Risk and insurance management makes big shift

Risk managers have seen their jobs evolve massively, in a process that started about five years ago, according to a group of Belgian risk managers.

Speaking as part of our Risk Frontiers Europe 2022 survey, the group agreed there has been a seismic shift towards enterprise risk management (ERM) and away from pure insurance management.

Nathalie Vandenbroucke, insurance, risk and compliance manager at Eiffage in Benelux, said it has been an evolution rather than a revolution for her, but is still very much a work in progress.

CHALLENGES

The transition has not been without its challenges. Frédéric Lycops, corporate risk and insurance manager at Recticel, admitted he was anxious when his company announced his role would be changing.

“I welcomed the opportunity but you have to step out of your comfort zone so it was also an eye-opener,” he said. Lycops added that the challenge was one he was glad to accept.

But not everyone has had to face the same challenge and every role is slightly different.

The group acknowledged that much depends on the size and format of the organisation you work for.

For example, Marie-France Theys, corporate risk and insurance manager at Schneider Electric, is not involved with ERM because the group has a separate ERM department.

The good news, she said, is that the ERM team and her team are increasingly working together. This is resulting in better outcomes for the business as a whole, but their separate roles remain clearly defined.

For Theys, working within a large organisation also means there is a separate compliance programme and sustainability department.

“Since 2020, the organisation has changed, so we have insurance, risk and audit all working under governance. As a result, things like ESG are gaining in importance and we now ask all our suppliers to comply with ISO26000 evaluations, and we verify that they have reached certain standards. It is a very new approach for us,” she explained.

ESG CONVERSATION

Being on the stock market adds to the pressure and the need for measurable ESG standards, she said.

The group of risk managers agreed that demands from insurers are also driving the ESG conversation internally. Insurers increasingly use ESG scores when evaluating risk. Not meeting their demands means it is harder to get the right cover, explained the risk managers. This trend is only likely to grow, the survey participants agreed.

The group also expects more environmental legislation as ESG demands grow.