Paul the Insurer 25: Rethinking risk management – get out of your comfort zone!

Traditions still characterize risk management today, but the Risk!n Conference 2025 impressively demonstrated why change is long overdue. Inspiring food for thought and a clear call to action: Dare to do something new!

The insurance industry is characterized by decades of practice and constant change. In the Paul the Insurer podcast, Paul describes how risk management can outgrow its image as a dry specialist discipline: with stories that arouse curiosity and open up opportunities. Not only experienced risk managers are addressed here: Everyone is invited to question familiar ways of doing things.

Five mistakes that we can no longer ignore

A highlight at this year’s Risk-!n conference was the pointed dialog between the risk manager of a large Swiss hospital group and a professor from the University of Lucerne. With clear words and a twinkle in their eyes, they presented the five biggest mistakes that are slowing down risk management today:

• Risks are assessed as foreseeable
• Qualitative analyses are confused with supposed objectivity
• It is assumed that people behave rationally
• Risk analyses are considered “technology-free”
• Risk management and decision-making are separated from each other

Tried and tested – but still risky?

The experts criticized the fact that methods often only survive because of their feel-good factor and ease of sale, rarely because of their actual effectiveness. There is often a gap between scientific findings and everyday business life that stretches back decades. Consultants offer tools that do not leave the client’s comfort zone, but that is precisely where further development begins.

Call to action

The conclusion of the conference is uncompromising: the future of risk management requires courage to let go of old habits and make consistent use of scientific findings. Those who cling to existing structures not only miss out on opportunities, but also jeopardize the innovative strength of their own company. The younger generation in particular is seen as the driving force behind this change and is prepared to take on responsibility.

Insurance companies shape the future

Insurance is more than just a profession, it has the power to change the world and make the future a safer place. Let’s leave the comfort zone behind and take risk management to the next level.

Binci Heeb

Subscribe to the “Paul the Insurer” newsletter here.

Read also: Paul the Insurer 24: Mission Risk Management