“In the office ARC”; Howden Re’s Steve Hanke talks career in reinsurance, latest on professional lines market, and PLUS Foundation charitable work.
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Hanke details more than 30 years of experience in reinsurance.
Steve Hanke, managing director at Howden Re, sat down with ARC Excess & Surplus, LLC’s Justin Kudler for the 6th episode of “In the Office with ARC”.
Hanke has more than 30 years of experience in reinsurance, beginning with his time at Gen Re where he told Kudler that he “fell into the industry.”
Initially, Hanke worked in the IT department until he was inspired by a large board meeting and given the opportunity to become an underwriter.
“I kind of never looked back,” Hanke said. “That was 30 something years ago, and I’m glad I’ve done it; it’s a great industry, a lot of great people and it’s been fun.”
In addition to underwriting and reinsurance, Hanke has also spent time on the broking side as well.
“I think there’s more similarities, at least today, than there used to be,” said Hanke.
He believes that broking now requires being more technical, like the needs for underwriting. On the other hand, Hanke said a lot of the underwriting and reinsurance companies have become more focused on the role marketing plays on the industry level.
Current state of professional lines in reinsurance.
Kudler and Hanke also discussed the current state of the professional lines reinsurance market. Hanke calls it a transitional market that has gone through many changes since 2020.
“In that time, where the rate environment went up substantially, you had a supply and demand issue; there were about 30 new entrants in the market,” Hanke said.
Today, Hanke said there’s nearly 100 markets that say they write ENO on the insurance side with around 30 reinsurers behind that.
“When you unpack that and then you look at what happened to the IPO market crash during COVID, you have all of this supply and demand circling and attacking; we think it’s getting better,” Hanke said.
Now, Hanke said rates are not dropping as much as they used to be, based on public reports.
Kudler also said it’s not clear how the results of the 2024 U.S. Presidential election could impact those rates in the future.
PLUS Foundation work – creating an impact in the community.
Hanke is the current president of the PLUS Foundation, the organization’s goal is to do charitable work and create opportunities for today’s diverse workforce. While there, he’s worked with Rob Crocitto, current president of ARC Excess & Surplus, LLC and former president of the PLUS Foundation.
The PLUS Foundation was started after the 9/11 terrorist attack in the U.S. to help victims. Since then, the foundation has partnered with multiple organizations, including benefitting hurricane victims and creating a women’s leadership network.
Hanke said the two biggest priorities at the moment are the Women’s Leadership Network, which mentors women and helps sponsor education and career opportunities, and the Leadership And Mentoring Program, which mentors young people looking to advance their careers while attracting them to the business.
PLUS also looks to help the great community, Hanke said wherever conferences are, PLUS Foundation also donates to local groups. One example of the work, highlighted by Hanke, is in San Diego where foundation members packed 500 backpacks for homeless veterans.
“In addition to my day job, I love it because it’s a way to give back and also foster our industry,” Hanke said.
Kudler highlighted some of ARC Excess & Surplus, LLC’s charitable work as well, including food drives and toy drives among other big projects.