Women in reinsurance
PrOFILE Name:
Katherine Brennan
Company: Guy Carpenter & Company Job:
General counsel
Timeline: 2014—General counsel, Guy Carpenter
2008—Senior corporate counsel and assistant secretary, Marsh & McLennan Companies
2003—Associate, Dewey & LeBoeuf
Katherine Brennan is general counsel of Guy Carpenter & Company, effective January 1, 2014. Prior to joining Guy Carpenter, she was senior corporate counsel and assistant secretary of Marsh & McLennan Companies (MMC) where she focused on corporate finance transactions, SEC disclosure, mergers & acquisitions, corporate governance and shareholder matters.
Prior to joining MMC in September 2008, she was with
law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf in New York City. At D&L, she represented clients in connection with all aspects of the corporate and securities practice with a focus on ILS, including catastrophe bond transactions.
She says that her recent appointment as the general counsel of Guy Carpenter is the highlight of my career so far.
“Starting a new role is a one-time opportunity to build trust
and demonstrate value,” she says. “I have had the privilege of working for and among women and men who have taken the time to teach, mentor and coach me, and ultimately advocate for my advancement. From my perspective, this kind of ‘sponsorship’ is also a highlight that I hope will continue throughout my career.”
The biggest challenges of her career have come from occasions when she has been asked to lead outside of conventional
leadership roles—for example, to chair a particular task force of colleagues or manage a cross-functional project.
“Managing across invisible lines, while challenging at times,
is invaluable experience in learning to motivate teams toward objectives through collaboration. In the absence of direct authority, leading a project requires you to share the burden and set an example, recognise your own limitations and respect the contributions of others, and ensure the team is invested in the outcome.”
Brennan sees such challenges as central to her sense of
fulfilment in her job. “I aspire to be always hungry for the next challenge and never to
be complacent in a role where I am not adding any value. I always want to be a little bit outside of my comfort zone,” she says.
“I have had the privilege of working for and among women and men who have taken the time to teach, mentor and coach me.”
8 | INTELLIgENT INsUrEr | May 2014
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