The Insurance Coffee House with Nick Hoadley

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House, Nick Hoadley is joined by Nicola Nairn, Group Head of HR at Lancashire Insurance Group, a global specialty insurance and reinsurance business operating across London, Bermuda, the US, and Australia.Nicola shares her career journey into HR, starting on the trading floor at Morgan Stanley before moving into asset management and eventually transitioning into human resources. She reflects on how an unplanned move into HR led to a long-term career in reward and, later, broader HR leadership, bringing a strong commercial lens to people strategy.The conversation explores how Lancashire has grown from around 300 to 450 employees in recent years, and how the focus has now shifted from expansion to optimising the structure, effectiveness, and development of the organisation. Nicola explains how this creates opportunities to focus more deeply on talent, mobility, and long-term capability building across the business.Nick and Nicola discuss practical approaches to talent development, including identifying high-potential and high-performing individuals, building internal mobility, and combining external training with internal initiatives such as mentoring and knowledge-sharing programmes. Nicola outlines how creating visibility across the business helps employees better understand opportunities beyond their immediate roles.The episode also looks closely at culture. Nicola shares how Lancashire maintains a consistent culture across geographies while allowing for local differences, and explains why common sense and common decency are the foundations of the organisation’s approach to hiring and leadership. She emphasises the importance of hiring for both capability and character, and treating recruitment as a two-way process.They also discuss hiring practices, working with search partners, and the gradual introduction of technology such as applicant tracking systems to improve hiring processes and data visibility. Nicola highlights the importance of investing time upfront with recruitment partners to ensure alignment on role requirements and culture.The conversation closes with practical advice for candidates and HR professionals, including the importance of authenticity in interviews, taking the time to understand motivations, and recognising that career paths do not need to be linear. Nicola also shares a simple but consistent lesson from her career: spend more time listening than talking, and stay open-minded.This episode offers a grounded view of how people and culture strategy is evolving within insurance, and how organisations can build strong teams by focusing on development, clarity, and cultural alignment.Connect with Nicola Nairn on LinkedIn to follow her work across HR leadership, talent development, and organisational culture.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House, Nick Hoadley is joined by Beth Boucher, an experienced independent director with a portfolio spanning Hiscox, Coforge, and Specialty Insurance. Beth brings over 30 years of experience across technology, insurance, and business transformation, with a career built around using technology to drive operational change and growth.Beth shares how she transitioned from a full-time executive career into a portfolio of board roles, advisory work, and fractional CIO positions. She explains why that shift happened after COVID, how she approached building a board career intentionally, and what she learned early on about the difference between operating roles and governance.The conversation explores how to secure a first board role, including the importance of signalling your transition clearly to your network and recruiters, repositioning your profile, and being deliberate about the type of roles you pursue. Beth also shares her experience of board certification, why she chose to do it before securing her first role, and how it helped her understand the responsibilities and expectations of a non-executive director.Nick and Beth discuss the realities of board work, including onboarding into complex organisations, managing large volumes of board material, and building an understanding of areas outside your core expertise. Beth explains how directors can stay effective by committing to continuous learning, understanding their blind spots, and using the resources available within the board and management team.The episode also explores board dynamics and culture, with Beth emphasising the importance of fit, trust, and open challenge in the boardroom. She highlights why board appointments are always a two-way decision, and how interpersonal dynamics can be just as important as technical expertise.Beyond governance, the conversation looks at corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the role boards play in shaping meaningful impact. Beth shares examples of initiatives focused on education, community access, and environmental programmes, and explains how these efforts support employee engagement, brand reputation, and long-term value creation.The discussion closes with a practical look at cyber risk and technology oversight. Beth outlines the key questions boards should be asking around cybersecurity, including risk appetite, asset protection, resilience planning, and incident response. She also highlights the growing importance of AI and why all board members need a baseline understanding of both cyber and emerging technologies.This episode provides a clear view of how modern board careers are built, how governance expectations are evolving, and what boards need to focus on as technology and risk continue to change.Connect with Beth Boucher on LinkedIn to follow her work across insurance, technology, governance, and board leadership.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House, Nick Hoadley is joined by Elaine Rocha, former Chief Investment Officer at AIG and current CEO of the Madison Square Boys & Girls Club of New York City. Elaine brings a career that spans law, insurance, investments, and executive leadership, shaped by a series of deliberate career moves and transitions across the industry.Elaine shares how she first entered the insurance industry through private legal practice, working on complex insurance coverage matters in the London market. She reflects on the early years of her career, where she developed deep technical expertise by working through large-scale claims, litigation, and policy structures, and how that foundation shaped her approach to problem-solving and learning.The conversation explores her move into AIG in the aftermath of the financial crisis. Elaine discusses the decision to leave private practice, the risks involved in joining a company undergoing significant change, and how she approached building credibility in a new environment. She explains how she navigated a large and complex organisation by focusing on learning quickly, asking questions, and developing strong relationships across the business.Nick and Elaine discuss how her role evolved within AIG, moving from legal into broader leadership responsibilities. Elaine reflects on the importance of saying yes to new opportunities, even when they sit outside your core expertise. This included stepping into roles such as Chief of Staff, moving into the investments division, and eventually becoming Chief Investment Officer, overseeing complex operations, transformation programmes, and large-scale strategic initiatives.The discussion highlights the breadth of experience required to operate at senior executive level within a global organisation. Elaine describes how working across insurance, investments, operations, and finance gave her a unique perspective across the value chain, including asset liability management, technology transformation, outsourcing strategies, and regulatory engagement.The conversation then turns to her transition into her current role as CEO of the Madison Square Boys & Girls Club. Elaine shares how her experience at AIG prepared her to lead an organisation undergoing transformation, and how many of the same leadership principles apply in a nonprofit environment. This includes building alignment across teams, introducing new operating models, leveraging technology, and working closely with an engaged board.Nick and Elaine also explore the relationship between executive leadership and the board. Elaine reflects on what she has learned from both sides of the boardroom, including how to ask better questions as a director and how to manage board relationships effectively as a CEO. She emphasises the importance of preparation, curiosity, and using past experience to guide better decision-making.The episode closes with practical advice for executives considering their next move. Elaine encourages leaders to take calculated risks, remain open to new opportunities, and continue building their skill set over time. She also highlights the importance of networking, staying informed on industry developments, and being intentional about long-term career direction.If you’d like to follow Elaine’s work across insurance, leadership, and her current role at the Madison Square Boys & Girls Club, connect with Elaine Rocha here on LinkedIn.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House, Nick Hoadley is joined by Dr Susan Fleming, an experienced independent director with more than 25 years across insurance, asset management, and financial services. Susan currently serves on the boards of RLI Corp and Virtus Investment Partners, and has previously held director roles at Endurance Specialty, PXRE Group, Quanta Capital, and others.Susan shares how she first entered financial services, starting at SNL Securities before moving into Morgan Stanley’s M&A group focused on financial institutions. That early exposure led her into insurance private equity at Insurance Partners, later Capital Z Partners, where she spent years working on complex and often distressed insurance transactions. She reflects on the pace and intensity of that period, the analytical grounding it gave her, and how it led to her first public board seat at just 29 years old.The conversation explores what it was like entering the boardroom at a young age, why private equity-backed board roles differ from independent directorships, and how board work has changed over the past two decades. Susan describes a clear shift toward greater professionalisation, higher expectations of directors, more scrutiny from shareholders and regulators, and a noticeable rise in overall board quality and rigour.Nick and Susan also discuss crisis governance in detail. Susan reflects on her experience joining Quanta Capital during a difficult period, helping oversee a runoff and sale process, and what that taught her about board teamwork, communication, and staying focused on the core objective of delivering value for shareholders. She also shares the lessons from Endurance Specialty, where the board supported a sale that created a strong outcome for shareholders, employees, and customers, even though selling the company had not originally been the plan.The conversation then broadens into Susan’s wider career beyond the boardroom. She explains why she chose to leave private equity, pursue a PhD in management, and move into academia at Cornell University. There, she taught entrepreneurship, women in leadership, negotiations, and entrepreneurial finance, while also helping develop curriculum and contributing to the Bank of America Institute for Women’s Entrepreneurship. Susan reflects on how academic work, startup thinking, and board experience strengthened each other, particularly around innovation, experimentation, and helping larger organisations stay open to new ideas.Nick and Susan close with practical advice for executives seeking their first board role. Susan emphasises the importance of networking, having a clear board bio, preparing properly before joining a board, and making sure any opportunity aligns with both your expertise and your reputation. She is clear that challenging situations can be worthwhile if you can genuinely contribute, but that any question mark around integrity is a reason to walk away. Above all, she argues that directors should come prepared, check their ego, listen carefully, and earn trust through integrity, judgment, and thoughtful contribution.Connect with Dr Susan Fleming on LinkedIn to follow her work across insurance, governance, entrepreneurship, and board leadership.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House, Nick Hoadley is joined by Val Rahmani, a leading board director across insurance and financial markets, currently serving on the boards of London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), RenaissanceRe, and Entrust. Val shares how a 28-year career at IBM, followed by startup CEO experience, shaped her approach to leadership, strategy, and governance.Val reflects on her early career, starting as a chemistry PhD student who wanted to move into sales, and how IBM redirected her into systems engineering so she could learn the product before selling it. She describes the pivotal moment when she was selected to work in the CEO’s office and how that fast-tracked her exposure to top-level decision-making. Val shares practical lessons from that period, including how to think clearly under pressure, how to listen to specialists on the ground, and why taking opportunities quickly can change the trajectory of a career.The conversation then moves into Val’s transition from big tech to startup leadership. She explains what changes when you move from a large organisation with abundant resources to a startup where every decision is constrained by funding, headcount, and time. Val discusses the realities of raising capital while running the business, why she enjoyed fundraising, and how sales skills translate into leadership by focusing on understanding what people actually need.Nick and Val then explore her board journey and how her first board roles helped her shift from hands-on executive work into governance. Val explains why private company boards can be a strong entry point for executives looking to build board experience, including the higher involvement, the pace, and the learning curve without the full weight of public company regulation. She shares how her first public board appointment at Aberdeen Asset Management came about through a recruiter, and why culture fit matters as much as capability when board appointments are long-term commitments.Val also breaks down what LSEG actually does beyond the exchange, including clearing and its evolution into a data and analytics business, particularly following the acquisition of Refinitiv. She shares how she approached joining RenaissanceRe without an insurance background, and how structured induction, one-to-one time with executives, and asking direct questions helped her get up to speed. Val and Nick discuss the people-centric nature of the insurance market, the importance of understanding industry relationships in reinsurance, and what it takes to become useful before offering strategic input.The episode closes with practical guidance for building a board portfolio. Val explains why her board roles have largely come through recruiters, why those relationships need to be long-term rather than transactional, and how recruiters can match for culture when they know the person behind the CV. She shares what she believes makes an outstanding board director: listening, being selective about where you contribute, respecting time in the boardroom, and doing the work outside the meeting so the questions you bring are truly value-add. Val also outlines how she stays current, including structured reading habits and monitoring market signals, and why every board member needs at least a working awareness of AI and its implications.Connect with Val Rahmani on LinkedIn to follow her work across technology, governance, and board leadership.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House, Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search, welcomes back leadership consultant Nick Wealthall of Yellow Door Training.Following strong feedback from his previous appearance, Nick returns to go deeper into a topic that resonates across the insurance market: leadership and value proposition.From brokers and underwriters to CEOs and HR leaders, this conversation explores how insurance professionals can better understand the value they create, communicate it effectively, and use it to drive growth, performance, and talent attraction.Connect with Nick Wealthall on LinkedIn to learn more about Yellow Door Training and his work helping insurance leaders clarify their value, lead with impact, and build stronger teams.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House, Nick Hoadley is joined by Brian Posner, a seasoned investor, operator, and board director with deep experience across insurance, financial services, and public company governance, including 15 years at Arch Capital.Brian shares how his career evolved in unexpected ways, from thinking he would become a doctor to building a foundation in finance, investing, and leadership. He reflects on his formative years at Fidelity, including working directly with Peter Lynch, and explains why understanding insurance starts with the balance sheet, then cash flow, and only then the income statement. He unpacks what great insurance investing looks like in practice, from spotting hidden leverage to focusing on tangible book value growth over headline earnings.The conversation then moves from investing to governance. Brian explains how his first board appointment at Sotheby’s came about as a governance solution during a crisis, what he learned from that high-stakes experience, and why he took Henry Kravis’ junior senator advice seriously: listen, pick your moments, and build influence before trying to drive outcomes. Brian outlines how he approaches joining any board like an investor, absorbing context, understanding risks, and finding the best way to add value without coming in “guns blazing.”Nick and Brian discuss what separates effective boards from ineffective ones. Brian describes the secret sauce as directors who understand the business of the business, ask great questions, look around corners, and bring deep respect into deliberation. He argues the best boards treat governance as a perpetual conversation, not four or five isolated meetings per year, and explains how chairs and committee chairs can create alignment by facilitating information flow, preparing both management and directors for the real discussion, and avoiding unnecessary surprises.Looking forward, Brian shares what boards should be paying closer attention to, including geopolitical risk, rule of law, and the sanctity of contracts, particularly critical in insurance. He also offers his view on the next generation of board leaders: breadth matters, reading and learning matter, empowerment matters, and in a fast-moving world, knowing when to slow down can be a strategic advantage. He closes with practical advice on winning that first board role by building relationships, being targeted, and using a less is more approach, often by asking the one question that reframes the decision.Connect with Brian Posner on LinkedIn to follow his work.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House, Nick Hoadley is joined by Susan Holliday, a global insurance and reinsurance executive and experienced board director, including her recent appointment to the board of Hippo Insurance.Susan shares how the Hippo opportunity came about, why the stage of the business matters for board impact, and what her committee roles involve, including Audit, Risk and Compliance and Compensation. She also reflects on where insurtech sits today, why the ecosystem matters, and why not every technology-led player should become a full-stack carrier.The conversation explores Susan’s career path into insurance, starting in the Lloyd’s market, moving into counterparty credit and global insurer analysis, and later into equity research and senior roles at Swiss Re, including Head of Investor Relations through the Global Financial Crisis. Susan describes what it was like operating in a fast-moving environment, working closely with leadership, and the importance of clear communication when the fine print matters.Nick and Susan then discuss board work in practice: how to build a board portfolio, how to define a clear value proposition, how directors stay current, and how boards should approach emerging risks. Susan shares a practical framework for AI governance, including risk appetite, controls, pilot design, cross-functional execution, and regulator engagement.Connect with Susan Holliday on LinkedIn to follow her work across board governance, risk, and technology-led insurance.