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What Makes for a Great Client, a Great Carrier?
Great Clients Communicate, Research and Seek Partnerships
The first is effective communication. There is no substitute for meeting and talking frequently--at any time of day or from any time zone. Setting clearly defined goals and working together as a team to meet them is a high point.
The second is respect for research. Adobe and Honeywell invest heavily in research and development, and so do I. Fuchs and Hill investigate issues thoroughly before making a decision on purchasing new coverage or changing program structures.
The third is forging a claims partnership. Claims valuation and legal analysis allows for the recovery of more insurance dollars than originally offered.
By adhering to these principles of excellence, Fuchs and Hill succeed as model clients.
PHIL NORTON is president of the professional liability division of Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services in Chicago. He is a three-time Power BrokerTM honoree.
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Recalling the Heroes at the Battle for Lexington
Everyone in the insurance industry remembers the day, Sept. 15, 2008, when the unthinkable and the impossible nearly happened: AIG was teetering on the brink of collapse, taking with it Lexington Ins. Co. and the hundreds of millions of dollars of capacity deployed for the real estate and hospitality industry. Within hours of the news, untold numbers of "helpful" carriers circled like vultures, each graciously willing to replace the capacity for three to 10 times the going rate.
Some brokers made it a sport of calling insureds and screaming that they had to move all placements immediately. Panic and confusion were king, and in the absence of truth, innuendo took hold, but, not for long.
What happened within the first 48 hours of the AIG debacle will become a case study for MBAs. The actions of Lexington, from senior executives to the technical assistants were clear, concise and completely appropriate in a manner that allowed our team to explain to our clients all of the options facing them.
When S&P downgraded AIGCI, George Stratts and the Lexington property team engaged a number of real estate and hospitality insurance brokers in a dialogue to determine what needed to be done to fortify the S&P rating and thus satisfy the lenders.
This behavior and a willingness to gather opinions to create solutions is a hallmark of a great insurer. Smart people and decisive actions are what we look for in a great insurer, and I am convinced that Lexington has earned its right to wear that mantel.
ALEXANDRA S. GLICKMAN is area vice chairwoman, managing director and practice leader for Arthur J. Gallagher's Real Estate and Hospital Services practice. She is a 2007 and 2008 Power BrokerTM.
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It's all About the Longevity and Consistency of Relationships
Relationships are the backbone of what makes a client an outstanding partner. Clients that are knowledgeable about the industry and product line, as well as believe in the benefits of a long-term relationship, are successful in business.
It is important for clients to view its insurer not only as an expert resource, but also a colleague that will help them and their business.
The benefits of a long-term relationship will transform the success of a client's business. Great clients understand that the relationship is everything and support their partner through the good and tough times.
Similarly, when underwriters are familiar with an account after years of working on it and with the team, the renewal process is easier and challenges tend to be solved more quickly. I've seen time and time again clients benefit from longevity and consistency. Good clients also know that a true partner will work for its business as well as share in the accomplishments.
With a long relationship comes opportunity. A smart risk manager knows his or her business inside and out and is able to strategically leverage one product line for another position within the company. With this team-based mentality, harmony and balance may be achieved.
Similarly, a partner's selection should never be based solely on the least expensive price or a competitive bid. While price is always a concern, an experienced risk manager will know the equilibrium point and strive to achieve the appropriate balance.
Indeed, the insurer/risk manager relationship serves as the cornerstone for success, no matter the line of business.
ANTHONY DEFELICE is managing director of the National Casualty practice for Aon Risk Services and past Power BrokerTM winner.
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Forming a Bond Through Partnership
Great clients have a critical characteristic--they view us as their partners. Equally important, they provide steady feedback and maintain an open dialogue with us. They aren't afraid to give us constructive criticism, and they want us to share with them what they can do to make our job easier. Unum, a leading disability, group life, long-term care and voluntary benefits carriers, with the help of Director of Risk Management Beth Cobb, does just this.
Cobb and Kevin McMahon, Unum's treasurer, are a superb team to work with. They understand the importance of relationships in this business. They know their firm's risks, share the information willingly and are eager to tell the Unum story to their carriers. Due in part to their proactive approach, we are better able to differentiate them and secure the best results in the marketplace.
