Aon in October 2019 announced it has developed services to fill gaps identified in the UK’s Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) provision. Mental Health First Aid courses are commonplace in workplaces throughout the UK, yet research from the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) highlights serious pitfalls for employers who wish to implement MHFA without a wider strategy or who do not take the care of the MH

MAXIS Global Benefits Network (MAXIS GBN) in October 2019 announced that its OneClient service now provides access to a new suite of interactive dashboards and web applications to help multinationals identify employee benefits spending and healthcare priorities that aid decision-making and cost management. One of the key new features of the OneClient portal is an interactive pooling dashboard that allows multinational pooling clients to better understand their pool performance

The Randstad Workmonitor Global Report has been released for Q3, 2019, revealing the latest local and global trends in mobility over time. The report shows data relating to migration, diversity, job satisfaction, and job change appetite, as well as personal motivation based on a rotating set of themed questions. Some highlights of the report include data that shows: 64% of respondents would consider emigrating if they can improve their

Global broker Gallagher in September 2019 announced the appointment of Antonia Feldman as a Senior International Benefits Analyst in Gallagher’s Research & Publications department. She will be working on GVISOR with focus primarily on the EMEA region. She has experience in global employee benefits and has previously worked as a Market Intelligence Research Associate and Global Benefits Researcher for Willis Towers Watson. She began her career as Communications Specialist

German IT firm Retarus announced the appointment of Valeska Spindler as HR Manager International, based in Munich, Germany. She joins Retarus from broker Profion where she worked as HR & Benefits Consultant for international corporate clients, after starting her career in the same company as Executive Management Assistant and Consultant for HR Services. Valeska holds a B.A. (Bachelor of Arts) in International Business from Hochschule Heilbronn, Germany, with a

Aleksandra Klaic in September 2019 joined the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as head of Global Rewards, based in Geneva, Switzerland. She joins the ICRC from Sanofi where she was Head of Compensation and Benefits for the Consumer Healthcare division; M&A and Head of Benefits for the Asia, Japan-Pacific, AMEE (Africa, Middle East and Eastern Europe), and Latin America regions; and International Benefits Manager. Prior to Sanofi,

Internet registrar and web hosting firm GoDaddy in September 2019 announced the appointment of Yasemin Sezgin as their new Director Compensation & Benefits EMEA, based in London, UK. Yasemin joins from Fox International Channels where she was Director Compensation & Benefits for Europe & Africa. Prior to Fox, she worked for Yıldız Holding as Head of Global Reward and HRIS; Goodyear Lastikleri as Compensation & Benefits Manager; Nestle Turkey

Caroline Bohan in September 2019 was promoted Associate Director, Compensation and Benefits, at Dublin, Ireland-based Jazz Pharmaceuticals. She previously was Senior Manager, Compensation and Benefits, at Jazz. Earlier in her career, she worked for Deloitte Ireland as Reward and Benefits Manager; Boots Ireland as Reward Manager; Novartis as Regional HR Services Expert in Dublin;  Alkermes as Compensation Analyst and Systems Administrator; Elan as HR Associate, Compensation & Benefits; Bank

For its landmark 50th edition, the 2020 IBIS Academy will be held in Geneva, Switzerland, from May 11 to May 15, 2020. Further details will be announced shortly and in the meantime a contact form is provided for any inquiries.   Looking forward to covering the event, this publication cannot resist the temptation to list all 49 previous venues: 2019 Milan, Italy 2018 Berlin, Germany 2017 Cannes, France 2016

Gallagher in August 2019 announced the appointment of Christine L. Hoehne, GPHR, CEBS as Area Senior Vice President in Global Benefits & HR Consulting. She joins Gallagher from Swiss Life Global Solutions where she was Vice President and Regional Director at Swiss Life Network. Previously, she had worked for Arthur J. Gallagher as Area Vice President, Multinational Benefits & HR Consulting for the Western Region; Lockton as Assistant Vice

Saudi insurance carrier Tawuniya in September 2019 announced the appointment of Sulaiman Al Amri as Head of Brokers Management and International Partnerships. Sulaiman joins Tawuniya from Willis Towers Watson where he was Executive Director for Riyadh and Jeddah; Branch Manager in Riyadh; and Health and Benefits Manager in Khobar, Saudi Arabia. Previously, he worked for AXA as Customer Service Manager in Riyadh; American Express as Unit Head Corporate Service

Save the date ! Europe Day of the German construction industry 2019 The German provident fund for the construction industry, SOKA-BAU, on the afternoon of Tuesday 5 November 2019 organizes its “Europe Day 2019”, a half-day conference on “Vocational training for a digital labor market”. In addition to the requirements for sustainable vocational training, the reorientation of the European Social Fund (ESF) program will be a focus of the

Willis Towers Watson (WTW) in September 2019 announced the promotion of Sylvie Girbal to Rewards Offer Leader, based in Paris, France. She previously was Associate Director – Rewards at WTW in Paris. Earlier in her career, she worked as Rewards Manager for TV channel TF1; Compensation and Benefits Manager at retailer Marionnaud ; Compensation and Benefits Specialist at Groupe Casino; Rewards Consultant at Towers Watson; HR controller at Klépierre