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House Boardroom Series, Nick Hoadley is joined by David Herzog, former CFO of American International Group (AIG) and one of the most experienced finance and governance leaders in global insurance. David served as CFO of AIG from 2008 to 2016, stepping into the role in the immediate aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis and helping lead the company through one of the most complex turnarounds in modern financial services. In this conversation, David reflects on the years leading up to the CFO appointment, including rebuilding AIG’s financial infrastructure as Group Controller, and the intensity of navigating markets that rapidly moved from strained, to expensive, to effectively closed. He shares what it was like inside AIG as liquidity evaporated, why coordination with the Federal Reserve and U.S. Treasury was pivotal, and how the organisation focused on stabilising the business, stopping the “bleeding,” and ultimately repaying government support. The discussion also explores David’s transition from executive leadership into board governance. He talks through early lessons from his first directorship, how he approaches chairing audit and oversight roles, and what aspiring directors should understand about the line between being an overseer and a doer. David also shares why the opportunity to chair Aegon appealed to him, and what he looks for in organisations on a journey of strategic change. Connect with David Herzog on LinkedIn.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House, Nick Hoadley sits down with Amanda Yoho, President of Proformex, the life insurance and annuity technology platform based in Cleveland, Ohio.Amanda joined Proformex in January 2020 to build the company’s data and analytics capability, before stepping into the President role in November 2024. With a background that spans startups and global corporates, including several years at IBM following an acquisition, she brings deep experience across data science, technology, and problem-solving in complex environments.In this conversation, Amanda shares how Proformex helps agents, advisors, and distributors gain a unified view across their life and annuity books of business. She discusses the long-term challenges of monitoring products that may span 30-50 years, the importance of consumer protection, and why access to accurate, centralised data is critical for preventing unintended lapses.Amanda explains how proactive alerts, data quality checks, and system integrations support advisors in delivering better service, reducing risk, and identifying new engagement opportunities. She also highlights how hiring and interviewing are evolving in the age of AI, why curiosity is essential in a startup environment, and how finding the right culture fit is just as important as technical capability.Connect with Amanda Yoho on LinkedIn to learn more about Proformex.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House, Nick Hoadley sits down with Antonia Hold, CHRO at MS Reinsurance who joined in April 2021. Based in Zurich, Antonia leads the company’s global people strategy, with a focus on hiring the right talent, supporting their growth, and creating an environment where people want to stay and do their best work. She brings a practical, people-centred approach to leadership, fostering collaboration, encouraging learning, and helping teams grow through trust and shared goals. Antonia works closely with business leaders to ensure HR is aligned with MS Re’s direction and values. Her career spans more than 20 years across four continents, with senior HR roles at Jones Lang LaSalle, Prudential plc, and Zurich Insurance Group. She has led teams and projects across EMEA, Africa, and APAC, gaining broad experience in shaping HR strategies in diverse environments, and holds an MSc in Economics from the University of Bern.Connect with Antonia Hold on LinkedIn to learn more about MS Reinsurance.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On the Insurance Coffee House podcast, host Nick Hoadley welcomes Nick Wealthall, Founder of Yellow Door, a leadership and commercial growth consultancy helping insurance organisations and their people unlock performance through better communication, decision-making and mindset.Speaking from London, Nick shares his fascinating career journey from wealth management to professional poker, to comedy writing on shows like Have I Got News For You, before founding Yellow Door to coach senior executives across major insurance firms. With a background spanning finance, broadcasting, and entrepreneurship, Nick brings a unique perspective on how professionals can think and act more like business owners, whether they’re brokers, underwriters, or corporate leaders.He explains how lessons from the poker table translate directly to leadership and underwriting: making confident decisions with incomplete information, assessing risk and reward, and maintaining composure under pressure. Drawing parallels between poker, business and insurance, Nick highlights why the most effective leaders are those who embrace uncertainty, make active choices, and refine their process rather than fixating on short-term outcomes.Nick also discusses how brokers and carriers can drive commercial growth and differentiation in increasingly commoditised markets, by deepening client understanding, taking an “outside-in” perspective, and focusing on delivering long-term value rather than transactional wins. He shares practical insights on building trust-based client relationships, fostering entrepreneurial thinking inside large organisations, and leading with intention and self-awareness.In the Espresso Round, Nick reflects on his journey from performer to coach, offering lessons on humility, resilience and curiosity. He encourages insurance professionals to take ownership of their impact, ask “how can I help more?”, and build businesses that grow through genuine human connection.Connect with Nick Wealthall on LinkedIn and learn more about Yellow Door.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On the Insurance Coffee House podcast, host Nick Hoadley welcomes Samuel Broomer, President of NormanMax Insurance Solutions, a rapidly growing MGA and Lloyd’s syndicate pioneering climate-focused parametric insurance solutions.Speaking from Connecticut, Sam shares his career journey from reinsurance accounting at HSB Group to leadership roles at AIG, FM Global, and W.R. Berkley, before taking on his current role at NormanMax. With experience spanning finance, underwriting, innovation, and strategy, Sam offers a unique, end-to-end perspective on how insurance organisations can evolve to meet today’s climate and technology challenges.He explains how NormanMax provides parametric protection against natural catastrophes such as hurricanes, earthquakes, floods, and severe storms, delivering certainty of payment, speed, and liquidity when policyholders need it most. Sam highlights the importance of third-party data or “oracle” verification for triggering payouts, eliminating lengthy loss-adjustment processes and building greater trust between insurers and customers.Sam also discusses why parametric insurance is becoming mainstream: a feature embedded within traditional policies that enhances the customer experience, helps close the protection gap, and restores confidence in the insurance value chain. He shares NormanMax’s vision to make these products simple, accessible, and globally scalable through its Lloyd’s Syndicate 3939 platform, serving clients from North America to the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.In the Espresso Round, Sam talks about building culture within what he calls a “multi-hundred-million-dollar startup,” offering insights on humility, curiosity, and the value of learning across disciplines. He also shares advice for insurance leaders on hiring with intention, building direct partnerships with talent, and staying open-minded to new perspectives in a rapidly changing market.Connect with Samuel Broomer on LinkedIn and learn more about NormanMax Insurance Solutions.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On the Insurance Coffee House podcast, host Nick Hoadley welcomes Elyse Myrans, CEO & Co-Founder of Tenax ai, a climate-tech startup using computer vision and AI to protect homes and their insurability, from extreme weather.Speaking from Los Angeles, Elyse shares how Tenax ai delivers property-level risk assessments for wildfire, flood and wind in 20–30 minutes via a smartphone or drone, then ingests the imagery through proprietary models to detect hundreds of features (roof class, vegetation proximity, vent mesh, window type and more). She explains why forward-looking, parcel-level data outperforms regional, backward-looking models, and how Tenax ai’s outputs plug directly into carrier underwriting workflows (they provide the features and confidence, insurers keep their own pricing).Elyse also highlights the homeowner experience: tailored mitigation plans with prioritised actions and referrals to local vendors, removing “speed bumps to action” so customers can reduce risk, lower premiums over time, and even move properties back inside the band of insurability. She draws a useful analogy to telematics in auto insurance: dynamic, behavior/feature-based data enabling more accurate pricing and better outcomes for both carriers and policyholders.In the Espresso Round, Elyse discusses building a tech-insurance hybrid team, why empathy and trust are non-negotiables in startup culture, and offers candid advice for insurance leaders considering the shift to insurtech: get comfortable with the unknown, stay nimble, and keep your eye on what matters as conditions change.Connect with Elyse Myrans on LinkedIn and learn more about Tenax ai.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On the Insurance Coffee House podcast, host Nick Hoadley welcomes Suzanne Williams-Charles, CEO of the Bermuda International Long-Term Insurers and Reinsurers (BILTIR), the industry body representing Bermuda’s globally significant life and annuity sector.Speaking from Hamilton, Bermuda, Suzanne shares her journey to leading an association that champions the interests of long-term insurers and reinsurers on the island. She talks about BILTIR’s role in advocacy, education, and community engagement, and how the organisation works closely with government, regulators, and members to ensure Bermuda remains a world-class insurance and reinsurance hub.Suzanne discusses the unique position Bermuda holds in the global risk landscape - particularly in life and annuity reinsurance and the importance of balancing innovation with robust regulatory frameworks. She highlights BILTIR’s initiatives to attract and develop local talent, foster industry collaboration, and address emerging challenges, from changing demographics to evolving solvency requirements.In the Espresso Round, Suzanne shares valuable insights for insurance professionals considering an international career move, and why Bermuda offers a rare combination of professional opportunity, close-knit community, and global impact.Connect with Suzanne Williams-Charles on LinkedIn and learn more about BILTIR.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On the Insurance Coffee House podcast, host Nick Hoadley welcomes Curtis Goldsborough, President of National Insurance Inspection Services and the creative mind behind the popular LinkedIn persona LO$$ RATIO.Curtis shares his unconventional journey into insurance, from agency owner in rural Michigan to leading a nationwide inspection company and becoming a viral content creator in the industry. He talks about his transition from traditional field inspections to a tech-driven self-inspection platform and how this innovation is reshaping property underwriting across personal lines.Curtis breaks down how National Insurance Inspection Services delivers greater data accuracy and underwriting insights through nearly one million policyholder-completed inspections, helping carriers improve risk assessment, pricing precision, and loss ratios.He also dives into the origins of LO$$ RATIO, his alter ego and content platform that blends education and humor to highlight major industry challenges, from predictive prevention and self-inspection adoption to social inflation and attracting new talent into insurance.In the Espresso Round, Curtis offers powerful advice for insurance executives and rising professionals on building authentic personal brands on LinkedIn, why creativity is a differentiator, and how content done right—can drive real industry change.Connect with Curtis Goldsborough on LinkedIn and explore National Insurance Inspection Services to learn more about their underwriting solutions.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On the Insurance Coffee House podcast, host Nick Hoadley welcomes Dan Lewis, Head of Network at Brightway Insurance, one of the fastest-growing personal lines agency networks in the U.S.Dan shares his two-decade journey across financial services and exclusive agency leadership at Farmers Insurance, where he led strategic distribution across multiple U.S. territories. He explains why he made the leap to Brightway, driven by a belief in the future of the independent agency channel and a desire to empower entrepreneurs at scale.At Brightway, Dan is helping to reshape agency ownership by combining franchise support, centralized service, and proprietary technology to enable owners to grow faster than ever before. He highlights how Brightway offers five core pillars: a trusted brand, robust carrier access, full-service customer support, advanced tech through its Fusion platform, and a vibrant agent community.He also shares the company’s focus on scaling through real estate and lender referral networks, and how Brightway’s unique in-house recruiting and producer training programs help new franchisees build high-performing teams from day one.For insurance professionals ready to explore ownership or transition from captive to independent, Dan offers actionable advice on mindset, hiring, and how to assess your fit with Brightway’s scalable, support-driven model.Connect with Dan Lewis on LinkedIn or visit Brightway Insurance to learn more.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of The Insurance Coffee House, host Nick Hoadley welcomes Paige Maissonet, Chief People Officer at Newfront Insurance, to discuss her journey from HR generalist to CPO and how she’s helped shape one of the most forward-thinking cultures in insurance today.Paige shares her experience leading people strategy through massive growth, scaling Newfront from 150 to 800+ employees, and the company’s bold mission to modernize insurance through technology without losing its human touch.She explains how a values-driven culture, DEI commitment, and team empowerment have become Newfront’s competitive advantage. From custom tech platforms to employee ownership, Paige reveals how Newfront creates high-performance teams that care deeply about outcomes, and each other.Whether you're leading people, hiring, or considering a move into InsurTech, this episode is packed with practical insights on how to grow with purpose, build inclusive teams, and stay ahead in a fast-changing industry.Connect with Paige on LinkedIn, or visit Newfront to learn more. The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On the Insurance Coffee House podcast, host Nick Hoadley welcomes Adrian Copland, Chief Operating Officer of Ledgebrook, a rapidly scaling, tech-enabled specialty MGA in the U.S. ENS market.Adrian shares his journey from consulting and operational leadership at Catlin and AXA XL to co-founding Ledgebrook alongside Gage Caligaris, an actuary with bold ambitions to rebuild insurance from the ground up.He explains how Ledgebrook is reimagining broker service and underwriter enablement by combining deep insurance expertise with scalable technology. With over 100 employees globally and three core products: General Liability, Professional Lines, and Unsupported Excess. Adrian outlines how the MGA is using AI and internal systems to serve brokers faster, without forcing them to change their buying habits.He also discusses the company’s unique remote-first, no-bonus culture, its commitment to continuous learning, and why Ledgebrook is attracting top talent who want to help build something meaningful.For insurance professionals considering a move into InsurTech, Adrian shares what qualities make someone a great fit for startups and how to assess your own readiness to make the leap.Connect with Adrian on LinkedIn or explore opportunities at Ledgebrook.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On the "Insurance Coffee House" podcast, host Nick Hoadley welcomes Joe Emison, the Co-Founder and CTO of Branch Insurance.Joe shares his unconventional journey from aspiring lawyer to serial tech entrepreneur, building six companies across industries before co-founding Branch, a full-stack carrier using cloud-native infrastructure to simplify personal lines insurance.He explains how Branch is tackling inefficiency in the home and auto markets by focusing on embedded distribution rather than traditional advertising-heavy acquisition strategies. Joe discusses how the company has built a lean, remote-first tech team, using junior talent trained in-house and modern tools to ship faster, reduce costs, and stay agile.Joe also explores the metrics that matter when building high-performing tech teams and shares practical advice for insurance leaders looking to work with, or invest in, insuretechs. His passion for growth, talent development, and cultural alignment offers a fresh take on what it means to build and lead in insurance today.Connect with Joe Emison on LinkedIn or learn more at Branch Insurance. The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On the "Insurance Coffee House" podcast, host Nick Hoadley welcomes Michael Fiedel, the Co-Founder and CEO of PolicyFly.Michael shares his unique journey from advertising sales and digital product studios to leading one of the most innovative insuretech companies in the specialty insurance space.He explains how a project with a niche MGA in musical instrument insurance became the foundation for PolicyFly a modern policy management platform enabling end-to-end automation for MGAs and carriers. Starting with just one underwriter, the program grew 500% thanks to the technology his team built, highlighting the transformative impact of digital infrastructure in specialty lines.Michael discusses how PolicyFly empowers small teams to manage entire product lines online, from quote to bind to ongoing policy management, all from one platform. He shares how the company is supporting UK-based underwriters to grow US portfolios remotely, and how this distributed, tech-enabled model is helping reshape the future of underwriting.He also dives into his role as Co-Founder of Scout InsureTech, an initiative spotlighting and supporting emerging insuretechs across the US and beyond. Michael outlines how Scout bridges the gap between early-stage startups and carriers/brokers by profiling innovative companies and helping buyers cut through the noise.With a passion for team building, Michael emphasises the importance of deep ownership, experimentation, and network building for those considering a move from traditional insurance roles into startups. He shares his goal of creating lasting financial success not just for himself, but for his entire team.Michael also offers practical career advice to insurance professionals eager to make the jump into insuretech: start by talking to a founder, build genuine relationships, and don’t wait to grow your network.Connect with Michael Fidale on LinkedIn or learn more at PolicyFly and Scout InsureTech.The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram.Insurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.Copyright Insurance Search 2025 - All Rights Reserved.

