Head of Client Value Proposition – Global Specialty

From day one, our mission has been to create an independent business with a unique culture – one that is controlled by the people who work for it. Finding the most talented and entrepreneurial people has always been key to our success.

People come to Howden for lots of different reasons, but they stay for the same one: our culture. That’s what sets us apart, and why we nurture and retain the best talent in the market. Whatever your priorities – work/life balance, career progression, sustainability, volunteering – you’ll find like-minded people driving change at Howden.

Introduction

Howden is looking to grow their Specialty lines of business globally. Currently there are 20 Specialty businesses that are at different levels of maturity. While they are all reasonably well established in the UK, there is a great deal of room to grow in most specialty lines in the rest of the world. Mark Wood (Head of Global Practices & Growth) and Sarah Hughes (CEO of Specialty in the UK) have established a new central team to drive this growth. The team will focus on identifying and prioritising the opportunities, building the business plans and then supporting their execution to accelerate growth. The team is headed up by Head of Delivery – Global Specialty, and will include resources focusing on project management and building data capabilities.

This role is key in creating competitive advantage and superior value propositions across all Specialties. The main objective of the role is to build capabilities (data sources, processes for collecting and maintaining data, insights, etc.) for data that are relevant for clients and markets. The job holder will need to build a technically capable team that will work with and drive data capabilities for all GSPs (Global Specialty Practices).

Key responsibilities

GSP = Global Specialty Practice

Partner with GSP leads to define the data and insights required to support each specialty, in order to deliver a superior value proposition for clients of each specialty. What it looks like for each specialty will be very different.
Help identify data sources, establish process for procuring and keeping it up to date, establish framework for disseminating it across all practitioners.
Ensure that all relevant stakeholders across the business are aligned around data procurement and implementation, especially if it requires using new systems/platforms.
Build a team to deliver data-driven insights to various GSPs on an ongoing basis, in coordination with Group central data team to avoid duplication.
Define ‘what good looks like’ for data capabilities for GSP centrally/locally and develop a plan for getting there, ensuring a comprehensive and systemic approach as opposed to one-off; drive execution of the vision.
Together with the relevant stakeholders, develop business cases for further investment into data capabilities.
Ensure wider populations is brought on the journey of becoming data-centric; it’s as important to win hearts and minds as it is to generate data-driven insights.

Experience and desirable characteristics

Experience with using data and analytics from a business point of view
Technical understanding of how to work with data (data engineering, analysis, ingestion, storage, etc.)
2-3 years of consulting experience or strategy and project mgmt. experience would be beneficial
Financial services and/or insurance industry experience would be beneficial
Strong stakeholder management and communication skills are a must
Entrepreneurial spirit, can-do attitude
Systemic thinking, but also pragmatic execution
Team player, must know how to have fun

What do we offer in return?

A career that you define.

Yes, we offer all the usual rewards and benefits – including great healthcare provision, a wide variety of wellbeing offers, competitive salary, generous pensions and more – but we know you expect all that.

What you might not expect is a job where everyone has a voice, where volunteering in the community is part of the day job, and where everyone is encouraged to play a part towards our sustainability goals. We want people who want to make a difference – not just in the workplace, but in the industry and in the wider community.

Our culture: People First

Our core values dictate how we live and work. We are a group with independence and people at its heart and we are a home for talent with a unique culture: the biggest small company in the world.

The focus on being a People First business has always been at the very heart of the Group; our vision was to create an independent business with a unique culture and one that would survive and thrive as a business controlled by the people working for it. And finding the most talented and entrepreneurial people to join the Group has been and will continue to be key.

Diversity & Inclusion

At Howden we consider our people our chief competitive advantage and as such we treat colleagues, candidates, clients, and business partners with equality, fairness and respect, regardless of their age, disability, race, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, marital status or family circumstances.

Our Culture: People First

We’ve travelled far since opening our first office in 1994. Back then we were local experts – based in London, with direct access to the world’s biggest insurance market. We’re still locals, and we still deliver the right advice and the right insurance to our clients. But now, we’re local all over the world. With 15,000 global colleagues and a partner network spanning more than 100 territories, we are the largest independent insurance broker in the world. But our values haven’t changed since day one, when we set out to create a company grounded in:

An employee-ownership model
Aligned external investors
The trust and integrity born of friendship
Expertise
Independence

Our focus on being a people-first business has always been at the very heart of Howden. Our vision was to create an independent business with a unique culture; one that would survive and thrive as a business controlled by the people working for it. Our employee ownership model sets us apart in the market. It’s created a culture of collaboration and innovation, where we’re driven to think bigger and empowered to challenge convention.

Our flat structure and entrepreneurial spirit help us attract the best people and empower them to be the best version of themselves. And when we bring in and nurture great talent, more follows. That makes us better – and that’s better for everyone.

Diversity & Inclusion

At Howden we consider our people our chief competitive advantage and as such we treat colleagues, candidates, clients, and business partners with equality, fairness and respect, regardless of their age, disability, race, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, marital status or family circumstances.
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