decided to pursue a law degree.

“It was for practical reasons – I knew it would give me broader career options. Having said that, I did enjoy studying law – I liked the logic and reasoning applied in case law.”

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GRAVITATES TO LAW

2009 DISCOVERS REINSURANCE During her time at APRA, Zhang was overseen by a boss who was a former reinsurance broker. He was pivotal in persuading her to undertake the ANZIIF Reinsurance International Study Course to lend greater clarity to the insurers and reinsurers she was involved in regulating.

“I was amazed at how events happening around the world could affect the reinsurance industry in Australia. The complexity of it all really intrigued me” 2016 JOURNEYS TO THE BIG APPLE Appointed vice president of treaty broking, Zhang relocated to another major finance hub – New York – which she says helped her grow as an individual and widen her perspective on how events happening in one part of the world could have ramifications for the global reinsurance industry.

“The different markets made me a pretty dynamic person – able to adapt to the changing environment and face changes in a calm manner.”

2019

BUILDS A FOUNDATION IN UNDERWRITING Zhang pivoted to underwriting when she joined Munich Re, and she continues to find her role fascinating.

“My previous experiences as a regulator and broker have definitely helped with my current underwriting role. I enjoy being an underwriter because it’s a profession that embodies the art of underwriting people as well as the science of underwriting facts.”

2007 TRIES OUT INSURANCE A district court internship left Zhang thinking the legal life might not be for her, so she set about finding a different path.

“Like any fresh university graduate, I wasn’t sure where my career would be going, so I picked a job that would utilise my training from university. I thought APRA was a good starting point to test out what I was good at and just go from there.”

2013 MAKES A MOVE Zhang’s official move into the reinsurance world went hand in hand with a physical move to London, where she joined the team at Guy Carpenter and found that the scope of her job allowed her to create tailored solutions for clients.

“I was able to connect with clients and colleagues around the world and figure out how different markets operate and harness the opportunities that exist.”

2017

WINS A SCHOLARSHIP An essay mapping out how digital platforms might impinge on the reinsurance industry landed Zhang the Peter Corrigan Scholarship, giving her the opportunity to attend INSEAD’s executive program.

“What I learned from the executive program equipped me with a growth mindset and knowledge to navigate a business environment that is facing dramatic strategic and cultural changes.

It has broadened my view of the world and enabled me to see more opportunities where I can have influence.”

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PEOPLE

OTHER LIFE

RACING WITH VETERANS Morgan Appleby put his risk management skills to good use when he helped an injured veteran complete one of the toughest off-road races in the world

TELL US ABOUT YOUR OTHER LIFE Email ibo@keymedia.com.au

SINCE BEING medically discharged from the military, Alleviate Risk founder Morgan Appleby has been a keen supporter of organisations that give back to the veteran community.

Among them is the RSL’s RAEMUS Rover program. Designed to help break the PTSD cycle, the initiative provides veterans with the opportunity to be part of an off-road racing team.

This year, the program entered three vehicles into the Finke Desert Race – a two-day sprint considered one of the most challenging courses in the world, which regularly attracts some of the biggest players in the world of off-road racing.

“It’s the terrain which makes it so

3,500cc

The F inke Desert Race traverses the outback from Alice Springs to the remote Indigenous community of Aputula/F inke

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difficult,” explains Appleby, who completed the race earlier this year, navigating for injured Air Force veteran Jim Dwyer, who became the first driver to complete the race with a prosthetic leg.

“Imagine corrugations in the road about a metre high and unevenly spaced, going on for, at times, 60km in length – and that’s coupled with extremely loose sand and bulldust holes,” Appleby says. “You’ve also got spectators lining the track while you’re going up to – and sometimes over – 200kmph, and the dust being kicked up means visibility is often reduced to mere metres, making navigating extremely challenging.”

Capacity of the engine on the Zarco Lite Nissan Appleby raced

460

Total kilometres covered in the Finke Desert Race

06:23:19 Appleby and partner Jim Dwyer’s race finish time

WHO WILL COME OUT ON TOP?

Winners for Insurance Business’s annual showcase of the country’s most successful brokerage businesses will be revealed in the next issue and online at https://www.insurancebusinessmag.com/au/

THE MORE AMBITIOUS AUSTRALIA IS, THE MORE IT NEEDS YOU. We believe being a tall poppy isn’t a bad thing. That’s why we’re doing all we can to back ambitious Australian businesses. And to keep them growing, we need the help of ambitious brokers like you.