Speaking at Insurance Post hosted event: ‘The Future of Insurance Work’ James Begley, Chief Operating Officer of Oxford Insurance Group featured on the panel discussing ‘The role of the ‘office’ and future of the insurance workplace as a concept.’

During the hour-long discussion, the panel fielded a range of questions around the impact the Covid-19 pandemic has had on the office landscape. Talking about the mid to long term impact on the way organisations operate James said, “Covid has probably brought about the fastest change in working practices in history and five days a week, nine-to-five working in the office is probably dead.”

He went on to suggest a more flexible approach is likely to be adopted with firms aiming to strike the right balance between the office, working from home and the use of third spaces.

The panel spoke about the challenges remote working can present, including from isolation, access to appropriate working environments and personal development needs whilst also highlighting some of the opportunities that can arise from more flexible working practices.

When speaking specifically about the London market broking environment James said “in the London insurance market the physical connection with underwriters and brokers is important and I think that [face to face interaction] still has a [important] role to play in negotiating complex risks.”

Find out more about the event and watch the content from all the sessions here.