Key Topics Discussed

Key Takeaways

Become a Faculty Member with the Alliance

Experienced insurance professionals have the opportunity to make a meaningful impact by becoming faculty members with the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance.

Alliance faculty help educate, mentor, and develop insurance and risk management professionals through practical, experience-driven instruction. Faculty members bring real-world knowledge into the classroom and play an essential role in advancing the profession.

If you're passionate about education, leadership, and giving back to the industry, explore faculty opportunities at https://www.riskeducation.org

Focusing exclusively on risk management and insurance professional development, the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance provides a practical advantage at every career stage, positioning our participants and their clients for confidence and success.

Ready to build expertise in one of the fastest-growing areas of insurance?

Explore the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance's Cyber RiskPRO® program and gain the knowledge you need to identify cyber exposures, explain coverage solutions, and serve clients with confidence in today's rapidly evolving cyber environment.

Artificial intelligence is transforming the insurance industry, but it's also reshaping the cyber threat landscape.

In a recent episode of Alliance Insights, Lisa Gardner spoke with Adam Connor, Area Executive Vice President at Risk Placement Services, about the current state of the cyber insurance market and what insurance professionals should expect over the next 12 to 18 months.

One of Connor's key observations is that AI is rapidly becoming an everyday business tool. He described today's AI adoption as similar to the early days of online dating services. What once felt unfamiliar is quickly becoming mainstream. Insurance agencies are already using secure AI tools to analyze books of business, identify growth opportunities, improve retention strategies, and automate administrative tasks.

At the same time, cyber criminals are leveraging AI to increase the speed and scale of attacks. According to Connor, social engineering and ransomware remain leading causes of cyber claims. AI lowers the technical barriers for threat actors, making sophisticated attacks easier to launch than ever before.

Despite rising claims activity, the cyber insurance market remains competitive. Connor noted that many organizations continue to see flat renewals or even rate reductions due to new carrier entrants and strong marketplace competition. However, he expects the market to gradually harden as losses continue to accumulate.

Connor also challenged a common misconception that smaller organizations are unlikely cyber targets. Many attacks use a broad, automated approach rather than targeting specific companies. Businesses that fail to maintain software updates, security controls, and employee awareness programs remain vulnerable regardless of size.

Another important takeaway is the need for adequate cyber insurance limits. Connor cautioned that minimal coverage may create a false sense of security. With cyber losses often reaching millions of dollars, organizations should carefully evaluate whether their limits align with their exposure.

As cyber threats continue to evolve, insurance professionals have an opportunity to help clients better understand both risk management and insurance solutions. While technologies may change, Connor's message was clear: cyber risk isn't going away, and organizations that embrace both cybersecurity and cyber insurance will be better positioned for the future.

Cyber threats are evolving faster than ever, and clients are looking to insurance professionals for guidance. Build the expertise needed to identify cyber exposures, evaluate coverage options, and confidently navigate today’s cyber risk landscape with the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance’s Cyber RiskPRO® program. Learn more and take the next step in advancing your cyber risk knowledge.

Focusing exclusively on risk management and insurance professional development, the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance provides a practical advantage at every career stage, positioning our participants and their clients for confidence and success.

Contractors face environmental exposures that can lead to costly claims, coverage disputes, project delays, cleanup expenses, legal defense costs, and third-party liability. In this episode of the Environmental Strategist Podcast, presented in partnership with the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance, Brooks Bunbury is joined by Christopher Pell, Senior Underwriting Manager with Intact Insurance, Midwest and Eastern Environmental Division, to explore real-world contractor pollution liability claims and the environmental insurance solutions that can help protect businesses.

The conversation examines current environmental insurance market conditions, growth in contractor pollution liability coverage, and the types of claims carriers are seeing across the construction and contracting space. Examples include mold from an improperly installed HVAC system, asbestos-contaminated demolition debris, underground utility strikes, fuel line leaks, stormwater runoff, liquid asphalt spills, illicit dumping, vapor intrusion, and aging underground storage tanks.

