Members of the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) have elected
Amanda Blanc, ACII, CEO, AXA Insurance Commercial Lines and
Personal Intermediary, a Chartered insurer, as its 116th president
at its annual general meeting held in London yesterday (18 July
2012). Amanda takes over from Julian James, ACII, who is chief
executive officer of Lockton Companies LLP, a Chartered insurance
broker. Tom Woolgrove, managing director, Personal Lines Direct
Line Group, has also been elected as CII deputy president.
Commenting on her election as president, Amanda Blanc said: "It
is a great honour to take on the Presidency of the Chartered
Insurance Institute. I shall be following in the footsteps of many
great figures in the world of insurance and financial services and
I hope that, in my year in office, I uphold the traditions of this
esteemed office.
"I am fortunate that my year in office coincides with the second
half of the centenary of the granting of the Royal Charter to the
CII. It is no exaggeration to say that recent developments relating
to banking have thrust the issue of professional standards to
centre stage of public discussion. I passionately believe that the
Aldermanbury Declaration has set us on the path to raising
professional standards in general insurance but we must not rest on
our laurels - we must redouble our efforts to ensure our own house
is in order.
"Finally, I look forward to visiting many of the local
institutes in my year if office to meet as many of you as
possible."
Dr Alexander Scott, CII chief executive, said: "This is a
significant year for the CII as we celebrate 100 years of our Royal
Charter. The principles expressed in our Charter, of securing and
justifying the confidence of the public, have never been more
important or relevant given the current difficult economic
conditions in the UK and abroad. It is because of the hard work and
dedication of all volunteers, officers and members of the CII that
the ambition of our Charter remains achievable. I would like to
thank Julian for his commitment to the CII and its members over the
past year, and it is with great pleasure that I welcome Amanda
Blanc as president and Tom Woolgrove as deputy president for the
coming year."
The winner of the Rutter Medal, presented by the outgoing
president each year in recognition of the best qualifying new
Fellow of the CII, was Lama Sweis, FCII, Lockton Companies.
ENDS
CONTACTS
Lucy Grubb, media relations manager
lucy.grubb@cii.co.uk
Office: 020 7417 4430
Mobile: 07584 213408
NOTES TO EDITORS
The CII
The CII is the world's leading professional organisation for
insurance and financial services. Its 105,000 members are committed
to maintaining the highest standards of technical competence and
ethical conduct. A robust framework of learning and development
solutions enables the CII to support corporate partners and
individuals across the industry. It ensures that all members comply
with minimum standards and inspires many more to achieve advanced
levels of technical and professional competence.
Follow the CII on Twitter, where you will be kept up to date
with latest press releases, media appearances and expert
commentary: www.twitter.com/CIIGroup.
CII Annual Report and Accounts
The CII's Annual Report and Accounts were published in April
2011 and further details on the CII's 2011 performance and strategy
for 2012 can be found on the CII website - www.cii.co.uk/annualreport
Julian James - Immediate Past President
Julian James joined Lockton International in May 2007. In March
2008 he was appointed chief executive officer of Lockton Companies
International Ltd (now Lockton Companies LLP).
Prior to that Julian James worked for Lloyd's as director,
Worldwide Markets. He was appointed to that role in December 2000
and was responsible for all Lloyd's commercial activities outside
the UK, including the management of its 72 trading licences. In
additional he oversaw Lloyd's global branding and communications
including international advertising, media relations and Government
affairs.
Julian joined Lloyd's in December 1997 as head of the North
America Business Unit. Previously he was development director of
brokers Sedgwick Energy and Marine and a member of the division's
Executive Management Committee. Prior to this he had spent five
years working in senior positions with Sedgwick in North
America.
Amanda Blanc - President
Amanda's career began at Commercial Union in 1989 as a graduate
trainee where she went on to become the first woman appointed both
a branch and then regional manager of underwriting and sales.
She then undertook a number of roles including senior
distribution and customer service at both AXA and Groupama before
joining Towergate Partnership Ltd in 2006 as CEO of its retail
division and ultimately becoming deputy group CEO.
In 2008, Amanda was awarded the Women in the City "Jaguar Woman
of Achievement Award" Amanda's current role is as CEO of AXA's
commercial business which includes the broking arm, Bluefin. She
has also recently assumed the additional responsibility of personal
lines broking.
Amanda was elected as deputy president of the CII for 2011/12
alongside CII president Julian James. Prior to this she stood down
from the CII Broking Faculty Board where she had served since March
2007 and is an original Member of the Aldermanbury Declaration Task
Force. A strong supporter of the CII's professionalism agenda in
the insurance media, Amanda requires her staff to be qualified. She
is a member of the Insurance Institute of Manchester.
Tom Woolgrove - Deputy President
Tom joined RBS Insurance in April 2010 and is currently managing
director, Personal Lines Direct Line Group. Previously, he held
various MD roles with HBOS and Lloyds Banking Group, including UK
Private Banking, General Insurance and Motor Finance. He holds a
Masters Degree in Engineering and Management, and a MBA from the
University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
The Rutter Medal
The Rutter Medal is awarded annually to the best new Fellow of
the Chartered Insurance Institute. The silver gilt Medal is awarded
with a cash prize of £1,000 and a complimentary invitation to
attend the CII conference.
The Aldermanbury Declaration
The Aldermanbury Declaration is a common framework for standards
within the general insurance profession. For more information
please visit: /about/aldermanbury-declaration/the-declaration/