Millie Workman—CUCP Society beacon—Her experience as a risk manager prepared her to lead organization 02/06

Millie Workman—CUCP Society beacon

Her experience as a risk manager prepared her to lead organization

By Bruce D. Hicks, CPCU

Millie Workman, CPCU, CPIW, AU, graciously took the reins of leadership from Don Hurzeler during the CPCU Society’s annual meeting last October in Atlanta, Georgia. Stepping in as the elite property and casualty insurance organization’s latest president represented the greatest step in a journey she began long ago.

At the meeting, Workman was a compelling figure and her personality shone brightly during her first address as CPCU Society President. She shared her enthusiasm of leading an organization that meant much to her and which has played a prominent role in her professional life as a risk manager.

Workman told the audience that, unlike today, female designation holders were scarce at the time she became involved in the Society. When she completed her CPCU exams in 1975, she was only the third woman in Tennessee to earn a CPCU designation. Naturally she didn’t have much company in her gender when she began attending local chapter meetings. Regardless, she grew more comfortable with the meetings and the organization. Like her presidential predecessors, she held several executive positions in her local chapter (Memphis, Tennessee), including chapter president.

She found that her designation created opportunities and she decided to become a CPCU national volunteer in 1987. Beyond the local organization level, she held positions as a regional vice president and a national director. She also led the Society’s Risk Management Review Task Force. Other highlights in her career as a risk manager include Business Insurance magazine selecting her as Risk Manager of the Year in 1992 and naming her one of the 100 leading women in insurance in 2000. She was inducted into The Robert E. Musto Tennessee Insurance Hall of Fame in 2002.

Workman, like her predecessors, emphasized how membership in the CPCU Society has paid off, particularly in building skills in leadership, communication, project management, and even with writing strategic plans. She says it also created many valuable networking opportunities. The society takes pride in its annual meeting’s status as a premier networking and business event. While the many seminars met some critical continuing education needs of the attending CPCUs, the various networking events offered everyone chances to acquire more friends and resources. She pointed out that additional professional contacts also make insurance professionals more valuable to their employers.

At the annual meeting, the Society’s newest president told the crowd, “We have the character and confidence to carry our industry forward. CPCUs are like beacons.” She then went on to share that the theme of the next meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, (the Society’s 62nd) is “CPCU Character and Confidence,” which “reflects the organization’s continued priority on focusing on our core values, especially our character, integrity, ethics, mutual support, and pursuit of excellence.” Workman vowed to focus on the value that the Society can bring to its members, and to stress diversity of membership and views. She also made a commitment to seek input on various issues from all members.

On the last day of the annual meeting, President Workman took time to answer several questions from Rough Notes concerning herself and her new duties. The CPCU Society, now operating in its seventh decade, continues to address a number of issues. These challenges include maintaining its prominence as an elite insurance organization, increasing its level of diversity, and improving the balance between insurance company and agency/broker ranks.

Question: Why did you want to become the CPCU Society’s president?

Workman: There were two [primary] reasons. One, I wanted to give something back to the insurance industry and the Society because it is so important to me. Second, as a risk manager, I believe that I have a set of unique skills to bring to the position.

Question: How will your risk management experience affect how you handle your presidential duties?

Workman: As a risk manager, you take an enterprise-wide view of a situation. I have a lot of experience with problem solving. Being a risk manager also creates strong leadership skills. Risk managers have a lot of experience in handling diverse situations and conflicting needs. Further, they are steeped in handling most aspects of insurance operations, such as underwriting, marketing, claims, loss control, etc.

Question: What new strategies will be used to attract more persons, particularly agents into the CPCU ranks?

Workman: The Society’s operating plan includes working with the American Institute for CPCU on how to get more insurance people to take CPCU exams. There is a need to focus on candidate development. We also hope to create three recommendations with the Institute, including one that will focus on increasing [CPCU candidate] diversity. The number of American colleges and universities with risk management and insurance programs should serve as a pipeline. We need to explore those opportunities.

Question: What image do you think our industry has with insurance consumers?

Workman: Recent problems with weather issues, particularly with how the industry provides coverage will be a challenge to our perception and we’ll have to deal with it. As an industry we are continuously challenged to communicate to the public about how our product works. Catastrophes unavoidably exacerbate the problem. Of course, consumers ultimately must make decisions about needed coverage. For every horror story, there are many instances where the insurance industry helps people and businesses recover.

Question: How will the increasing frequency and severity of catastrophic losses affect the structure of the property and casualty insurance industry?

Workman: I believe that it will have some level of effect, though it is too early to know at this time. This is particularly the case if we continue to see increased frequency of major storms. The industry may eventually have to reassess how it provides its products.

Question: What goals do you consider critical during your term as president?

Workman: Visibility—continue the Society’s “Spread the Word” campaign, tweaking, assessing, enhancing if appropriate. Other issues include making sure we respond to the various needs of our chapters and interest sections, assessing how the Society is run, working with the Institute to develop a fellowship program, and monitoring what happens with the Diversity Committee’s suggested initiatives.

(Author’s note: The Society created the following Interest Sections to focus on the special needs of CPCUs who share similar job duties and concerns: Agent and Broker, Claims, Consulting, Litigation & Expert Witness, Excess/Surplus/Specialty Lines, Information Technology, International Insurance, Loss Control, Personal Lines, Regulatory & Legislative, Reinsurance, Risk Management, Senior Resource, and Total Quality and Underwriting.)

Question: Please discuss the National Leadership Institute (NLI) and its value/progress.

Workman: I am very proud of the NLI program, especially since I was a member on the original task force that created it. CPCUs are leaders, but we all need to hone our leadership skills. NLI gives educational training to develop important leadership skills and bring value back to employers. The NLI program is made up of a series of seminars that help develop and enhance those abilities. The Society offered two pilot seminars at this year’s [2005] annual meeting and the Society will evaluate them. The program will also develop a research component to investigate additional programs.

(Author’s note: The NLI program was launched by the CPCU Society in 2000. It currently consists of 15 training seminars, featuring a variety of topics such as strategic planning, time management, handling work-related conflicts, and the importance of being resilient.) *