Aon president says the world’s companies "unsettled" by global risks

The president of one the world’s biggest brokerages says his meetings with clients show that many businesses around the world are “unsettled” by the major risks they now face and are looking to brokers for more help.

Eric Andersen (pictured) presides over the global activities of Aon. He’s New York based but currently in Australia for his firm’s Insights Series. The brokerage hosts several of these day-long events in different countries annually. The idea is to bring together thought leaders to better understand the major risks facing the world’s economy.

“Big companies and mid-sized companies in Australia, Europe, Asia and North America – they seem more unsettled than they have been in a long time,” Andersen told Insurance Business.

Getting “the raw feed from clients”

Andersen told IB that the second important reason for visiting Down Under was “to get the raw feed of the clients.”

This included, he said, what they’re hearing and seeing in their business activities.

“It does help us when you try and make these investments in tools, teams or expertise – hearing from the clients directly what they want is such an added bonus,” said Andersen.

Merging risks are causing angst

IB asked the brokerage president if these client meetings in Australia and elsewhere have revealed something that stands out?

Andersen said a number of risk-related themes have emerged since the end of the pandemic. He suggested that one major trend is how these challenges are merging together.

“So many of these issues are merging, whether it’s what’s going on with the climate, geopolitical tension and technology, whether it’s cyber or AI [artificial intelligence].”

This situation, suggested Andersen, is creating a degree of angst among business leaders that he hasn’t seen for many years.

“I think there’s a lot out there who are unsettled and they’re looking to us to be able to give them better insight and tools,” said the Aon leader.

Andersen said this generalised uncertainty is not country specific and he’s seeing it in clients worldwide.

“No matter where you go around the world, they’re all struggling with what they view as a more risky world and they’re looking for advice and they’re looking for capital and trying to figure out what to do,” he said.

Intensifying demands from customers

Andersen’s view is more evidence of the mounting range of challenges facing the business world. It also helps explain why many brokers, including those serving the SME market, are facing more demands from their clients.

The survey asked brokers for their top industry challenge in 2024. Unaffordable insurance came in as the top issue but, surprisingly, intensifying demands from customers came in as the second top challenge.

“We know that demand for customer service has increased,” said Adam Ware. “I feel this demand is a good thing and an opportunity for us.”

Ware is director of Melbourne-headquartered BJS Insurance Brokers. His colleague, Sydney-based Vanessa Morton, a BJS Insurance director and NSW branch manager, agreed.

She said customer expectations around service and expertise “are so much higher” today than in years past. With these expectations, said Morton, brokers need to understand the intricacies of their customers’ businesses and offer customised programs.

Like Andersen, the Sydney broker said this uptick in customer demands and expectations, likely started post-pandemic.

“The post-pandemic environment for business has been very challenging for several reasons — a tightened labour market, inflation and escalating costs have contributed to these challenges,” said Morton.

In the current challenging environment, Ware said it’s important that brokers communicate effectively with clients, including delivering bad news quickly.

“We obviously cannot control premium increases, which will always cause some client dissatisfaction, or insurers going off risk,” he said. “If you have bad news regarding a client’s risk, jump on it straight away and talk to them.”

Ware said that conversation with the client may even yield information that gives the insurer a reason to reconsider.

Are you an insurance broker? Are your clients more “unsettled” than in years past? Please tell us below