Forum preview
Few people have been as exposed to risk personally as former astronaut, fighter pilot and now test pilot, Patrick Baudry. He will give a unique perspective on risk management as one of the keynote speakers at the biannual Forum of the Federation of European Risk Management Associations (FERMA) in Lisbon from 2-5 October.
Baudry was the first French citizen in space when, as Lieutenant Colonel Baudry, he flew as a payload specialist on NASA's Discovery space space shuttle between 17 and 24 June 1985, during which time he travelled 2.5m miles in 112 earth orbits, logging over 169 hours in space.
Still closely involved with risk assessment and management as chief test pilot for the French aeronautical company Aerospatiale, he has called his talk to the Forum, 'Risk management as seen from space'.
The Portuguese risk management association, Associacao Portuguesa de Gestao de Riscos e Seguros (APOGERIS), which is organising the Forum, has now published the programme for the event. It includes three further keynote speakers, workshops and plenary sessions, including one on future relationships with brokers, organised by FERMA national member associations and by the International Federation of Risk Management Associations (IFRIMA), which is holding its annual meeting, in conjunction with the Forum.
The other keynote topics will be:
- Security in the enlarged Europe (Antonio Vitorino, former European Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security)
- Managing risk by value creation (Belmiro de Azevedo, president of the board of SONAE Group)
- Corporate governance and risk management: different visions, different risks (Antonio Borges, chairman of the European Corporate Governance Institute and vice-chairman of Goldman Sachs International).
Brokers, insurers and other sessions
The plenary session organised by IFRIMA promises to be particularly topical.
It brings together senior representatives from Marsh, Aon and Willis and the independent broker EOS Risq to consider whether opportunity can be drawn from the furore about broker payments and practices. Maurizio Castelli, chairman of IFRIMA and group risk manager of the Pirelli Group, will chair the discussion which will discuss the IFRIMA white paper on the role of the broker (see adjacent item).
Another panel discussion will cover insurance market issues, and includes participation from senior executives of AIG Europe, Zurich Global Corporate, Allianz Global Risks, ACE European Group and Swiss Re.
In addition to keynote speakers and plenary sessions, the Forum offers a choice of workshops, educational sessions and a large exhibition with more than 60 stands. The programme also features interactive risk managers' discussions in the format of brainstorming sessions. Some of the topics for workshops and roundtables include:
- CRISIS MANAGEMENT IN THE EUROPEAN CONTEXT (AGERS-Spain)
- DIRECTORS & OFFICERS' LIABILITY INSURANCE: REAL PROTECTION OR DELUSIONS OF SECURITY? (DBS/Bfv - Germany)
- OUTSOURCING TO CHINA (BELRIM - Belgium)
- RISK MANAGEMENT DEVELOPING FOR COMPANIES IN RUSSIA (RusRisk- Russia)
- ENVIRONMENTAL LIABILITIES (DARIM-Denmark)
- INTERCULTURAL ISSUES (APOGERIS- Portugal)
- ENTERPRISE RISK MANAGEMENT - A global perspective (IFRIMA)
- BASEL II - TODAY BANKS - TOMORROW? (AMRAE - France)
- BUSINESS CONTINUITY MANAGEMENT (AIRMIC - UK)
- TERRORISM (SIRM- Switzerland)
- COMMERCIAL CONTRACT MANAGEMENT (NARIM - Netherlands)
The programme for the Forum is now available from the FERMA web site at www.ferma-asso.org European Commission invites FERMA
FERMA is helping advise new and prospective members of the European Union about best practice in insurance and risk management through a programme organised by the European Commission's Technical Assistance Exchange Instrument (TAILEX) for the expanding community. The aim of the programme is to consider the EU insurance directives that are currently in force and the smooth integration of the national insurance industries into the international market.
The first event was a seminar in May in Vilnius, Lithuania, at which more than 70 members of the country's Ministry of Finance, Insurance Supervisory Commission, Association of Lithuanian Insurers, Lithuanian National Consumer Rights Protection Board, the brokers' association and insurance companies, took part.
FERMA's representative, Edouard Thys, presented FERMA's activities and outlined the risk management process in industrial and commercial firms among its members in Europe. He discussed best practices and standards throughout the world with a more detailed explanation of the FERMA standards.
Thys has also made a similar presentation in Russia at the invitation of FERMA member RusRisk.
The role of the broker - IFRIMA
The International Federation of Risk Management Associations (IFRIMA) believes that the business model established by brokers and insurers has not provided for enough flexibility in serving organisations of different sizes. IFRIMA's view, published in a position paper on the role of the broker in relation to commercial clients in May, will be discussed at a plenary session at the FERMA Forum in October, in which leading brokers will take part.
In 2004, the IFRIMA's directors decided to produce a white paper defining the role of the broker with respect to risk management accounts.
The document is available on the IFRIMA web site at
