MANAGING EMPLOYEE RISKS FOCUSING ON MULTINATIONAL SOLUTIONS
Multinational Benefits, Multinational Risks Building a successful benefits strategy comes with challenges, opportunities and risks, even within a single territory. If you are a multinational organisation you will see the complexity, and cost, of getting this right increase with every new territory you introduce. The first issue is simply the amount of co-ordination, management information and control that is required to bring together schemes in multiple territories. But these information flows, both to and from subsidiaries, are essential for an organisation s corporate governance, to leverage economies of scale and ensure a cost effective placement of insurance cover. The second, even more challenging task is to ensure that you are satisfying the risks of complying with local employment legislation, social security requirements, and union and management expectations. These can be complex and unfamiliar to a central team. Placing insurance can become a delicate balancing act between centralised efficiency and reputational risk at a local level.
Multinational Pooling Finding the right Provider for You Multinational pooling is an ideal and established model for achieving the balance between global efficiencies and local variation. Willis can guide you through the process of finding the right solution for you, or evaluate your current arrangement and work with you to evolve your scheme. We take you through the steps to: Audit your current provision. Find a provider that is active or has a partnership available in each of your territories. Write the insurance locally, so that it is compliant with local rules. Provide a management function to bring all information back to the centre and maintain the two way information flows. The diagram below shows a typical mechanism for a Multinational Pooling structure. XYZ Parent Country A Country B Country C Country D PREMIUM PAYMENT Network Insurer Network Insurer margins or deficits international dividend PAYMENT Pooling Network (Risk Bearer) PREMIUM PAYMENT Network Insurer Network Insurer margins or deficits
The use of a Captive for managing EmployEE benefits Some multinational companies consider taking things one step further and manage their employee benefits risk through their captive insurance companies. Captive insurance companies are a widely used enterprise risk management tool however you may not have considered placing your employee benefits programme within this solution. Writing your own risk directly, or more commonly, reinsuring the risk of a parent company s local insurance contracts through a captive can bring many advantages to your employee benefits scheme. It can: Be more cost effective, tax efficient and improve cash flow. Enhance centralised control and monitoring of your multinational programme. Provide flexibility in terms of benefit design, through offering terms and conditions that may not be available in every global location. Willis has significant expertise in designing, implementing, managing and offering strategic advice to all types of captives. Managing over 300 captives worldwide we work with several household names to bring the captive advantage to your employee benefits schemes. For more information on multinational solutions, captives and how Willis Employee Benefits can help you, email us at webl@willis.com or contact your Willis relationship manager. Captive insurance companies are a widely used enterprise risk management tool however you may not have considered placing your employee benefits programme within this solution.
the WILLIS Advantage The Willis multinational benefits team combines the qualities of a global broker with the tools and resources of a pure consulting firm. We can advise you on your programme strategy and then, armed with an in-depth knowledge of your firm, be in a strong position to find the right solutions for you. Unlike some others who will either offer you advice or place your insurance, we have expertise in both. You will work with one team from start to finish, in order to deliver a complete solution. When it comes to international footprint, no two companies are identical, as such our service to you will be bespoke. We work with you to: Audit your current structure. Define and set your global strategy. Determine the most appropriate solutions, both insured and non-insured. Place the coverage. Provide the management information you need to achieve maximum efficiency. Whether you are just beginning to expand into cross border locations, considering merger and/or acquisition or are a well established multinational organisation, our experts will help you on your journey to a successful benefits programme that proactively balances local risk with operational efficiency. Unlike others who will either offer you advice or place your insurance, we have expertise in both. You will work with one team from start to finish, in order to deliver a complete solution.
Willis Employee Benefits Limited The Willis Building 51 Lime Street London, EC3M 7DQ United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0)20 3124 6000 www.willis.com Willis Employee Benefits Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered office: The Willis Building, 51 Lime Street, EC3M 7DQ. Registered number 5641509 England and Wales. FP1170/9898/06/13