The next generation of risk managers is poised to build on the breakthroughs of their predecessors to “take risk management to the next level” in terms of greater responsibilities, visibility and pay, the profession's top placement expert contends.

Indeed, those just now cutting their teeth in the business–coming up through the ranks as assistant directors of risk management, risk analysts and other subordinate titles–are better prepared and positioned to make an even bigger mark on the profession, following the trail blazed by their superiors, according to Bill Perry, president of New York-based Logic Associates Inc.

“The difference today is the younger generation is more apt to go for an MBA, and are ambitious about the potential for career growth within this field,” said Mr. Perry–whose “2006 Risk Management Compensation Survey” was co-sponsored exclusively for the fifth-straight year by National Underwriter.

“That doesn't mean the last generation wasn't ambitious. In fact, they had to fight like mad just to get where they are today, in terms of sophistication and visibility within their companies,” he explained. “But the younger generation doesn't have to fight those battles anymore, and can concentrate more on getting to the next level, into high-finance positions.”

The previous generation of risk managers in the 1970s and early 1980s “was made up mostly of pure insurance buyers, but you can't get by doing just that job today,” he noted.

“The current generation fought a revolution to modernize risk management in the 1980s and 1990s, to get the profession more recognized and valued by their firms,” he said. “They took risk management well beyond mere insurance purchasing by managing more risk themselves.”

They accomplished this, for example, by setting aside self-insured retentions or by forming captive insurers, “effectively creating new operating units and even profit centers, and putting themselves in a position to deal more equally with the treasurers, CFOs and other senior executives they report to,” he explained.

“The current generation has a lot more on the ball coming into the business. They have more skills, authority and risk management options at their disposal,” according to Mr. Perry. “But even if they don't make it to the next level, the younger generation no longer has to fight these battles for recognition beyond insurance purchasing.”

In addition, he noted, those entering the profession today “have the benefit of being mentored by the current generation, which set a new standard for them in terms of greater sophistication and autonomy.”

Given these trends, he said, “I expect this new generation over the next 10 years to achieve strong gains in the stature of risk management. In the same way kids want to do better than their parents, the young risk managers today will look to exceed their current mentors and supervisors. They'll get their MBAs earlier and in greater numbers, and they'll have more sophisticated options to explore.”

He noted that “even now, a 30-year-old with an MBA making $150,000 as a risk manager is not that unusual today, but it was rare 15 years ago.”

“The previous generation of risk managers just bought insurance and paid the bills. The current generation broke out of that mold and became a lot more proactive and creative,” he noted.

“The next generation is going to be even more sophisticated,” said Mr. Perry. “More will be expected of them because they are more knowledgeable going in, but they will also have more opportunities to grow within their organizations.”

One key piece of advice from Mr. Perry is that young risk managers should develop their “leadership capabilities. Always keep the big picture in mind, rather than concentrate only on the minutia of insurable risks. Focus not just on the insurance point of view, but on the company's overall exposure.”

He also advised young risk managers to “understand the difference between a job and a career.”

“A big part of your personal fortune will depend on the type of company you work for,” he explained. “Industries faced with more challenging exposures and firms with cutting-edge approaches to risk control and risk-transfer are the places to be so you can grow professionally and put yourself in position to land the best risk management jobs.”

Mr. Perry cited manufacturing, technology, communications and multinationals as among the more challenging fields for a risk manager.

Mr. Perry noted that among the new generation of risk managers, “quality of life” is increasingly becoming the determining factor in where a job candidate chooses to work–even more important than salary.

“Money always talks, but it has to shout really loud if an employer doesn't offer the job-hunter a reasonable commute, less travel, adequate vacation time, telecommuting options and the like,” he said.

For example, he said he is still amazed in this day and age that many firms hold to the old rule of thumb that new employees only get two weeks vacation to start out, “which could discourage a risk manager from moving there if they are already getting four weeks or more on their current job.”

Ideally, life-quality issues should be as negotiable as salary, bonus or any other form of compensation, according to Mr. Perry–but at most firms, that's not the case.

“A company has to have that culture and philosophy already in place,” he said. “They are not going to change their vacation policy just to land a risk manager.”

However, he confided that some concessions on life-quality factors might be forthcoming if the candidate is sought strongly enough by a prospective employer. “It never hurts to ask,” he said, “especially if that point is a potential deal-breaker for the risk manager.”

Perhaps the only discouraging finding in the survey is that the gender gap in risk management persists at the largest organizations. While nearly half of risk managers at the smallest firms surveyed are female, that percentage keeps falling as the company's sales volume rises–bottoming out at 11 percent among companies doing over $15 billion in business.

Over the last four years, these numbers and trends have not varied by more than a percentage point or two–while in some categories, the relative number of female risk managers is actually down.

Despite the survey figures, Mr. Perry believes that the glass ceiling–if there even is one anymore for female risk managers–is easier to break through.

“We're way past the point where a company would ever say they'd rather have a man in a risk management position,” he said. “Not only is that illegal, but my sense is that it's just not a factor anymore. Corporations today are looking for the best people–especially when it comes to knowledge workers like risk managers–and if that happens to be a woman, that's no problem.”

One reason so few women are risk managers at the biggest companies could just be that fewer such jobs exist, and people who get them tend to remain longer–perhaps until retirement. In time, he believes, the women working as risk managers at smaller organizations today will keep moving up, eventually making a bigger mark among the largest firms.

Special Reports /

Next Generation Poised For Breakthroughs

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