European risk and insurance management community at crossroads

European risk and insurance management community at crossroads: needs to take very long and hard look at future role.

Extract from Commercial Risk Europe:

This year’s Risk Frontiers survey of European risk managers, sponsored by XL and Willis, took place as European companies grappled with big and fast developing political, social and economic changes such as the eurozone crisis, ongoing dramatic effects of the Arab Spring and the spectre of a ‘double dip’ European and global downturn. It was no surprise therefore that this year, more than in the past, the discussion was very macro-focused.

In this survey we shed light on those macro issues and other big risks keeping risk professionals awake at night, discuss the role risk managers should play to help their organisations navigate such choppy waters and consider to what extent the insurance market is responding and delivering on innovation. We also take an indepth look at the state of the corporate insurance market and the challenges raised by globalisation and multinational insurance programmes.

Interest rates, volatile currency markets and changing regulation are the top three issues on the minds of risk managers.

Other issues that are top of mind include political risks and the challenges of growing in new markets.

“It is the ‘big’ business issues that are keeping board members across Europe awake at night,” said Jason Harris, international property and casualty insurance CEO of survey sponsor XL Group.

“In a world of ever increasing complexity, companies face a host of fast changing risks. The uncertainty they present means that risk and insurance managers are now being included in discussions that, in the past, they may have been excluded from and they are expected to find solutions.

“Recent, high profile enterprise risk management challenges have pushed the issue of risk to the top of the boardroom agenda. Big strategic decisions are being made at all levels and it is clear that the risk management and insurance community has a role to play if we are to help ensure that the right decisions are made at the right time.

“This is a real opportunity for risk managers and insurance professionals to demonstrate the value and expertise they can bring to the table and ultimately justify their position and the role of the risk industry in the boardroom.”

More … http://www.xlgroup.com/~/media/XLgroup/PDFS/Press/CRE_Risk_Frontiers_Survey_2012.pdf