Arthur J Gallagher names UK operations director

Arthur J Gallagher has appointed Charles Crawford as its UK operations director, based in London.

This appointment follows Gallagher’s announcement to recruit a senior operations director to assume some of Michael Rea’s operational responsibilities after his appointment as CEO of UK Retail.

Crawford will report to and support Rea in his ongoing role as chief operating officer (COO) for the international brokerage business.

In this role, Crawford will head up Gallagher’s programme of investment, working with divisional COOs to support the structure, governance and operating models of its UK businesses.

He will also assume responsibility for IT, real estate, claims, digital, offshore, procurement, change delivery and compliance operations.

Crawford has 30 years of experience in insurance and has held a variety of senior executive and leadership roles, at UK insurance businesses including RBS Insurance and Churchill.

He joined Gallagher in February 2016 as a programme director, and led the delivery of the extensive change programme in the UK, which focuses on the integration of businesses and the creation of a scalable platform for future growth.

Rea commented: “I’m delighted that Charles has agreed to take on this important role and become a permanent member of the team here at Gallagher.

“Over the past nine months Charles has driven and led a programme of transformational change. I know that his wealth of experience will be invaluable as we continue to simplify and enhance our operational effectiveness to create a fully scalable platform for future growth.”