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2022 Women to Watch Awards Americas EMEA

Tonya Davies Chief operating officer

Professional Risk Management Services

Arlington, Virginia

Tonya Davies, who has spent her career in medical malpractice underwriting, is seeing a new side to her field. And she sees opportunity for women and people of color, she said.

Now working directly with psychiatrists heading up a company that provides insurance services for those working in mental health, she sees what the country is dealing with: an unprecedented and well-documented mental health crisis.

“I’m hearing and seeing firsthand the doctor’s challenges,” she said. “I hear these doctors talk about what they’re seeing, how they feel that mental health now is actually getting the attention that it should get because before it was probably one of the most misunderstood health challenges that a person could have,” she said.

Another passion is creating opportunities, said Ms. Davies, who prides herself on climbing the ladder in insurance as a Black woman — a demographic not common in leadership in the industry.

Her previous job at TransRe, which acquired Professional Risk Management Services in 2019, led to her position as the most senior officer at PRMS, where she was appointed leader of a team of 35 — 75% of whom are women and 50% people of color, she said.

While at TransRe, Ms. Davies created a training program for younger underwriters. She said she wants to push change and encourage younger professionals in the industry.

“The events of the past couple of years have really highlighted the need for societal change for women and for people of color more than ever, or at least more than ever in my lifetime,” she said.

“We need mentors. We need advocates and sponsors for women and for people of color. Because when you have both of those under-represented, the challenges are very different.”

Chris O’Gwen, president and CEO of Fairco Inc., another TransRe subsidiary and parent company of PRMS, said Ms. Davies is “very connected to the doctors” and that she “has a tremendous knowledge of the med-mal space, and personality-wise she is a fantastic leader.”