Christoph Willi, chief executive, Zurich Germany on why the industry must embrace change

The risk landscape is constantly evolving and insurers need to be open to change. If we don’t adapt and embrace change, we will instead get changed.

The big word is digitalisation. The advent of new technologies will fundamentally change how we interact with clients and brokers. New techniques will enable a faster exchange of information and we will be able to learn more from data.

One good example of how Zurich is maximising on the benefits of new technologies is in our tool, My Zurich. This is a real-time system which provides risk managers a platform to control their global insurance programmes. They will be able to see what policies have been issued, what premiums have been paid, whether money has been received in a captive and what claims have been settled. This is just one example of how we are using new technology to benefit our clients.

Emerging risks is another example of how insurers are responding to an evolving risk landscape. For the last 10 years, Zurich has participated in the World Economic Forum global risk report. This gives us insight into the main challenges for businesses and we use this information to develop the right solutions. Cyber risk is a good example. We understand that this is one of the biggest risks for businesses and so we are beginning to build products that offer protection against cyber-related losses. There is still a lot to do in terms of building the right cover but the insurance industry is making a concerted effort to help companies prepare for this risk.

Talent management is also an important trend for the future. We need to ensure that we have the right people and that means being bold in how we acquire talent. At Zurich we engage students through our apprenticeship programme – they are given exposure to international markets and an opportunity to work with corporate clients globally. This is a very attractive proposition that provides them with on-the-job learning.

Insurers indeed have a close eye on emerging risks – whether they are related to technology, cyber or people – and as an industry, we need to embrace opportunities and build the right solutions

Christoph Willi, chief executive officer, Zurich Global Corporate Germany