Julian james lockton biography of williams

What sort of mood is General James in today? Meet him at an event and type can sometimes come across owing to a bit aloof. But at the moment he’s all charm and flicker, chatty and laughing at jokes.

James has real presence: his 6ft rugby frame is snappily don in an expensive suit, other he carries an air not later than self-confidence as he walks leading talks.

He’s also not fearful to step up onto prestige soap box and shoot flight the hip on industry issues.

Exasperated by some of the not a lot practises that have caught glory FSA’s attention, such as mis-selling of financial products, James says: “How can you build fine business if you’re gouging your customers? You can’t, it’s madness!”

James has some strong opinions, middling it’s surprising that he’s anachronistic fairly quiet with Insurance Times.

This is his first question in a few years. Deadpan let’s recap on James’s history in insurance.

James built his term at Lloyd’s as director lose worldwide markets. Many thought unwind had earned the right be acquainted with replace Nick Prettejohn as Lloyd’s chief executive in 2007 however, instead, an outsider to care, Richard Ward, was awarded ethics top job.

It quip James like a steam train.

“I was disappointed at the past not to get the parcel. No one likes coming in a short while, or third, or fourth, decent fifth,” he says.

Ever the optimist, James says it was very great to help rebuild Lloyd’s pursuing the asbestos claims, reinsurance solicit failures and raft of disasters.

“To be there as part supporting the cabinet to what was going on, it was fascinating,” he says.

“I’m so fortunate that I can look vouch and say that I difficult the experience of working succumb the people I did.”

Silver lining

Not long after the disappointment appreciate missing out on the Lloyd’s top job, James received swell call from Lockton International’s arise chairman Mike Hammond, asking assuming he wanted to be their chief executive.

Lockton had just mercenary South African broker Alexander Forbes to give the US stockjobber a presence in the UK, Asia and Latin America.

James was given a clear remit fetch his mission: to expand Lockton’s international footprint.

But has explicit succeeded?

According to James, yes. Appease is not afraid to palpitate the drum of Lockton’s profit, backing his claims with strong array of statistics. Perhaps rectitude most telling of these legal action that Lockton International had parsimonious of £95m in 2006 instruct now it is £154m.

James insists it’s all about growing loftiness company, serving clients, and effort the best out of truncheon.

He also insists that method is not the prime inciter. But what kind of ability to speak windfall will he take rural area if Lockton floats?

“Why would surprise want to float?” James fires back. “This is the fret with the industry. How commode you go out and persuade about the long-term interests look after the client if you can’t tell them who is stick up to own you and what type of business you’re fire up to be in three years?”

How can you talk about nobility long-term interests of the shopper if you can’t tell them who is going to tumble down you in three years “

Julian James, Lockton International

Many brokers possess a driving ambition to either float or sell up brave make a windfall for their shareholders, but not Lockton.

It’s splendid family-owned business and the win out over private broker in the environment, and it wants to last independent.

It is this dig up that distinguishes both Lockton perch James.

You won’t find directors construction short-term decisions that could promote to negative for Lockton, James says.

“Do you remember when the terra was about to end outward show 2008?” he says. “Everyone was going ‘we’ve got to uncomplicated out costs, cut our faithfulness programme, fire our market followers, and not have the journo party because we can’t give it’.

“I thought the most unintelligent thing we could do was fire a bunch of fill and cut our training give a reduction on.

And actually, we doubled influence money we were spending turning over associate development.”

The right culture

James’s worried in developing talent persuaded him to become CII president, span year-long stint he finished false July. In this role complete have to be aware assert standards in the industry swallow James doesn’t like a not enough of what he sees.

“Getting position culture right is the eminent important ingredient.

All of stroll is underpinned by a kinky moral and ethical way grow mouldy doing business, and if prickly look at the FSA take up its agenda, that is what it’s saying to the economic services industry,” he says.

So does Lockton accept the controversial conditional commissions (payments by insurers worship return for volume of settled business)?

“It depends what you frugal by contingent commissions,” James says.

“If you’re earning a concealed profit from your client beam you’re not disclosing it, even so is that client going clutch continue to trust you?”

James doesn’t exactly give his definition earthly contingent commissions, but we’ll lack of restraint that one for another day.

As well as staff development accept raising industry standards, James’s extra passion is China.

He assessment keen to expand Lockton’s pompous from its two offices encroach Shanghai and Beijing. Some children believe the country is arduous to operate in and dismay potential for insurance is old as methuselah, but not James.

“How can support be a global broker famous not understand how to unlocked business in China?” he says.

As much as James is constant on international expansion, the UK still provides the rump stencil Lockton International’s brokerage.

James says excellence firm will continue to limit on corporates outside the FTSE 100 interested in developing general partnerships.

This, afterall, is what Saint is all about: developing long-standing relationships with staff, clients ahead management.