{"id":1442,"date":"2020-02-10T15:48:06","date_gmt":"2020-02-10T20:48:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/?p=1442"},"modified":"2020-08-20T00:32:55","modified_gmt":"2020-08-20T04:32:55","slug":"insurance-in-davos-world-economic-forum","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/2020\/02\/10\/insurance-in-davos-world-economic-forum\/","title":{"rendered":"What I learned and the 1 big takeaway in Davos at the World Economic Forum 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I had the real fortune to head to Davos this year and the World Economic Forum and some of the other forums around blockchain, cryptocurrency, and inclusiveness.&nbsp; &nbsp;I decided to go, mostly because this year\u2019s theme \u201cSustainability\u201d wasn\u2019t something I hear regularly discussed in my personal or professional circles.&nbsp; I wanted to see if there were themes being discussed there that we needed to discuss here.&nbsp; Are overseas carriers thinking differently that gives them a competitive advantage?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_82_2 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-69e95a4484674\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-69e95a4484674\"  aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/2020\/02\/10\/insurance-in-davos-world-economic-forum\/#Here_is_what_I_observed\" >Here is what I observed:<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/2020\/02\/10\/insurance-in-davos-world-economic-forum\/#Here_is_what_I_learned\" >Here is what I learned:<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/2020\/02\/10\/insurance-in-davos-world-economic-forum\/#The_Biggest_Lesson_I_Learned\" >The Biggest Lesson I Learned<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Here_is_what_I_observed\"><\/span>Here is what I observed:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>There were only 3 carriers (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.generali.com\/info\/discovering-generali\/all\/2020\/Generali-Group-at-Davos-2020\">Generali<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.zurich.com\/en\/knowledge\/industry-knowledge-platforms\/world-economic-forum\">Zurich<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hanwha.com\/en\/about_hanwha\/hanwha_identity\/energy_for_life_initiatives.html\">Hanwa<\/a>) and 1 broker (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mmc.com\/davos-briefing-book.html#ThoughtsfromtheWorldEconomicForum\">Marsh<\/a>) who had a public presence in Davos.&nbsp;&nbsp; Most were front and center around Asset Management and Hanwa was there more because they are a large Korean conglomerate.&nbsp; There were only a few non-US banks present and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.blackrock.com\/institutions\/en-us\/insights\/markets\/bii-davos-brief\">Blackrock<\/a>.&nbsp; The biggest presence were technology and tech provider firms like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hcltech.com\/world-economic-forum\">HCL<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/digitaldirections.com\/tcs-davos-live-blog-2020\/\">TCS<\/a>.<\/li><li>Being at Davos is like any other conference or event.&nbsp; The company attends if it believes attendance is good for their business and if their clients will be there.&nbsp; Since Davos is a place for the ultra-high net worth (Bloomberg reported that over 100 billionaires were there) financial services firms are there to entertain their \u2018private clients.\u2019&nbsp; There are far more press and company support staff attendees than actual members of the WEF.<\/li><li>Technology that pushes the frontier has a place in Davos.&nbsp; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.canna-tech.co\/davos\/\">Cannabis tech<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/bef.latoken.com\/davos2020\">cryptocurrency\/blockchain<\/a>, anti-surveillance, <a href=\"https:\/\/tradeshift.com\/davos\/\">Tradeshift<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.palantir.com\/\">Palantir<\/a> to name a few.&nbsp; The UN-Forum, the Ukraine, Russia, and Polish houses, plus others like the <a href=\"https:\/\/misk.org.sa\/en\/\">Misk Foundation<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/iafsc.org\/\">Interfaith Alliance<\/a> round out the external meetings and activities that perhaps reflect the real hope for society. &nbsp; These side meetings are attended by a mix of academics, passionate people, and entrepreneurs trying to change the world or hawk their latest investments.&nbsp; The conversations focus on how to solve problems and building the relationships to start to tackle the issues.<\/li><li>I met two insurtechs: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cybcube.com\/\">Cybercube<\/a> (who provide cyber risk analytics), and <a href=\"https:\/\/vouchforme.co\/\" class=\"rank-math-link\">Vouch for Me (who are working on a unique approach to lowering the cost of auto insurance)<\/a><\/li><li>A <strong>Quantum<\/strong> computer looks nothing like any computer we currently use. The picture is of me with a real IBM quantum computer.  <\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"267\" data-src=\"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/KH_Quantum_small.jpg\" alt=\"Quantum computing will impact insurance and insurtechs.  Davos 2020\" class=\"wp-image-1445 lazyload\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 200px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 200\/267;\" \/><figcaption>With an IBM Quantum Computer<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Here_is_what_I_learned\"><\/span>Here is what I learned:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To answer my\nquestion &#8212; are there things that overseas carriers are doing that will give them\na competitive advantage?&nbsp; <strong>Maybe<\/strong>,\nbut it most likely won\u2019t come out of attending the main political stage at Davos.&nbsp; So, what did I learn?