On the "Insurance Coffee House" host, Nick Hoadley welcomes Andy Moss, the CEO and co-founder of Send. Andy provides an insight into his 25-year career, starting in technical his accidental fall into the insurance industry in 2003 after a previous role at BBC Radio Music New Media. He gained broad insurance experience through roles with Xchanging (later acquired by CSC and merged into DXC), the Corporation of Lloyd's, and as a managing agent in the London Market.Andy shares the journey to launching Send alongside his two co-founders, to scratch the proverbial “entrepreneurial itch” in 2018. All with backgrounds as software developers, the initial focus of the platform was on data and integration. Send launched with its first customer in 2019.With clients across the London Market and in the US, the platform provides a variety of benefits. Andy highlights how Send helps bring insurance technology into the modern era, helping clients make better underwriting decisions by understanding the portfolio impact of individual submissions, improve operational efficiencies by automating digital paperwork and unstructured data management, and ensure compliance with rules and regulations.He discusses their business growth, particularly in the US market, noting the larger scale and different go-to-market approach compared to the concentrated London Market. Despite the differences, Andy emphasizes the common challenges in underwriting across both regions. Looking ahead at the next five years, Andy shares a "techie's angle" on evolution within the insurance market. He sees a continued drive to apply automation to increasingly complex product lines, building on the success of digital underwriting for simpler products. Andy discusses the rise of AI and the increasing use of data in underwriting, stressing the importance of 'operationalizing' and integrating new data sources and AI tools within the underwriting workflow to avoid creating more disconnected systems. With around 20% of Send’s 100-strong team having a background in insurance, Andy stresses that while insurance knowledge is valuable, they also value the diversity of backgrounds and different perspectives that employees bring. Andy uses the phrase "knowing the art of the possible" to describe the key combination of insurance expertise and technological understanding needed in the insurtech space.He advises insurance executives considering a move to insurtech to recognize the value they already add, particularly those focused on data, process, and automation opportunities. He suggests reflecting on their current skills and job functions and mapping that onto the requirements of insurtech roles, as well as networking at industry events. As closing advice, Andy urges people to "just get involved" in technology initiatives within the insurance industry to improve outcomes. Connect with Andy Moss on LinkedIn or find out more about Send. The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2025 – All Rights Reserved.

On this special episode of the podcast, we welcome InsurTech NY Co-Founder, Tony Lew. Tony gives an insight into his career background, from holding various roles across big corporations to having a burning desire to launch his own business. He shares what drew him to the insurance sector and why he believed it was a great industry to build his business around. Tony highlights the technology challenges that continue to exist in the industry and why insurance isn’t first choice of the very best tech talent. Co-founding InsurTech NY in 2019, Tony how the business is supporting the global insurtech community through startup and corporate innovation programs, education & networking activities and investing in startups through their InsurTech Fund.Tony talks about the upcoming Spring Conference: Insurtech is the New R&D, taking place at Chelsea Piers, New York on 2-3 April. Partnering with Insurtech Insights and Insurtech Connect, he highlights the benefits on offer to attendees, including the two education tracks for P&C and Life & Health. To take advantage of the conference, Tony urges visitors to plan their time around the diverse agenda, covering all the functional areas of the insurance lifecycle – from established corporates to the early-stage start-up competition, and the work the InsurTech NY are doing with universities across the USA. When it comes to attracting talent for both insurance and non-insurance roles, Tony believes companies need to explain why insurtech is a great industry to join.Connect with Tony Lew on LinkedIn or find out more about visiting InsurTech NYThe Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2025 – All Rights Reserved.

On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House Podcast, we welcome Miranda Hunter, Head of Investor Relations at Fidelis Insurance Group. Miranda talks to Nick Hoadley about: her background and career journey, from being born and raised in Bermudareturning to Canada for university and joining KPMG moving back to Bermuda after her CPA exams, to join PWC Bermudathe pivotal career advice she was given of ‘being just as mindful of the company and the management team you're joining as of the role and the package you're accepting’taking a step back to get into the right role to match her longer-term career goalstransitioning through varied insurance roles, before joining Fidelis in December 2023the two distinct entities of Fidelis Insurance Group and the Fidelis PartnershipFidelis’s flat structure and the chance employees have to work on diverse projects and explore various aspects of the organizationbeing surrounded by colleagues whose company you genuinely enjoy, who support you, and are invested in your career growth the importance of mentorship and supporting those at the start of their careershow she gives back to the local Bermuda community  the advice she’d give to anyone looking to develop their career on island, and to those considering a move to Bermuda Connect with Miranda Hunter on LinkedIn or find out more about Fidelis Insurance GroupThe Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2025 – All Rights Reserved.