Listeners will also learn how Contractors Pollution Liability (CPL), site pollution coverage, transportation pollution liability, underground storage tank coverage, and related environmental insurance products may respond to exposures that are often excluded or limited under general liability, commercial auto, or property policies. The episode also offers practical underwriting insights for agents and brokers, including why project lists, loss runs, financial stability, health and safety practices, and well-drafted contracts matter when placing environmental coverage.

This episode is ideal for insurance agents, brokers, risk managers, contractors, and environmental insurance professionals who want to better understand contractor pollution exposures, coverage gaps, and the importance of environmental financial assurance.

Key Topics

Key Takeaways

Want to build stronger environmental risk and insurance expertise? Enroll in the Certified Environmental Strategist, Self-Paced Online Course from the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance. This four-hour, on-demand course helps insurance professionals better understand environmental exposures, coverage solutions, and risk management strategies. Start learning on your schedule and earn your Certified Environmental Strategist certification.

Focusing exclusively on risk management and insurance professional development, the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance provides a practical advantage at every career stage, positioning our participants and their clients for confidence and success.

Featured Guests

Topics Discussed

Key Takeaways

CIC Insurance Company Operations

Want a deeper understanding of how insurance companies operate, make underwriting decisions, manage claims, and leverage technology?

The CIC Insurance Company Operations course from the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance provides insurance professionals with a practical look inside carrier operations, business strategy, financial considerations, underwriting processes, and organizational decision-making.

Explore CIC Insurance Company Operations and gain the knowledge needed to better understand the insurance companies you work with every day.

Focusing exclusively on risk management and insurance professional development, the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance provides a practical advantage at every career stage, positioning our participants and their clients for confidence and success.

Key Topics Discussed

Key Takeaways

Featured Guest

Emily Buckley

Emily leads risk management, insurance strategy, business continuity, and resilience initiatives at Specialized Bicycle Components. As the company's first dedicated risk manager, she has been instrumental in developing its enterprise risk management framework and strengthening organizational resilience across a global footprint.

Learn More

Interested in advancing your risk management expertise?

The Practice of Risk Management course from the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance's CRM Designation program, provides practical frameworks for identifying, analyzing, controlling, financing, and monitoring organizational risks. Whether you're building an ERM program, improving business resilience, or advancing your career, PRM delivers the tools needed to make a measurable impact.

Focusing exclusively on risk management and insurance professional development, the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance provides a practical advantage at every career stage, positioning our participants and their clients for confidence and success.

In this episode, you'll learn:

As AI changes how insurance work gets done, understanding how insurance companies operate becomes even more important.

The Alliance's CIC Insurance Company Operations course provides a deeper look into carrier structures, underwriting operations, claims management, profitability, financial performance, and the decisions that drive insurer success.

Explore CIC Insurance Company Operations through the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance and strengthen your understanding of today's insurance marketplace.

Focusing exclusively on risk management and insurance professional development, the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance provides a practical advantage at every career stage, positioning our participants and their clients for confidence and success.

Ready to deepen your risk analysis skills? Explore the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance's Analysis of Risk course to learn practical techniques for identifying, evaluating, and communicating risk more effectively. Visit the link in the show notes to learn more and register.

Focusing exclusively on risk management and insurance professional development, the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance provides a practical advantage at every career stage, positioning our participants and their clients for confidence and success.

Want to go deeper on the strategies behind managing complex risks like product recalls?

The Alliance’s Control of Risk course offers practical frameworks to help you strengthen risk evaluation and response.

Focusing exclusively on risk management and insurance professional development, the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance provides a practical advantage at every career stage, positioning our participants and their clients for confidence and success.

Topics Covered:

How many environmental exposures are your high-net-worth clients unknowingly self-insuring?

Environmental Strategist Resources:

Focusing exclusively on risk management and insurance professional development, the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance provides a practical advantage at every career stage, positioning our participants and their clients for confidence and success.

Focusing exclusively on risk management and insurance professional development, the Risk & Insurance Education Alliance provides a practical advantage at every career stage, positioning our participants and their clients for confidence and success.