Friday, June 07
The second session of the MAPFRE Global Risk International Workshops continued to promote an active debate on topics of great international relevance, such as environmental challenges, corporate ESG commitments, and innovation, always with a space reserved for the perspective of the insurance industry.
Roundtable discussion. “Global Employee Benefit Programs”
As stated by Paulo Rua, Head of Reward at GALP, employee benefit programs go far beyond human resources policies. This was one of the reflections that arose during a talk moderated by Fernando Gómez, Deputy Manager of Business Development and Supervisor of Global Employee Benefits at MAPFRE Global Risks, in which Ramón de la Vega, Director of Corporate Risk Financing at Telefónica, also participated. In addition to contractual remuneration, companies can offer their employees other types of benefits ranging from corporate discounts to a wide range of insurance. The examples represented at the table, Telefónica and GALP, may prove to be an example of the great business paradigm shift we are facing: the labor forces entering the market have expectations that have nothing to do with previous generations, such as flexibility or hybrid work.
The responsible governance of these companies, aware that these employee benefits have a very positive impact on their own activity, improving brand image and favoring the attraction and retention of talent, makes the formulas completer and more improved. The challenge for multinationals such as these is, among other things, to adapt these programs to the idiosyncrasies of each country in which they operate.
Roundtable discussion: “The Space Sector as a Driver of Innovation”
The space sector is key to communication and, therefore, to economic, social, and technological progress. This reality brings with it great challenges that were addressed in this roundtable, moderated by Cristina Quintero, Deputy Manager of the Aviation and Transportation Area at MAPFRE Global Risks. We are talking about an industry that has gone from being historically in the hands of governments to opening its doors to the private sector, which represents an important opportunity for the insurance world. Accompanying Quintero were two experts in the field: Miguel Ángel Panduro, Managing Director of Hisdesat, and Miguel Ángel García, CEO of Hispasat.
One of the most discussed aspects during the talk was the situation of the satellite scenario, to which we were introduced in an agile and entertaining way despite the complexity involved. Sector professionals believe that it is important to transcend the conservatism that has prevailed so far and try to do things differently in a much more competitive reality. In this context, both agreed in requesting the necessary help from the insurance industry, to which they also asked for a distinction to be made between the top companies and the less tested ones, something that, as was acknowledged in the presentation, is in MAPFRE’s DNA. Another of the sector’s challenges lies in sustainability, especially among satellites located in close orbits, where there is an immense accumulation that often leads to collisions.
Roundtable discussion: “Exploring New Horizons in the Mining Industry”
This long-established industry is, paradoxically, fundamental for the future of technology. Just one normal cell phone has more than 70 materials sourced from mines. This fact, revealed by Ana Pedrouzo, an expert in Underwriting from the Area of Property, Mining, and Steelworks at MAPFRE Global Risks and moderator of the table, put us onto the great challenges faced by companies in the sector. She was joined by Malerie Kostiuk, Risk and Insurance Manager at Capstone Cooper, and Christian Ackermann, CFO of Marsa. One of the most important challenges is aligned with decarbonization and environmental impact mitigation. In this regard, waste management is relevant, which is continuously evolving in search of the most likely sustainability based on dry storage systems or tailings basins. The insurance industry is accompanying the mining industry on this journey, both in risk prevention and in coverage, where mining professionals see parametric insurance as a promising ally.
Another of the major difficulties discussed at the table was the difficulty of licensing and starting up mines, a process that can take many years in some countries, a barrier to the development of the industry. Speeding up these procedures and the approval of business plans, which already take efficiency and sustainability into account, is essential for the positive development of an industry that is key to the success of many others, from technology to healthcare.
Knowledge Pills: The Voice of the Expert
Electric Vehicles: Challenges and Hurdles. To end the workshop, three experts took the stage to talk about very specific technological areas of great interest for the insurance industry and all its allies. The first to speak was José María Cancer Aboitiz, General Manager ofCESVIMAP (Centro de Experimentación y Seguridad Vial MAPFRE [MAPFRE Road Experimentation and Safety Center]), MAPFRE’s R&D center, who spoke about the importance of all innovation in the sector and, above all, the importance of transferring this information to the insurance industry, as the company is doing very successfully in the market. The technical challenges are enormous in a continuously evolving technology, but CESVIMAP is working to detect all possible risks in the face of a reality that, sooner rather than later, will take over the car fleet in cities.
Innovation in engineering services. The audience was then addressed by Óscar Estrada, Deputy Manager of the Engineering Area at MAPFRE Global Risks, who discussed the objective of transforming such a traditional department within a company with an innovative vocation, and which has managed to develop highly advanced technological tools such as GEMA (Gestor de Mejoras Avanzado [Advanced Improvement Manager]), an advanced management system model that replaces traditional communication methods, providing fluidity and accessibility of information between broker, customer, and insurer, and MGR Remote, an innovative inspection model with a high security protocol.
Insurtech Evolution and Trends. The final knowledge pill of the workshops was led by Javier Santiso, CEO and General Partner of Mundi Ventures, who explained how the insurance industry was undergoing a great revolution. The size of the market is overwhelming, its global revenue is huge, and it attracts all kinds of investors. Insurance is at the heart of many large companies, from Tesla to Booking. Large technology, telecommunications, sales, and telephone companies distribute products or services linked to insurance. It can be transcendental in global challenges such as the economic inequality of regions, technological transformation, or climate change.
Award for Excellence, Conclusions, and Closing Ceremony
The end of the evening, which brought us to the end of these exciting workshops, featured the fourth edition of a very important award ceremony: the award for excellence in risk management, this time received by Telefónica through Augusto Pérez Arbizu, Director of Corporate Risks.
To end the evening, and to thank the hundreds of guests who enjoyed the workshops for their attendance, we heard from Jose Manuel Inchausti, Vice Chairman of MAPFRE, and the Mayor of Malaga, Francisco de la Torre, who in addition to showing his enthusiasm for hosting an event of such magnitude, amusingly described the history and the kindness of the Andalusian city.
Very soon, in our Risk and Insurance Management magazine, you will be able to read about every roundtable and speech from the Workshop. Stay tuned!