On this podcast episode, we’re joined by Cullen Piske, President and, Michael Pitre, COO at Gray Surety. Cullen shares how ‘love’ led him to joining the Gray Insurance Company and moving around their portfolio companies before 'finding' surety.  Michael discusses his logistics and communications role in the US Marines, doing a Masters Business Degree at night, before joining Gray Surety in 2013.   They discuss how Cullen’s knowledge of surety and Michael’s systems expertise have helped them streamline the business and eliminate non-value-adding steps. Cullen and Michael highlight their dual roles of managing an insurance company and a surety business, as well as profitability, underwriting performance, business operations and looking after their people.  With just north of $70 million in gross written premiums and year-on-year double digit growth, they talk about their trajectory towards a $150 million per year surety, territorial expansion and adding the right people to the team. They emphasize how creating a killer culture is everything. “We're a tech forward company that can outmaneuver the competition since we have access and control of our data. We measure success by performance metrics rather than how long you sit at your desk a day”, says Cullen.Cullen and Michael highlight how finding the right people is the hardest part of their job, emphasizing their strong desire to find, attract and retain entrepreneurial leaders who like working together. “We want people to understand what they're walking into. The biggest thing on our end is retention. Hiring is one thing, but retaining is another, and we have a tremendous retention rate. We hire people to retire them.”Michael shares the characteristics that make Gray Surety such a great place to work, stressing the small company culture and the servant leadership philosophy. They discuss interview advice and the lessons their careers have taught them, they think everyone should learn. “Pursue endeavors that have a high penalty for failure and are outside your comfort zone, so that you can always have an exciting life”, says Michael. “Take risks. You'll have more fun”, says Cullen. Find out more about Gray Surety or connect with Cullen Piske and Michael Pitre on LinkedIn The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2025 – All Rights Reserved.

On the Insurance Coffee House Podcast this week, we welcome Allison Keavey Luther, Deputy Chief of Human Resources at Boston-based Plymouth Rock AssuranceAllison talks about her career journey from TV producer at CNBC to catching the start-up bug, working as General Manager for early-stage businesses. From there she rode a massive wave of growth at Wayfair, where she was ‘pulled’ in to HR.She joined Plymouth Rock in 2023 to work alongside CHRO, Mary Strong, and support the next phase of business growth. Allison gives an insight in to Plymouth Rock’s 40-year history, with the business now managing over $2 billion in auto and home insurance premiums, across Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.She highlights the top-down culture, embodied by founder Jim Stone and the desire to create an environment where employees are happier than they would be anywhere elseAllison discusses some of the initiatives in place to drive culture forward, including being intentional about how they work together in the physical environment. On-site gym facilities, drop-in meditation sessions, online recognition program all contribute to creating a culture of friendliness, good citizenship, integrity, loyalty, hard work, and the pursuit of excellence.She shares her one recommendation for insurance leaders coming to interview there at Plymouth Rock. “Let us see who you are. When we are making a hire, particularly at the senior level, culture matters just as much as technical qualifications.Our culture statement is such a critical part of our success that we need to have folks who can advance our culture in the right ways.”Allison urges her HR peers to set the bar high and not to make short-term trade-offs when looking to fill roles. She shares some of the tools and technology Plymouth Rock are using to support talent and help people do their jobs better. As for the one lesson her job has taught her, she wants everyone to learn, Allison emphasizes the power of active listening. “Whether it's a talent or a business challenge, taking the time to really get the full picture. Hear whatever sides of the story are there to make the best decision for the business and the people in it.”And for anyone considering an insurance career move, Allison concludes by advising people to consider how they feel at work every day. “Sometimes we don't check in regularly enough with are we feeling valued? Are we feeling respected? Do, do we feel like there is growth for us ahead? At Plymouth Rock, those are the standards for our people and for our leaders.”Connect with Allison Keavey Luther on LinkedIn or find out more about Plymouth Rock Assurance The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2025 – All Rights Reserved.

On the podcast this week, we welcome Nick Campbell, Global Head of Credit & CEO Bermuda at SiriusPoint. Nick talks to Nick Hoadley about:  being Bermudian but starting his career in the UKreturning to Bermuda to be told he was the ‘wrong’ kind of actuary and wouldn’t get a job on island   his journey to becoming Global Head of Credit and Bermuda CEO of SiriusPoint the mix of local and global roles available to high-performing insurance talent how the company’s culture informs every interaction and conversation engaging in the local community in both formal and informal ways taking risk and considering lateral moves for longer-term career progressionmaking sure you’ll enjoy a Bermuda lifestyle, if you’re exploring career opportunities on islandand whether he’d do anything differently if he had his time again    Find out more about SiriusPoint The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.

On the podcast this week, we welcome Andrew Couper, Chief Actuary at Conduit Re. Andrew talks to Nick Hoadley about:  qualifying as an actuary in 1995 and working in the London Marketjoining Conduit Re in November 2021 and his experience of working in Bermuda and LondonConduit Re’s growth from launching in 2020 to writing $2.6bn of premium by Q2 2024the characteristics and culture that make it a great place to workimpacting the local community and offering green loansopportunities for high performing local insurance professionals who want to progress their careersdoing your research and speaking to those who have their ear to the ground, for anyone considering a move to Bermuda from overseasif he was moving to Bermuda now, what he’d do differently Connect with Andrew Couper on LinkedIn or find out more about Conduit Re The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.

On the podcast this week, we welcome Laura Pepper, Head of Claims at RenaissanceReLaura talks to Nick Hoadley about:  her career journey from law graduate in to insurance and joining RenaissanceRe 10 years agomoving to Bermuda in 2019 for a one-year secondment and what’s kept her on island business growth and acquiring Validus Re in 2023the characteristics that make RenaissanceRe a great place to work engaging in wider aspects of island life and her involvement with the DEI committeesupporting the development of local Bermudian talent career opportunities for high performers and her advice for taking your insurance career to the next leveland how to make a successful move to Bermuda Connect with Laura Pepper on LinkedIn or find out more about opportunities at RenaissanceReThe Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.

On the podcast this week, we welcome Andrew Thornton, Head of Advisory at Grant Thornton Bermuda. Andrew shares: an overview of his career journey from trainee accountant with Ernst & Young to joining Grant Thornton 20 years agomoving to Bermuda 2 years ago to run the advisory side of the businessthe outcomes of acquiring and merging with local firm, Arthur Morrishaving the ambition to grow from 20 people and seeking insurance experts to join the teamwhat makes Grant Thornton Bermuda a great place to worktalent development and career progression opportunities within Grant Thornton how he engages within wider aspects of island lifethe tips he’d give to someone moving to Bermudaand what he’d do differently if he had his time againConnect with Andrew Howie on LinkedIn or find out more at Grant Thornton Bermuda The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.

On the podcast this week, we continue our Bermuda series by interviewing Jesse DeCouto and Tonia Morgan at Canopius Re. Chief Underwriting Officer, Jesse and Chief Financial Officer, Tonia talk about: their respective career journeys to joining Canopius Rewhere the business is now and plans for the future the culture and characteristics that make it a great place to work  their passion for mentoring and helping young people turn in to young professionals the international opportunities Canopius Re provides for high-performing talent how local insurance executives can develop a successful career on islandthe advice they’d give to someone considering a move to Bermudawhat they’d do differently if starting their careers over againConnect with Jesse DeCouto and Tonia Morgan on LinkedIn or find out more about career opportunities at Canopius Group. The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.

On the podcast this week, we’re delighted to launch our new Bermuda Series by interviewing Katie Partington-Howarth, Chief Capital Officer at Ariel ReKatie talks to Nick Hoadley about: Her career background and joining Ariel Re in 2005The culture and characteristics that make it a great place to work  How she engages in wider aspects of Bermuda lifeThe opportunities Ariel Re provide for high-performers Her advice on how to build a successful career in Bermuda What she’d do differently if starting her time on island again   Connect with Katie on LinkedIn or find out more about Ariel ReThe Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.

This week, we are joined by Tara Foley who shares with us her journey to becoming the CEO of AXA, UK & Ireland and her passion for making a difference. The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.An international Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses in the UK, Bermuda and across the United States.Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.

On this episode we interview Jose Luis (Pepe) Velasquez and find out how he has used his experience working at blue chip companies like Heineken to drive a high-performance culture at Mapfre USA.Connect with Pepe on LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/jose-luis-velasquez-906560/on LinkedIn or find out more about Mapfre USA https://www.linkedin.com/company/mapfre/The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, UK and Bermuda.

Zimbabwe born and South Africa educated, Warrick Beaver started his working life as an HR professional in the fashion retail industry. “If you're talking about journeys to insurance, fashion and retail is probably as far away as you can imagine. I was taught that you were a retailer first and an HR professional second”, says Warrick.“The lesson learned was, 'Understand where the value creation happens and be as close to it as possible. Understand your business.' That commercial curiosity has always stayed with me. It has stood me in good stead, kept me engaged and helped me find impact, meaning, and alignment throughout my career.”On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House Podcast, Warrick delves in to his career journey and what he’s learned along his professional journey. Through retail and recruitment industry, FMCG manufacturing and information services, Warrick shares his experiences of M&A, business divestures and balancing his commercial and HR hats. He discusses his role of Chief People Officer and Fidelis Insurance Group’s novel operating model. “The hypothesis was that businesses should lend themselves to their core competencies. If that core competency is underwriting, then it should focus on underwriting and ensuring a relentless pursuit of execution and excellence.Conversely, the core competence in terms of capital management, balance sheet management, capital allocation, reserving, would also be best served if there was the same level of excellent focus and time and attention. Decisions can then be made with the clearest of intention, and there's no potential contradiction or conflict in terms of what you do from a capital management or from an underwriting point of view, because the two businesses are managed separately. So that's the hypothesis. We are in a long-term relationship with The Fidelis Partnership. They are focusing on what they do best, and we are focusing on what we do best.”With its growing presence in London, Dublin and Bermuda, Warrick discusses the culture at the business and whether bifurcation is a true USP to attracting top insurance talent.  “Culture is dynamic. It's ever changing. You can never put a pin in it and say, “We're done, victory is declared!” It is a constant evolution.We also see that in terms of our demographic, our employee base and what they’re looking for from an employer and the working experience. We've been able to assemble, very capable, experienced professionals from within the insurance market who have worked for much larger, more established organizationThis model represents something novel, unique and an opportunity for them to become part of something interesting. Of course there is a lot of uncertainty with a scale operation, but we have a deep heritage. We have some fantastic experience. We're a building brand, and it's enough to attract people who are well regarded.”Warrick emphasises what he looks for in insurance leaders coming for interview. “It's just as much a conversation on how that technical capability, experiences and skills are translated into value added. Don't spend your time talking about your accomplishments. We're going to take those as read.”As closing advice, Warrick says, “Understand your business. Be as close to the value-add inflection point as possible because you will feel relevant, get immediate feedback, and will be constantly evolving with the needs of the organization.”Connect with Warrick Beaver on LinkedIn or find out more about Fidelis Insurance Group The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda.

