The 2011 Annual Congress focused on profitability in turbulent times and opened with three keynote presentations given by Mark Drummond-Brady from JLT, Ray Cox from Brit and an entertaining and insightful talk from Andy Homer on his experiences in the industry.
Sessions before lunch explored operational efficiency, leveraging the benefits of technology and driving profitable growth.
Graham Newman from FINEOS commented, that “several themes emerged during the course of the sessions. One being concern from the brokers that many insurers rewarded volume rather than transactional skills. This theme was echoed during the day with several speakers returning to the notion of quality as opposed to quantity being the key to attracting business. The point was made several times that good insurance was sold on the quality of underwriting skills and good customer service - with the strength of the balance sheet being important - but that premium price was not really the deciding factor.”
Other issues also widely discussed were the effective use of social media and the role of the target operating model in creating competitive advantage…which not all agreed with.
In the afternoon sessions looked at different lines of business specifically personal line, mid market and Lloyd’s and London Market.
Developing effective business models, efficiency and driving out duplication plus the need to invest in claims to improve service were all issues raised during the discussion sessions.