A month to remember

Last week saw an extremely hectic month draw to a close for two New York undergraduates. Allah Jackson and Marco Perci have spent the past four weeks fully immersed in the daily workings of the London insurance market, experiencing both the practicalities of broking, underwriting and claims - as well as learning the history and traditions that have shaped the market for centuries.

Allah and Marco are the first two students to take part in what will be an annual transatlantic placement funded by the UK Insurance Market Charitable Trust, a trust set up to invest in the future of the US insurance industry in the wake of 11 September 2001 (PM, 9 June, p42). Both are studying risk management and insurance at St John's University, only a few blocks from New York's downtown financial heartland and are now heading home to complete their final year of study.

Priceless experience

So how have they found the experience? "Priceless" is the word Marco chooses to describe his time here in the UK. "I have learned things that would normally take well over a year in only four weeks," he explains, due to the expertise of senior industry personnel and the resources he and Allah have had access to. "I feel this experience could catapult me wherever I choose to go and help secure me a good position because of my enhanced understanding of the market and industry as a whole."

Their time over the past four weeks has been split evenly between brokers, Lloyd's syndicates, composite insurers and the Chartered Insurance Institute.

Hosts Aon ensured that the programme was structured and focused on key areas without any overlap. In all, Allah and Marco spent days with Allianz, Zurich, Hiscox, Beazley, JLT, Marsh, Aon and the CII.

For his part, Allah has already gained practical experience of the US insurance industry through his internship and work with commercial broker EG Bowman on Wall Street. So the past four weeks have been invaluable in providing him with an insight into the workings of the wider market.

"The experience has given me an in-depth view of the underwriter's perspective," he says. "I now understand exactly what they want and why they want it, which will enable me to explain this to clients." He believes this exposure to, and involvement with, the London market could help give him a competitive edge. "It has also shown me how larger brokers operate in a systematic way, which could help me going forward. I now understand when and why I can access the UK market, so utilising it will be much easier in future."

Wide-ranging possibilities

Marco adds that the past four weeks have helped him to assess his options more deeply and opened his eyes to the wide-ranging possibilities for career progression. Not that this has made it any easier for him to decide on a definite path in either broking or underwriting as both seem equally appealing. "There are so many ways I could go but I do feel that a lot of doors are now open - it is just a matter of choosing the right one."

When asked what has struck them as the greatest difference between the London and US markets, both - perhaps somewhat inevitably - point to the subscription market. Although their pre-trip research and preparation had given them a general awareness and understanding, Marco adds: "I really noticed just how different it is - something you can't understand until you witness it first hand. It's a unique way to do business and definitely efficient being face-to-face."

Allah agrees that he has been struck by the benefits of negotiating in person. "Over here brokers and insurers have a very good relationship - there is more emphasis on relationships, as a lot of submissions are carried out face-to-face. In the US, the majority are done by e-mail or another type of electronic platform and people only get together if the risk is very complex or the client wants to see the insurer. At home you can work with an underwriter for several years without ever meeting them." This experience has led him to conclude that face-to-face negotiations are "perhaps something that should be used more in the US".

However, he is concerned at how, under the spotlight of the Spitzer investigations, such relationships could be viewed with suspicion in future. "You need to have a relationship with the insurer and the client, however, to better meet everyone's objectives." Therefore, if such relationships are discouraged going forward, he adds: "Spitzer may ultimately have negative implications for the insurance industry."

Both Allah and Marco have only praise, thanks and admiration for their various hosts who freely explained processes and shared knowledge with them on a daily basis. The experience of sitting in a box at Lloyd's with the Hiscox underwriters was certainly one that left its mark on them: "Underwriters wrote policies in a matter of minutes," remarks Allah, while Marco explains how he was struck by the "intelligence of people - they have numbers and risks thrown at them all day and it was amazing that they had so much knowledge without using anything but a map and their system to see if the risk had been covered before".

Perhaps a special mention should also go to their hosts at Allianz, who first introduced Allah and Marco to a distinctly British tradition, and one that they would seek to replicate several times during their stay - an outing to the pub.

So, how did they find the people over here, working in the UK industry?

"Very bright and extremely generous with their time," says Allah. Marco agrees strongly, emphasising that the people who have given up their time over the past few weeks have predominantly been those holding senior industry positions: "Everyone has a job to do and has to get it done. Therefore, I found it amazing that people were actually apologising to us for the fact that they couldn't give us more time."

They have also found their stay to be effective in undermining some of the misconceptions they carried about the London market. "Personally I had a view of the place before we arrived, having carried out a lot of research," says Marco. "However, being here has changed my view of the London market - it has opened my eyes to a lot of things, not least that the market is trying hard to change."

Supportive environment

Allah openly admits that he really enjoys working in insurance and found the London market to be "a very friendly and supportive environment. I have founded relationships here that have allowed me to broaden my horizons and met people who I know I can call upon with questions in the future".

While Marco signals that this visit to London may only be the first of many: "On a professional level, I feel my knowledge is definitely broader but I still have a great deal to learn. In fact, I may like to come here and work in the future to experience the market as part of a company and really experience the lifestyle to the fullest."