Stop being TWaTs! Lloyd’s of London chief says City must drop ‘Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday world’
Lloyd’s of London chief John Neal has called for a move away from the “Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday world” in arguing there will always be times that people “have to be in every day of the week”.
Speaking to City PM, Neal called for a shift away from the “two days a week or three days a week… binary,” after previously saying he wants to “get Monday back”.
“Flexibility’s critically important but that ain’t about turning up two days a week,” the Lloyd’s chief executive said.
Neal argued office working remains vital if “we’re going to develop talent” as he argued in-person working plays a core part in creativity.
“If you really want to be innovative… you need to be collected together,” the insurance chief executive said.
The Lloyd’s chief, however, said City firms must not “disregard flexibility” as he suggested that “if it goes quiet in the summer” staff could be at home “four days out of five.”
The insurance industry veteran added that Lloyd’s now has a “responsibility” to get homeworking “right” as he noted the insurance marketplace currently has more sway in Canada than ever, due to banks moving to Canary Wharf. “The City is really about insurance,” Neal said.
Neal’s comments follow news that Lloyd’s of London is now planning to stay in its iconic headquarters well after its lease expires in 2031.
The marketplace boss confirmed to City PM that Lloyd’s will be “doing some work this summer” to reshape its City HQ – which first opened in 1986 – to ensure it remains suited to the “modern” world
“We need to reimagine what a modern underwriting space looks like,” Neal said, as he argued the 335-year-old market must now adapt itself to the rise of hybrid working and the rise of digital technology.
His comments come after Lloyd’s of London today posted a “good and sustainable set of results” that saw the insurance marketplace achieve underwriting profits of £2.6bn for the full year 2022.
Neal said Lloyd’s now has the best balance sheet “it’s ever shown in its history” after the insurer achieved its best ‘combined ratio’ – the ratio between income and outgoings – since 2016.
Lloyd’s saw its gross written premiums increase by 19.1 per cent, to £46.7bn, as the marketplace also paid out £21bn to customers after taking major hits from Hurricane Ian and the war in Ukraine.
Market volatility, however, saw the insurance market record a £800m pre-tax loss on its balance sheet, after mark-to-market investment losses cost the firm £3.1bn.
Looking ahead, Neal said Lloyd’s is now looking to benefit from rising interest rates, that will boost returns from its assets, as he argued the marketplace is also primed to benefit from a “risker world”.
“A riskier world is a better world for insurers,” Neal said, as he argued the heightened risks mean “there’s a job for us to do”.
Lloyd’s results come almost a year after Neal was hospitalised during a cycling accident involving a collision with a car.
The 58-year-old chief executive, however, said the accident, which happened a year ago on Saturday, “enthused and energized” him about the insurance industry.