Global Opportunities Need Local Answers: Zurich NA CEO

NEW YORK--Global insurers must realize they cannot impose U.S. or European insurance methods upon a different culture such as Asia or China, the head of an international insurance enterprise said at an industry conference here.

That advice was delivered by Mario Vitale, chief executive officer, Global Corporate in North America for Zurich North America, speaking at a joint meeting of the Association of Professional Insurance Women and the New York Chapter of Charter Property Casualty Underwriters.

Mr. Vitale also warned that the United States' diverse insurance regulatory system is impeding the entry of foreign capital to its insurance marketplace.

His comments came in a speech dealing with the rapid pace of change that is taking place in the world economy as the business world becomes increasingly interconnected.

"We must see ourselves as multichannel distributors," he said. "We must structure our internal organizations around customers, products and distribution. We must get to know our customers better, find out what specific challenges they have to deal with so we can supply them with the best possible service."

Insurers must take into account the local traditions, regulations and language when putting together insurance solutions, he said.

"What we need to do [is bring] global resources with local delivery," Mr. Vitale explained.

Insurers, he said, need to employ local people who know the local cultures and customs and who understand "the language issues; the areas where we can distribute the product; and the areas that are most sensitive to coverage, how we price that product, and most importantly, how we make that claim."

In this global environment, he observed, the industry, especially in the United States, must develop more unified and cohesive regulations to provide insurance coverage globally.

As an example, said Mr. Vitale, a client in the United States looking to secure insurance on a vacation home overseas would have difficulty obtaining a policy here to cover that risk.

That same lack of cohesive regulation is discouraging the flow of overseas capital into the U.S. insurance market and the development of new products, he noted.

However, insurers should not ignore available opportunities in this expanding global market, said Mr. Vitale.

In response to global warming issues, insurers can introduce products that reward those who pursue environmentally friendly practices, he observed.

In the future, the industry will need to take a nontraditional approach to developing risk solutions, Mr. Vitale said. Among some of these nontraditional solutions is micro-insurance to the developing world.

Assets are smaller, but the need is great, he explained. Insuring a farmer in a developing nation, whose major asset may only be a cow, could not only allow the farmer to survive a bad harvest but could provide tremendous openings to a new insurance market, he suggested.

"There is great opportunity in emerging markets," Mr. Vitale said. "As the economies of these emerging markets mature, opportunities to create for the insurance industry are amazing." Globalization is bringing new opportunities and markets to insurers.

"Global organizations must stay ahead of an evolving risk environment as well as visualize and anticipate future risk by nontraditional methods," he counseled.

"We must liberate ourselves from the challenges that dominate our risk management agendas today, and only a decade ago, and look forward to the anticipated risk of globalization in the insurance industry."