Steffen Zwick in March 2019 joined Mercer Switzerland as Head of Marketing and Communication. He was before with Mercer as a Marketing Manager as well as Campaign Manager for content marketing and left to take a position as Senior Marketing Associate with Eaton Vance Management International in London. He has since returned to Mercer and is now located in Zurich. Zwick holds an MA in Linguistics from Heidelberg University.

Rebecca Wheeler joined Willis Towers Watson (WTW) as International Benefits Manager as of March 2019. Wheeler previously held the same position with Phillip Morris International, where she had worked since 2012. She was also an International Consultant with Towers Watson from 2008 to 2012. Prior to that, she was a Regional Benefits Analyst and International Benefits Analyst at Microsoft. Wheeler holds a Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) from

Lockton in March 2019 named Claude Yoder as partner, along with Guy Carpenter and Nick Durant, of its new company, Lockton Global Re, as of May 2019.  Yoder, an experienced analytics expert, will be based in New York. Yoder joins from Guy Carpenter, where he was Chief Innovation and Product Development Officer, after serving as Global Head of Analytics for Marsh. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in

American International Group (AIG) in March 2019 announced the appointment of Betsy Palmer as Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Strategy, Communications and Industry Leadership Officer, AIG Life & Retirement. She will be based in New York and will report to Kevin Hogan, Chief Executive Officer, Life & Retirement, as a member of the Life & Retirement Executive Team. Ms. Palmer will assume responsibility for all marketing, communications, stakeholder

Insurance Europe in March 2019 published a checklist regarding the insurance implications of a no-deal Brexit. Insurance Europe is the European insurance and reinsurance federation, representing all types of insurance and reinsurance carriers. Intended for the general public but relevant for business travelers and short-term secondments, the checklist deals with: Motor insurance – Currently, motorists insured in any EU member state can drive their vehicle in any other EU member

Artex Risk Solutions, a provider of insurance, reinsurance, and alternative risk management solutions, in March 2019 announced that Peter Mullen has re-joined the company as Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He takes over from former CEO David McManus, who will assume the new role of Chairman going forward. Mullen has been CEO at Aon Captive & Insurance Management for the last seven years, and will begin his position with Artex

B3i raised about $16 million in February 2019, bringing its total capital to over $22 million. B3i is a blockchain startup owned by some of the world’s largest insurance companies. Slightly more than half of the new capital came in the form of cash, with the rest coming as converted debt. B3i had previously raised 6.3 million Swiss francs in March 2018. B3i’s founding shareholders include Aegon, Allianz, Munich

HX Global, the Americas division of Healix International, in March 2019 appointed Tim Crockett as senior vice president, U.S. Business Operations. Crockett joined HX Global in 2016 as vice president of security. In that role, he was tasked with designing and providing security and risk management solutions for multinational organizations. Prior to joining HX Global, Crockett worked as senior director of global security operations for media conglomerate Turner. He

Alliant Insurance Services in March 2019 announced it had added Lee Doble as Consultant as of January 2019. He is based in Huntington Beach, California. He comes to Alliant from Crystal and Company, where he spent eighteen years as Managing Director. Prior to that, Doble was Managing Director at Frank Crystal & Co., Inc. for twelve years, and a senior account executive at Aetna for over thirty years. Doble

New GDP data published in March 2019 by the Conference Board shows that growth has slowed to 2.6 per cent in the United States for the final quarter of the year, despite growing at nearly four per cent last year. Growth is still above the U.S. economy’s long-term two-per cent trend. The U.S. can expect a further slowdown in growth due to fading effects of an anemic fiscal stimulus,

OECD in March 2019 released a new survey, “Risks that Matter”, which asked over 22,000 people aged 18 to 70 years old in 21 countries* about their worries and concerns, and their opinions on how well they think their governments help them tackle social and economic risks. The nationally-representative survey finds that many people in OECD countries believe public services and social benefits are difficult to reach and inadequate.

Munich Re-owned ERGO Group, which includes ERGO Deutschland, ERGO International, and ERGO Digital Ventures, in March 2019 sold four ERGO International subsidiaries to the Euroins Insurance Group (EIG) for an undisclosed amount. The sale involves ERGO’s life and non-life subsidiaries in Romania and the Czech Republic as well as its non-life company in Belarus. In 2017 they had a combined gross written premium of €72 million. The purchase agreement

Aon in March 2019 announced, then cancelled plans to merge with Willis Towers Watson (WTW) in what would have been the industry’s largest ever merger. The cancellation announcement was made just one day after Aon announced it was considering a takeover bid for WTW. According to a statement released on Tuesday, March 5, Aon was in the early stages of exploring an all-share tie-up with WTW, and indicated that

Randstad in March 2019 released the first quarter 2019 edition of its Workmonitor report. Workmonitor’s Mobility Index, which tracks employee confidence and captures the likelihood of an employee changing jobs within the next six months, provides a comprehensive understanding of sentiments and trends in the job market. Besides mobility, the survey addresses employee satisfaction and personal motivation as well as a rotating set of themed questions. The report for