“Many people you'll work with and meet in business will be happy to accept information and explanations in the way it's being presented to them.Some people you work with will have a real appetite to go one level deeper because they'll want to know the drivers of the things they are seeing. They'll want to have a proper understanding about how that part of the business or that part of the market or that customer behaviour really works”, says Steve. “My push would be to go one level deeper than that. When you work with people that want to understand not just the drivers but the drivers of the drivers or the footnotes of the footnotes, often that is where you find the opportunities that others have missed. One thing I am really passionate about is some of the best opportunities exist there. It's really worth going one level deeper to not just really understand your market, but to discover things that other people haven't and in a really competitive business, those are the things that can separate you.” On the Insurance Coffee House Podcast this week, Steve talks about how his early career working as an analyst on the equities trading floor in a Dutch investment bank, taught him about the importance of discipline and attention to detail.“But when businesses came to see us to talk about how their business was performing, I had a real feeling of envy. I really wanted to be on the other side of the table. I wanted to be in businesses and solving the kind of problems they were solving.” A move in to start-ups followed, providing the opportunity to work in high-performance, fast-moving environments. “Anyone who's had a career in the early-stage part of a business, will know that you get some real successes and you get some failures along the way as well. We had both.But I learned a huge amount, worked with some fantastic entrepreneurs and learned about thinking big.The other thing I got to see firsthand, that value can be created out of thin air. Working in a successful start-up or scale up will really teach you to see that with your own eyes and to know it can be done is quite a powerful thing to experience. It gives you a lot of confidence for the future.”Moving in to product leadership and general management roles at bigger, more mature businesses took Steve on a journey to joining insurance price comparison business Confused.com as COO in 2019, before becoming CEO in 2023.  Steve reflects on his leadership journey, saying: “I used to look at my career path almost like a game of Trivial Pursuit, where you were trying to collect all the skills that you needed to be the ‘rounded leader’. You’d go around the board, collect those wedges and when you had them all, you could move to the centre, and that's the game complete. But unlike trivial pursuit, when you move to the middle, you don't win the game, you just discover there's a whole new game below, and you start again.I realised that it’s going to be an infinite journey. Instead of just accepting it, it’s really learning to love the experience of learning new things.” In this podcast episode, Steve talks to host Nick Hoadley about:  if you acquire a lot of skills and experience, your next career move will be obvioushow price comparison businesses are the main distribution channel for UK general insurancewhy he looks for super smart people and insurance leaders who want to go one level deeper and challenge the givenswhy he wants Confused.com to be the place where people do the best work of their careersand the one lesson his career has taught him, he thinks everyone should learn“Whatever your career goals are, be open to the fact that the moment you hit them, there'll be a whole new mountain to climb. Learn to love that. Get yourself into the frame of mind of enjoying the journey.”Connect with Steve Dukes on LinkedIn or find out more about careers at Confused.comThe Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, London and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   

“DE&I is one of the biggest challenges for the industry. For a lot of our clients in the US, it's one of their biggest priorities”, says Nick "Before we engage with a client, we really want to make sure they're set up for diverse candidates. It's so important for us as an insurance executive search firm, that if we move someone who's very successful into a new environment, that they're going to be set up for success there.And that internally, there are no barriers and people will have the same opportunity across the board. For us as a search firm, it's key for our processes to be as transparent and inclusive as possible. When we’re working on a mandate, rather than just going to a little book of contacts, that we actually do a thorough market mapping to identify every single person who could potentially do that role. What that gives us is a more diverse talent pool. The shortlist of candidates we provide is more diverse. When you've got more people in that process, you can scrutinize those candidates more and end up with a better-quality hire.”On the podcast this week, Nick shares his journey from corporate law to insurance broker to founding global insurance executive search consultancy, Insurance Search. “I was working for an insurance company. We were looking to hire great quality people, but were really struggling to get the candidates.I was working with some of the agencies, seeing some of the CV s that were coming in. It could be quite depressing and just thought, there's an opportunity here. I backed myself that I could do better. I've always been a real people person, helping people in whatever way I can. It just seemed like a really natural fit, putting businesses together with great insurance talent.”Nick highlights the challenges to launching an executive search consultancy and how he’s coped with adversity along the away. “We're still very fresh from it, the pandemic. We were doing very nicely as a firm, working with lots of good insurance companies who were expanding.But then the pandemic came along and the world changed.We went from all of our clients actively hiring multiple positions to pretty much zero overnight.That was a real trauma. But it gave me the opportunity to really reflect and decide where I wanted to take the business. We’d been doing quite a lot of senior, international work at the time, but we are also still doing some quite junior insurance roles, which was an area we weren’t enjoying as much.And so, we pivoted and really focused at the senior end of things.”Nick discusses the motivation behind launching the Insurance Coffee House Podcast as a way to highlight the breadth of opportunity across the insurance sector, and to learn from the experiences of C-level insurance leaders. He emphasizes the executive search, human capital consultancy and market intelligence services Insurance Search provides, both to global insurance brands as well as smaller, mid-market businesses. “Our core service is insurance executive search and finding senior leaders for insurance companies. As part of that work, we have a human capital consultancy where we very much look to align ourselves with our clients. Where they are as a business now and work with them to achieve those strategic objectives and where they want to be in 18 months, two years, five years.And we offer insurance market intelligence studies.We've got a great team of researchers, who are looking externally for our clients at what their competitors are doing, how those competitors are being successful, looking at some of the aspirational businesses that they want to be like in 24 to 36 months.”With Insurance Search seeking to make executive search more accessible, Nick highlights the types of roles the team works on.  “As well as C-level positions, we also work on business-critical roles. They might be middle management or upper middle management positions which larger search firms may overlook. They’re roles that are critical to those businesses and they're often some of the hardest positions to fill. We feel that our methodology and the way we work, is a real benefit to those insurance companies.”Nick emphasizes why he’s driven not only to help insurance businesses succeed, but also the individuals within those businesses. “We always say we have two clients. We've got the company itself. But number secondly, is very much around the people we're working with. The Chief HR Officer, the COO or the CEO, they want to be successful in their particular roles.We align ourselves with them and really figure out what's the biggest problem they're facing and how can we provide a solution.”Nick shares how the Insurance Search team are supporting candidates to develop in their insurance careers, by opening up introductions through to the firm’s insurance network and Leadership Advisory Service. He emphasizes the values that underpin Insurance Search’s core offer – honesty, integrity, excellence and transparency – and why he’s looking for high-performing insurance leaders to join the team. “We look to hire in people to our organisation, who are insurance industry experts. People who are actually working in the industry as an executive or a leader. Whether they're from underwriting or broking, we feel they can add a lot of value.We've got a team of highly experienced executive search consultants in the UK and then we have our managing partners who are based in different parts of the world, in the US primarily and in Bermuda. People who are very credible, who've got great relationships and are culturally aligned with us as well.It’s a real opportunity for them to leverage their network.”As advice for insurance leaders seeking a new opportunity or when preparing for an interview, Nick says, “Be hungry and know the value you can bring.”And as for people leaders and insurance talent acquisition professionals, Nick emphasizes that it’s all about the process. “Make sure that your hiring process is inclusive and attracts the greatest number of candidates.  You're under pressure when you've only got one or two candidates in the mix to choose from. Open up that pool. Try to take anything out of the job specification that doesn't need to be there to encourage more diverse candidates to apply.”Find out more about Insurance Search or connect with Nick Hoadley on LinkedIn or email [email protected] Insurance Coffee House Podcast is brought to you by Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, UK and Bermuda. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.  

“The strength of our culture was something we used in the presentations to analysts and investors”, says Daniel. “We did some work around our employee value proposition and we asked our colleagues, ‘Why do you work at Hamilton?’ The common theme was collaboration and that's how we came up with the phrase ‘In good company’. As part of the IPO, we used it as our overall company tagline to say, ‘You're in good company with Hamilton, whether you're a client, broker, stakeholder or investor.’”On the Insurance Coffee House Podcast, Daniel shares his career journey from the NatWest graduate programme, his varied roles at Munich Re to joining Hamilton Insurance Group six years ago. He talks about the transition from a larger, more corporate environment to starting his current role at Hamilton, with 120 people and $500m in premium in 2018. “Joining Hamilton, I was excited for the opportunity to be at a company, almost at its start and helping it build. It's very different to being at a large organisation. What excites people about joining Hamilton is that you feel you can move the needle.”The business has subsequently grown to 550+ employees, with $2bn in premium and listed on the NYSE in November 2023.    Daniel gives an overview of the core functions of the business today and his role of overseeing the HR function, internal and external communications, as well as developing the strength of culture Hamilton has become known for. “We firmly believe that having a strong culture is critical and a component of our overall underwriting success. Engaged employees are an essential part of Hamilton's success. They drive productivity and innovation, that will lead to the ultimate success of the company.”Daniel explains how Hamilton’s values of ‘Be smart, Be sensible, Be open, Be more’ underpin activity around recruitment, performance management and talent management, as well as the key role communication plays. Regular town halls at both group and local level, together with ‘Hamilton on a page’ lays out strategy and helps employees understand current performance and achieve our business imperatives of sustainable underwriting profit, strategic growth, technology enablement and being a magnet for talent.Daniel highlights the importance of collaboration and how the outcomes of staff surveys help address any team concerns. He shares his advice for leaders coming to interview at Hamilton and advises his insurance industry HR peers not to rush the hiring process if they’re unsure of a candidate, but to move with haste if they are. Daniel explains Hamilton’s DEI statement, ‘Open minds open doors’ and how welcoming and respecting differences, helps attract and retain the best talent. “We embrace all forms of diversity, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, but gender has been something we’re particularly proud of what we've been able to achieve.Of our total employee base, 45% are female. 36% of our Underwriting leads and Claims leads are female. There's always room for growth, but we're extremely proud of that progress we've been able to make in that area.”Daniel stresses the key leadership roles and influence of Pina Albo, Anita Kuchma, Megan Thomas and Gemma Carreiro at executive level. “Pina is the first female CEO of a Bermuda-based company to ring the New York Stock Exchange bell and Hamilton was the first woman-led insurance company to go public in 20 years.” Daniel emphasizes what he looks for an in an insurance executive search partner, including trust and third-party perspectives and insights. He concludes by adding the one lesson his career has taught him, he thinks everyone should know.  “There are always other forms of information that come through to you as a professional, but having good, solid data to help you make decisions is such an important component.The second aspect is the people. It all comes down to having a good culture and good people around you, with the right attitude and the right approach. We spend a lot of time at work, we want to work in good company.” Connect with Daniel Fisher on LinkedIn or find out more about Hamilton Insurance GroupThe Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in USA, UK and Bermuda.

