Q&A With Berni Hackett (she/her) Head of Customer Management & Global Relationship Leader, Zurich Commercial UK

How did you get into the insurance sector?

Well, it’s quite a tale of adventure… I was at university doing an economics degree and at the time my mother worked for BMW in finance, and they had a big affinity programme with a broker called Sedgwick. Now my mum thought that I needed some proper work experience rather than just the bar work I’d been doing, so she was able to get my a summer internship through her contacts at Sedgwick. I did one summer of filing. Then the following summer they were launching a brand-new product for this fandangled new thing called a mobile phone! You could even get them without a cord, they were a lot of money, so they launched an insurance programme. I think there were six of us students who came in to help them launch it.

I applied for the Graduate programme at Sedgwicks, I didn’t know they had a grad programme until I asked someone for a reference for some other programmes I was applying to, but I was offered a role and took it. There weren’t very many women working in insurance at that time, and I went into the mining and utilities team on the commercial side. I think there was one female client exec and two other female grads the years ahead of me (one per year!). I started my rotation in claims, and it was a real eye opener, sometimes the clients would insist they wanted to talk to a bloke, and I would offer them the mailroom or suggest I solved their problem. But on a serious note, the beauty of starting in claims is you have to read and know the policies really quickly.

I finished the programme and decided it was time to see the world so the plan was to see America and end up in London, Sedgwicks now part of Marsh, held my job for me because they didn’t think I would last the winter in Britain. But I did last, I did several months of contracting with various firms in the city including Aon. I met my now husband we decided to do some more travelling and see Europe and Africa and when we got back, we both thought we better get real jobs so that’s how I landed in JLT.

At that time JLT had the best construction team in the market and I was offered a role in a new team they had set up on construction PI, this was in 2001. I did that for six years looking after international clients most of whom were either Australian or Middle Eastern. Then after having my first baby I joined a new team in JLT focussed on New Business Construction to head up the European practice. So I got to travel all over Europe building relationships. We often found that clients would come in on construction as its such a big part of their insurance needs, but we could introduce and cross sell other lines of business to those clients too. It was such good fun. Working at JLT was like working in a family.

I was approached by Gallagher’s to head up their construction practice, and you know I was in the mood for a change again and so off I went to Gallagher’s. But to be honest, the culture didn’t fit for me personally, so I was only there for 18 months.

I thought I was done with city, I convinced myself I was going to brew coffee or learn yoga. But I stayed in touch with everyone I knew in the city and an opportunity to join the Construction practice at Zurich arose and I took it. So I was responsible for the Customer and Distribution for the Construction practice in the UK and EMEA, we were a separate team back then. I moved across to the Customer and Distribution team in Global Corporate and became a Global Relationship Leader. Eventually I became responsible for a wider group of customers beyond construction, my approach is to always find the right expert for the customer.

I now lead the Customer Team, ensuring we look holistically at our customer and broker relationships.

What are your career highlights?

Definitely doing the European role in JLT, building up that part of the business across all insurance lines was a real highlight. At that time, I also headed up the nuclear practice group, where the technology in nuclear energy had come a long way and was a viable alternative to fossil fuels. I had to campaign to set up the practice group and once it was set up, I worked with the team based in Paris where there was some awesome expertise. But then Fukushima hit and that changed everything.

The other highlight is probably working with Macquarie, when I took over the relationship it was in what I would call a distressed state and we were able to get under the value of the portfolio and just really got it together. Now we’ve grown that book of business hugely and it’s a really valuable relationship for both of us.

Then I guess maybe taking over our relationship with BP, I know nothing about oil and gas, but Zurich has some amazing people who do know it all, so what I did was just make sure everything else was sorted. As part of that relationship, we’ve been able to look at lots of different things and supporting them on their transition to Net Zero, looking at what sits outside their regular insurance programmes that can really help them and it deepens the connection with our organisation.

And one of the joys of being on the carrier side is when you win business you know you’ve won because it’s the right thing for the customer and the broker. I love winning, I really do love to win deals and go after deals, but I always think of it as ‘how can I get the best outcome for the client’ and that mentality really helps you win.

You’ve spoken a bit about sustainability there, specifically in the energy sector, but thinking more broadly what role do insurers play in the wider sustainability agenda?

Insurers need to play a big and important role in sustainability, in all aspects. If we focus first on climate and the planet – our customers are looking at how to deliver net zero and we need to lean in and listen and look at every possible way, we can support that. We also need to ensure that we personally, and as an insurer play a part too.  It is only credible if we too are making active change to improve the planet.

What excites you about working on sustainability with your customers and brokers?

It’s really about making a difference… what could me more impactful than finding ways to make the world a better place! My customers passion for the topic too is great and leads to us using their change to drive our change and vice versa! It’s probably one of the most exciting changes to hit our industry.

What’s the top lesson that you’ve learnt?

I’ve learnt lots of things, I’m not sure all of them are publishable. But as a serious answer, it’s important to choose who you work for. Choose your boss carefully. And that’s because that’s your immediate advocate and you have to work well for them and behave well and treat your wider colleagues well. Being nice is one of the most important traits you can have and that’s regardless of your role.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?

It was from my high school principal... a formidable nun, who was decades ahead of her time and a great driver for feminism and for her “girls” to be the women who lead in the future and to embrace change... She said “life has peaks and troughs,  in the trough it will feel like it will never get better, but remember you can never appreciate a peak, the peak can’t even exist without out the trough… look up, remember all the good things that you have done and have and look at all the good that is to come”… and I use that advice in every part of my life, it helps give perspective and to really appreciate every moment of every day.

What would you be doing if you weren’t working in insurance?

Late night TV show host, that was my teenage dream to be a female, funnier David Letterman.

What one thing do you think people might people be surprised to know about you?

I talk about my life so much it’s hard to imagine there are things people don’t know about me! Ok so my photo was on the side of a bin truck in London for almost two years, also Lambeth town hall and a whole load of bus stops. So, let me explain, there was a community event to tidy up the local playground and I love being involved in community events but I also hate people who leave cigarette butts lying around so this was the most perfect Sunday morning activity for me and the family! I made my husband and the kids come down with me and help with the clean-up. Now I’ll be honest we were clearing up rubbish so hoodies and leggings rather than Sunday best. And this girl asked to take our photo telling us it would probably be in the local magazine or something low key. Then I completely forgot about it until I got a text from my friend who was 100% sure she was standing next to me at a bus stop in Brixton, she sent me a photo of the bus shelter and there I was with my daughter posing with our litter pickers. Then I found out there was a ten-foot version of me on the side of Brixton town hall. Honestly, I got so many messages from friends who were spotting me on the side of bin trucks… one of my friends even stopped one to take a photo of it on its route through the South Bank when she was on a day out with her kids!

Then the other thing I’ve been doing with my Saturdays through the pandemic, is volunteering at the vaccine clinic. It has been so much fun. I’m there in my high vis with the clipboard ready to direct people and greet people. It was so good to get out of the house and I loved meeting all the fabulous people who live in my South London neighbourhood.

What do you love about working for Zurich?

Zurich is the loveliest place I’ve ever worked, and it goes all the way up to the top. Right to the very top of the leadership the behaviours are good, there is real care for employees and the customers that is genuine and that creates an amazing culture to work in, at every level of the organisation. Never underestimate how great it is to work for and with people who are fundamentally nice and good people – there is no better place to work!

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