A big Hill to climb: what the CII’s new CEO must do

The revolving door at the top tier of the Chartered Insurance Institute over the past few years has caused many heads to spin.

Following Sian Fisher’s exit after six years at the top at the start of 2022, Jonathan Clark took the reins as interim for a few months and he was followed by Alan Vallance, who joined that summer. 

Vallance, pictured left, quit last year after less than 18 months in the post, resulting in Gill White, chief customer officer, stepping in as acting CEO while a permanent successor was sought.

On Monday (15 January) it was announced White, the solitary member of the executive team left from Fisher’s time, will only need to hold the fort until April as Legal Services Board CEO Matthew Hill will then become the CII’s new leader.

Hill’s lack of insurance experience, coupled with the current state of the CII, resulted in many raised eyebrows among industry stalwarts so, to end the working week, I thought I would share the three things most insurers told me they want from him in his first 100 days in charge.

1 Demonstrate knowledge

Firstly, everyone I spoke to wants Hill to demonstrate how he is the right man for the role.

Following Vallance’s exit, regulatory expert Branko Bjelobaba said he was hopeful the CII would appoint an industry leader who was “someone well known, capable, charismatic and ready to take forward a professional body steeped in history and the loyalty of hundreds of volunteers.”

The fact Hill has never worked in financial services, plus his shared tenure at the Legal Services Board with Dr Helen Phillips, who is currently chair of the CII and was chair of the LSB until the start of last year, has raised concerns among insurers.

A former CII council member, who wished to remain anonymous, fears Hill’s past working relationship with Phillips could result in a lack of diversity of thought at the professional body’s top tier.

His worry was shared by a former Personal Finance Society board member, who also wished to keep their identity secret.

The ex-PFS board member said: “We need reassurance that he was the standout candidate from a strongly-contested field and not [just put] in [the] position to protect and deflect from all the criticism of Phillips’ CII board.

“I think he will have problems unless he convinces the membership that it is actually him leading the CII and that he can demonstrate a knowledge of all the issues.”

2 Firm financial footing

Increasing exam revenue will be important for Hill, with insurers flagging they want to know how he will bolster the professional body’s fortunes and learn from past mistakes.

The CII’s latest strategy, published in April, acknowledged the professional body must address the legacy system and financial issues that have plagued it in recent years, resulting in cash reserves dwindling and problems delivering exams, before it can attract more members and get more insurers to sit exams.

Robin Melley, president of the Insurance Institute of Shropshire and Mid-Wales, recommended an independent review to determine what went wrong in the past, who was responsible, plus what steps should be taken to put the CII on a firmer financial footing moving forward.

We desperately need to move on from the distrust between the CII and PFS bodies."

Martin Ashfield, founder and director of Maine Consultants Ltd

Another past Local Institute president, who wished to remain anonymous, said it was vital Hill painted a clear picture about the state of the body’s finances post-pandemic and clarified whether the group’s future depended on the Personal Finance Society’s coffers.

He said: “The CII can only move forward if there is transparency and accountability at the top.

“An independent review is exactly what is required. Without the new CEO understanding the full facts, coupled with his lack of experience in the sector, he will find it extremely difficult to make progress. A good plan starts with the truth.”

3 Personal problems

Top of Hill’s in-tray, according to several insurers, should be restoring relations with the Personal Finance Society.

Just before Christmas 2022, relations became frosty when the CII announced it would appoint the majority of PFS board directors and three new institute directors with immediate effect.

Vallance insisted flooding the PFS board with members was due to governance concerns rather than any need to access the financial planning body’s cash, but a single-page summary of the CII’s finances issued alongside the organisation’s AGM agenda late last year resulted in renewed calls for clarity about the overall group’s finances.

Alasdair Walker, a former chair of the PFS Power panel who called for a probe into the CII’s finances ahead of the last AGM, said: “I want him to get to the bottom of the PFS/CII situation and come to the table with fresh ideas.

An ex-CII staff member, who wished to remain anonymous, agreed that for the sake of the group’s current crop of staff and members it was vital that Hill agree a way forward with the PFS and publicise it.

Martin Ashfield, founder and director of Maine Consultants Ltd, echoed the former staff members words and added: “We desperately need to move on from the distrust between the CII and PFS bodies."

Ashfield encouraged Hill to prioritise communication, transparency and engagement and pointed out if he “feels he is overdoing those three things then he is probably getting them about right.”

He added “the support is there Matthew. Please tap into it and I wish you every success.”

High hopes

Ultimately, I felt the industry’s hopes for Hill were best summed up by Chris Hall, managing director of QuestGates.

Hall said: “Given the turmoil surrounding the CII in recent years we have to wish Matthew luck and hope that he can repair relationships with the membership and provide the institute with the leadership that it needs.

“While Matthew has no experience whatsoever of our industry, he will find that the institute’s members are committed and passionate about our profession and that we all want him to succeed and will fully support him in ensuring that this is a true fresh start.”

If Hill hits the road during his first 100 days and meets as many providers as well as brokers as he possibly can, I am sure he will quickly discover general insurance is a people industry.

He'll discover insurance is full of people who want to help him on his way to achieving the Chartered institute’s Royal Charter requirement: raise trust in the insurance profession.