Women in Hamilton: Hillary Williams

The head of professional lines for AXIS Capital says re/insurance is the best of both worlds - enabling underwriters to build relationships with clients while being complex and intellectually challenging. 

Hillary Williams says she didn't find insurance - insurance found her. She has spent the last 20 years at AXIS Capital leading its professional lines team of underwriters and has been executive vice president since 2010. 

Her nominator said: "Hillary is a knowledgeable, kind, well-respected figure in the insurance industry. Her outgoing personality is reflected with the strong relationships she has with clients, brokers and other professionals. 

"Hillary’s years of experience and willingness to innovate make her a force to be reckoned with within professional lines. She also invests in and supports local talent, having an all-Bermudian/spouse of Bermudian team. 

"Hillary is a champion for DE&I, participating in several Employees Resource Groups (ERGs) and the annual mentorship event at AXIS, and attending Dive In sessions. She also sits on the Charity Committee at AXIS and participates in various philanthropy opportunities internally and externally, such as Relay for Life. 

"As a boss, Hillary is supportive, understanding, approachable, communicative, inspiring and honest. Overall, Hillary truly is an expert in her field and well liked. She is very deserving of this award, and more!"

Williams  spoke to Bermuda:Re+ILS about her career, saying underwriters need strong personal and analytical skills - the best of both worlds. 

What attracted you to re/insurance?

It was total happenstance. After graduating university and moving from Rochester to Charlotte, I was just looking for a job to get me going, and interviewed with a branch manager at AIG. She looked at my resume and told me I’d make a great D&O underwriter. At that point, I didn’t know what D&O was and certainly didn’t understand what it was to be an underwriter, but she offered me the position and here I am 35 years later. I didn’t go looking for a career in insurance. Insurance found me, and I’m so glad it did.

Who inspired you or acted as a mentor in your career?

I’ve had the good fortune of being mentored by many women throughout my career.  From the branch manager who hired me in that first AIG position, to later in my career at AIG meeting Amy Oliver and Laurie Banez, who both took me under their wings in different ways to expand my network, develop my skillset and  introduce me to new opportunities. Laurie was instrumental to a critical moment in my career when I left AIG to lead the Southeast region for Kemper, which was starting a new financial lines division at the time.

When I entered insurance there weren’t many women in the industry, which makes me all the more grateful to these women, and others, for seeing something in me and supporting my growth.

What are your ambitions?

I love what I do, I love the Bermuda market, and I love my clients and my team. I’m excited about the AXIS ambition to be the leading specialty (re)insurer, and I’m ambitious in my pursuit to grow my book and introduce new products into the market.

I’m also dedicated to developing the next generation of talent and I spend a lot of time with team doing my best to model the things that helped me along the way. I’m ambitious about their future and want to support their growth and career path.

Do you feel the re/insurance industry has made progress in terms of diversity and inclusion since you entered it?

Definitely. For many years, women were a minority in underwriting, being the only woman at client meetings. Today it’s different. For example, in the Bermuda market I went from the being one of only two woman leading a professional lines (PL) division  to there now being several phenomenal women leading PL books at carriers across Bermuda.

At AXIS, we value and actively welcome different perspectives and experiences, and we are focused on creating a culture of inclusion. We see diversity as a strategic imperative that is core to our business and to our culture. Today, there are women in leadership positions across our company. You can also see this progress in the underwriting ranks and on the client-side.

It takes time, and there are still opportunities but I’m encouraged by the progress.

Why is this industry great to work in?

Absolutely. It's such a rewarding career with lots of opportunities for women. For me, it’s been the best of both worlds. On the one hand, it’s a relationship business and I enjoy building long-standing partnerships with my clients. On the other hand, underwriting is highly technical and analytical and I need to have an understanding of complex world and economic issues. I enjoy the intellectual challenge of the work and I’m learning every day.

Why is Bermuda a great place to be?

From a professional perspective, the clients in Bermuda are leading the most renowned global companies in the world. This is not a transactional market; we’re building trusted relationships with our partners. It’s a privilege to work with them and have an opportunity to learn from them.

On a personal note, I love the Bermudian lifestyle and as someone who has always enjoyed sunshine and water sports the year-round access to golf, rowing, sailing, paddleboarding, and kayaking is unmatched.

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