The 2019 edition of the European Association of Paritarian Institutions‘ (AEIP) annual conference will be held in the morning of 6 November 2019 in Brussels, Belgium. This year’s topic is: Social Dialogue and the Paritarian Model: Added Value in a Changing Labor Market. Panel 1: European labor market trends and the future of work – What implications for social protection systems? Panel 2: Re-thinking existing models for social change

Sina Gayot in September 2019 was promoted Total Rewards Senior Manager EMEA at biotech company Lonza, based in Basel, Switzerland. She previously was Total Rewards Partner EMEA at Lonza. Earlier in her career, she worked her way up from HR Assistant for Corporate Functions to Expert Global Benefits at Syngenta. Previously, she had been with Novartis as a Training Event Planner; Fairmont-Raffles-Swissotel as HR Manager; and Maybourne Hotel Group

The Washington, D.C.-based National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) in September 2019 published a working paper, The Impact of Brexit on UK Firms, authored by Nicholas Bloom, Philip Bunn, Scarlet Chen, Paul Mizen, Pawel Smietanka, and Gregory Thwaites. The authors identify three key results from a survey of UK firms, the Decision Maker Panel. According to the abstract of the 59-page article: “First, the UK’s decision to leave the

Sao Paolo, Brazil-based broker Harmonia Corretora de Seguros in September 2019 promoted Ana Carolina Lima Conduta Izzo to Vice President of Health and Benefits. Harmonia is part of the Howden Broking Group. Ana Carolina previously was Harmonia’s Director of Benefits, a position she retains. She holds a post-graduate degree in Dental Implants from Universidade de São Paulo, in Sao Paolo, Brazil; and attended the Program for Management Development at

Jennifer Arms Hamilton in September 2019 joined Sequoia Consulting Group as Director of Global Consulting. Her previous positions include Lockton, where she was a Global Benefits Consultant; Zurich North America as a Regional Benefit Executive and a Business Analyst; she began her career as an Account Representative for multinational pooling network Insurope. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Russian, Central European, East European and Eurasian Studies from

Generali in September 2019 implemented a new organization for its Generali Country Italy and Global Business Lines division. The business unit includes multinational pooling network Generali Employee Benefits (GEB) and Generali Global Health (GGH). The full press release is available here. Marco Sesana, Country Manager & CEO of Generali Italia and Global Business Lines, intends to focus on international corporate business development with a “new, faster and more agile

Sleep tech company Shleep in August 2019 raised €1.4M to further develop its digital B2B sleep coaching platform. The VCs include Global Founders Capital, and Health Innovations. Shleep’s clients include The Huffington Post, Deloitte and Spotify. Shleep is the first science-based sleep coaching platform for companies, created by Dr. Els van der Helm and Jöran Albers, and their team of sleep PhDs, health experts and software engineers. According to

MAXIS Global Benefits Network in August 2019 launched a new analytics-led report that is the first of its type in the market. The Population Health and Risk Stratification report is meant for global and multinational organizations that want to significantly improve the impact of their employee health and wellness initiatives. The report also helps companies mitigate the cost drivers of medical claims and employee benefits programs. The report allows

Swiss Re in August 2019 announced it had acquired the UK closed book business of Quilter. The acquisition was made through Swiss Re’s specialized subsidiary ReAssure and includes Old Mutual Wealth Life Assurance and Old Mutual Wealth Pensions Trustees. Quilter is mostly comprised of companies belonging to the former Old Mutual group. It is active in investment consulting and asset management (GBP 45 billion in assets under management –

Robert “Bob” Reiff in July 2019 became senior vice president of distribution for Lincoln Financial Group’s group protection business in St. Louis, Missouri. In 2015, he had taken on the role of President of Lockton Benefit Group, the company’s national employee benefits practice, after being Chief Operating Officer of their St. Louis operation. Prior to joining Lockton, Bob was with The Hartford as Vice President and Director of Distribution

American International Group (AIG) in July 2019 announced that it has appointed Jennifer Waldner to the newly created a position of Chief Sustainability Officer. She will lead the development and implementation of a company-wide sustainability strategy, reporting to Thomas B. Leonardi, AIG’s Executive Vice President and Vice Chair, AIG Life Holdings. Ms. Waldner will lead a “cross-functional team to drive global sustainability initiatives while influencing and mobilizing the execution

Expat provider AES International has announced that Colin Ward will be Director of Employee Benefits as of June 2019. He will be based in Dubai. Based in London, UK, AES International is a global financial firm that focuses on “helping expats protect & build wealth”. Ward was previously Corporate Sales Director for Pacific Prime in the UAE. Previous to that, he was International Sales Manager for William Russell Limited

Debenhams, a British multinational retailer based in London, in July 2019 named Sarah Purnell as Head of Rewards. Purnell comes to Debenhams from the Arcadia Group, where she was Group Reward Manager, and Travelport, where she was Director, Compensation and Benefits. Prior to that she was Senior Compensation and Benefits Manager for Lucazed Ribena Suntory, Uxbridge, UK, and Head of UK Reward & Benefits for Tesco. She began her

Brussels Airlines has announced that Philip Verlinden has been named Head of Compensation & Benefits Manager a.i. as of December 2018. He is based in Brussels. He comes to Brussels Airlines from the Atesis Hogeschool Antwerpen, where he continues as a lecturer in financial management, statistics, and life insurance. He was also Compensation & Benefits Manager a.i. for ENGIE Electrabel in Brussels, and HR Director a.i. for ASAP HR