“In our experience, a reinsurance deal was being profiled in a physical binder full of paper. I thought, ‘How good would it be if we could take risk or bundles of risk and make a profile for it’", says Ben."Think of all the information that you could attach to that profile. That was a very early concept. For a long time we debated, how this would work in the reinsurance world where we've got all these different parties with vested interests, and deals they like doing in a very particular way, with a very particular workflow.We just iterated and iterated on how you could create a system whereby these buyers, brokers, reinsurers could exchange profiles of the deals that they wanted to do.”On the Insurance Coffee House Podcast, two of Supercede’s co-founders, Ben Rose and Jerad Leigh, talk about their early career journeys and realisation of the breadth of opportunity within the insurance industry.They discuss the inspiration for launching Supercede, the mountain of iteration and calibrating constantly around the different elements, features and parts of the work flows within reinsurance deals.“We have a very mission driven culture. There such an obvious problem we're trying to solve. We're not inventing something for the sake of inventing it. We're not pursuing something, because it sounded nice.We've got a thing that everybody in reinsurance universally hates and wishes was better.”5x growth over the past 12 months, has put Supercede on track to triple again this year, with new clients, investors and top talent joining the team.Ben and Jerad explain the benefits and efficiencies Supercede offers to all stakeholders within reinsurance deals and their desire to create modern tools to free people up to do what they’re good at.“People want technology. It’s really important to have modern tools to free up the talent at a broker or underwriter so they can do the jobs they're actually meant to be doing and not the sort of janitorial work instead”, says BenAttracting the right talent is critical for business growth and Jerad explains what they look for when hiring.“Testing for culture is obviously really important. People who are familiar and comfortable working at a company of this size.But I think it's really important to test for people who are principled thinkers. You have to have people who are willing and able to look at the variety of challenges that are being brought to the business and the factors that are involved and make decisions based on principles of what is best and most important and most thoughtful at that time.Certainly, a don't hire assholes rule should apply, because when you're sub 50-100 people, bad individuals or people who don't really fit can bleed across the organisation.You have to be very thoughtful in those first 25-50 hires, making sure you're retaining a quality of character.You have to be intentional, to phrase and present questions that are trying to root out what you're looking to solve for.Over the last half dozen years or so, there's a real belief that people can thrive in an environment that's a start-up.Some people can, and some people can’t. You have to identify what you're trying to test for and present questions and case studies through your hiring process that will allow you to distil down to the individuals that actually can thrive.”Highlighting which other insurtech businesses inspire them, Jerad cites hyperexponential as a prime example. “I think their team does a great job. I really rate how they hire and how they set roles for the things that they're trying to solve for.Like us, they're taking a core problem that sits within the underwriting units of businesses and giving tools to help those underwriters do that work more effectively.There's this concept or fallacy of, ‘If you build it, they will come’. A lot of software companies can get overly focused on building something that's cool rather than something that's impactful”One lesson Jerad’s career has taught him is that people often overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can do in five.“When you start a business, you're obviously incredibly ambitious, and you're going to accomplish every goal you could ever conceive of in the first six months.You have to take a longer term, patient approach, knowing you're on the right path, so when you get to the four or five year time horizon, you're actually really impressed by how far you've come.”As for the future of Supercede, Ben says,“We've got a really healthy number of large customers, depending on us. We want to do a brilliant job for them.But of course, we'd like to expand to more customers in the process as well. Every new customer we bring on brings new ideas for the product, helps us improve it for everybody.We're at a stage where we can double down on what we've got and make it truly the best offering for reinsurance people from a technology standpoint.”Connect with Ben Rose and Jerad Leigh on LinkedIn or find out more about Supercede The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in UK, USA and Bermuda.

“When you hire for specific experience, then you're always going to have to hire for somebody within the industry”, says Nicola. “When you break it down to what are the specific jobs to be done, what are the skills that are required to do those jobs, often those skills are industry agnostic.There are clearly some examples where that's not the case, but there are many examples where it is the case, and if we can start to do that, then that opens a whole world of new opportunities to new and different talent. But it takes intentional effort.”On this episode of the Insurance Coffee House Podcast, Nicola talks about her not planning her career journey and saying ‘yes’ to exciting opportunities. Having significant industry experience in pharmaceuticals and private banking, including 17 years at ING, Nicola joined Hiscox in September 2022. Headquartered in Bermuda and with 3,500 employees in 14 countries, Nicola explains that she was hired to transform the HR function, to make it scalable, to elevate it, to become a more strategic partner to the business. “We're guardians of the employment proposition, of the culture and therefore the experience that each of those 3,500 colleagues has while working here. It's a real privilege.One of the first things I did when I joined was to change the title from HR to People. People are humans, they shouldn't simply be considered as resources. Language really matters.”Nicola describes the company’s growth ambitions in the US under the stewardship of recently appointed CEO, Mary Boyd. She also highlights how her own career experiences have shaped her passion for people and inclusivity, as well as how leadership set the tone.   “Ensuring we've got the best talent in position, means being an inclusive company. One which values diversity and ensures people feel psychologically safe to fully contribute.We know this type of environment is when people do their best work and there's real evidence linking it to business performance.But my experience of living and working abroad has taught me that it's really nice to believe these things, but it takes intentional effort to make them a reality for people.”Nicola shares how getting diverse talent is one thing, but setting them up for success is another. She emphasizes the key role data plays in DEI strategies and how it can help identify specific issues in delivering it, as well as why she’s a huge believer in transition planning and rapid support around diverse talent. Nicola explains how Hiscox is investing in 6 employee network groups, why she believes they need to be inclusive and engage with allies, and how the business is building up its own diverse junior talent pipelines through apprenticeships and early careers initiatives. Highlighting the need to build diversity into all of Hiscox’s processes and tooling, Nicola says, “We need to make it easy for people. The shortlists and the panels, our talent acquisition colleagues just need to make sure those processes are in place and hiring managers don't even need to think about it.”Nicola gives her advice to insurance leaders coming to interview at Hiscox and encourages her insurance industry peers to cast the net wide when looking for the best insurance talent. “Start before you need to so that you're not in that crisis, urgent rush situation and also be very specific about the jobs to be done in the role and matching the skills needed to those jobs.” She concludes by sharing the importance of trust when working with an insurance executive search partner and the one lesson her career has taught her, she wants everyone to learn. “You cannot think your way in to new behaviours. You have to take action. There's a book called ‘Act fast and fix it’, but that is such great advice. I would take progress over perfection every day.” Connect with Nicola Grant on LinkedIn or find out more about Hiscox The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in UK, USA and Bermuda.

“We talk a lot at Howden around not just coming to work, but coming to build a business. It really allows people to kind of have that sense of ownership, that sense of purpose and really allows people to feel like they're part of what they're building”, says Charlotte. “They understand it and can take a lot of pride. It’s a really different mindset, that feeling of ownership, working as part of our team, collaborating for the good of our clients. Incentives can drive those behaviours, so a big piece for us was making sure that our combined incentive scheme drives really good collaborative behaviours and decision-making.”On the Insurance Coffee House Podcast, Charlotte shares her insurance career journey from RSA intern, her stint at Guy Carpenter before joining Hyperion Insurance Group, now Howden. She discusses the impact of moving from a larger, more corporate environment to a smaller, growing business.   “Howden at the time was a much, much smaller business and a much less established HR function, which is where the real excitement was and a huge opportunity.You didn't have all of the things you were used to working with in very established centres of expertise. It was a really good shift to start looking at what does the business need, what does the business want?From an HR perspective, you're building things and doing things that are really fit for purpose.”Charlotte highlights Howden Re’s accelerated growth story and her expanding remit. The business has grown from 400 employees in 10 countries when she joined in January 2023 to 900 in 35 countries today.    She emphasizes how the reinsurance business is being purposefully different for its clients and people as well as leveraging the power of the Howden Group. Charlotte talks through the TigerRisk merger, making the integration of the two businesses as seamless as possible and helping people in the business do what they’re good at.  She shares how having start-up energy, yet being a global, established business is helping attract and retain the best insurance talent. “Our rates of organic growth are outpacing the market. We're having massive amounts of talent joining us. But our retention of talent is really high, and we see people progressing quickly through the business as well.This isn't a business that you have to wait for someone to leave a role or you have to wait for there to be space. It's a business that is growing and that creates space for people to grow with it.” Charlotte gives her advice to insurance executives coming to interview, encouraging them to talk about what they want to do, not dwelling on what they’ve done in the past.  She encourages her insurance industry HR peers to, “Make it obvious you want people to join you and be available to them.” Highlighting the importance of working with an insurance executive search partner who challenges the recruitment function in its thinking, not just when things don’t go to plan, Charlotte says, “I'm a big believer in when things go really well, looking at what made them go really well, how do you embed that and scale it.”Charlotte points out how the HR team is using tech to balance making the recruitment process as seamless but also as human as possible.  In conclusion Charlotte challenges us to think about where we want [our career] to sit in a changing insurance industry and encourages us to never stop learning. Connect with Charlotte Hubble on LinkedIn or find out more about Howden ReThe Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in UK, USA and Bermuda.

“It's a fantastic opportunity to build something for yourself but within an established business. It’s very much engaging with customers and driving dialogue around their search requirements”, says MartinBut it’s also supported by a world class centre of excellence for delivery, so they can really focus on driving those relationships, identifying opportunities and doing a comprehensive handover to the delivery team that we have here. It frees them up to drive those relationships and customer interactions, knowing there will be a delivery team behind them.”On the Insurance Coffee House Podcast, Martin talks about: Why the relationship-based recruitment industry resonated with him. What drew him in to the insurance executive search arena and why making a difference to people’s lives and enabling them to be successful is important to him. The Managing Partner Program at Insurance Search – what it is and who it’s for.  “The program, it's really aimed at ambitious and high performing insurance executives or insurance recruitment consultants who are motivated to build their own business.It’s for insurance executives who may want to use the contacts and experience they've built up across their career to build something for themselves.We’ll enable them to launch, build and scale a business with ongoing support.”Martin highlights the support on offer to those who might be looking for more autonomy in their careers. “Sometimes when you're in a large corporate environment, you have to live with [other people’s] decisions. As a corporate citizen, you have to go with them. Here's your opportunity to do things differently.It’s either a current or former insurance executive that has a network that they could leverage and bring that gravitas to building out something for themselves, but in an environment where they're going to be provided both onboarding and ongoing support.”Martin describes the key attributes he looks for in a first conversation with a prospective insurance executive or senior recruiter. “Credibility is absolutely essential. Honesty, transparency and excellence, those shared values are really key as is the industry experience.Having energy, an appetite to build something for themselves and someone that's comfortable selling solutions.”Emphasizing the strategic locations where Insurance Search is looking to attract, Martin says: “We're very open to all locations across the US, but some places that jump out are New York, Boston, Atlanta. From a state perspective, Florida, Texas and California and we’re open to talking to people who are very active in the London market. All the key insurance hubs.”In conclusion, Martin shares a key lesson his career has taught him. “When I’ve found myself professionally in a situation where there's some level of adversity - delivering some bad news or a conversation I’d rather not have - what I've found is some of the strongest relationships I've built, have come from that situation. Whether it's a candidate or a client, adversity can really bring people together."To find out more about the Insurance Search Managing Partner Program, connect with Martin Blake on LinkedIn, email [email protected] Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   Or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or InstagramInsurance Executive Search Consultants in UK, USA and Bermuda.

