Rising stars
draw, as was the possibility of travel. Overall it looked like an ideal industry to invest a lot of time and energy into.
Do you think the industry is attractive to young professionals? Absolutely. Insurance offers graduates a good starting salary, a healthy work/life balance, the potential to travel or work internationally and most importantly, interesting and varied work. Each territory, industry and business presents its own individual
Name: Nick Lawrence
Company: ArgoGlobal Job:
Class underwriter, general liability
Timeline: 2014: Class underwriter, general liability, ArgoGlobal
2010: Class underwriter, general liability, Catlin
2006: Assistant underwriter, general liability, Catlin
2003: Underwriting assistant, general liability, Catlin
Describe your career so far and current role. After 11 years working on the international general liability book at Catlin I joined ArgoGlobal, in December 2014, to lead its general liability account. We provide a broad range of liability cover to a number of industries in the public and commercial sectors. The opportunity to join ArgoGlobal was exciting, offering me
the chance to take on a bigger role with greater responsibility and the challenge of further developing an already established book of business.
Why did you choose the re/insurance industry? I’ve always been numerate and growing up in Bermuda, where my father was based, made me aware of the re/insurance industry early on. I always wanted to go into financial services in some shape or form. Before I entered insurance I worked as an accountant for KPMG, where I spent six months assisting with bank audits, looking at the numbers on the page, wondering how they came about and what the rationale was behind each transaction. There are a number of reasons why insurance stood out over other industries. The interpersonal nature of underwriting, engaging with brokers, customers, lawyers, claims adjusters and so on was a big
32 | INTELLIGENT INSURER | May 2015
variety of risks which are in turn affected by varying international laws. It’s also an incredibly sociable industry. As well as brokers or lawyers, you interact with people who are at the top of their industry and who are passionate about protecting their businesses. Insurance also provides more job security than other areas of finance because although as an underwriter within Lloyd’s you’re competing against other insurers, you’re very much in a subscription- based market where collaboration and cooperation is essential and the need for almost any individual company to protect its balance sheet means that the demand for insurance is unilateral.
Do you think the re/insurance industry offers good opportunities and career development to young professionals? Insurance offers excellent opportunities for career development and is becoming increasingly accessible, with more and more companies offering graduate schemes. ArgoGlobal takes on four new graduates every other year and we participate in the Lloyd’s apprenticeship scheme, taking on school leavers. There are an increasing number of routes to get into the industry
now as opportunities in new areas of insurance open up and new risks become apparent. Cyber, for example, is creating a demand for technological expertise and understanding which is more often found among younger generations than at the senior end of the market. Equally, a lot of insurance companies are looking to set up
internationally, recognising that not all risks are coming to Lloyd’s in the way they have historically, which favours those with foreign language skills. Insurance provides a great opportunity for personal development and teaches you to see how a business operates, what risks it faces and how to get over those hurdles.
What are your aspirations for the future? Increasingly our clients are looking for a comprehensive insurance solution rather than broad general liability cover. I’m looking to broaden my knowledge of other areas so that I can progress and understand how to deliver that all-encompassing solution to a client. I’m also excited about being a part of ArgoGlobal’s future as it continues to grow and hope to develop and help build the business.
If you had chosen a different profession/career path, what would it have been? I more than likely would have still chosen a financial services role, probably accountancy.
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