75 percent of U.S. employees believe their health plan has never alerted them to a health risk, according to the HealthMine 2018 Rising Risk Survey that underscores the challenges health care plans face when educating members about potential health risks and when motivating them to take action to prevent becoming ill. Bryce Williams, President and CEO of HealthMine, pointed out that 86 percent of the US$2.7 trillion annual health

Global insurance brokerage Hub International in February 2018 announced that it has acquired the shares of Pointbreak Consulting Group. Headquartered in Burnaby, British Columbia – Canada, Pointbreak provides employee benefits and pension consulting services. Kevin Jeffrey, Principal and CEO of Pointbreak, will join Hub TOS and report to Dave Terry, President of Hub TOS. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

New Zealand’s prudential supervisor, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, in February 2018 placed CBL Insurance under “interim liquidation”. CBL is a P/C insurer specializing in credit surety and financial risk, such as builders risks, sureties, guarantees and contractor bonds. It operates worldwide and in particular in Europe and Scandinavia through an Irish subsidiary, CBL Insurance Europe Designated Activity Company (DAC). It does not underwrite employee benefits or workers’

Wendy Stachowiak, Vice President of Global Travel Partnerships at International SOS, in January 2018 was appointed Vice Chair of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) Risk Committee. As organizations recognize the impact that travel risks can have on business continuity and sustainability, as well as the effect on an individual, GBTA President Christle Johnson, commented: “We are pleased that Wendy has accepted the role of Vice Chair of the

China’s insurance regulator, the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC), in February 2018 “temporarily” took over Anbang Insurance Group. Its chairman Wu Xiaohui in June 2017 was detained by authorities and is now facing prosecution on charges including fundraising fraud and embezzlement. Anbang’s growth was driven by high-yield, investment-type insurance products, many of which allowed redemption after as little as two years with little or no penalties. The growth helped fund

IBIS Academy organizer Gallagher in February 2018 announced two key sessions for the 48th edition, to be held in Berlin, Germany on May 7 – 11 , 2018. Global Family Leave Fred Thiele, general manager, global benefits and mobility for Microsoft, will discuss Microsoft’s “monumental effort to expand and enhance its global family leave benefits”. Fred will offer practical advice for organizations interested in leading the way in this

Arthur J. Gallagher in February 2018 acquired Sioux Falls, South Dakota-based Williams Insurance Agency. Founded in 1967, Williams Insurance Agency offers property/casualty, life, health and voluntary benefits coverages to businesses and individuals primarily across South Dakota. Greg Heineman, Timothy Donohue, Dwight Vondra and their associates will continue to operate from their current location. They will report to Patrick M. Gallagher, head of Gallagher’s Midwest retail property/casualty brokerage operations, and

It’s a globalized world, and corporations are increasingly multinational, with multiple locations and evermore mobile employees. As pension burdens increasingly weigh on public finances, retirement is not only the responsibility of the state, but also of employers. The time has come for a more global HR policy on pensions. Due to their diversity and complexity, pension schemes often have been set up locally, without neither a common bene­fits policy at the group level nor efficient monitoring and cost control by the parent company. This approach, while practical, is not without risks: counterparty risk in case of default by a service provider; reputational risk if the pensions paid out are insufficient; and above all, financial risk if the company must compensate for the inadequacies of local schemes. The transfer of Defined Benefits to Defined Contributions reduces the financial commit­ment burden on companies. Unmonitored DC plans in countries where regulations provide for guaranteed returns (such as the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany) can transform DC schemes into a new form of DB, as guaranteed rates often remain the responsibility of the sponsor company.

The Transamerica Center for Health Studies (TCHS), together with the Interdisciplinary Center for Healthy Workplaces (ICHW) at UC Berkeley, in February 2018 released their guide, Finding Fit: Implementing Workplace Wellness Programs Successfully, which is a helpful resource for organizations offering wellness programs for their employees. The employer guide features an emphasis on small and medium organizations and focuses on the types of wellness programs that have been shown to

Global insurance brokerage Hub International (Hub) in February 2018 announced that it has acquired the shares of Kindersley Insurance. Headquartered in Kindersley, Saskatchewan (Canada), with an office in Dodsland, Kindersley Insurance Ltd. is a full-service, independent personal and commercial insurance brokerage that specializes in insurance solutions for the agriculture, oil field and trucking industries. Principals Mark Stockford and Barry Andrew will join Hub Manitoba and report to Doug Trapp,

Pricewaterhouse Cooper (PwC) in February 2018 released a report, What will Work Look Like in 2030?  that takes a look at the future of the workplace. The report asks the reader to imagine ‘four radically different scenarios for how companies will manage people and how people will manage their work and careers. Authors Jeff Hesse and Scott Olsen write, ‘We are living through a fundamental transformation in the way

Generali Global Assistance (GGA) in February 2018 announced that it has implemented its proprietary identity and digital protection platform for Deposits.com, which is now able to offer its customers 360° identity protection services including prevention, monitoring, alerts and resolution tools. Deposits.com is a multi-platform financial directory and secure, online portal that connects financial institutions with consumers looking to open financial accounts, take out a mortgage or loan, find a

European Union (E.U.) Directive 2016/97, which regulates the distribution of insurance products and is intended to strengthen consumer protection, in February 2018 was postponed by a few months. The deadline for implementation, initially set to February 23, 2018, is now pushed back to October 2018. The deadline for transposition into national laws by E.U. Member States is extended to July 1, while the deadline for application is now October

