Marsh Chairman wins lifetime achievement award
The chairman and managing director of Marsh IAS Management Services (Bermuda), Jill Husbands, has been selected as the winner of the inaugural Fred Reiss Lifetime Achievement Award, to be presented at this month's Bermuda Captive Conference, which takes place June 13-15.
The award will be presented at the official opening of this year's conference on the afternoon of Monday June 13 at the Fairmont Southampton in Bermuda.
She joined Marsh in 1984 as an insurance officer with responsibility for a diverse portfolio of captive companies after gaining experience in both the Bermuda and London markets as an underwriter and broker.
Husbands has also held various positions at the company and was named chairman this year. She is a member of the Insurance Advisory Committee (IAC) and is chair of the board of governors of the Bermuda College.
"Jill is an incredibly deserving recipient of this first-time award to mark Fred's legacy," said conference chair David Gibbons. "Her contribution to this conference, our industry, and Bermuda as a whole has been invaluable and, like Fred himself, she is a remarkable professional who has set an example for all of us in this industry."
Husbands said: "I am thrilled and honoured to be selected as the winner of the inaugural Fred Reiss Lifetime Achievement Award.
"I have loved my 32 years in the captive insurance industry and have witnessed many changes, innovations and significant growth in our sector. It is gratifying to be recognised by my peers and I am especially proud to win an award that pays tribute to the founding father of our industry."
The award is named in honour of Reiss, a pioneering Ohio engineer who conceived of the idea of self-insurance, by which corporations could manage their own risks through a dedicated subsidiary.
Starting with American steel companies, Reiss pursued the concept in Bermuda, launching the first captive in 1962. The sector recorded exponential growth over the next five decades, distinguishing Bermuda as the world captive leader and fuelling the foundation of the island's entire insurance industry.
"The Reiss family is humbled and honoured by the Bermuda Captive Conference's recognition of Fred's career and achievements," said his son, Jonathan, chief financial officer of Hamilton Group and a Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences (BIOS) director.
"The Bermuda insurance market continues to go from strength to strength and that's largely because it is so attractive to high-integrity entrepreneurs and visionary leaders like Fred.
"I have been a client of Jill Husbands as her team incubated Hamilton Re when it was initially formed, a service Marsh has provided for hundreds of insurers of all shapes and sizes.
"Jill is exactly the type of high-integrity, solution-oriented leader who makes our marketplace great and I know my father would be delighted with her selection for this award.”
According to Gibbons, organisers of the conference, now in its 12th year, felt it was time to celebrate the collaboration of outstanding professionals like Husbands.
"This year, we thought it was time to launch an award to formally recognise the consistent contributions of people in our industry who have not only shaped this conference, but have made a significant contribution to Bermuda's captive sector as a whole,” said Gibbons.
"We were honoured the Reiss family allowed us to attach the name of Fred, the acknowledged father of our captive industry-without whom, none of this would exist. We are doubly honoured to have the first winner be someone as accomplished as Jill."
