The Chairman and CEO of MAPFRE closes the 25th MAPFRE GLOBAL RISKS International Seminars
To survive and thrive in today’s global world, insurance companies need to reinvent themselves and adapt to the new environments they do business in, and be flexible so they can provide solutions tailored to their clients’ needs. This was one of the observations made by Antonio Huertas, Chairman and CEO of MAPFRE, during the close of the 25th edition of the MAPFRE GLOBAL RISKS International Seminars, in which over 500 participants from 30 countries came together for two days in Granada to debate the challenges facing the sector.
Antonio Huertas highlighted the dizzying changes taking place in society, leading to new consumption habits to which the industry must adapt. He also pointed out the arrival of new players in the industry, including automobile manufacturers and technology and communications companies looking to broker the relationship with the clients. The insurance industry should learn from them, and then make itself indispensable. “There are new trends –driverless cars, smart homes, big data– that we have to learn about, analyze and bring under our radar so we can create new business models”, noted the Chairman and CEO of MAPFRE.
Cybersecurity and cyber risks are among the issues that attracted most interest in these seminars, and were also mentioned by Antonio Huertas. Cyber risks are a constant threat, against which companies and governments will need to continue fighting on a large scale. He also highlighted the “very important” role played by insurers in this new reality, both because of all the elements it can offer coverage against, and because of the need to deal with risks about which we still know very little.
“Risk is born, develops and dies. But it is also transformed. And that’s the continuous challenge we’re all facing in our business. The role of the insurance industry is vital in our society and changes with it”, declared the Chairman and CEO of MAPFRE.
The topics debated at this meeting included the challenges facing the industry, and other aspects directly related to security. The application of drones for risk management, the global aviation and air safety model and the use of social networks in natural disasters and national security situations were among the issues discussed in Granada, in what has become established as a key event for the international insurance industry.