“We wanted to make sure that there were slates, they were diverse and had all the groups represented. It isn't a case of trying to stop someone from getting something they deserve. What you're trying to do is make sure these other groups get the opportunities they deserve", says Don."I'm not a believer that we favor one group or another. I'm just a believer that everyone should have an opportunity. Because we're just human beings and we follow patterns of behavior, we're not necessarily inclined to give everyone an opportunity.Most of what we focused on was really just creating a more holistic opportunistic environment.” On the Insurance Coffee House Podcast this week, Don talks about: his journey from CFO and Sales to CHRO and the 4 key factors that attracted him in to the insurance industry creating an institutionally consistent employee experience with opportunities for alldriving DEI change based on the evidence of data to create hope and purposemeeting, coaching and exposing underrepresented groups to development and promotion opportunitiesbalancing beautiful traditions with a need to be modernize and not being able to town hall your way to change the importance of understanding and representing clients’ cultures and communitiesthe scope of his role, covering HR, people and operations, as well as managing a team of 500-600  his advice for leaders at interview and why he believes we’re going to become a skills-based economy “The most important thing people need to do, whether it's my HR colleagues or people interviewing for roles, is to make sure you understand the relevant experiences and skill sets that are needed. Roles and titles are going to become less important. Skills, capabilities and experience are going to be what rules the day.We're going to become a skills-based economy, especially as things get to be more technology driven.”Connect with Don Robertson on LinkedIn or find out more about Northwestern Mutual The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   

“Given the potential of AI, we should all be focused on ensuring it's part of our strategic roadmap. It is an excellent tool that is going to allow us to rethink, reimagine how we deliver products, services and experiences to our client base”, says Prashant. “Is it machine learning? Is it deep learning? Is it unstructured data? Is it predictive models? What is it that you really want to achieve?While it's powerful, it requires other catalysts to function. You can't start building a roof and then look at the foundation.  Building the right data foundation, having a robust change management plan and then ensuring there are business use cases that are aligned with the outcome.”On the Insurance Coffee House Podcast this week, Prashant discusses: starting his career for a business outsourcing processing company over 20 years ago in India transitioning in to managing processes and people mostly in P&C specialty lines and understanding the insurance lifecycle, from acquisition to claims being part of the mission to make MSIG USA a data-driven insurerchange management and its impact on people, infrastructure and day-to-day operationsAI requiring other catalysts to function properlyadding skills and embracing the AI implementation journey what he looks for in an insurance executive search partnerbeing entrepreneurial and keeping a smile on your faceand the one lesson his job has taught him, he wants everyone to learn“Change is hard. We use different terminologies in an organization to express our goals, objectives and why we are doing it. But it all boils down to one thing and that is change. Think about what you're doing as change and keep that in mind, because if you lead with that, it helps you understand how to increase adoption and how to make change stick.”Connect with Prashant Hinge on LinkedIn or find out more about MSIG USAThe Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved. 

“Flexibility has been key. We've worked really hard to figure out, how do we meet the commitments to our customers, but also empower our employees to have the work experiences that they're looking for and that are a good fit for their families”, says Angie, as she discusses how Safety National are breaking down the barriers to inclusivity.  “We offer four weeks of paid caregiver leave to our employees. We’ve also enhanced our benefit offerings for adoption and now have some financial reimbursement that apply to the costs associated with adoption and we also added financial benefits for fertility.However employees might be trying to start their families, our goal is to help support them on that journey.” On the podcast this week, Angie shares her career journey from law into insurance. Her role overseeing all HR operations and leading a team of 26 HR professionals at Safety National. Founded in 1942, Safety National has 700+ employees in 27 States and is part of the Tokio Marine family. Angie discusses the impact of flexible working patterns on talent retention and reducing staff turnover.  She highlights how the business is supporting employees in the key life moments of adoption, fertility, menopause and care-giving. Angie emphasizes the importance of being your authentic self when coming in for interview, her advice to her industry HR peers and why relationships matter. When selecting an insurance executive search partner, Angie says:“It's understanding our business and our customers, what we're trying to accomplish and then also making sure that they are bringing diverse candidates to us. Diverse in all aspects, their experiences, background and education.”Angie talks about the company’s two-year strategic technology transformation to support recruitment and launching an intern program to attract early career insurance talent. And concludes by sharing one lesson her career has taught her, she wants everyone to learn. “Empathy. We're all just human. Most of us have to work to support our families and there isn't anything that can't be figured out if we all treat each other with respect and professionalism.”Connect with Angie Schaefer on LinkedIn or find out more about Safety National The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved. 

“The blend between work and life is really blurred. It's important for employees to step back and have a good sense of purpose, belonging and balance”, says Jennifer. “We're sharing our expertise and our innovation. It's our employees who are doing that. No matter what position somebody is in, every day they're making something possible, whether it’s external or internal clients they're supporting. Every single one of our employees has their own life. They're working hard and smart for Arch, but they have to find that balance.”On the podcast this week, Arch Capital Group’s Chief Human Resources Officer talks about: joining Arch 5 years ago, following leadership roles Accenture, The Hartford and Voya Financial leading Arch’s Global HR function with 6,500 employees, spread across Bermuda, US, UK, Europe, Australia and the Philippines  enabling possibility and managing the blend of work and personalpost-pandemic wellness, managing stress and burnoutchanging priorities in the career lifecycle her advice for leaders coming to interview what she looks for in an insurance executive search partnerthe tech and talent attraction tools Arch uses to create a talent communityhelping people adapt to change and succeedand one lesson her career has taught her, she wants everyone to know“You cannot make everyone happy. You’re often not going to be the most popular person in the room if you’re driving change.But if you lead with your own leadership values and the company’s values, you’re going to be fine.”Connect with Jennifer Centrone on LinkedIn or find out more about Arch Capital GroupThe Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   

“There is this misconception that the only way to grow or advance is to move into leadership. Some people just don't want that or aren’t sure”, says Andrea. “We want to give people an experience who aren't sure if they want to. We'll find opportunities to allow them to try their hand in things like the mentorship program, where they have an unofficial way of helping to grow talent.”On the Insurance Coffee House Podcast this week, Andrea shares her career journey in HR.“It all started with a knack for numbers and data. I was drawn into the world of compensation because it beautifully combined my analytical side with that human aspect. In compensation, you have to know the business inside and out, you have to know how your sales people are motivated, how the company earns money.I always found myself really closely connected to our leaders in the business and working on programs to incentivize and drive performance in the organization.”Andrea discusses what she learned from being part of staffing business, TrueBlue, where she rose from Director of Compensation & Benefits to Chief People Officer over 12.5 years. She joined AssuredPartners as Chief Human Resources Officer in June 2023 and highlights the transition from staffing to insurance.  “One of the things that I was drawn to at AssuredPartners was their unwavering dedication to people. There's such a strong connection to fostering a culture of learning and development and that's something that really resonated with me.Believe it or not, there’s a lot of similarities.  Whether it's on the staffing side or on the insurance side, you really need to know your customer, what impacts them.In insurance, the thing that is really compelling is there's such an incredible tie to protecting people's livelihoods. Whether it's their business, their health, their employees.There's something really heartwarming about helping people protect the things that are most important to them.”Based in the US, UK and Ireland, with just over 10,000 employees, Andrea shares her passion for nurturing and advancing talent at AssuredPartners. “I am incredibly passionate about ensuring there's a clear path and trajectory for their growth and the importance of our employees feeling valued, recognized and knowing their company envisions a future alongside them.Discussing the initiatives to foster growth and development, Andrea says, “Our mentorship programs are game changers. There's something truly magical about pairing up employees with seasoned pros.And we're cooking up something extra special this year, which like a Master's degree in AssuredPartners leadership. It's almost like a VIP experience, tailored just for them and their success.We also recognize there's another piece of the puzzle, which is heavily focused on building content and experiences for our individual contributors. It makes our employees fiercely loyal.”            Andrea highlights that developing in your career doesn’t always equate to going in to a leadership role. “When it comes to fostering growth and development, there's more to it than just your typical learning programs. First off, there's the structural piece around job or role architecture. These give employees that framework for career paths and for development. A road map that helps show them exactly what they need to do to move up that ladder.For those who really do want to help us grow to the next level, it’s really helping them to learn how to be a leader.”Andrea showcases the outcomes the business has seen as a result of learning and development initiatives. “In 2023 we promoted over 550 people in our organization with 77% of those being women.Our employees are highly engaged and we have very low voluntary turnover levels.”Andrea shares her recommendation for an executive coming in to interview at AssuredPartners. “One of the things I absolutely adore here is the genuine sense of inclusion and belonging that people feel here. So just be yourself, let us get to know the real you and give us a chance to connect with you on a personal level.”And her advice to insurance industry people leaders looking to hire the best insurance talent. “Before bringing anybody on board, it's really crucial that you have a clear picture of what success means for each role. From there, pinpoint the skills and competencies that are needed to excel in that position.Craft questions or scenarios that give candidates the chance to showcase their expertise.”Andrea highlights what she looks for in an external insurance executive search partner. “It's really important that they get to know who we are as a company beyond the numbers.Our culture is what drives our success. I need a search partner who takes the time to understand that, who understands what makes people successful contributors here and helps us to find diverse well rounded candidates who can make an impact.”Andrea discusses the tech tools that help attract talent, emphasizing the need for a strong CRM component to streamline the process. “It helps to get savvy with all of the recruitment related social media tools. You have to get really smart about finding where the talent hangs out. Think about Gen Z. Get acquainted with them and understand how to hook that type of talent into your organization.You've got to spruce up your career site, make sure that it's, it's warm, it's welcoming, it's informative. I can't echo the consumer like experience enough.”As for the one lesson her job has taught her, she thinks everybody should learn at some point in their life, Andrea concludes, “My time in HR and leadership has really hammered home the importance of vulnerability.Leaders who embrace vulnerability, are the ones who are truly able to connect with their teams on that deeper level. And when you have that connection, it has that spark of collaboration, it drives innovation and leads to big time success.”Connect with Andrea Brogger on LinkedIn or find out more about AssuredPartnersThe Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   

