News ased on the current gender disparity in corporate America, it will take 25 years to


reach gender parity at the senior vice president level, and more than 100 years in the C-suite, Elaine Caprio, president, CapLaw Advisors and a speaker on women’s leadership issues, told PCI Today. Caprio, the former at


reinsurance Liberty


manager Mutual,


challenges are the same for women in the re/ insurance industry as they are for women working in the wider corporate environment. She suggests women should help each other climb the corporate ladder where possible. She cites numerous statistics that illustrate the


challenge. Within the insurance industry, women hold only 12.6 percent of board seats, 6 percent of the top executive positions such as CEO, CFO or COO, and 8 percent of the named inside officer roles, she said, referencing Saint Joseph’s University 2012 study of 100 US insurers. This study also found that 28 percent of the


companies had no female directors, 65 percent had no female inside officers and 85 percent had no women in their top executive positions, she said. Caprio reported that


demonstrated the value of a high representation of women in businesses. Companies with the highest representation of women on their senior management teams had a 35 percent higher return


on equity and a 34 percent higher total return to shareholders than companies with the lowest women’s representation, she said citing The Bottom Line: Connecting Corporate Performance and


Gender


of ceded said the


Diversity published by Catalyst in 2012. The European Commission also concluded that companies with a gender-diverse


board


achieved a 66 percent greater return on invested capital, and 53 percent higher return on equity, she said, citing a report called Women in Economic Decision Making in the EU: Progress Report 2012. Caprio then suggested a number of measures


27.10.15 TUESDAY


Female executives must lift each other B


profit and loss experience, and pursue ‘line’ or ‘business’ roles


that matter to the


company’s bottom line; and utilising formal sponsorship programmes for rising female leaders to open doors for promotion.


She also suggested conducting gender


bias


training, publishing companies’ gender diversity data,


creating Elaine Caprio benchmarks


and setting goals for gender equality in the C-suite, with senior leadership positions, and in the boardroom, and


assessing progress toward meeting goals. Caprio is a member of the Boston Club, a body


that the industry could employ to encourage young women into the industry, retain female talent and remove barriers to advancement. These include having a significant number of executive female


role models in their other studies have


organisation; ensuring executive women are visible within companies and the industry, and make up a significant percentage of attendees at management summits and onstage roles at presentations; encouraging women to obtain


that promotes the advancement of women into leadership roles. She notes that the Boston Club has placed more than 100 women on corporate boards around the US, and more than 200 women on non-profit boards in the Boston area. She has some specific advice for women


entering the re/insurance industry. “Continuously supporting other women will accelerate gender equality in the workplace. Lift other women as you climb the corporate ladder.” n


Guy Carpenter examines growing wildfire threat in new report G


uy Carpenter has released a briefing that assesses wildfire risk in the US, a peril which


it describes as a growing threat to properties. The briefing, US Wildfire: An Ever-Present Hazard, provides insight into


the threat of


wildfires in the US as well as risk mitigation strategies and portfolio modelling for this peril. The wildfire threat in the summer of 2015


was amplified by a strong ridge of high pressure that created very hot and dry conditions in the western US, the report said. More than 9.27 million acres were burned by wildfires up to October 8, as compared to the 10-year average of around 6.3 million acres, according to data from the National Interagency Fire Center.


14 | PCI TODAY | DAY 3: Tuesday October 27 2015 “Wildfire is a significant peril impacting


insurers in the US each year. Preliminary data indicates that 2015 insured losses from wildfires may approach or exceed $1.75 billion. Guy Carpenter works with our clients to evaluate their exposure and to deliver a comprehensive wildfire risk management solution,” said Tim Gardner, CEO of US Operations. Dr James Waller, research meteorologist for


Guy Carpenter, added: “Wildfires are a complex peril due to a number of varying prediction factors such as temperature, rainfall deficit and wind conditions. “As winter approaches, a strong El Niño should bring much-needed rainfall to most of


California and the Southwest, but the Northwest is likely to continue to experience dry conditions through the winter.” Sherry Thomas, head


management–Americas, Guy Carpenter, added: “Wildfire continues to be a growing threat to properties in the US and a risk that does not appear to be diminishing,” she said. “In response, Guy Carpenter has continued


to innovate the capabilities of our modelling solutions, through which we can offer detailed estimations of annual burn probability for insurer portfolios, probabilistic modelling and real-time monitoring of current wildfire events across the continental US.” n


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