This month, Clare Nash, Director at Norman Broadbent Group interviews Ian Parker, ex CEO of ERS, a business which has undergone a significant transformation under his leadership. Having taken his leave of ERS in December - a business which occupied him for nearly eight years - Ian looks back on his career which has spanned leadership and non-exec roles in a wide variety of environments: start-ups, M&A and integrations, fast growth environments, transformations and turnarounds and charities, and which has spanned several European countries, China and South Africa.
Of all your experiences and achievements in the industry to date, which are you most proud of and why?
I think I must start with ERS. I remember being sat there, in my office at Hardy’s, which had just been sold [where Ian was the COO]. I was reading the Insurance Times and saw ERS had been put under strategic review – i.e. it was up for sale. I thought: “This is it. This is the time where if I don’t make this happen …” I had thought about this before – tried a couple of times to do a private equity management buyout. I was really pleased to secure an investing partner – Aquiline - to support my turnaround plan. Then of course, after the deal was done, the real work started.
Now, nearly eight years later I can say we really turned around its fortunes. It was not just a turnaround of the financial performance – we totally transformed everything. The whole operating process, platform– my COO joked once that we changed everything that runs with a plug on it. Totally everything – all our IT architecture, applications, telephony, head offices, relocating, new branding. It was a real case study in how much you can change in a business. It was extraordinary, what we achieved.
The best thing is – I cannot claim credit for all of it. It was a huge team effort; it took everyone in the company to get on board. It is something I’m very proud of, we were able to take the whole company with us on the journey. There was a real team focus on what we wanted to achieve. Of course, eight years is a long time, people moved around, we had new people, people left, but throughout, our employee engagement scores were very high. Higher than the High-Performance Companies benchmark as measured by Willis Towers Watson – even during the pandemic. There is a lot to be proud of there and the business is in a great place for the next stage of its development, and I wish everybody at ERS the best of luck with what they want to achieve.
What advice would you give yourself if you were starting out again?
Be true to your values. And do not fear being true to those values. I have been made redundant 4 times in my career. That is terrifying for most people. It was for me the first time, but it does not need to be. If you find yourself in a situation which is so abhorrent and counter to your values, be prepared to walk away.
I have been watching the TV show the Serpent, and there is a character in it who is stuck in the most appalling situation – but for some reason she cannot walk away. I think it is more common than people think. But really there is nothing to fear if you find yourself in that situation and you need to get out. I remember being in a situation like that. I was in my early forties, big mortgage, all the financial strains of young family life and I felt trapped. I could not bring myself to leave even when I needed to. It did a lot of damage. Do not be afraid. Be true to your values. If something is not right, leave it and find something that is right for you.
What excites you most about the future of your industry?
I just think the future is so unpredictable. That is what gets me out of bed in the morning. Looking for opportunities and being ready to take advantage of changes that are going to happen - there are so many opportunities in our space. The core need for insurance and balance sheet protection, indemnifying people will of course remain the same, but how it is going to be fulfilled though – that is all going to change. Distribution will be changed; supply chain will be changed. A lot will be tech-enabled. It is a very dynamic sector, and I love how intellectually stimulating it is. I know people who do not work in insurance do not imagine it to be very dynamic – but for me, that’s what excites me. Not one specific thing, but the whole ecosystem of insurance is dynamic. There is a huge appetite for change.
What are your Golden Rules?
Do not die wondering…
I am a curious person by nature. So many people think “What if I did this?” or “What if I did that?” but do not do anything about it. If something excites you, sparks your curiosity – go and find out. Go and try stuff. If it works, great! If not – at least you will not always wonder.
That is what I tell my children. Do not worry about things – just think to yourself, “What’s the worst that could ever happen?” and mostly, in a business context the worst thing is you get fired.
It feeds back to the advice I would give my younger self - If you do not back yourself, you’ll never get others to back you. So, do not die wondering!
What are you currently reading?
Human kind – a hopeful history by Rutger Bregman
It is a really interesting book. It is seeking to slay the myth that humans are intrinsically greedy and self-centred. It argues that humans have an innate capacity for kindness, that at our core humans are co-operative. I do not know if it is true, but it’s a compelling argument, and the world would certainly be a better place if the ideas permeated. Thoroughly recommended.