Spencer Looks Back with 2013 Gala Honoree Patrick G. Ryan
"I had known of the Spencer Educational Foundation for quite a long time before I was honored at their 2013 gala. Several of my close friends were early adaptors to the culture and principals of the Foundation, and I had seen how the contributions they were making to the industry through Spencer allowed them to prosper. Stimulated by these good friends who I hold in high esteem, I was thrilled to be chosen. My involvement with Spencer since then has further convinced me that everyone should help our industry’s future professionals through the Spencer Educational Foundation. And, of course, we are continuing to do that at RSG.
When I was honored in 2013, Ryan Specialty Group was only three years old. Throughout the last seven years, RSG has grown exponentially. Consistent with the principals of the Spencer Educational Foundation, we have been developing our recruiting and training program to attract young people coming into the insurance industry. This has been a big contributor to our success over these past 10 years. Recently, we made the decision to merge with All Risks, Ltd., who has developed one of the premier recruiting and training programs in the insurance brokerage industry. This merger is a big step in terms of the developing, recruiting, training, inspiring, and educating young people in our industry.
I am living proof that anybody can succeed in this industry through hard work and equipped with the right mentors and education. I’m very proud to have founded three sizeable companies that have become prominent in the industry: The Warranty Group, which is now owned by Assurant; Aon Corporation; and Ryan Specialty Group, which has built a prominent position in wholesale broking and managing underwriting facilities. But nothing is more valuable than my greatest personal accomplishment, my wonderful family. I pride myself on my family, not only immediate but also my extended family. Thank God my family is healthy. Thank God my family is tightknit and close together. The community and bonds that we build are essential to our personal and professional success – therefore, we need to actively work to keep our RMI community healthy, strong and tightknit. To do this, we need to invest in our future.
Spencer has been a highly impactful organization to attract high-quality talent to the insurance industry. It is a vehicle where young people are enabled to enter the industry with a solid foundation, and are exposed to seasoned professionals who can serve as mentors and guide them through the early stages of learning this fabulous business.
Since I was honored at the 2013 gala, the most important change in the industry is the complexity of risk in the world and how our great industry addresses those risks. We’re seeing this through COVID-19; we’re seeing it in multiple ways beyond COVID-19. Right now, there have been two hurricanes that have descended on the coasts of the United States at the same time. Social inflation liability, cyber and transactional exposures, among a myriad of other emerging and ever-present unforeseen threats are driving the complexity and severity of risks. This kind of magnitude of risk, scale, scope and aggregate impact is a dramatic change in these last seven years. The losses that are hitting global society are dramatically increased. And there’s every reason to believe this will continue to escalate. This is a big impact on our industry – it’s testing us, and I think our industry is standing up well to those tests.
It’s currently a unique time to enter our industry. The world is much riskier than it ever has been before. But the expertise that Spencer Scholars bring when they enter this industry grant them the unparalleled opportunity to contribute to society, while still making them extremely valuable to clients, their company, and all of the stakeholders with whom they are involved. The insurance industry has never been more important to the welfare of humanity, or to the welfare of economies all around the world. So my message to today’s Spencer Scholars is: you have made a good decision in selecting this industry. Now, focus on your development and find out what you enjoy. Remember that expertise is the ultimate differentiator in our industry. Your value grows exponentially as you make yourself stand out with knowledge and the quality of services you bring to your clients and employer."