Julia Graham

As I draft this message, I am taking the time to reflect on a wonderful FERMA Seminar in Brussels and the memory of our special 40th birthday party. We have received very positive feedback and many requests to view and download the first FERMA European Risk and Insurance Report with the results of the 2014 FERMA Benchmarking Survey. There is also great interest in the joint ECIIA/FERMA Guidance on updates to European legislation and best practices, also released at the Seminar. We were delighted to welcome colleagues from ECIIA and other associations including FUEDI, IRMSA and the BCI to the Seminar.

I would like to extend a very warm thank you to the teams – FERMA staff, our consultants and advisors, the FERMA board, and our partners and sponsors – who made this all possible. Long hours and dedication are needed to deliver so professionally. I would also like to thank you, our member associations and their members, because we also achieve this with and for you.

In the last few weeks, I have had the honour to attend as President of FERMA some wonderful events, in addition to visiting the 2015 FERMA Forum venue in Venice (a stunning event and programme are being planned).

This is where I have recently been: the ANRA conference in Milan; the Aon Risk Symposium in the Italian Lakes, a Commercial Risk Africa and BELRIM event in Brussels focussing on Africa; the ACE European multinational risk forum in London, the Global Business Continuity Institute annual awards dinner and conference in London; the UK AXA Corporate Solutions client event in the UK; the SIRM Forum and conference in Zurich; an inaugural ERM governance risk and compliance conference in Athens (with 140 delegates); a Commercial Risk Africa event in Nairobi with risk managers from East Africa; the Advisen European D&O insights conference in London and the Belgian internal auditor’s conference in Brussels.

To round the month off, I attended a dinner with a number of risk managers and colleagues from Chubb including the new CEO for UK and Mainland Europe, Jalil Ur Rehman, and attended and presented to the AIG Risk Management Academy for young European risk management professionals.

And in the middle of all this, I enjoyed the wedding of my lovely daughter Kate to her Canadian fiancé Tyler!

Why do I mention this “tour”? Well, it is the way to take the opportunity to speak about FERMA and our objectives – and about risk management and insurance in Europe from the FERMA perspective – and to listen to what you want FERMA to be and to achieve, which is priceless knowledge. Thank you for the privilege of meeting so many people who love our profession and support all that FERMA represents.

And yet I must apologise to those whose events I could not attend – but I hope you will understand why and will invite me back another time.

Now we are all thinking about 2015 – and what next? We have much we wish to achieve. Some things continuing, other things new. However, we will achieve our objectives from a position of strength. FERMA is the established risk management, insurance and risk financing voice of Europe. There is no doubt of this, and the launch of the European Certification for Risk Managers and a successful Forum in Venice will further confirm this.

Finally, at this seasonal time as we approach the end of 2014, I wish you all peace and good wishes for a positive 2015 – and I extend my thanks in advance for your continued enthusiasm and support for FERMA.