Superb clients understand the importance of relationships in this business. They know their firm's risks, share the information willingly and are eager to tell their company's story to their carriers.
Due in part to their proactive approach, brokers are better able to differentiate them and secure the best results in the marketplace.
MATT BAUM is executive vice president of Willis HRH and a Power BrokerTM. He is also a Power BrokerTM 40-under-40.
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And Now ... Saying Thanks to Clients
I feel the overarching principle is that our clients treat Marsh and their team, as a true partner to serve and meet the goals of the clients' organization. This involves a number of qualities or traits that make this reality and not just lip service:
Great clients set and communicate strategy and vision. This could be developed jointly with us or set singularly by the client.
Great clients maintain highest degree of ethics and integrity in self and others.
Great clients take a stand, form a point of view and demonstrate executive courage regarding one's convictions. They are also willing to challenge the status quo to move their organizations along with ours.
Great clients facilitate relationships up and down their organization with our team and leadership, which enables everyone to actively participate to serve the needs and wants of our clients.
Great clients work for the good of the overall firm, not just their discipline. They act a senior manager of the firm as a whole, not just within their discipline.
Great clients partner with colleagues across their own organization and ours to drive the goals of the client in a collegial way.
Great clients exhibit thorough knowledge of the client organization/industry risk issues and profiles and is able to respond accordingly.
Great clients compensate us fairly for services performed and give us "tough love" before they run out of patience and fire us.
And finally, great clients help us get back on track if the slip or fall is uncharacteristic and nonsystemic. Like any relationship, there will be bumps in the road.
BRUCE BELZAK is the national practice leader for life sciences and pharmaceuticals for Marsh Inc. and multiple Power BrokerTM winner.
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No Clichés Here
A superb client is one to whom the word "partnership" is not just a cliché but a reality. A superb client understands that good brokers are not just another vendor but trusted business advisors who can help her be successful within her company. A superb client is not afraid to have decisions and assumptions challenged. She expects it.
A superb client knows to use, not abuse, the full resources of her brokers and relies on them to be a complementary extension, able to amplify and leverage her own risk management capabilities.
A superb client pays her brokers fairly, recognizes them for exceeding expectations and holds them accountable when they don't. A superb client demands the best that her brokers can deliver and understands the value, both tangible and intangible, that can come from long-term, mutually rewarding partnerships.
GARY BULL is managing director of the retail/wholesale practice at Marsh. MAC NADEL is Northeast zone retail/wholesale practice at Marsh. Both are Power BrokerTM winners.
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What Make a Great Insured?
In the higher education niche that Arthur J. Gallagher serves, we seek buyers committed to understanding and managing their total cost of risk. With this as a baseline, superb clients:
--Clearly articulate their service expectations and demand adherence to their standards.
--Provide continual and consistent feedback to their service team.
--Demand a broker who thoroughly understands the business of colleges and universities.
--Work in concert with their service team to create solutions in line with their institution's risk financing goals.
--Understand the capabilities and resources of their service team and brokerage firm and utilizes the resources to support the institution's mission.
--Expect and appreciate creative solutions to their risk financing challenges.
--Look to the future to ensure joint efforts are aligned with their institution's dynamic risk profile.
--View their service team as part of the institution's risk management team.
The beauty of the higher education niche and the clients we serve is that all of them share the goal of understanding and managing their total cost of risk ... they just find themselves at different stages in that process.
JOHN MCLAUGHLIN is managing director of the higher education practice at Arthur J. Gallagher and multiyear Power BrokerTM winner.
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Great Clients: Hard to Miss
Regardless of industry or the size of the organization, the qualities that make a great client are consistently in evidence: knowledge with passion, candor, open mindedness and loyalty.
Knowledge. Great clients possess a deep understanding of their business operations and know the critical goals of their senior management. They steer their risk management programs within these corporate guidelines but continue to push the envelope to drive change and improve the risk profile of their firm. They have a passion for their organization that is contagious.
Candor. Great clients articulate their needs well. They know how to be direct with what they consider important while being realistic about what is achievable. Great clients say "job well done" and "you did not meet my expectations so let's discuss how I need you to improve" with equal frequency and emphasis.
