Councilcast

Soldiers engaging in combat with native tribes in post-Civil War America. The free press waging a war of words on companies in the Wild West. A massive parade celebrating the tricentennial of the Massachusetts colony. These are all scenes that shaped the way American’s think about risk, from author Katherine Hempstead’s new book Uncovered: The Story of Insurance in America. The book shares how the American insurance industry developed over a period of centuries. In this discussion, Hempstead takes us through the stories and people in her book

Lívia Albuquerque Bisoni has had a fascinating life. After working in Brazil’s fashion industry and then pivoting to insurance and moving to Portugal, the 33-year-old today is head of international and institutional relations for MDS Group. Fresh off her team’s win in the Global Broker Smackdown at the 2024 Insurance Leadership Forum, Bisoni shares with Leader’s Edge how she was able to switch careers, the importance of international business etiquette, and what risk trends she foresees impacting clients next year.

Given his background working with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and medical insurers, as well as working with individuals to fill their prescriptions, Dr. Simon Leung, Vice President, Head of Pharmacy, Conner Strong & Buckelew has in some ways seen it all. Leung’s experience has shaped his approach to pharmacy benefit consulting and his view on transparency with respect to drug costs. He discusses where all the different industry players disagree, which cost-saving levers employers have access to and the value of different types of data that inform client strategy.

Leader's Edge was on-site at The Council's Insurance Leadership Forum in October to capture the conversations and energy that always accompany this key industry gathering. In the first of three special interviews conducted at ILF, retired U.S. Navy Admiral James Stavridis, former NATO supreme allied commander Europe and a current board member of global broker Aon, discusses what risks American companies face from abroad, what trends he foresees impacting the world, and what U.S. citizens can do to tamp down the political divisiveness running rampant in our country.

Personal Lines with Dottie Chalmers Cutter by A Council Platform - 868329

Everyone in the insurance value chain wins when the broker is equipped with better data, says Jeff Cohen, senior vice president at Zywave. Cohen paints a vivid picture of what a fully optimized digital industry could look like, but cautions that we’re not there yet. He discusses where the industry is on this journey, why digital evolution is moving at the pace that it is, and what we can do about it. He also digs into the differences between manual and digital processes, how to bring out useful data points for insureds, and how Zywave is building its data from the ground up.

Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers executive chairman Ken Crerar sits down for a candid conversation on leading The Council through 30 years of growth, change, disruption, and success.

Being a bank-owned premium financing company means that the economic environment, especially changes in banking, is a major factor in the business landscape, says Ben Rubin, chief risk officer for FIRST Insurance Funding & Wintrust Life Finance. In this podcast, sponsored by First Insurance Funding, Rubin discusses the particulars of the current financial services environment and how brokers can position premium financing in their conversations with clients. He also explains the different options it provides, how different sized companies might use premium financing in different ways, and more.

In this episode we meet Ryan L. Smith, Executive Vice President of Atlanta Life Insurance. Smith shares how his childhood entrepreneurial mindset led him to working with NBA legend Magic Johnson. He also discusses his perspective on life insurance, and why its vital for a family member to have.

For hundreds of years the insurance market known as Lloyd's of London has played a notorious role in the world of risk and finance. To understand how this market started, podcast producer Zach Ewell spoke with Geraldine Morgan, a history enthusiast who gives tours in London England around the history of Lloyds and insurance. Morgan takes us on a tour from the great fire of London of 1666 to the establishment of Lloyd’s Coffee Shop.

One year into the newly created role of head of North America, AXIS' Mike McKenna joins the Leader’s Edge podcast to discuss how he plans to execute on opportunities in the market as Axis dives deeper into specialty lines. McKenna drills down into where the opportunities are in the difficult casualty market, discusses the company’s new Lloyd’s syndicate focused on the energy transition, and talks about serving the lower middle market effectively.

As Fall conference season gears up, BrokerTech Ventures’ John Jackovin, Executive Director of the BrokerTech Ventures Accelerator, shares some insight into the upcoming BrokerTech Connect, a broker-focused mini-event held during InsureTech Connect in Las Vegas in October. Jackovin discusses the evolution of the conference over the years and what’s hot in Insurtech right now.

Can we fix the polarization that has engulfed our politics and government? According to a recent Pew Research Center poll, public trust in government has edged near all-time lows in recent years. The nonpartisan organization She Should Run believes part of the answer to fixing this problem includes increasing the number of women in public office. To understand how increasing women’s participation in public office could improve public trust in government, podcast producer Zach Ewell spoke with Tracey Vasile, a member of the Planning Board for Foxborough, Massachusetts, home of the New England Patriots. Vasile is also senior vice president for client strategy at Verisk, an information services company that specializes in risk. The New England native discusses her journey serving in elected office, the importance of women running, and recent risk trends.

In this edition of our AXA XL podcast series, chief client and distribution officer Matt O’Malley sits down with Leader’s Edge after taking on this newly created role for the insurer. He explains the interconnected risk that drove AXA XL to create this position and what he hopes to achieve in the role. He also talks market trends including the early Atlantic storm season, cyber risk, and opportunity in casualty.

In this episode of Politics & Risk from The Council’s government affairs team, SVP Joel Kopperud interviews Democratic Rep. Joe Courtney, who represents Connecticut's 2nd Congressional District. The congressman discusses his party’s new excitement surrounding the presidential ticket after President Joe Biden’s withdrew from the 2024 election, possible running mate picks for Vice President Kamala Harris after she became the Democratic Party candidate, and what’s at stake in November.

For over 34 years Mike St. Lawrence traveled the United States selling alien abduction insurance on local TV news and radio shows. With nearly 7,000 coverages sold at a $24.95 asking price, the Florida resident offered a $10 million payout for proof of abduction. The catch: The payout would come at $1 annually for 10 million years. Following our 2021 interview with St. Lawrence, podcast producer Zach Ewell recently attempted to reach the self-proclaimed comedian insurer to see how his business was going and pick his mind on current UFO phenomena.

In this episode we meet Dan Horton, CEO of the Horton Group Horton shares how he made the career jump from airline pilot to insurance executive, the influence that family has had in his life, and the importance of company culture.

How is artificial intelligence shaking up the film industry? Sinead Murphy, managing director at carrier MiC Specialty, discusses how artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the film and media industries. With over 12 years of underwriting experience, Murphy shares how AI risks will impact E&O, cyber, and other policy coverages. She also discusses how this new technology is affecting the relationship between brokers and carriers. This conversation comes nearly a year after the Screen Actors Guild went on strike for reasons that included AI being used to replace actors’ performances.

In this edition of the Politics & Risk podcast, The Council’s government affairs team is onsite at the Employee Benefits Leadership Forum (EBLF) with Council VP of health policy & strategy Katie King. King oversees the Council of Employee Benefits Executives’ agenda and reveals new insights presented to the group by McKinsey, including findings from McKinsey’s brand new 2024 employer survey. The team also discusses what potential federal budget and tax code decisions could mean for employer-sponsored insurance next year.

Blake Watts, channel partnerships leader for Ochsner Health, has a busy agenda for The Council’s Employee Benefits Leadership Forum [EBLF] this year. Speaking with Leader’s Edge on the first day of the meeting in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Watts said he was looking forward to conversations with his peers on healthcare point solutions and partnering with the consulting community. In this podcast, Watts dives into “point solution fatigue” and research that has thrown the value of these services in healthcare into question. He also discusses Ochsner’s focus on value-based care and addressing health challenges in the company’s home state of Louisiana, among other topics.