Gallagher Re launches new research hub to drive innovation in industry

Global reinsurance broker  Gallagher Re has launched a new research hub to drive innovation across the full spectrum of re/insurance – not just natural catastrophe risk – in an increasingly complex risk landscape.

The Gallagher Research Centre (GRC), housed within Gallagher Re’s Global Analytics & Advisory centre of excellence, will be led by Tina Thomson as global head of research. It will provide access to independent, peer-reviewed academic work to support applied innovations across all Gallagher Re’s advisory and transactional products related to both natural and manmade perils.

Through the creation of a broad network of academic partnerships and collaborations, the GRC seeks to develop and deliver cutting-edge research and innovation in an increasingly complex risk landscape to help its clients develop their own view of risk for all types of hazard. The GRC will also benefit the evolution of and innovation in risk management practices throughout the Gallagher group.

Iain Willis has been appointed as research director of the GRC. Willis in joins Gallagher Re from JBA Risk Management, where he spent the past seven years as managing director of its Singapore subsidiary, responsible for business development in Asia Pacific including data licensing and consultancy opportunities for JBA (CAT) probabilistic models, hazard maps, event sets, training and disaster scenarios.

Thomson said: “The vision of the GRC is to deliver invaluable insight through creating an ecosystem of academic partners and innovation that will provide a unique offering to our clients. It will drive research across the full spectrum of (re)insurance – not just natural catastrophe risk.

“While natural catastrophe and climate change research continue to be a priority, the evolving complexity of risk over the past two years has clearly demonstrated why it is essential the GRC has a wider remit to more accurately capture and quantify the risks posed by unmodelled, emerging and man-made perils. All of which are becoming more self-evident.”

Willis added: “The launch of the GRC is an incredibly exciting venture for the entire industry. We’re aiming to build closer ties between the insurance sector and academia at a much-needed time. By collaborating with global experts in their respective fields, we’re able to help share the latest research findings, challenge existing views and develop new risk solutions for our clients.

“In such a rapidly changing risk landscape, the innovation and applied research generated by the GRC will provide an essential mechanism in how we solve the risk management challenges of the future.”

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