Open mindedness. Great clients are eager to hear about new alternatives and differing views in order to find the best solutions for their organizations. They want to discuss concepts, even if they do not address a current need, because they believe that learning is an important investment for the future.
Loyalty. Great clients believe in long-term relationships and view their insurers and brokers as partners to help them achieve their goals. They believe that the best form of motivation is praise, not criticism. Great clients demonstrate a commitment to work through issues, not around them.
Clients that exhibit these qualities typically have the best-run risk programs in their industry and are truly a pleasure to serve.
HOLLY D. MEIDL is managing director of the healthcare practice of Marsh in Nashville and a Power BrokerTM.
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Clients Innovate, Motivate and Stimulate
Being a customer should come naturally to people. It is an experience we all share, but our history as consumers--passive and transactional--is poor preparation for managing a professional services relationship.
It is simple to rattle off the qualities of a great client: open, positive, unafraid to ask questions, accountable, knowledgeable about the client organization, possessing of character and integrity, and seeing the value in providing candid feedback.
I have been fortunate in my career to encounter many outstanding clients. They have challenged me to think strategically, be creative and innovate in order to solve their problems.
For example, I worked on the launch of a client's high-profile project that had the potential for immediate impact and long-term savings. Shortly into the process, it became obvious that another service provider had made a material mistake. Rather than recriminations, the risk manager asked the team to consider solutions and continued the conference call.
The project was back on track a few days later and delivered most of the benefits the client anticipated.
The risk manager, the internal champion with much to lose, reasoned that the mistake was forgivable as it arose from time pressure--not laziness or incompetence.
This was a powerful guide for the remainder of the implementation and informs our commitment to this client to this day.
ANNE MULHOLLAND is director, public administration and education at Aon Risk Services in Cincinnati and a three-time Power BrokerTM.
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What Makes for a Superb Client?
A superb client is one that understands the value of a long-term relationship with their broker. I have several clients that I have a positive long-term working relationship with, but there is one in particular that I have worked with more than 18 years and with changes in operations and corporate structure.
Their ability to recognize the value of a long-term partner and utilize me and my team's knowledge and expertise to make sure that through these changes their insurance programs remained intact and also moved forward with their changing needs.
In this ever-changing world where people and organizations are restructured on a regular basis, this client made sure, as part of their internal transition, that my brokerage team was included in their internal meetings when the responsibility was handed off to the new leader. We as the brokerage team felt included in the process and a real responsible part of their team during the changes.
For example, there was a long-term project to build an insurance product that was key to protecting the company's continued success that took over a year to complete. During that time the client had changed various team members; however, they understood the value of the partnership between themselves and my team and allowed the development of the program to proceed with continuity.
Therefore, a well-run risk management department that we built a strong and trusting working relationship with is how this company became a superb client.
STEVE LEVENE recently joined Beecher Carlson from the Lockton Cos. He is a multiyear Power BrokerTM winner.
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How to Utilize the Relationship Approach to Business
Julie R. Jackson CPCU, director of risk management and insurance for Targa Resources Inc., is a dedicated risk manager and a superb client, as she understands the nature of utilizing the "relationship approach" to business.
Julie establishes long-term relationships with underwriters and then goes the "extra mile" to make sure the relationship is beneficial for all parties. Julie's relationship with underwriters around the world helped us place a new insurance program for Targa simultaneously with a major acquisition. The acquisition took place during a very challenging insurance market following Hurricane Katrina and Rita, which severely damaged several of the assets being acquired.
Julie then worked closely with all involved parties (both internally and third-party firms) to successfully resolve the sizable and complex claims. Julie's leadership and commitment to work through the claims in a professional manner highlight why she is such a superb client.
In addition, Julie understands all aspects of Targa's operations and works closely with the various members of her brokering team to effectively communicate their firm's unique exposures to underwriters. Julie's hands-on involvement in the renewal of her various programs give her an excellent understanding of the marketing process, which enables her to give us constant feedback on the renewal process making sure we all accomplish the renewal objectives for her firm.
Julie appreciates the fact that the long-term relationships that she has established with underwriters will allow her to achieve the lowest possible cost of risk over an extended period of time.
RICHARD BLADES is vice chairman of John L. Wortham & Son, LP and multiyear Power BrokerTM winner.
February 23, 2009 Copyright 2009© LRP Publications |
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