Katie Carr

Senior underwriter, Hiscox

Give us a snapshot of your career to date.

I got my start in the City of London as a direct broker for Willis, cutting my teeth in Lloyd’s (and Leadenhall Market). Working in London was a great experience, for the people I worked with, but also for exposure to an array of business and the issues that go along with that.

I wasn’t in a rush to move home to Bermuda, but an opportunity came up with Lancashire to pivot to reinsurance underwriting, and the new challenge was attractive. Lancashire’s communal approach to underwriting was great for skill transfer and taught me to have conviction in my underwriting decision-making.

From Lancashire I moved to PartnerRe and worked closely with Joe Hooks and Olivia Bishop. At PartnerRe I honed my technical abilities as an underwriter, and was afforded some continuity with familiar clients which was great.

As a senior underwriter with Hiscox Re I continue to build on my long-standing client and broker relationships and my technical abilities, but now with a broader portfolio level view.

What attracted you to re/insurance?

The aspect of the industry I identified with immediately was the importance of relationships. I may be old-school, but I like face-to-face meetings, and enjoy interacting with others immensely. Certainly, there was a great deal of interaction as a Lloyd’s broker, and this remains an important part of my current role.

Do you feel this sector is attuned to D&I?

It is definitely getting better. I recall early in my career sitting at a boardroom table at a large group client meeting and being the only woman in the room. Fast-forward a decade or so and recently I was in a client meeting that was exclusively women but for one male broker.

Certainly more women are now holding senior positions, for example, Hiscox Re’s chief executive officer Kathleen Reardon, but I think there is still more work to be done. Fostering greater racial diversity in the industry should be a priority in my view. My colleague Marlon Williams and a number of our professional peers are leading the way in advocacy on this front having launched the Association for Corporate Racial Equality.

Donna Cotter

Chief executive officer, Sun Life International

Give us a snapshot of your career to date.

My journey to chief executive officer of Sun Life International began with my first job in hard goods retailing at Canadian Tire. After achieving my CFA designation in 2002, I moved into financial services with Manulife, where I spent approximately 14 years before joining HSBC as global head of Strategic Partnerships.

Four years later, in 2021, I joined Sun Life International. My career has certainly not been a straight line. Rather, it has been diverse and has included many different functions across different businesses and geographies. While I have physically worked in Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, and now Bermuda, I have worked with approximately 40 different countries.

I didn’t fit the mould, which had both positive and negative points. It meant I didn’t get pigeon-holed and got lots of different opportunities. But it also meant that at times, my pathway wasn’t clear at all. However, all roads have led me to where I am now: one year into my tenure as CEO of Sun Life International.

Have you encountered any DEI-related challenges?

I feel I’ve been fairly treated throughout my career. Of course, I have encountered situations where I was discounted or my opinions were discarded only to have a male colleague restate my point to wide acceptance. But I was fortunate to have some amazing mentors and leaders along my journey. I believe that many of the women and minorities who progress through organisation levels are required to be extremely competent in all areas and there is less margin for error for women and minorities in senior roles.

As I began to move into more senior roles, it was very common for me to be the only woman in the room. While that didn’t bother me much, it became more and more obvious that men and women have different styles and approaches; I became more aware of the need for female role models. In certain areas of financial services there was a real imbalance, and that imbalance had a tangible internal and external impact on employees, development opportunities, corporate results, and even on how financial services have been shaped.

If the people developing the products and service are of a single profile, the inevitable result is that the end product/service and how it is provided will have an embedded (and mostly unconscious) bias.

How is the Bermuda life sector doing in terms of DEI?

I have been very impressed by the number of women in senior roles and leading organisations in the Bermuda life sector. In fact, I have never seen such a high concentration or representation in any other market. That said, there is still much work to be done in addressing racial and cultural diversity across all levels and types of roles.

There are several things I have done, and will continue to do, to elevate female leaders in all sectors. I have formally and informally mentored several younger professionals, both male and female. I’ve sponsored development courses, such as executive presence and communication skills, that were specifically developed for female leaders. Hiring practices are particularly important, so I push recruiters to ensure we get a diverse candidate pool through a variety of channels.

Women tend to be less active self-promoters and networkers. They may not always show up in traditional channels or in certain types of roles where word of mouth tends to be more important to be seen and/or considered for promotion opportunities. Most of all, I encourage women to show up, take a chance, be confident in their abilities, and to share their opinions. I and other leaders want to hear from them.