Sage Spotlight: Meet Our Senior Client and Placement Director - Travis Wendt
Travis has over 23 years of insurance broking and advisory experience, having worked in global brokerages such as Marsh and Aon. In 2018, he joined Honan Insurance Group, where he held several senior roles, including Head of Corporate and Head of Placement. Travis has developed exceptional relationships with insurers, both locally and overseas. His extensive experience and leadership skills are pivotal in supporting our clients whilst setting Sage up for growth and success.
Welcome, Travis! Thank you for joining us for this Sage Spotlight. Firstly, welcome to the Sage team. Can you share with us what motivated you to embark on this new venture at this stage of your career?
Thank you. I have had the privilege of working for and learning from some incredibly talented and experienced people during my time at Marsh, Aon and Honan. Over my career, I have represented clients across many industry segments, including manufacturing, retail, food & beverage, professional services, mining, power and energy, which has allowed me to build a broad understanding of the risks and exposures within these sectors.
My motivation to establish my own business stemmed from a desire to leverage my unique skill set to provide clients with tailored service and deliver solutions, supported by my broad industry knowledge and experience. Having worked with Michael Fennessy and Jasmin Gabrielli previously at Honan, I felt there were real synergies in their passion to not only represent their clients in the insurance market but also their strive to create a strong business where everyone can thrive.
I really am thrilled to be a partner of Sage Insurance and can’t wait to help the team grow and develop, just like those who have helped me over my career.
In your role as Senior Client & Placement Director, how do you plan to leverage your experience to enhance the company’s service offerings and address client needs in the coming year?
The answer is simple: spend time with our clients, see them, and truly listen. Lasting relationships are created by being present year-round, not only at renewal.
I, for one, enjoy the opportunity to meet with clients and discuss their business, what keeps them up at night, and their key pain points. Whenever possible, walking around their operations and interacting with crucial members of their business is another chance to educate yourself. From these interactions, we gain a better understanding of where our service offering can be enhanced and improved.
Given your successful track record of working closely with clients, what strategies will you employ to strengthen relationships and ensure exceptional service delivery as the company evolves?
I have spent my career helping many clients find the right insurance & risk solutions for their unique challenges. As we all know, no two businesses are the same and likewise, no two solutions are the same; therefore, I can draw on my past experience to help clients create an insurance program that is absolutely tailored to their needs and exposures.
As we have seen over the past 10 years, the market has been somewhat tough as reduced capacity, more stringent underwriting, lower coverage and increased pricing have made the procurement of insurance quite difficult and in some cases almost impossible. Within my role, I can leverage my relationships with insurers and wholesale partners to ensure that our clients obtain the most competitive terms, no matter what industry they operate in.
Much is said about the importance of the tripartite relationship between broker, client, and insurer. From my experience, when that relationship is strong and connected, clients see far better results. That’s why I focus on building strong ties with insurers to help close the gap and deliver the best outcomes.
You have spent the majority of your career building and establishing relationships with local and overseas insurance markets. How do you see this supporting Sage and your clients?
As I mentioned earlier, the insurance industry is people and relationship-oriented, underpinned by trust and professionalism. I see the opportunity in drawing clients and insurers closer together; we do this through formal and informal connectivity; informal could be a quarterly client/insurer check-in, whilst formal would be for the client to present to an insurer or insurers.
Our clients know their business like no one else, so by bringing insurers closer, we can ensure a better understanding of our clients’ operations. The means fewer assumptions, quicker response times and in some cases a lesser need for third-party reinsurance protection, the result of which is better outcomes for clients.
From a carrier management perspective, our desire is to grow and support our key trading partners. For us to better serve our clients, it’s imperative that we have strong and sustainable market backing with connectivity across all underwriting levels. I certainly feel that this sets us apart from a number of our competitors.
What trends do you see shaping the future of the insurance industry, and how is Sage preparing for them?
There are a number of trends that are shaping the future of insurance but the two that stand out the most in my opinion are the impact of technology, mainly generative AI and climate risk.
