UP CLOSE: Walter Grote
Reprints
CHICAGO-BASED SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, COMMERCIAL LINES
QBE North America
PREVIOUS POSITION: Chicago-based senior vice president and Midwest zone leader for Allianz Global & Corporate Specialty S.E.
LOOKING FORWARD TO: Getting to know my new team and our producers and customers, to execute our vision of being a specialist-focused company in underwriting excellence.
GOALS FOR NEW POSITION: Take QBE deeper into the middle- and small-market spaces.
CHALLENGES FACING INDUSTRY: Right now, risk is forever changing. Technology is giving and taking relative to risk. From drones to cyber, there are many challenges ahead of us.
INDUSTRY OUTLOOK: The rate environment being so difficult ... companies need to rely more on underwriting and portfolio management to manage through.
FIRST INDUSTRY JOB: A surety and management liability underwriter at Aetna Inc.
WHAT SURPRISED ME: That QBE has launched 30 new products in the last 18 months.
ADVICE: Don't be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. Sometimes the greatest challenges present the greatest rewards.
OUTSIDE THE INDUSTRY, A DREAM JOB: To own an auto-detailing business.
HOBBIES: Coaching lacrosse, skiing, water sports, boating and hiking.
THING MOST PEOPLE DON'T KNOW ABOUT ME: I've completed a Tough Mudder (race).
WHEN I RETIRE: Volunteer more with Habitat for Humanity and other organizations, travel with my wife and spend time with my two girls.
FAVORITE MEAL: Any meal at Simon Pearce in Quechee, Vermont.
FAVORITE BOOK: “Outliers: The Story of Success” by Malcolm Gladwell.
CAN'T-MISS TELEVISION SHOW: Any televised Buffalo Bills game.
BEST CITY: Florence, Italy. The history and culture are fabulous.
ON A SATURDAY AFTERNOON: Spending time with my family — I have two teenage daughters — and walking the dog to the dog beach to toss the ball for him.
THOUGHTS ON SMARTPHONES: I call them a blessing and a curse; so much information at your fingertips, but so hard to unplug and be in the now.
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UP CLOSE: Liz Smith
SCHAUMBURG, ILLINOIS-BASED CO-PRESIDENT
