Monte Carlo is widening beyond reinsurance into strategy, talent and M&A, says Aon

For decades, the Rendez-Vous de Septembre had been seen as the reinsurers’ stage – a forum dominated by pricing discussions and treaty negotiations ahead of the 1/1 renewals. But in more recent years, it has attracted unexpected guests, including talent, claims, and technology specialists, and financial institutions outside the re/insurance sector.

Key points:
Talent and tech enter RVS agenda
Clients want growth or steady profitability
New joined-up M&A solution emerging

Emma Crookes, global head of the insurance vertical at Aon, says there has been a recognition that the event can act as a platform to help re/insurers address a broader range of challenges.

“The evolution of Monte Carlo is very interesting,” she told Monte Carlo Today. “Given the level of investment required by firms, those who attend the conference need to add real value to discussions. While the bulk of the conversations still tend to be around reinsurance strategy and capital optimisation, there have been strong moves into other areas, which reflects that clients are multi-faceted, complex businesses.”

A few years ago, the industry was in the middle of a “talent crunch”, particularly in the London market. Topics such as talent, technology and capital management are finding a place alongside the traditional focus on reinsurance strategy.

“For the first time, our talent colleagues were engaging with Monte Carlo, and there were more conversations around technology that can drive performance. That was new because it’s always been so financially-focused,” Crookes said, noting that the conversations have broadened in ways that made the event more strategic for Aon’s clients and partners.

“We’re being asked this year by clients in other industries for guidance on attending Monte Carlo, and that’s new.”

She believes the conference has become a place where strategy, risk and talent issues intersect with reinsurance, with “a wide spectrum of people interested in attending” to help address or solve a range of challenges.

Perhaps the most striking, recent example of this integrated approach, Crookes pointed out, was M&A. “We’ve combined our reinsurance transaction expertise with consultancy teams for due diligence, human capital, pensions, investments, health plans and insurance.

“This summer we worked on an offering that unites all those capabilities into a single M&A proposition. Now, when clients ask what we can do, it’s not just about making a series of introductions: we can support the entire process, particularly on the buy side, drawing on our knowledge of the companies they are targeting.”

“It is important we really understand what insurers are trying to achieve holistically as a business.”

Crookes’ remit at Aon is to connect reinsurance with their commercial risk, human capital, strategy, technology and consulting and Inpoint teams. At Monte Carlo, that means helping bring those conversations together.

“While we offer a huge range of services, everything starts with listening to the client's needs,” she said. “It is important that we really understand what insurers are trying to achieve holistically as a business and then offer a relevant and focused solution.”

For reinsurance leaders, Crookes and her colleagues work to knit together the different strands of Aon’s capabilities, whether around capital management, talent consultancy or technology transformation, into solutions that align with insurers and their clients' ambitions.

Value beyond growth

Not every insurer wants relentless expansion, stressed Crookes. “We have clients who are more subdued with their growth plans, as they feel that profitability could decline as a result of expansion. So it’s not solely about growth, and our core aim this renewal season is to discuss with clients what they need to achieve their strategy, typically around their capital and reinsurance placements, as well as how they can achieve any targeted growth, profitably.”

To elaborate, instead of being seen as a broker playing one small role in a transaction, Aon now pulls together due diligence, human capital, pensions, benefits, reinsurance, D&O and liability coverages into one proposition. “We have a good working knowledge and insights around the companies insurers or investors are considering buying so we feel we can bring increased clarity to a potential transaction,” she said.

Crookes’s message to reinsurers gathering in Monte Carlo: expect the conversations to be wider, deeper and more strategic than ever. In other words, it is no longer just about renewals. It is about rethinking what partnership between insurers, reinsurers and brokers could look like.

Emma Crookes is global head of the insurance vertical at Aon. She can be contacted at: emma.crookes@aon.com

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