Aki Hussain, Hiscox

Hussain joined Hiscox in 2016 as group chief financial officer and since succeeding Bronek Masojada as group CEO on 1 January 2022, he has driven the company through its next phase of growth.

While Hiscox has long been using machine learning, now the business is embracing generative artificial intelligence too.

In an exclusive interview with Insurance Post published at the start of this year, he outlined the impact of Hiscox’s collaboration with Google on the property, sabotage and terrorism line in the London market.

“We built the proof-of-concept in 2023; in 2024 it is in production so now we’re using it to renew and write new business, and we’re quite excited about what impact it will have,” Hussain said.

With more than 30 years' leadership experience, across financial services, telecoms and media, Hussain’s focus on improving Hiscox’s data analytics and underwriting ecosystem has reaped rewards for the business.

Turning to the groups's prospects going forward, it is worth noting that rather than just sit back and count the cash, Hussain – a chartered accountant who trained with KPMG – has consistently deployed more capital as market conditions improve, in order to write more business and generate more profit on the retail side.

Hussain recognises innovation and investment alone will only take you so far – it is the team pulling together that rocket boosts bottom lines.

Under his leadership, Hiscox has managed to maintain a high employee engagement score of 82% for the third consecutive year in 2024 and has continued strong gender diversity, with women currently representing 57% of the board and 55% of the group executive committee.

While many of his rivals told KPMG last year that the biggest threat to their growth plans this year is the war for talent, Hiscox – and Hussain specifically – were pointed to by Sir Trevor Phillips, former head of the Commission for Racial Equality, at last year’s Dive In festival as “testament to the fact” change can happen and insurance can become more inclusive.

When asked to comment on Sir Trevor’s praise, he said: “You’ve got to role model these things.”

Hussain is certainly a role model for the sector when it comes to innovation, operational efficiency, profitability, and a culture of inclusivity, hence he has maintained 11th place on Insurance Post’s Power List.

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