Flood satellite specialist ICEYE bolsters team with former Munich Re/RMS execs

ICEYE, the specialist in satellite imaging and flood hazard data, has recruited the former chief strategic financial officer from Farmers Insurance, a subsidiary of Zurich Insurance Group. The recruit was also a transformation officer for Global Reinsurance at Munich Re.

Lisa Wardlaw (pictured right) joins as global head of Insurance Solutions. In this new role, Wardlaw will lead ICEYE’s efforts to deliver natural catastrophe data solutions to help catalyze the digital transformation of the insurance industry globally.

Over a 25-year career, Wardlaw has helped transform and differentiate several insurance businesses. Prior to her role at Farmers Insurance, Wardlaw was global chief digital strategy & transformation officer for Global Reinsurance at Munich Re.

ICEYE has also appointed Daniel Stander (pictured left) as a senior advisor. Stander has spent the last 20 years at the interface of risk and innovation. He is currently a senior advisor to the United Nations on matters of risk finance, as well as Deputy Chair of the Resilient Cities Network. He also has extensive experience in quantifying, managing and financing climate risk, having held several leadership positions at Risk Management Solutions (RMS), where he was most recently Global Managing Director.

“This is an incredible time to be joining ICEYE,” said Wardlaw. “Our priority is to deliver on ICEYE’s mission to make the impossible possible for our insurance customers. We have a huge opportunity; the ability to combine capabilities that never existed before in ways that will help transform the insurance industry. ICEYE is already helping its clients cover and respond to natural catastrophes in new and innovative ways. It’s an incredible innovation challenge. With ground-breaking capabilities and a laser focus on the needs of the insurance value chain, we are reimagining traditional norms and business models in ways that are strategically important.”

ICEYE owns and operates the largest synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) constellation in the world and offers solutions focused on the unique needs of government and the insurance sector. By combining data from spaceborne sensors with multiple auxiliary information sources, ICEYE can provide actionable insights about natural hazards in near real time to its customers.

So far in 2021, ICEYE has tracked more than 450 potential flood events globally, imaged over 350 potential flood events, and analysed over 30 flood events which each spanned a total area of at least 20,000 km2. In total, the company has launched 14 SAR satellites since 2018, with the most recent launch of four new spacecraft taking place in July. ICEYE also recently joined the seventh cohort of the Lloyd’s of London’s innovation accelerator programme, Lloyd’s Lab.

“The insurance industry has long demanded faster access to accurate, actionable insights - especially in the immediate aftermath of a catastrophic event. Properly integrated into the insurance ecosystem, ICEYE’s data can drive efficiencies, improve responsiveness, and ultimately enhance coverage and service to those in need,” Stander said.

“A key part of my advisory role for ICEYE is meeting with insurers, reinsurers, brokers and loss adjusters, refining how ICEYE can bridge the data gap with timely access to critical hazard and damage data. The initial feedback from the market has been hugely encouraging.”

Charles Blanchet, ICEYE’s Vice President of Solutions, added: “At ICEYE, we are fully committed to collaborating with the re/insurance sector to help transform how it predicts, prevents and responds to catastrophic events. A core part of that is investing in market-leading talent; executives who lead with authenticity, who bring deep domain expertise and a relentless client focus. I couldn’t be happier with today’s announcement. Daniel’s guidance so far has been invaluable to the leadership team at ICEYE. Lisa, a pioneer of digital innovation in the insurance market, will in her new role doubtless continue to help reinvent the industry she loves. Nobody is as committed as ICEYE to transforming the insurance value chain with persistent monitoring. Today’s announcement demonstrates that commitment.”

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