Society to Address Issues Facing Industry Nov. 17-20
The Society of Insurance Research has assembled a roster of experts to address the strategic imperatives facing the industry at its 2002 annual meeting in Savannah, Ga., Nov. 17-20.
“The need for insurers to have the benefit of the best thinking the finest minds can offer has never been greater,” Jenny Hodge of American Modern Insurance Group, the Society’s vice president responsible for the program, commented. “Today, the challenges confronting insurers range from terrorism, asbestos, toxic mold, and claim fraud to controversy over the use of credit information, plunging stock markets, and sharp swings in insurance markets,” Hodge added.
Dale Hammond, President and COO of Kemper Auto and Home Group, will deliver the keynote address kicking off the general sessions starting on Tuesday, Nov. 19.
Other highlights of the general sessions on Nov. 19 and 20 include Wall Street and the Rating Agencies’ perspectives on the insurance industry as presented by Myron Picoult of Lazard Freres, Mark Puccia of Standard and Poor’s, and Alice Schroeder of Morgan Stanley, as well as addresses by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners President Terri Vaughan, The National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies President Larry Forrester, and Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America Vice President for Education and Research Madelyn Flannagan.
Other industry luminaries offering their insights during the general sessions include Deborah Sandgren, senior vice president of the GE Center for Financial Learning, who will address the changing needs of consumers being forced to assume ever greater responsibility for their financial futures, and Dick Clarke of Palmer Cay, who will explore the strategic implications of new insurance risks created by advances in technology.
On Monday, Nov. 18, workshop attendees will be able to choose either A Skill-Based Approach to Creative Thinking: Turning Creativity to Innovation, or Diversity Marketing In the New Millennium.
Pat Harmon of Applied Creative Thinking will lead the workshop on creativity. Industry veteran Jerry Lopes of MetLife Auto and Home Insurance will chair the workshop on diversity marketing.
To learn more about the Society and/or register for its workshops and annual conference, visit its Web site at www.sirnet.org.