Gallagher appoints new chief operating officer for UK retail

Insurance broker Gallagher has appointed Michelle Bree as new chief operating officer (COO) of its UK retail division.

Bree joins from Gallagher’s specialist underwriting business Pen Underwriting. She has been with Gallagher since 2015, when she joined Pen Underwriting from Accenture as a programme manager specialising in change management in the insurance industry. She was promoted within Pen to director of operations in 2018 and to COO in 2019.

As COO, Bree will be responsible for overseeing all operational aspects of Gallagher’s UK retail division which caters for a range of personal lines and commercial clients, including sole traders, start-ups and medium sized businesses, as well as large corporates and multi-nationals, across different industry sectors. She will join the executive team and will report into retail CEO Michael Rea.

Rea said: “Michelle is a fantastic addition and I am very pleased to welcome her into my leadership team. From both a people and office perspective we are the largest division of Gallagher in the UK and her wealth of experience and track record of defining and delivering efficient solutions against strategic goals will be critical to the way we operate in the future, and ensuring we continue to support our one million customers. I am particularly pleased that we have been able to fill this pivotal senior role with an internal promotion as this demonstrates the depth of talent within Gallagher in the UK.”

Bree commented: “I am delighted to be able to continue my career within Gallagher and I am excited to move into the broking side of the business. I’ve been with Gallagher for five years now, and really enjoy the ‘can do’ culture and consistent focus on our clients. I’m looking forward to working with the talented team of people in Retail to continue to grow the business, building on the operational capabilities in place to ensure we deliver a great service.”