Jill Husbands Wins Lifetime Achievement Award
Jill Husbands, the Chairman and Managing Director of Marsh IAS Management Services [Bermuda], has been selected the winner of the inaugural Fred Reiss Lifetime Achievement Award, to be presented at this month’s Bermuda Captive Conference [June 13–15].
Ms Husbands 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.
Since then, she has 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.”
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.
Marsh IAS [Bermuda] Chair Jill Husbands, winner of the inaugural Fred Reiss Lifetime Achievement Award
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.
“I am thrilled and honored to be selected as the winner of the inaugural Fred Reiss Lifetime Achievement Award,” said Ms Husbands.
“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.”
Mr Reiss was born in Cleveland, Ohio on March 21, 1925 and died at age 68 in Bermuda on November 18, 1993. He attended Harvard University on a full scholarship.
Married three times, he has five children, Steven, Larry, Claudia, Nicolette and Jonathan. As well as his industry contributions, he was known as a philanthropist who made major donations to the Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences [BIOS] and Saltus Grammar School, among other non-profits.
“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 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,” Reiss added.
“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.”
Bermuda insurance industry pioneer Fred Reiss
Gibbons said 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.”
“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,” noted Gibbons. “We are doubly honoured to have the first winner be someone as accomplished as Jill.”
The 2016 conference is expected to attract more than 700 delegates to the Fairmont Southampton Resort for three days of moderated panels and roundtables focusing on industry hot topics, including healthcare, ILS and cyber.
The conference will also mark this year’s inductees to the Bermuda Captive Hall of Fame, an honour awarded to companies that have committed at least 25 years to the island’s market.
Bermuda is the top global captive jurisdiction, home to nearly 800 captive insurance companies, supporting primarily Fortune 500 corporations in the US, and generating over $48 billion in annual gross written premiums.
For more information on the Bermuda Captive Conference, call +1-441/295-2626, email info@bermudacaptive.bm or go to bermudacaptiveconference.com
