2024 Executive Outlook | Rob Marsh, Liberty Mutual Canada

Rob Marsh, president, Liberty Mutual Canada

The future continues to be bright for people who embrace change with curiosity and courage. The interconnectedness of risk and pace of technological advancement — with climate change and artificial intelligence being at the forefront — is growing exponentially, and we are poised to see these changes continue in 2024.

Insurers are carefully allocating capital and focusing on underwriting profit, matching risk to capital, and doing so with great precision and thoughtfulness. At the highest level, capital and capacity is more accessible than it was 12 months ago. However, depending on the risk and product, capacity is still constrained, with a flight to quality.

We faced notable uncertainty in 2023 when it came to geopolitics, economic conditions, supply chain challenges, inflation, and severe weather. We know unpredictability and volatility will be a theme throughout 2024. Policyholders will be more conscious about risk, and focused on ensuring their assets are adequately protected.

As insurers, our role is to act as leaders in risk management, helping policyholders understand and mitigate their exposure, and to help them lead safer and more secure lives. We must help clients understand the confluence of factors shaping their risk environment, and in turn help them to increase their resiliency. Risk is rapidly evolving; our industry must also demonstrate resiliency by adapting to the changing landscape and being risk aware not risk adverse.

In Canada’s P&C insurance industry, people are our greatest asset. Purpose-driven organizations — ones that value and prioritize their employees’ well-being; leverage technology as a tool to enhance human capability; and foster an inclusive and high-performing culture — will thrive in the uncertainty next year will bring. The industry will continue to collaborate and make notable progress in attracting a diverse talent base while demonstrating just how incredible a career in insurance can be.