New analysis from global advisory firm WTW had emphasised that leadership engagement and a culture conducive to experimentation are essential for innovation to take hold in organisations.
As the insurance industry faces a steady stream of emerging risks and client demands, innovation is increasingly being viewed as a business function that must be strategically led rather than opportunistically pursued.
WTW’s internal review of innovation practices highlighted that many organisations struggle to achieve innovation outcomes, not due to a lack of ideas or funding, but because of insufficient support from leadership.
When senior leaders lack a clear understanding of how innovation functions or fail to foster a workplace culture that accommodates it, barriers such as resistance to failure and rigid mindsets tend to dominate.
WTW noted that innovation readiness stems from how leaders define risk tolerance, support testing environments, and encourage ideation across the organization.
The research outlined specific cultural components that support innovation in organisations:
WTW found that embedding these behaviours within daily operations – rather than in isolated innovation programs – leads to more consistent innovation outputs.
According to WTW, innovation should be closely tied to corporate objectives. This requires alignment between leadership vision and operational capacity.
By sponsoring frameworks such as early-stage prototyping and peer-to-peer idea sharing, organisations can advance both incremental and transformative innovations.
Other tools include structured training and internal discussion forums, which help build innovation literacy throughout the workforce.
Complementing WTW’s findings, Gallagher’s “Five Years of Business Risk Evolution” report documented how companies have altered their approach to risk since the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a global survey of 1,200 executives, nearly two-thirds indicated their risk environment had become more complex and unpredictable.
Neil Hodgson, managing director at Gallagher, stated that organisations are no longer assuming that large-scale disruptions are rare events.
“The mindset that ‘this won't happen to us’ is shifting,” he said. “Organisations are realising that they cannot prevent these crises. They will occur, and when they do, the consequences can be catastrophic. The pressing question now is: What will we do about it?”
In response, 78% of surveyed firms reported modifying their revenue streams or market strategies. Many adopted more diversified sourcing models and emphasised domestic suppliers to manage supply chain uncertainty.
The report also noted increased investments in business continuity planning and scenario modelling.
Aon’s “Client Trends 2025” report outlined four interdependent forces transforming the global risk landscape:
CEO Greg Case emphasised the need for holistic responses.
“The interconnectedness of these trends means that leaders need access to integrated data and analytics, capabilities, and expertise to effectively respond to increasingly linked risk and people issues,” he said.