Alera Group, a U.S. employee benefits, property/casualty, risk management and wealth management firm, in February 2018 announced that they have acquired three more firms, bringing the grand total of their acquisitions since their January 2017 launch to 20. The February 1, 2018 transaction includes Aisling Partners Insurance Brokerage of Worcester, Massachusetts; Davidson Benefits Planning (DBP) of Tigard, Oregon; and HR Benefits Advisors headquartered in Rochester, New York. Aisling is

Alera Group, a U.S. employee benefits, property/casualty, risk management and wealth management firm, in February 2018 announced that they have acquired Spring Consulting Group, located in Boston, Massachusetts. This acquisition expands the national presence of Alera Group to 17 U.S. states. Spring Consulting Group is a multidisciplinary employee benefits and risk management consulting firm that is well known in the employee benefits captive market. Their expertise covers the full

After raising $48 million in 2017 to tap into the growing needs of businesses to handle their global workforces, MOVE Guides in February 2018 announced the acquisition of Polaris Global Mobility, in order to expand its footprint in the market and the services it offers to customers. Polaris works with large enterprises to build software to manage expat programs and payroll. With the acquisition, MOVE Guides will now be

Swiss Re in February 2018 announced it was in preliminary talks with Japanese conglomerate SoftBank, which could end up owning up to one-third of the global reinsurer. The deal is valued at around USD 10 billion. Other $10+ bn investments by SoftBank include Sprint (telecoms), ARM Holdings (microprocessors), Vodafone Japan (telecom), Didi Chuxing, Uber Technologies (both transportation); smaller investments in insurance include Lemonade. As to the rationale behind the

JoAnne Steed in January 2018 has been named senior account executive at Lockton’s South Florida operation, and will be responsible for day to day client strategy and service on health and welfare plans, benefits administration, benefits financing, and structuring employee benefits programs. An experienced employee benefits advisor with more than 15 years of experience guiding clients as an account manager and consultant, Steed has previously worked with Mercer, United

Broker and iPMI third-party administrator Henner Group in January 2018 announced that they have named Nicolas Savy as Executive Vice President of Finance and Data. Savy will coordinate and support the financial transformation of Henner Group. He will also be in charge of deploying a policy and data service and as such will be responsible for the actuarial department. A graduate of the NEOMA Business School, Nicolas began his

Wolters Kluwer Legal and Regulatory U.S. in January 2018 announced the release of a new white paper: Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Will Present Retirement, Benefits, Executive Compensation and Payroll Professionals with New Challenges in 2018, which examines the impacts of the tax bill recently signed into law by President Trump. The white paper looks at aspects of the new law, which will affect a wide range of retirement,

It’s a globalized world, and corporations are increasingly multinational, with multiple locations and ever-more-mobile employees. As pension burdens increasingly weigh on public finances, retirement is not only the responsibility of the state, but also of employers. The time has come for a more global HR policy on pensions.

Broker and iPMI third-party administrator Henner Group in January 2018 announced that they have named Laure de Tilly as Executive Vice President of Domestic Operations and Digital. Ms. de Tilly will coordinate and support the transformation of the healthcare, life & disability, as well as insurance operations. She will also be responsible for the digital division and customer experience, whose development is vital for the transformation of operations and

The Worldwide Broker Network (WBN) in January 2018 announced the appointment of Antoinette “Toni” Gambonini as Global Property & Casualty Consultant.  Based in London, Gambonini will work with WBN member companies on six continents in the areas of cross-border training, new business opportunities, and strategic engagement with major insurance carriers. Gambonini had previously held a similar role for Europe within WBN prior to her promotion. Prior to joining WBN

Lockton in January 2018 named Matt DiGregorio as Senior Vice President of its South Florida operation, based in Miramar, Florida. DiGregorio, who is a graduate of Temple University’s Risk Management and Insurance program, will advise clients in private equity, real estate, and other industries on employee benefits programs. In addition, he will be responsible for new business development. DiGregorio has fifteen years of experience in consulting. Most recently, he

Allianz in January 2018 invested $59.2 million in Boston, Massachussets-headquartered U.S. telehealth platform American Well. Allianz carried out the investment through its digital investment unit, Allianz X, supported by the Health Innovation Center of Allianz Partners. Furthermore, Allianz will join American Well’s Board of Directors. American Well’s telehealth platform, called The Exchange, handles clinical, administration, and security requirements according to U.S. healthcare regulations and best practices. In addition to

CNA Hardy, a commercial insurer operating within the Lloyds market, in January 2018 appointed Stuart Middleton as CEO of its subsidiary in Luxembourg. The company had announced in June of 2017 that it would set up a subsidiary group in Luxembourg ahead of Brexit. Middleton joined CNA Hardy in October 2017 as head of small business, coming from leadership roles such as Chief Underwriting Officer for Europe at Hiscox,

James Reid in January 2018 was appointed Executive Vice President, Global Employee Benefits at MetLife, reporting to Michel Khalaf, president U.S. business and EMEA and a member of Met’s executive committee. In an exclusive interview, James discusses his plans with Global Benefits Vision. GBV: Should we start with the highlights of your career, focusing on employee benefits and international, that is global employee benefits including global mobility? James Reid: