In the final episode of our special three-part series exploring Aon's 2026 Human Capital Trends Study, Byron Beebe is joined by Max Saraví and Guy Clarkson to discuss how leaders can turn workforce investments into stronger business outcomes.

As workforce and healthcare costs continue to rise, organizations are facing increasing pressure to make every people investment count. The conversation explores how leading employers are using employee value propositions, data and personalization to make more informed decisions, strengthen the employee experience and align workforce strategies with business priorities. The episode also examines how AI and emerging technologies are helping organizations deliver greater value, generate deeper insights and position themselves for long-term growth.

Key Takeaways:       

Experts in this episode:     

Key Moments:       

(1:30) Why organizations are rethinking people investments as employee expectations and healthcare costs continue to rise, and how a strong EVP can help employers deliver greater value.

(5:05) How leading organizations use data, personalization and employee insights to guide workforce investment decisions and improve employee experiences.

(11:00) The future of workforce investment, including AI-powered personalization, integrated employee experiences and the growing importance of data maturity.

Soundbites:       

Byron Beebe:  

“As workforce costs continue to rise, the real opportunity lies not in spending more but making every investment in your people count.”

Max Saraví:  

“A strong employee value proposition acts as a framework for making better decisions about people investment rather than simply adding more programs or benefits."

Guy Clarkson:

"For me, an employee value proposition should be a decision-making framework that helps organizations decide where to invest, balancing what matters most to their employees, but also how they can then allocate limited resources."

In this Risk Capital Insight episode of the On Aon podcast, Aon leaders discuss why supply chain risk has become a critical leadership priority as geopolitical uncertainty, changing trade relationships and interconnected supplier networks reshape the global business landscape.

The conversation examines how disruptions can emerge well beyond direct suppliers to impact revenue, operations and reputation. Aon experts explore how organizations can use data, analytics and deeper scrutiny to make more informed decisions, strengthen confidence in their risk strategies and identify opportunities to stay ahead of emerging threats. They also discuss the evolving role of insurers and capital providers and how innovation in risk capital is helping organizations better understand exposures, unlock capacity and support growth.

Key Takeaways:      

Experts in this episode:    

Key Moments:      

(2:00) Why geopolitical developments, trade dynamics and supplier interdependencies are creating new leadership challenges across global supply chains.

(7:55) The factors driving supply chain risk onto boardroom agendas, including concentration risk, limited visibility beyond Tier 1 suppliers and the need to balance efficiency with continuity.

(22:45) How data, analytics and emerging risk capital solutions are helping organizations gain confidence in decision-making and strengthen their approach to supply chain risk.

Soundbites:      

Bianca McKenzie: 

“It's clear that supply chain disruption isn't just an operational issue, it's ultimately a financial resilience issue.”

Lee Meyrick: 

“Building forward-looking models that allow the carriers to understand both their per risk and their aggregated risk is really helpful in them coming to the to the fall when it comes to providing capital. I think this is of real value to both clients and the carriers, because there is an increase in demand. This is a new market. This is a new product that needs to come into the market.”

Richard Waterer:

“I think supply chain risk has moved up the agenda because leaders now recognize that it can directly affect revenue, earnings, customer service and reputation. It's no longer an operational issue that's buried in the supply chain function.”

In this Global Insight episode of the On Aon podcast, Aon leaders examine why extreme heat is emerging as a critical business challenge that demands greater visibility, preparedness and investment. Against the backdrop of heat waves and wildfires across North America and Europe, the discussion explores how heat can create significant financial and operational impacts across organizations, even when physical damage is limited or unseen.

The conversation highlights how heat can disrupt workforce productivity, energy systems, infrastructure, supply chains and business continuity simultaneously. It also explores how organizations can use climate analytics, engineering insight, scenario planning and risk transfer to better understand exposure, make more informed capital decisions and build resilience that helps them stay ahead of evolving climate risks.

Key Takeaways:       

Experts in this episode:     

Key Moments:       

(02:20) Why extreme heat is rising on leadership agendas, including the growing financial exposure associated with higher temperatures, aging infrastructure and more frequent heat events.

(6:05) How heat creates cascading business impacts, from workforce productivity and construction delays to equipment performance, energy demand, cooling costs and transportation disruption.

(20:20) How organizations can move from awareness to action through exposure analysis, mitigation and adaptation planning and risk transfer strategies that support long-term resilience.

Soundbites:       

Liz Henderson:  

“It's a risk amplifier in general. So across different industries like the food industry or construction, they might be worried about worker productivity, business downtime, crop impacts. And the underlying cause of those things is climate change risks and things like extreme heat.”

Josh Turner:  

“Extreme heat waves are becoming more common as the climate is shifting in ways that make historical averages a pretty unreliable guide for planning.”

In this Industry Insight episode of the On Aon podcast, Aon leaders discuss why employee benefits have become a critical leadership agenda item for retailers. As benefits costs rise and workforce expectations evolve, organizations have an opportunity to unlock greater value from one of their largest workforce investments.

