Editors’ Note

Jeanne Jankowski heads Zurich’s Energy and Marine business and is a member of the Leadership Team of Global Corporate in North America. She joined Zurich in 2004 from Travelers Oil & Gas, where she was Underwriting Director. Prior to that, she served for nine years at AIG, where her most recent position was Resident Vice President. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from St. Mary’s College. She also studied abroad with New York University’s program in Madrid and completed the Management for Executives Program at Rice University in Houston.

What is the history of Zurich’s energy business and what has made the company successful in this space?

Zurich has been providing insurance solutions for energy-related corporations for over 25 years. We are one of the leading insurers in this space and continue to expand and invest in our technical knowledge and capabilities.

The North America Energy Team includes a dedicated group of underwriters as well as risk and claims specialists committed to providing superior products and risk insights to the energy industry. We have 13 offices in North America to serve our brokers and customers – 11 in the United States and two in Canada.

In addition to our long-standing commitment to the energy sector, we have a broad appetite for risk that extends internationally. Our products include international coverages that enable us to structure solutions for customers involved in everything from exploration to delivery and mining to solar power.

Our customer base in energy includes, but is not limited to, the following:

• Upstream – any activity relating to exploration and production;

• Midstream – processing, storage, marketing and transportation of commodities such as natural gas and crude oil;

• Downstream – the refining of crude oil and the sale and distribution of natural gas and products derived from crude oil;

• Power generation – including alternative energy solutions; and

• Mining – exploration, construction and processing.

We tailor insurance programs for customers ranging from midsized to Fortune 500 corporations. The energy group offers many coverages including: workers’ compensation, automobile liability, general liability and excess property, international, property and casualty, and marine. Our program structures range from guaranteed cost to large deductibles or captive solutions. Our approach is to bring holistic solutions to our customers through a broad mix of products and solutions.

We work closely with other business units within Zurich to address our customers’ needs – this includes marine, trade credit and even corporate life and pensions.

Our risk engineers and claims specialists are considered part of our vertical. Among Zurich’s 900 global risk engineers is a team dedicated solely to energy whose members have direct industry experience. Our partnership with Zurich’s risk engineers enables us to offer loss prevention insights in addition to insurance coverage. A dedicated claims team understands the industries they serve and also the contractual needs that are specific to many of our energy customers.

Is this an area within Zurich that top talent is interested in?

Top talent is definitely interested in the energy sector, and it takes top talent to work in this sector. This is why Zurich has made a strong commitment to our communities, which includes schools and universities. Members of the energy leadership team, including myself, have been guest lecturers at the University of Houston. We have robust partnerships with several universities, and we definitely recruit from those universities.

It’s important that we reach out to young students. We try to get them excited about the opportunities that exist with the insurance industry. In fact, Zurich next year will team with a Chicago-area community college to create a unique insurance apprenticeship program that we hope will become an industry standard in the United States for attracting new talent.

Is there collaboration with other areas of the business?

There is extensive collaboration with all areas from trade credit to corporate life and pensions. We pride ourselves on not just understanding the breadth and depth of our customers’ needs but also drawing upon all of the resources and solutions a global corporation can deliver.

Is innovation taking place within this side of the business and, if so, where is it?

Innovation always starts with the customer. Three years ago we formed an Energy Risk Management Council (ERMC) to listen to the specific concerns of our customers. We meet in person twice a year to discuss emerging issues and topics important to them as members of the energy sector. These meetings allow our customers to develop a deeper understanding of Zurich and provide a forum where they can give candid feedback on how we can improve or expand services to meet the changing needs of the industry. As a result of our discussions at the ERMC and with other customers, we are working to provide innovative solutions to emerging exposures, such as cyber risk, and a deeper understanding of the exposures and needs associated with big data.

Will growth for the energy sector in the U.S. and Canada come about organically?

For our niche, I see it from an organic standpoint. We continue to deepen our relationships with our customers. For example, if we currently write the property coverage for a customer, we strive to develop and enhance our relationship by explaining and demonstrating our full offerings in other lines of business they may be interested in.

We measure the effectiveness of our value proposition from the customer’s perspective. For example, Zurich Energy & Marine conducts annual stewardship sessions with our clients approximately six months into the policy term. We ask the customer to provide us feedback regarding our performance in order to enhance our services. The stewardship strengthens the relationship between the customer, the broker, and Zurich. It is imperative that we listen to the voice of the customer.

How critical is it for you to not lose that client touch?

It is very critical. One of my key responsibilities is to provide leadership to the team to ensure we are delivering comprehensive products and solutions to our customers. I consistently stay engaged with customers because that is where the action takes place and meaningful insights are gained and developed.•