January 9, 2025
Is Reputation Risk Beyond Control and Oversight? Interest in reputation insurance surged 700% in December 2024.
Is Reputation Risk Beyond Control and Oversight? Interest in reputation insurance surged 700% in December 2024.
Reputational risk remains one of the most fearsome risks that board members and their institutions can face. Thousands of executives overseeing public firms are now just one reputation crisis away from losing all their board seats as well as future business opportunities. Captives may be a solid way of managing those risks.
Boeing Company reputation crisis day 351. Equity is down 50.9% to peers; Steel City Re’s average observed losses on day 351 is 8.2%. Implications for manufacturers are illustrated in Steel City Re’s 16 April podcast: https://shorturl.at/kEfVL
Governance experts including the National Association of Corporate Directors and other authorities are encouraging boards to support management more closely in an “uncertain — and possibly volatile — environment,” even at the risk of appearing to micromanage. But with engagement comes culpability for the reactions of already-angry stakeholders. Simply put, the costs of leaning into a reputation crisis may include the dispensation of board members whose personal losses will not be covered by D&O liability insurance. Board members need personal reputation insurance.
Boards…will need to nudge their risk managers and insurance carriers to present reputation insurance options. Podcast: https://www.directorsandboards.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ReputationRisk.mp3
An industry that is using parametric technology to insure losses from natural disasters caused by wrathful deities can now also provide meaningful insurance for losses from reputation disasters caused by emotional mortals. The 4-M parametric framework of metric, model, monitor and market for natural earthquakes disclosed at the 2023 Hawaii Captives Insurance Conference makes parametric insurance for metaphorical earthquakes easy to back, underwrite, broker and bind.
Parametric reputation insurance is a timely offering for directors wary of costly reputation risk, says FT Specialist, Agenda.
Affirming in practice what it disclosed in January, Blackrock “engaged 2,683 times on strategy, purpose and financial resilience-related themes with 2,014 companies — more than any of its other engagement priorities — this proxy year. Given this information, board directors may want to prioritize financial resilience in their own work and in engagement with index funds.” Steel City Re can provide metrics and tools to support innovative strategies for strengthening financial resilience.
Profitable financial loss absorption, differently, with advances in metrology—e.g., synthetic indices for reputation—and parametric technology. A spin by Steel City Re on the whitepaper from The Geneva Association.
Reputation risk management is a battle for the mind of the stakeholder. A range of parametric insurance products linked to reputation value and volatility help authenticate stories about the quality of risk management. It is how risk management and risk communications work together to create value.