People respond to voice warnings, not to standard fire alarms, and evacuations are speedier when timely information is communicated, according to a study released in March 2019 by Siemens Building Technologies. It has been noted many times, in multiple studies, that building occupants often ignore or are slow to respond to standard fire alarm sounders. There is even a tendency for people to continue with their activities, oblivious to

Lockton in March 2019 named Timothy Gardner as CEO, partnered with Nicholas Durant and Claude Yoder, of its new company, Lockton Global Re. Gardner will be based in New York City, USA. Gardner joins Lockton from Guy Carpenter, where he was CEO for U.S. Operations. Previously, Gardner was with Marsh as Risk Management Global leader and COO for the US and Canada divisions.  He was also Eastern Regional Manager

In the March 2019 issue Retire Vitally Conference Report eHealth & Prevention Programs – Dejan Malesic Work in the ‘Gig Economy’: A Meaningful Relationship? – Geneviève Shanahan, Mark Smith Seeing the Light: Using Light Intake to Boost Workplace Productivity – Hugo Starrsjo, Shira Jeczmien Inside the Ransom Business: Why Kidnapping Rarely Pays – Anja Shortland The Changing Landscape of Employee Benefits in India – WBN Series – Alda Dhingra Talent Management in South Asia – Ruchika Pal Interview – AEIP Secretary General Bruno Gabellieri

In the March 2019 issue Retire Vitally Conference Report eHealth & Prevention Programs – Dejan Malesic Work in the ‘Gig Economy’: A Meaningful Relationship? – Geneviève Shanahan, Mark Smith Seeing the Light: Using Light Intake to Boost Workplace Productivity – Hugo Starrsjo, Shira Jeczmien Inside the Ransom Business: Why Kidnapping Rarely Pays – Anja Shortland The Changing Landscape of Employee Benefits in India – WBN Series – Alda Dhingra

Lockton in March 2019 named Nicholas Durant as CEO partner, along with Tim Gardner and Claude Yoder, of Lockton Global Re. This new reinsurance unit will incorporate Lockton’s specialty team based in London as well as its current reinsurance units Lockton Re U.S. LLC and Lockton Re U.K. LLP.   Durant will be based in New York. Durant was previously managing director with Guy Carpenter, and president of Marsh Captive

I would like to share some insights with you about new innovative healthcare service design and how technological solutions (eHealth) can help address prevention matters.eHealth & prevention programs

The Retire Vitally conference, where participants gathered to discuss best practices pertaining to retiring in good health in the European Union, was held 24 January 2019 at PGGM headquarters in Zeist, the Netherlands. The event was organized by AEIP, TELA (Finland) and PGGM (The Netherlands).

Home to Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, South Asia is one of the most dynamic regions in the world, with a population of 1.67 billion people and economic growth of 7.1 percent over the last decade, according to the World Bank. With growth topping 6.9 percent in 2018 and set to accelerate to 7.1 percent this year, South Asia is firming up its position as the world’s fastest-growing region, further extending its lead over East Asia and the Pacific, according to a World Bank regional economic update.

The Indian employee benefits landscape has undergone rapid and dramatic transformation over the past two decades, hastened by economic growth, amendments to and increases in statutory benefits, new benefits paradigms introduced by Multinational Corporations (MNCs), and legislative and judiciary action. Employee Benefits stakeholders, in order to keep up with the times, must continue to evolve their benefits offerings to ensure compliance as well as competitiveness.

A kidnapper’s phone call announcing that a family member or employee has been abducted is the stuff of nightmares – as is the eye-watering ransom demand that often accompanies this news. How should you respond?Most kidnappings take place in countries where governments are weak and territory is disputed. Without a police force able to help, you will need to negotiate to get your loved one back. So, what is the “right” price for their life?

Light is important for more than just vision. Tackling circadian rhythm disruption is crucial to increasing productivity in the workplace. Thanks to extensive scientific research, we now know that light is one of the main factors controlling our circadian rhythm, the natural body clock that regulates our energy levels and the quality of our sleep. Light stimulates the production of sleep and energy hormones, and is the biggest influencer of our sleep quality, productivity and well-being.

In Europe and around the world, many people are delivering fast food on bicycles or acting as taxi drivers in their own cars, not quite employees and not quite self-employed. Following recent legal judgements in France, the UK and in other countries, the contractual status of these “gig workers” is again being questioned. We hear of the benefits of the flexible lifestyles afforded to workers in the “gig economy” but also complaints about precariousness and exploitation.

Bruno Gabellieri is Secretary General of AIEP, the European Association of Paritarian Institutions. Global Benefits Vision: Thank you, Bruno, for being with us again, three and a half years after our first interview. Can you recap AEIP’s mission today and how it relates to our industry?