Howden Announces Leadership Changes for Regional Restructuring

Howden, the London-based insurance broking group, announces leadership appointments and regional structure changes, aiming to better serve clients and insurer partners.

Howden said the changes will more closely align expertise and shape the business to bring all of its growing capabilities and talent to clients across regional borders.

Howden’s International Growth Markets (IGM) division, led by Sonia Caamaño since 2023, has built and scaled fast-growing businesses, delivering 16% per annum average organic growth over the past three years and preparing them for integration into their regional structures, the company said.

As a result of the success of this approach, the company now has aligned the IGM businesses with their respective regions to serve clients and insurer partners more effectively. The following changes take effect from April 1.

Strengthening Americas Business

• With significant opportunity to align more closely for clients in the Americas by ensuring all Howden’s expertise and capabilities are available to them, Mike Parrish becomes CEO, Americas.
• Sonia Caamaño will lead Latin America and Caribbean as CEO, reporting to Parrish, to bring Howden’s capabilities to meet the ever-increasing demand for specialty expertise and the need to serve clients seamlessly across borders in the region’s fast-growing economies. Caamaño will lead the delivery of this to clients as well as driving collaboration with Howden’s newly established US retail business, also led by Parrish.
• Caamaño will be supported by José Ignacio Lathrop, when he takes up his position as executive chairman, Latin America, bringing deep sector expertise and longstanding relationships to support regional acceleration.

Creation of EMEA Broking Region

• Howden’s MEA businesses – including the UAE, Bahrain, Oman, Tanzania, South Africa, and its newly launched operation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia – will align with the Howden Europe business to create a single EMEA broking region led by Luigi Sturani, CEO EMEA.
• Richard Mockett, CEO, MEA, will report to Sturani, unlocking further opportunity through closer collaboration and sharper connectivity across the regions.
• Paul Redgate is chairman, MEA, alongside his role as chairman, Specialty.

Howden India Becomes Part of Howden Asia Region

• Howden’s business in India, led by Amit Agarwal, will be aligned with the Asia region, led by Rohan Bhappu, CEO Asia. The combined team will be ideally positioned to collaborate for clients, and to continue attracting the best talent in the market.
• Paul Redgate will also take the role of chairman, Howden India.

“As we continue to attract talent, aligning them to deliver to our clients is our priority. These changes reflect our continued commitment to get into the right shape, with the right talent in the right places for where clients need us today, and where they will need us next,” Howden CEO David Howden commented.

“Howden Americas, under Mike’s leadership, will bring together the exciting new retail broking operations in the US with our fast-growing business in Latin America,” he said.

“IGM has been a trailblazer in fast-growing markets for the past three years thanks to Sonia’s leadership, and I am delighted that she will now lead Latin America and Caribbean in this next phase,” Howden added.

“Luigi has significant experience of working in MEA and his leadership and experience will help Richard Mockett and his team as they move into a new growth phase. And Rohan has worked in India and knows many of the Howden team from his previous roles. These appointments are testament to the strength of our leadership group, and together, they position us strongly for the next phase of growth.”

Howden Group operates in 57 countries in Europe, the USA, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand, employing over 24,000 people and managing premiums totaling more than $50 billion on behalf of its clients.