“A lot of businesses talk about it, but do they really analyse what they need to do to build it? We've spent a lot of time thinking about what high performance looks and feels like within the context of a turnaround”, says Karen. “When I joined the business, I prioritized improving the culture, establishing values that really mean something, as well as working with Scott Egan (CEO) to ensure we've got the right leaders at every level that exude those values.We've created a really strong accountability culture. I think the key to making sure culture change sticks is integrity." On the Insurance Coffee House Podcast this week, Karen shares her 30-year HR career journey. Starting in insurance, she has moved through some of the most recognizable brands in insurance, financial services, hospitality and media, before returning to insurance with roles at Saga Plc and RSA.  She joined SiriusPoint in November 2022. Karen discusses working across a wide variety of sectors, and how she has found transitioning back in to insurance. “When I started my career, for many insurers, there wasn't a big focus on culture and values. People talked about it, but I don't think they did it as well as we did it in hospitality and retail.I think in the past, in in financial services, technical skills have tended to be rewarded with bigger and bigger roles, and I felt that the leadership aspects were secondary.What I found in retail, hospitality and also media, is because the customer is just so central and critical, there's just much more focus on leadership of the people, the values and the culture within the business. It's just such a heartbeat of the business at every level in those industries. I'm a massive believer in values and culture, and I love being part of businesses where these are really central. I think that's become true, probably now more so in the insurance industry than it was when I started. That's certainly true for SiriusPoint.”Karen explains how some of her best experiences have come through the tough times and the importance of HR’s relationship with the CEO. “The relationship I have with Scott and other bosses I've worked really well with, are where you've got mutual respect but sometimes differences of opinion.That’s where the real spark comes. Sometimes we come at things with different opinions and we'll explain them to each other.But we'll end up in a different place, and it's a better place than either of us had thought of. That ability to challenge with mutual respect and actually stand your ground is so important.” Headquartered in Bermuda, with offices in New York, Liege, London, Stockholm and Zurich, Karen gives insight in to SiriusPoint and the ambition to be a best-in-class insurance business. “We're a global underwriter of insurance and reinsurance. With over $3billion capital, our business lines include accident and health, aviation, space, casualty, credit, energy, marine, property and life insurance.Our global headcount is around 1000. In terms of growth, we really want to become a top performing reinsurance and insurance company in the coming years. Our aim is really to be among the names who consistently outperform the market year on year.”Karen emphasizes how creating a high-performance culture is more than an HR task, as well as the role integrity plays.  “From day one, our CEO has made building a high-performance culture, one of our executive leader leadership team’s top priorities. We've created real integrity around what we say we're going to do and what we're actually doing. If there's any mismatch there, people see through the cracks and they just lose trust very, very quickly. My strong belief is that culture can be built. But culture can also be damaged in a nanosecond. If you don't have integrity, you can just lose trust so quickly.”Karen shares how SiriusPoint are bringing culture to life and making it real across the entire organization. “We've given all our teams a lot of time to immerse themselves in it. Workshops at team level and across our sites. We've got a big recognition scheme.We get people to call out when they see people living our values. But we also encourage people to call out when they see things that are not living our values.It's so important that we hold ourselves and our leadership team to account for the way that we behave. Karen highlights the impact in terms of measurable outcomes. “The results speak for themselves. 2022, we made a loss of $400million. We've turned that around in 2023 and knocked the ball out of the park in terms of performance. A number of things have helped that. We've looked at our global footprint, reduced costs but the most important thing is we've created a real culture of accountability.We've set some goals that are really clear. We changed our bonus structure to support those goals. It gets people laser focused on the results that really matter. The outcome of that has been a much more engaged workforce.”Karen describes the effect SiriusPoint’s turnaround financial results have had on talent attraction.  “We're building real pride in our business and working with individuals who really need to be at the top of their game. When I joined the business in ’22 it was more difficult to attract them. But now, as our success story is becoming more widely known, it's much easier to attract people.If you look at our trajectory over the last 12 months, we've actually put a billion dollars’ worth of value on the business in a year. People can see the opportunities here and the opportunities of being part of something really special.”Karen highlights the key selling points of being part of the team. “We've turned over every bit of our business, reshaped our footprints. We’ve overhauled our philosophy and structures, and delivered a fantastic profit.The next phase is becoming a best-in-class insurer and reinsurer and being recognised as such by our peers. We want a team who are working together to deliver that next phaseYou've really got the ability to make a massive difference really quickly here.”Connect with Karen Caddick on LinkedIn or find out more about SiriusPoint The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   

“We learned a lot early on and we continue to learn as we scale the organization remotely. Some of the key things are over communicating. Sometimes you're having a few more meetings to feel that personal connection”, says Vikki. “We've set up mentor programs, our summit leadership where you're partnered with another leader in the organization. If you're interested in growing your career, whether that's within your team or learning more about other teams, they have one-on-one mentoring sessions and group mentoring sessions. We formed, ERG groups and really started making sure that we're celebrating the diversity of our employees. All of those things help people feel really connected.”On the podcast this week, Vikki shares her 25-year HR career journey. “I began in the recruiting space, before I expanded my responsibilities to include employee relations, compensation and benefits, succession planning and employee engagement. I eventually made the shift from the staffing industry into the start up space.Someone recommended I connect with Kyle, our CEO. I did not think I was going to be jumping up and down about insurance. Shortly after I met him, I, I came home and I said, ‘Wow, I'm actually really excited about insurance.’”Vikki joined Clearcover as VP of People in 2019.  At that stage the business had 45 employees. She became Chief People Officer in 2022. As an insurance company, Clearcover has scaled to over 500 and is using technology to transform customer experience. “The tech start-ups I've been part of, the technology was the actual product. Insurance, that is ultimately what our product is, but the technology behind it is really what's driving us to be different.”  Vikki explains what’s enabled the business to scale so successfully. “We launched in California, then in Illinois. Once we got through those first two, we really started launching all over the US, trying to scale the organization as far as, ‘How do we get into more states? How do we offer Clearcover to more customers in as many places as we can?’ In the beginning, we outsourced our claims and our customer service teams and since then, we've brought those in house, which has accounted for a lot of our growth.”As for future plans, Vikki says, “The goal hasn’t changed. Our mission is to be a generational insurance company, powered by leading technology and innovation, really leveraging AI to do that as well.Offering an experience to the customer that is seamless and hopefully less stressful for them if they have a situation where they are in an accident.”With Clearcover’s headcount having grown tenfold, Vikki discusses building an HR function to handle the business scale. Vikki highlights how Clearcover have embraced a remote-working model without compromising the cultural values. She discusses how the remote model has impacted hiring and impacted diversity. “Truly, it's really opened up a world of opportunity for us by being able to hire remotely. It's helped us diversify our workforce. We continue to strive to improve at all levels of the organization, but we've made tremendous strides because we’re able to recruit people from all over the United States. We aren’t limited to a small talent pool in one geographical area.”Discussing how team members are encouraged to switch off in a remote world where the boundaries between work and down time are sometimes blurred. “When employees start, they get a stipend to set up their workspace, to make sure they're set up for success and they have a space available to them.We understand that people have kids, dogs, spouses that are working in their home too. It's helping people find that right balance. Maybe having a headset is super important to them or being able to work from a coffee shop during a crazy period of the day. Those are things we can be flexible with when we're remote.”However, Vikki doesn’t discount the value of in-person and explains how Clearcover facilitate employee meet-ups in common locations. “We do try to get people together. It's not always easy. What's great is we found hubs of people that get together on their own. We provide a map so people can see where others are located.”Vikki emphasizes her advice to leaders coming for interview at Clearcover. “You have to be flexible and open to change because even though we're five years in, we still feel like a start-up. And gives her advice to her insurance industry peers, seeking to hire and develop the very best talent. “Sometimes, as you get into more senior roles, you think, ‘I'm not doing some of those things, but it becomes just as critical.Strategy is super important, but can you help a manager who has an employee that's struggling?Great leaders have to develop great managers who can be future leaders, all the way down. If you’re a manager, are you developing your supervisors? If you're a supervisor, are you developing your team?”When working with an external insurance executive search partner, Vikki highlights the importance of being an extension of the Clearcover team."The recruiting partners you come back to over and over is when you have that true partnership. It's not just about, ‘I got a candidate for you’. It's, ‘I have a candidate that is perfect because they align with your culture, your vision.’ They know the criteria.”As for the one lesson her career has taught her, she wants everyone to learn. “It’s OK to fail. And if you can, fail fast and learn from it. If you talk to somebody and they can't give you an example of a time they failed, I don't believe it, right.   We should use those moments as growth opportunities. Do you learn from those mistakes and how do you do it better next time?”And in closing, Vikki urges those looking for a linear career path, that a fast-moving, tech-driven business like Clearcover, might not be the best fit. “If you thrive and get excited about getting exposure to new things and new areas that you would never get exposed to, then you should definitely reach out.Connect with Vikki Caruso on LinkedIn or find out more about ClearcoverThe Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.   

The opportunities are vast. Hundreds and hundreds of companies with a physical presence here and the jobs to go with it. It's important that all Bermudians remember that we're not just competing within Bermuda and our small country, we're competing on a global scale”, says Kirsten.“We are an exceptionally well-educated island. It's critical there are opportunities for Bermudians. And that Bermudians can see themselves in the industry and see the example of other Bermudians. This is global level competition.”On the podcast this week, Kirsten tells how she’s spent her entire 25-year career in Bermuda.  With experience in broking and underwriting, Kirsten shares details of her double-headed role for Willis Towers Watson in Bermuda. “We have three teams in Bermuda, a Broking team, our Actuarial Consulting team and our Captives team. My geography leadership, I view it as accountability to them to make sure that we have the operations and the facilities, they need to run their businesses.The other hat I have, is leadership of our broking unit, the nuts and bolts on the insurance side.”  Kirsten discusses the insurance ecosystem in Bermuda and states the only thing micro about the island is the geography. “There's a robust ecosystem that goes beyond just the underwriting roles or the broking roles. There are opportunities in actuarial captives, but there's also lawyers, accountants, marketing services that support this entire ecosystem and the Bermuda economy. Insurance and reinsurance and the supporting services are at the heart of it.”Kirsten shares WTW’s future plans and working in the local Bermudian market, with its importance in the global marketplace. “We're in growth mode. We have new dynamic leadership in North America that's gotten us focused on growth and accountability. We're looking to reorganize ourselves along the industry focus that is core to how our clients manage and view their own risk. That really is at the core of our strategy. I find myself often having to translate Big Willis to Bermuda and translate Willis Bermuda to Big Willis as I call it. Our employment law isn't the same as in the US or UK. Our regulatory structures might not be exactly mirrored so that translation work can be time consuming.I really love that I've been given the platform to be able to do it.  Having the seat at the table when you’re little old Bermuda is exceptionally important because we are pretty core to being able to deliver on our promise and commitment to our clients.”Kirsten discusses her area of passion, something she battled with early on in her career. “It was hosting an underwriting meeting as a young underwriter.  I was nervous. I had moments where I couldn't speak.For a confident, outspoken person not be able to use my voice because of the nervousness of being the center of attention in a speaking setting was a shock.“Me and a group of women got together. It started with a survey because, how many other women feel like this? And how do they grapple with it? We put out a survey to the market. Roughly 80% of women are nervous speakers. 80% of them avoid speaking as a result. Think of all that subject matter expertise that is lost because of nerves.” To combat this issue, Kirsten was involved in setting up ‘We Speak’ to help women and teens in Bermuda to learn the value of public speaking and project their voices. “We are not insurance or reinsurance specific; we help develop their voice in whatever sphere is necessary for them. It could be giving a TED talk for one person, but for another, maybe someone more like me, it's just being able to host an underwriting meeting and ask your questions without going red in the face. It’s meeting people where they are. We have a coaching approach, where we have one coach for every five women. It's an exceptionally supportive environment. Kirsten counsels anyone considering an opportunity in the Bermuda insurance market to embrace an area of passion and to dip outside the lane of their day to day responsibilities. She also gives her advice to anyone considering a move to Bermuda. “Do your research. Understand the environment you're walking into. It is not just a smaller version of wherever you're coming, of the US.It is an entirely unique culture. When I've seen it go well, people get involved, they give back to the community, they're engaged. When I've seen it go wrong, it's because people expect it to be a certain way because they haven't done their research.”Kirsten highlights the importance of DE&I for insurance businesses looking to bring in international talent to Bermuda. “It's really important to think about diversity, equity and inclusion. Whatever country they're coming from, are they adding a perspective that you don't currently have?It's not just skills. We should be looking at adding new perspectives to enrich and further your team. So it's not just going for an easier option of finding more talent in different international locations. Are you sure there isn't talent on island that you have overlooked?”Kirsten emphasizes that any external insurance executive search partner she works with, must have a local network, an understanding of the local environment.   “You need to understand the landscape to be able to recruit for it.”Kirsten concludes with the one lesson her career has taught her, she wants everyone to know. “I’m slightly laughing because I learned this lesson too late. It’s the critical role that emotional intelligence has in my happiness, contentment and overall professional and frankly personal success. I wish emotional intelligence was taught in schools.”Connect with Kirsten Beasley on LinkedIn or find out more about Willis Towers Watson The Insurance Coffee House Podcast is hosted by Nick Hoadley, CEO of Insurance Search.We are a global Insurance Executive Search Consultancy, supporting Insurance and Insurtech businesses to attract and retain the very best insurance talent.Find out more about showcasing your employer brand as a guest on the Insurance Coffee House Podcast or sign up to our News and Insights. Copyright Insurance Search 2024 – All Rights Reserved.