Beale makes ‘tough’ call to leave Lloyd’s amid modernisation push

“The decision to leave has been a tough one and when the time comes I will miss the energy, innovative spirit and expertise that I come across every working day,” Beale said.

“Leading Lloyd’s is an honour and I am proud to have played a part in ensuring that it remains relevant and fit for purpose for the future. The world trusts Lloyd’s to be there when it matters the most and I believe it is well placed for the next 330 years.”

Beale joined Lloyd’s in January 2014. Since then, her commitment to transformation across the market, and within the corporation, has led to significant cultural change and the adoption of new technology that has accelerated the market’s modernisation and digitalisation, Lloyd’s said in a statement.

During her tenure, Beale has also urged leaders to promote diversity and inclusion. And she has set an example in the market, outing herself as bisexual. “When I started at Lloyd’s in early 2014, I was separating from my wife and marrying my husband,” she wrote in an article published in the Financial Times.

Beale brought new perspectives to the market in many ways. She has also overseen a move in the market towards embracing change and new technology.

Lloyd’s chairman Bruce Carnegie-Brown commented: “In her five years at Lloyd’s, Inga has set in motion a series of changes aimed at modernising the market and making it more efficient and inclusive. Her boldness and persistence have generated the momentum required to bring about real change.”

Beale has called for a digital push and warned about the dangers the market could face if it did not speed up the adoption of new technology.

Some progress has been made.

The Lloyd’s insurance market has introduced electronic placement to support face-to-face negotiation, aiming to increase efficiency in the market, reduce back office costs, and improve customer service.

The electronic placing platform provided by PPL was launched in July 2016, initially for standalone terrorism business and is being extended to all classes of business including reinsurance and aviation.

The system transports data through quoting to binding, and beyond. PPL provides benefits to both brokers and underwriters as it limits rekeying and therefore reducing costs.

The modernisation work under the banner of the London Market Target Operating Model (TOM) aims to create a market that is highly accessible, efficiently run and relevant to the needs of customers.

The market is also experimenting with new technologies. In October 2017 Lloyd’s of London has signed its first Artificial Intelligence (AI) deal to automate business processes in the market.

A month later Lloyd’s started testing the business impact of implementing a new smart data analytics platform for managing an insured vessel fleet in cooperation with data provider Windward.

But the digitisation process at Lloyd’s was not happening fast enough for Beale.

In March 2018 the Corporation of Lloyd’s introduced a mandate for electronic placement following approval from the Lloyd’s board and council.

The mandate is designed to accelerate the market’s transformation from paper to digital and ensure the market realises the benefits of electronic placement.

From the end of the second quarter of 2018, each syndicate will be required to have written no less than 10 percent of its risks electronically. This target will rise by 10 percent each quarter until the fourth quarter of 2018 to reach 30 percent.

At the same time, Lloyd’s is expanding the testing of potential new technology applications.

The market will officially launch an innovation lab in September 2018. Lloyd's said the new lab will focus on designing technology-driven solutions to meet the unique and rapidly changing needs of the Lloyd’s market. It will enable new concepts and ideas to be tested in a fast-track, fast-fail environment with the support and active involvement of Lloyd’s market participants.

In June 2018, Lloyd’s Lab has launched a global search for what it describes as tech talent to partner with the Lloyd’s market and develop solutions for its unique and rapidly changing needs, in a fast-track, fast-fail environment.

Market participants generally agree that she has done much to move the market forward – while acknowledging that would have been no easy task.

“Inga has spearheaded efforts to modernise Lloyd’s – and with some success,” said Charles Manchester, CEO of Manchester Underwriting Management. “And she’s led the charge on diversity. It’s 2018 and it’s extraordinary that the world’s pre-eminent insurance market should have been where it was in both of these areas, neither of which could be tackled without ruffling feathers.”

Mike McGavick, CEO XL Group, added: “We thank Inga for her many efforts and particularly for her effective and much needed focus on diversity, both in the London market and throughout the sector.”

But the modernisation of the market has still a way to go as electronic placement adoption rates show.

“Our goal is to drive adoption from current levels to 30 percent of London risks by the end of 2018,” said Bronek Masojada, chair of the PPL board.

Beale has recently agreed: “The London Market has made great strides towards modernisation. We have invested time and money in the London Market Target Operating Model (TOM) programme and delivered systems that we know work. For example, over 15,000 risks have been bound to date on the electronic placing platform (PPL) and nearly 60 percent of the Financial and Professional Lines risks are being placed electronically.

“Adoption is now vital and it is happening but, in the case of electronic placement, it is not happening fast enough. Unless the market moves together it will not reap the benefits and reduce administration costs,” she noted.