&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>There are some amazing people and in Davos, it\u2019s easy to meet them and learn from those interactions.&nbsp; I found out that <strong>Chuck Robbins<\/strong> (The Cisco CEO) and I have an Atlanta connection in common.&nbsp; They are taking amazing steps to develop innovative internship programs and work to ensure diversity and equality in pay and opportunities across their global footprint.  <strong>Dina Powell<\/strong> from Goldman Sachs talked about the importance of mentoring. She pointed out that even a person first starting out in their career can mentor!<\/li><li>The cellist, YoYo Ma is a true world statesman.&nbsp; He even brought in a discussion of <strong>metrics<\/strong>.&nbsp; \u201cMusic isn\u2019t a competition for metrics.&nbsp; We haven\u2019t developed the capacity to measure what we just experienced (listening to him perform).&nbsp; He also shared how important is to have \u201cscouts\u201d on the edge of society.&nbsp; Within Insurance, this has become synonymous with having staff devoted to tracking \u201cInsurtechs.\u201d<\/li><li>The monarchy in Dubai are putting their resources to ensure they become a powerhouse outside of Oil.&nbsp; For example, they have created a university devoted to training students in AI.<\/li><li>There is an extreme sports athlete, <a href=\"https:\/\/willgadd.com\/\">Will Gadd<\/a>, (a fellow Calgarian) who tackles his endeavors exactly how an insurance carrier should look at risks, underwriting, new opportunities, and even solving challenges.&nbsp; This is so poignant especially in today\u2019s Insurtech hyped world.&nbsp; He calls it the \u201c<strong>Positive Power of Negative Thinking<\/strong>\u201d and in short it involves the following:<ul><li>Use terror to your advantage to think thru the problem<\/li><\/ul><ul><li>Listen to your fear and break things down into their underlying components &nbsp;<\/li><\/ul><ul><li><strong>Freedom<\/strong> comes from recognizing the hazards and moving forward\/mitigating the risks<\/li><\/ul><ul><li>Everyone on the <strong>team<\/strong> must be alert and look out for each other and speak up if they see something that seems out of the ordinary<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"150\" data-src=\"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Hertz_Gad.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1444 lazyload\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB3aWR0aD0iMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIxIiB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciPjwvc3ZnPg==\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 200px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 200\/150;\" \/><figcaption>With Will Gadd<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_Biggest_Lesson_I_Learned\"><\/span>The Biggest Lesson I Learned<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For me, one\nthing I learned is that you can be a top 10 global insurance company with over\n$70B in premiums and still have the <strong>heart<\/strong> of an American regional\ncarrier.&nbsp; I heard Gabriele Galateri di\nGenola, the Chairman, and Philippe Donnet, CEO of <strong>Generali<\/strong> talk about\nthe fact that they have begun to adopt the ESG sustainability goals.&nbsp; They decided to stop underwriting coal\nproduction and use.&nbsp; However, they also\nrealize that they can\u2019t arbitrarily pull out of certain markets.&nbsp; Why? because of the social and economic\nimpact it will have.&nbsp; They have a\nresponsibility to their communities that transcends dollars.&nbsp; How can they then integrate their new\ncommitment to sustainability?&nbsp; By working\nwith the local industries to help them move off coal and to more sustainable\nenergy solutions.&nbsp; That is the true\nessence of what it means to be an insurance carrier.&nbsp; You provide a safety net.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In closing,\nI think Jack Ma, founder of <strong>Alibaba<\/strong>, sums up the future of insurance so\nwell from his presentation at Davos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>&#8220;In business, never worry about competition, never worry about the pressure. If you worry about pressure, don&#8217;t be a businessman &#8230; If you create value, there is opportunity. Today the whole world worries. That means there is great opportunity.&#8221;<\/p><cite>Jack Ma, Alibaba<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here\u2019s to\ncreating great value together!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p class=\"card-text\">I had the real fortune to head to Davos this year and the World Economic Forum and some of the other forums around blockchain, cryptocurrency, and inclusiveness.&nbsp; &nbsp;I decided to go, mostly because this year\u2019s theme \u201cSustainability\u201d wasn\u2019t something I hear regularly discussed in my personal or professional circles.&nbsp; I wanted to see if there [&#8230;]<\/p>\n<p class=\"m-0\"><a class=\"btn btn-outline-secondary btn-read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/2020\/02\/10\/insurance-in-davos-world-economic-forum\/\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1948,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","content-type":"","wds_primary_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41,30,43,32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1442","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ai","category-legacy-insurance-carrier","category-service","category-smaller-insurance-carriers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1442","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1442"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1442\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1442"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1442"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insurtechadvisors.com\/old\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1442"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}