Hartwig to Leave I.I.I. for University of South Carolina Faculty Post

Dr. Robert Hartwig, an economist and the president of the industry’s Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.) since 2007, is leaving this summer to join the faculty of the University of South Carolina’s Darla Moore School of Business, the organization announced.

“My decision to leave the Institute was an extremely difficult one. I love this job, this industry and the daily thrill and privilege of working with amazing people both at the organization itself and throughout the I.I.I.’s membership,” Hartwig said. “At the same time, I have throughout my 23 year career in the insurance world always maintained strong ties to the academic community. After 18 years at the Institute, now is the right time for me—both personally and professionally—to make a change. I am truly looking forward to my next important role—attracting and educating young talent to this vitally important industry.”

Hartwig, who received his Ph.D. and Master of Science degrees in economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, was the I.I.I.’s chief economist before becoming its president. Prior to joining the Institute, Hartwig held key roles at Swiss Re, the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

Effective August 2016, Hartwig will become a faculty member in the University of South Carolina’s Finance Department, which is within the Columbia, S.C.-based institution’s Darla Moore School of Business. The university has an undergraduate Risk Management and Insurance (RMI) program. According to the announcement, he will teach courses in risk management, insurance and corporate finance, including courses in the Moore School’s professional MBA program. Hartwig will also become co-director of the Moore School’s Risk and Uncertainty Management Center.

“Bob Hartwig has done an extraordinary job as president of the I.I.I. and finding a successor to fill his shoes will be a daunting task,” said Bruce Kelley, chairman of the I.I.I.’s board of directors who is president and CEO of EMC Insurance Companies in Iowa. “Under Dr. Hartwig’s leadership, the I.I.I. bolstered its position as a thought leader in the industry and expanded dramatically the audiences who have access to the I.I.I.’s award-winning editorial content, data and subject matter expertise. More than ever before, the I.I.I. is excelling in its mission to improve the understanding of insurance—what it does and how it works.”

Members of the I.I.I.’s board will serve as part of a search committee to find the I.I.I.’s next president, Kelley said.

Hartwig said he is proud of today’s I.I.I.

“I have been very fortunate to lead an organization with many talented individuals, allowing the Insurance Information Institute to develop a stellar reputation worldwide in the industry. I am also very proud to say I will leave the Institute with its largest membership ever, and positioned for future success,” Hartwig said.

He said he is looking forward to maintaining ties with the industry and I.I.I. He will retain a formal relationship with the organization, periodically writing research reports, delivering presentations, working with the media and offering testimony to public policymakers on the I.I.I.’s behalf.