Munich Re Specialty’s Ansari: Pursuing a valued career

By George Abbott

March 7 - (The Insurer) - Bazil Ansari, senior portfolio solutions underwriter at Munich Re Specialty, is part of a relatively small cohort of industry professionals who actually planned to go into insurance, as opposed to “falling into it” – something we hear all too often on Young Meteors.

"I'm one of the rare ones who intentionally pursued a career in insurance," he told The Insurer TV.

His journey began with a focus on actuarial science at university, motivated by the fact it would pay the bills.

"It started when I researched what I could do with my math skills while earning a decent salary. That's when I discovered actuarial science," Ansari explained.

After gaining experience at Markerstudy Insurance, Ansari joined Munich Re, where he played a key role in the development of the portfolio solutions unit.

"When we created the new function of portfolio solutions, I was asked if I could help set this up. That was great," said Ansari.

But transitioning from an actuary to an underwriter came with challenges.

"It's hard because you encounter tough conversations with brokers or other stakeholders, and you have to manage that," he reflected. "Moving to underwriting is definitely a shift in mindset, from analysing data and assessing risk to making decisions based on commercial relationships and business plans."

Ansari's move into underwriting and role in establishing the portfolio solutions unit made him feel valued for his contributions, a priority that has grown increasingly important to him after nearly a decade in the industry.

"After a certain stage, that's what you go after – being valued, seeing your work being utilised properly, end to end," he said.