Willis Re Wins Enterprise Risk Management Award for the Third Year in a Row
--David Ingram Awarded Prize for Practical Risk Management Applications at 2009 ERM Symposium--
London, UK, May 6, 2009 - Willis Re, the reinsurance broking arm of Willis Group Holdings (WSH:
NY), the global insurance broker, today announced that one of its Associates, David Ingram, has been
awarded the CAS/CIA/SOA Risk Management Section Award for Practical Risk Management Applications. Ingram, a Senior Vice
President in Willis Re, New York, won the top prize for his practical paper, “Risk and
Light”. This is the third year running that a Willis Re Associate has won the award.
Previous winners include Willis Re’s Neil Bodoff and Bill Panning.
The award was presented on April 30 by Mike Hale, President of the Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS),
at this year’s Enterprise Risk Management Symposium in Chicago. The annual symposium, now in its seventh
year, brings together ERM knowledge from a variety of industries and aims to build a strong
cross-disciplinary framework for senior management to create systematic value and competitive advantage through effective managing of
risk and capital.
Findings from Ingram’s paper include the theory that a market participant’s view of
risk impacts not just their own choices, but the choices of other players in the market.
The paper outlines Ingram’s original concept of the Law of Risk and Light, arguing that risks
in the light will shrink, whereas risks in the dark, that is, those that are ignored,
will grow. Ingram’s work demonstrates clearly how a participant in the market who does not pay
attention to a certain aspect of risk will have an impact on those in the market
who do pay attention to this risk.
At the symposium, Ingram spoke to a packed audience
of risk managers, sharing the common views of risk and their implications for risk managers in
financial firms. His presentation, a ground-breaking attempt to apply "Cultural Theory" from anthropology and public policy
decision-making to finance, was warmly received by participants.
Speaking on his achievement, Ingram said, “I am delighted
to be continuing Willis Re’s tradition of knowledge and research excellence in risk management. This award
comes at a time when the need for effective risk management has never been more important,
especially in this age of unprecedented turmoil in the global economy. It is my intention that
the findings of this paper will literally ‘shed light’ on how we as risk managers should
work together to make better decisions.”
Max J. Rudolph
, Chairman of the 2009 ERM Symposium, commented, “Dave has once again shed light on a risk
management topic using terms understandable to all. Enterprise Risk Management requires a latticework of knowledge, and
each risk manager must evolve with the surrounding risks. Dave’s paper does a good job of
explaining these concepts.”
To read Ingram’s full “Risk and Light” paper please go to: http://www.ermsymposium.org/2009/pdf/2009-ingram-risk-light.pdf
One of the world’s leading reinsurance brokers, Willis Re is known for its world-class, applied Analytics capabilities,
which it combines with its Capital Markets and Reinsurance expertise in a seamless, integrated offering that
helps clients increase the value of their businesses. Willis Re serves the risk management and risk
transfer needs of a diverse, global client base that includes all of the world’s top insurance
carriers. The broker’s global team of reinsurance experts offers services and advice that help clients make
better reinsurance decisions, access worldwide capital markets and negotiate optimum terms.
Willis Group Holdings Limited is a leading global insurance broker, developing and delivering professional insurance, reinsurance, risk
management, financial and human resource consulting and actuarial services to corporations, public entities and institutions around
the world. Willis has more than 400 offices in nearly 120 countries, with a global team
of approximately 20,000 Associates serving clients in some 190 countries. Additional information on Willis may be
found at www.willis.com.
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