Redhand Advisors name Gallagher Bassett’s Luminos solution the most comprehensive RMIS platform on the market for the sixth year in a row

Ethisphere Institute recognises Gallagher for the 13th time as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies®

Gallagher Bassett Australia recognised as a 5-Star Insurance Innovator by Insurance Business

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Gallagher Bassett is founded by Jim Gallagher and Sterling Bassett

1962

Ahead of the curve at Gallagher Bassett

Mention that an industry-leading claims and risk management company has nearly half of its employees working at home, and you might elicit a few platitudes about how quickly employment patterns have evolved in recent years. Add that the company was already doing this in 2019, and people will realise that you are talking about a business that values being ahead of its time as part of its corporate DNA. When management at rival insurance services providers around the world were holding their first awkward Zoom meetings in early 2020, worrying about everything from appropriate attire to whether they had remembered to unmute themselves, Gallagher Bassett (GB) was busy fine-tuning its techniques to maintain team spirit in an online setting. “The pandemic accelerated a change that was already well underway at

Gallagher Bassett – we had almost 40% of our team working from home prior to 2020. That experience enabled us to continue to deliver outstanding service when, all at once, we sent everyone home to work,” says president and chief executive Scott Hudson. “Working from home remains a way of life at GB. What I’m most proud of is how our leadership team has figured out how to keep our culture intact in what is today a significantly different operating environment.” Alvin Toffler’s seminal concept of “future shock” – the distress suffered due to being unable to cope with rapid social and technological changes – doesn’t seem to apply to GB, even during pandemics. Indeed, the idea is almost flipped on its head into a kind of ‘prescience dividend’, where GB’s ability to absorb shocks for clients because it can foreshadow change puts it at a constant comparative advantage. Always being ahead of the curve is a strong proposition for any firm, but it is during times of accelerated change that the relative positioning on that curve versus competitors becomes most apparent. Hudson attributes much of the company’s success to its strong corporate culture. “Culture is everything at Gallagher Bassett. I believe it is one of [the most], if not the most important contributor to our long-term success.” Indeed, this culture appears to be positively magnetic; employees who stray out of its orbit find themselves inexorably drawn back. “It’s what enables us to attract and retain the best professionals in our industry. It is also the reason why we have countless stories of people leaving Gallagher Bassett only to return a short while later.”

One value that shines through in the tenets is the importance of respecting all views: “everyone’s job is important”; “we can all learn from one another”; and “to trust and be trusted is vital” are some manifestations. Hudson reinforces this theme by focusing on positivity and team building. “A cornerstone of my leadership approach is consensus-driven decision-making,” he says. “It is critical for leaders to trust, respect and draw from the experience and expertise of their team.” This approach encapsulates both motivating talent and leveraging the sum

It’s also clear that GB’s ability to remain ahead of the curve will become starker as changes in the marketplace accelerate ever faster. “As I look to the next five, 10 or 15 years for Gallagher Bassett, I can see how we’ll leverage the ongoing advances in technology and the wealth of data we have to put state-of-the-art decision-support tools in the hands of our people – tools that will enable them to deliver claims outcomes far superior to our competitors’,” Hudson says. Like many in the industry, he expects technology to lead the change in insurance. A recent survey by GB shows that technology-spending among carriers in the US is expected to grow by more than 25% by 2026: more than 64% of respondents said they were looking to invest in technology this year to help improve processes and provide deeper insights to customers. “I have seen technology change the way we all do business, and this trend will no doubt continue,” Hudson says. “What I’m excited about are the tools we have developed at GB using AI and machine learning – tools that support our claims professionals with making the best decisions on each and every claim.” Hudson expects tech-enabled decision-making to deliver superior claims outcomes for clients. “At Gallagher Bassett, we know that what was good yesterday will be insufficient tomorrow. We are constantly seeking to better ourselves and find new ways to provide outstanding service and superior outcomes.” However, more technology will also bring with it perhaps the most pressing problem for the insurance industry in the immediate future – finding talent to fill changing job descriptions. The same GB survey repeatedly highlighted the battle for talent as a major concern for carriers. At a time when companies are hoping to expand into new regions, 64% cited the attraction and retention of talent as the main challenge they faced. Yet this, too, is another area in which GB is ahead of the game. “Our industry has experienced a growing shortage of talent over the last decade, and that trend accelerated during the pandemic,” Hudson says. “To counteract this trend, we have built large, in-house recruiting teams focused on finding new sources of talent, and developed programs to onboard and train individuals who are brand new to our industry.” Hudson expects the problem to be long-standing as demographics catch up with the insurance industry. “We will be continually trying to figure out how to attract top talent, expand our products and services to meet the evolving needs of our clients, deliver superior claims outcomes and preserve our special culture.” It seems safe to say that while many companies are still dealing with future shock around various issues, GB, as usual, has a standing head-start on most of them.

Spotlight

Hudson has been able to realise much of his own vision for GB since becoming president in 2010. “We have diversified into new customer segments, lines of business and geographic regions while building deep expertise across our organisation,” he says. In particular, he saw an opportunity to develop the carrier practice capabilities of the firm. “Today, we have built trusted relationships with carriers of all sizes who now not only outsource claims handling to us but also look to our team for the expertise they require to grow,” he says. The ability to tailor solutions to differing needs didn’t come out of a vacuum at GB. Much of the philosophical background to this flexible and open approach stems from tenets first written down by Robert E. Gallagher as The Gallagher Way in 1984. “The Gallagher Way and its 25 tenets are the foundation of our culture,” Hudson says. “It speaks to how we treat one another and how we do business. It’s our culture that people hear about and want to experience first-hand.” Many of the tenets are about learning from others, being open and empathetic, and the importance of trust and relationships. While they are mainly directed at GB’s internal culture, it’s clear that external business relations also benefit. “We know that one size does not fit all, and this belief has been a significant driver of our growth across all of our client segments. Our clients – no matter their size, location or sector – often expect us to customise our approach to meet their needs,” Hudson says.

Gallagher Bassett is the premier global provider of claims and risk management solutions. We partner with our carrier, broker employer and public entity clients to deliver superior outcomes across a variety of industries. Gallagher Bassett is committed to providing solutions that reduce the total cost of risk, improve return-to-work rates, and support companies to scale and grow. Gallagher Bassett was founded in 1962 and is now home to more than 7,700 employees; it is a part of the global Gallagher network of companies.

Company Profile

7,700+

Number of employees worldwide

$1.1bn+

Annual global revenue

13+ years

Average tenure of leadership

124+

Number of locations worldwide

820,000+

Number of claims handled

Bio

Spotlight

Milestones

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Accolades

Company Profile

Years of Experience

Tenure IN current position

2017 - Present

Career highlights

Formerly management consultant at several leading firms, including Arthur Andersen & Co. (now Accenture), McKinsey & Company and Renaissance Worldwide Founder and director at Bridge Strategy Group, 1998–2010

Scott Hudson

President and CEO at Gallagher Bassett

Providing outstanding service and superior outcomes counts for more during times of accelerated change – and Gallagher Bassett has the culture and vision to keep the momentum strong

Read on

“Culture is everything at Gallagher Bassett. I believe it is one of [the most], if not the most important contributor to our long-term success”

Scott Hudson, Gallagher Bassett

Accolades

Media

Milestones

2011

2012

2015

2016

2019

2021