The conversation explores how leading retailers are using data, analytics and governance to make more informed decisions, align workforce investments with business priorities and strengthen outcomes across talent, operations and financial performance. They also examine how a more strategic approach to benefits can help organizations gain deeper insight, deploy capital more effectively and stay ahead in a rapidly changing environment.

Key Takeaways:     

Experts in this episode:   

Key Moments:     

(01:50) Why employee benefits have moved beyond a traditional HR function and become a leadership priority tied to workforce performance, financial outcomes and risk management.

(08:25) How organizations can improve visibility into benefits spending, strengthen governance and identify opportunities to create greater value from workforce investments.

(13:08) How data and analytics are transforming benefits decision-making and helping organizations connect workforce investments to business outcomes.

Soundbites:     

Tom Bowman:

"Benefits are no longer simply a cost of employment. They are now much more of a strategic lever that can actually influence workforce performance. And that then improves employee experience that then drives real benefits, both on operational resilience and also the real financial outcomes of an organization."

Matt Duffy:

“Benefits have now become one of the largest workforce investments that organizations make, secondary only to payroll. And yet historically they've received far less attention and far less strategic oversight by the people within the organization that really matter.”

In the second episode of a special On Aon mini-series on the 2026 Human Capital Trends study, Aon's Human Capital leaders discuss why gaining a competitive advantage in an AI-powered future will depend as much on workforce readiness as it does on technology. While many organizations are accelerating AI adoption, lasting value comes from how leaders build the skills, culture and trust needed to put these tools to work. The conversation explores the leadership priorities that will shape the future of work, from developing critical capabilities and fostering adaptability to making better decisions in an increasingly AI-enabled environment.

Key Takeaways:    

Experts in this episode:   

Key Resources: 

2026 Human Capital Trends Study

Key Moments:    

(01:10) Why organizations need leaders who can combine AI capability with critical thinking to make better decisions, manage risk and capture opportunity.

(05:25) The risk of focusing on technology without investing in workforce readiness — and why culture, skills and employee experience remain central to AI adoption.

(12:15) How skills-based talent strategies, continuous learning and workforce insights can help leaders build resilience and stay ahead of changing business demands.

Soundbites:    

Byron Beebe:

"I do think the more senior leaders need to embrace AI, but I also think we'll have more junior colleagues who really drive a lot of the development in all organizations going forward."

Lisa Patel:

“One thing I'd say about all of this is that we can't look at any of these modules in isolation. So, if we truly want to unlock the full potential of AI, we need a holistic approach to the whole thing.”

John McLaughlin:

"You want people to be high on both critical thinking and AI capability. You want them to be able to spot and manage risks while taking advantage of the opportunity in front of them."

In this Risk Capital Insight episode of the On Aon podcast, Caroline St. Clair and Jon Chapman discuss how the next generation of digital infrastructure is changing how leaders think about risk, capital and long-term growth. As AI accelerates demand for data centers, organizations are pursuing larger, more capital-intensive projects with greater interdependencies across power, construction and operations.

The conversation explores why risk strategy must be embedded from the outset, how insurability influences investment decisions and what separates the organizations that can scale with confidence from those that face constraints later in the project lifecycle. Leaders will gain practical insights into aligning risk, capital and resilience to support sustainable growth and stay ahead in a rapidly evolving market.

Key Takeaways:    

Experts in this episode:     

Key Moments:    

(01:15) The AI infrastructure boom and how data center investment, power density and project scale are creating new concentrations of risk unlike anything the insurance market has previously experienced.

(06:15) What's at stake when organizations fail to consider insurability early — including the impact on financing, campus design, site selection and long-term resilience.

(16:50) Why digital infrastructure leaders should adopt a lifecycle approach to risk, connecting construction and operations into a single strategy for risk transfer and resilience. 

Soundbites:    

Caroline St. Clair:   

“Risk is no longer something you transfer after a project's been created. It's something that's determined very early in the process in the way you design, power and even configure your assets. And the people that get these choices right unlock capital, insurability and resilience. And if you get them wrong, it can be very difficult to fix down the line."

Jon Chapman:   

“The organizations that win in the next decade won't just be the ones that build the biggest campuses. They'll be the ones that are credible under stress for insurers, lenders, customers, regulators and society.”

In this Global Insight episode of the On Aon podcast, Petra Schmidt and Derry Pickford reframe inflation from a cost challenge to a leadership test — one that is shaping how organizations allocate capital, price risk and position for growth.

They move beyond nearterm pressures to examine inflation as a persistent force influencing strategic decisions across pricing, supply chains and investment. The conversation centers on how leading businesses are building the capabilities to act in real time — bringing together data, discipline and scenario-planning to make better decisions in an unpredictable environment.

Rather than reacting to shifting conditions, Petra and Derry outline what it takes to stay ahead: embedding flexibility into operations, strengthening analytical capabilities and making deliberate tradeoffs that protect margin while positioning for longterm opportunity.

