This may come as a shock: The corporate world is full of ill-mannered maniacs. Not you, obviously, nor me (usually), but just about everyone else. People appear to abandon all restraint the moment they arrive at work.

As the risk management function becomes even more critical for today’s businesses, risk managers find themselves involved in making decisions that affect nearly every aspect of an organization’s physical, financial, and reputational health.

For me, one of the happiest, most inspiring headlines I’ve seen in recent months read — “Nationwide announces five-year, $160M Future of Work investment.” Finally, an insurer was putting a stake in the ground, announcing a major commitment to address a looming and significant reality — the nature of work is changing.

Many commercial policyholders will likely make claims for supply chain-related losses resulting from the coronavirus outbreak in China, but they may have some high hurdles to clear before they receive payments, expert say.

What story is your data telling you? Even the most tech savvy risk professionals may cringe when you use words like metrics, analytics or the phrase, “What are our biggest cost drivers?”

I have proudly worked in the North American insurance claims and information technology industry for over 30 years and have witnessed significant, albeit gradual, improvements in process and service. More recently, almost overnight, the switch of information gathering and distribution from analog to digital has transformed claims.

Activists have a new target in their fight to effect change on social issues: insurers. How can risk management help the industry turn outrage into opportunity?

The insurance industry has come a long way when it comes to its approach to diversity and inclusion (D&I). Gone are the days when companies focused on D&I solely because of the social responsibility they felt.

Adjuster turnover is a persistent and pernicious problem across the insurance industry. When claims professionals switch accounts, leave companies, or exit the sector altogether, it leaves their employers, policyholders and carriers scrambling to reconnect the dots.

Data is a tricky balancing act: You need it to make sound decisions, but if the numbers become the be-all and end-all, it can lead to some pretty questionable corporate behaviors and leadership decisions.

The dumping of five candidates from Australia’s 2019 federal election for offensive social media posts served as a reminder of the damage that a poorly managed social media profile can do to a person’s career. An ill-timed comment, a thoughtless response, an opinion that you might change or an action you may come to regret later can’t be erased in a digital era, and so your social media profile can haunt and derail your career.

Many global companies from hotels and airlines to industrial houses are expected to have to foot the bill for disruptions caused by a new coronavirus in China, with epidemics usually excluded from insurance cover, experts said.

Much has been made in recent years of the need to attract more professionals and particularly those in their early career years to the insurance industry. Efforts that have coalesced around an annual #insurancecareersmonth in February are commendable, but they are hampered by a simple fact that should be acknowledged and addressed: “insurance” is a boring word.

The Institute of Risk Management (IRM) has announced the formation of the Climate Change Special Interest Group (CC SIG) for its members to better understand the risks associated with climate change.

2019 was a year of great opportunities and challenges in the insurance industry. While several significant trends impacted insurance in 2019, three in particular are likely to gain even more traction in 2020.