Like many in the industry, Ilan Serman had not planned on a career in insurance but after years of learning and travelling around the globe, he has moved up to the role of regional president of Ontario at Gallagher.
In the late 80s, Serman moved from South Africa to New York, to study at Columbia University and, as his graduation came closer, he met with the global president of Marsh in 1990, which was his first introduction to the industry.
“Following June 1990, I traveled between New York, London, Calgary, and Toronto for 10 years, and by 1999, I switched to the client side of the business,” he said. “As the risk manager of Canada’s largest retirement and nursing home company at the time, I learned a very different side of insurance.”
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Serman experienced the internal pressures that risk managers face firsthand and was the point person on a multi-million-dollar class action lawsuit.
“I worked through a huge business interruption claim for a retirement facility that burned to the ground during construction, ran an RFP, and was courted by a number of brokers. I credit these experiences with helping me understand clients better and responding to their needs more appropriately, especially when I returned to the broker ranks in 2005,” he explained.
Starting with Gallagher in the middle of a pandemic was a challenge that Serman was willing to take on, and, over the past two years, he has been successful dealing with not only COVID-19, but the hard market as well.
“Gallagher has fared incredibly well through the pandemic,” he emphasised. “The Canadian company grew at 15% - one of our best years on record.”
With the right management team, engaged employees, and client-focused technology solutions, Gallagher had some of its strongest years yet.
“One trend that has emerged from the pandemic is our client’s switch from wanting local service to wanting the best service, regardless of where it might be located,” he said. “In the past, a subject matter expert might only be able to attend one meeting in a day, if they needed to travel to and from a remote client. Today, that same person can attend meetings in Halifax, Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, and Vancouver all in a single day.”
“We can’t provide solutions or options to clients without the support of our insurer partners, so having strong relationships with insurers is critical to every broker’s success,” he said. “At the end of the day this is still a people business.”
Clients, brokers, insurers, adjusters, lawyers, actuaries – all want to be treated fairly and with respect, he said, adding: “If a leader goes out of their way to help them when needed, they’ll be amazed and delighted at how it comes back to them.”
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There has been a fight for talent throughout the pandemic as well, and Serman has worked diligently as a leader to help implement the right strategies for growth.
“In the continued war for talent, which we are all facing, we are taking a two-pronged approach,” he said. “We have stepped up our recruiting game to attract the best and brightest talent to Gallagher and have also embarked on an ambitious ‘Grow our Own’ strategy, which attracts new talent to the industry.”