Key Takeaways:   

Experts in this episode:    

Key Moments:   

(01:30) What is structurally different about today’s inflation environment — and why recent shocks may be less severe but more frequent

(03:40) How organizations are responding in practice, from dynamic pricing and cost control to supply chain redesign and advanced analytics

(11:30) Why resilience is now a core capability — not a one-time initiative — and how leading organizations are building for continuous change

Soundbites:   

Petra Schmidt:  

“In an inflationary environment, resilience is not a project, it's a capability. So, inflation and volatility are no longer short-term disruptions. Companies should design operations assuming uncertainty will continue. Success is not about perfectly forecasting costs. It comes from continuously adapting. What we're seeing winning companies doing.”

Derry Pickford:  

“The only thing I'd add is that economists are fallible and if there's one thing that we can be sure on is that forecasts will be wrong. So I really think it's completely essential that companies take the measures that you suggested so that they are as resilient as possible when we get those inevitable surprises.”

In this Industry Insight episode of the On Aon podcast, Aon leaders Liz Henderson and Susan Doering examine how climate risk is redefining decision-making across the food, agribusiness and beverage (FAB) sector — and what it takes to stay ahead.

Rather than viewing climate as a standalone exposure, the conversation frames it as a force shaping pricing stability, operational continuity and workforce strategy. Liz and Susan discuss how organizations can translate insight into action by strengthening data capabilities, aligning cross-functional priorities and deploying innovative risk transfer solutions. The focus is not only on managing disruption, but on unlocking greater certainty, protecting margin and positioning for long-term growth.

Key Takeaways:  

Experts in this episode:   

Key Moments:  

(02:00) Why climate risk is no longer a standalone issue — and how it is amplifying supply chain disruption, pricing volatility and workforce pressures across the FAB sector.

(07:30) A real-world example showing how climate shifts are already changing harvest timelines, crop quality and long-standing production practices.

(15:30) What leadership looks like in practice — investing in analytics, aligning long-term planning and adopting new risk transfer approaches to create stability and support growth.

Soundbites:  

Liz Henderson: 

“At Aon, we like to think about climate as a risk amplifier rather than a standalone thing that you have to manage independently. It is a thread across all of those risk categories. And yet there's so much of the industry that remains unprotected.”

Susan Doering: 

“I'd like to make sure that people are thinking about it, not just as like when we think about climate risk, we often think it's about just impacts to physical assets. But really what we're seeing now is real issues around pricing volatility, so lack of predictable ingredient prices and quality impacts for specialty crops.”

Key Resources:

2026 Climate and Catastrophe Insight report

In the first episode of a special On Aon mini-series on the 2026 Human Capital Trends study, Aon’s Human Capital leaders outline a clear leadership challenge: AI is scaling fast, but the value it delivers is determined by how effectively organizations prepare their people to use it. The discussion moves beyond adoption to focus on aligning AI to business priorities, redesigning work and equipping leaders to translate capability into sustained growth.

Key Takeaways: 

Experts in this episode:  

Key Resources:

2026 Human Capital Trends Study

Key Moments: 

(00:45) AI adoption has accelerated across organizations, but workforce readiness is lagging, creating a gap between deployment and impact

(04:20) Why moving too quickly on technology without building capability leads to stalled return on investment and slower adoption

(13:00) How AI is reshaping the future of work, driving more fluid, skills-based roles and integrated ways of working

Soundbites: 

Byron Beebe:

“I really think it's the people using AI to do jobs better or to enhance what they can accomplish for customers of a business. Those are the people that are going to win.”

Amanda Scott:

“AI is no longer a technology story; it's a people story.”

Marinus Van Driel:

“What we're seeing is most organizations are scaling their tools, but very few are redesigning their work. So, most of them are in that foundation or that developing stage. And then I think that the question that's emerging from all of this that I think all leaders will have to grapple with in the near future is we can have AI do this work, but should we have AI do this work.”

On Aon — Episode 116

Title: Navigating Cyber Risk, Regulation and the Reality of Fines

In this Risk Capital Insight episode of the On Aon podcast, Pablo Constenla, head of coverage and claims for cyber and financial lines in EMEA for Aon, is joined by Charlie Weston-Simons, partner at A&O Shearman, to examine how leaders can stay ahead as cyber risk, regulation and financial exposure converge.

As artificial intelligence accelerates the scale and sophistication of attacks and regulators expand enforcement, the discussion focuses on what it takes to translate uncertainty into action — from quantifying cyber-related fines to understanding where insurance comes into play. Drawing on Aon’s Cyber Fines Report and frontline experience across incidents and investigations, the episode highlights how organizations can align legal, risk and insurance strategies to make more confident decisions and strengthen resilience at pace.

Key Takeaways:

Experts in this episode: 

Key Resources:

The Insurability of Cyber Fines

Key Moments:

(01:40) How AI is reshaping cyber risk, from enhanced social engineering to the emergence of automated attacks and new vulnerabilities

(05:30) The growing complexity of regulation, including NIS2 implementation challenges and inconsistencies across jurisdictions

(12:10) Why cyber incidents are now viewed as existential crises and how organizations should rethink incident response and resilience

Soundbites:

Pablo Constenla:

“And the real challenge isn't just managing cyber risk, it's connecting the dots across legal, risk and insurance when a collective action is faced.”

Charlie Weston-Simons:

“I think from a legal and insurance perspective, the key issue becomes how do you manage a risk that is evolving faster than regulation and controls can adapt.”