As we have seen over the past 20 years, the frequency and severity of natural catastrophe’s have caused insurers and re-insurers to take a much closer look at their portfolio’s, risk accumulation and capacity. Put simply, with population growth driving urban expansion, it is becoming more likely that infrastructure will be built in some of Australia’s most exposed regions.
From a technology perspective, AI is expected to transform our industry both from an operational efficiency and product innovation perspective. As I stated above, our industry is based around people and relationships and I feel that whilst it won’t be a replacement mechanism it will definitely make our teams more efficient.
Travis has over 23 years of insurance broking and advisory experience, having worked in global brokerages such as Marsh and Aon. In 2018, he joined Honan Insurance Group, where he held several senior roles, including Head of Corporate and Head of Placement. Travis has developed exceptional relationships with insurers, both locally and overseas. His extensive experience and leadership skills are pivotal in supporting our clients whilst setting Sage up for growth and success.
Welcome, Travis! Thank you for joining us for this Sage Spotlight. Firstly, welcome to the Sage team. Can you share with us what motivated you to embark on this new venture at this stage of your career?
Thank you. I have had the privilege of working for and learning from some incredibly talented and experienced people during my time at Marsh, Aon and Honan. Over my career, I have represented clients across many industry segments, including manufacturing, retail, food & beverage, professional services, mining, power and energy, which has allowed me to build a broad understanding of the risks and exposures within these sectors.
My motivation to establish my own business stemmed from a desire to leverage my unique skill set to provide clients with tailored service and deliver solutions, supported by my broad industry knowledge and experience. Having worked with Michael Fennessy and Jasmin Gabrielli previously at Honan, I felt there were real synergies in their passion to not only represent their clients in the insurance market but also their strive to create a strong business where everyone can thrive.
I really am thrilled to be a partner of Sage Insurance and can’t wait to help the team grow and develop, just like those who have helped me over my career.
In your role as Senior Client & Placement Director, how do you plan to leverage your experience to enhance the company’s service offerings and address client needs in the coming year?
The answer is simple: spend time with our clients, see them, and truly listen. Lasting relationships are created by being present year-round, not only at renewal.
I, for one, enjoy the opportunity to meet with clients and discuss their business, what keeps them up at night, and their key pain points. Whenever possible, walking around their operations and interacting with crucial members of their business is another chance to educate yourself. From these interactions, we gain a better understanding of where our service offering can be enhanced and improved.
Given your successful track record of working closely with clients, what strategies will you employ to strengthen relationships and ensure exceptional service delivery as the company evolves?
I have spent my career helping many clients find the right insurance & risk solutions for their unique challenges. As we all know, no two businesses are the same and likewise, no two solutions are the same; therefore, I can draw on my past experience to help clients create an insurance program that is absolutely tailored to their needs and exposures.
As we have seen over the past 10 years, the market has been somewhat tough as reduced capacity, more stringent underwriting, lower coverage and increased pricing have made the procurement of insurance quite difficult and in some cases almost impossible. Within my role, I can leverage my relationships with insurers and wholesale partners to ensure that our clients obtain the most competitive terms, no matter what industry they operate in.
Much is said about the importance of the tripartite relationship between broker, client, and insurer. From my experience, when that relationship is strong and connected, clients see far better results. That’s why I focus on building strong ties with insurers to help close the gap and deliver the best outcomes.
You have spent the majority of your career building and establishing relationships with local and overseas insurance markets. How do you see this supporting Sage and your clients?
As I mentioned earlier, the insurance industry is people and relationship-oriented, underpinned by trust and professionalism. I see the opportunity in drawing clients and insurers closer together; we do this through formal and informal connectivity; informal could be a quarterly client/insurer check-in, whilst formal would be for the client to present to an insurer or insurers.
Our clients know their business like no one else, so by bringing insurers closer, we can ensure a better understanding of our clients’ operations. The means fewer assumptions, quicker response times and in some cases a lesser need for third-party reinsurance protection, the result of which is better outcomes for clients.
From a carrier management perspective, our desire is to grow and support our key trading partners. For us to better serve our clients, it’s imperative that we have strong and sustainable market backing with connectivity across all underwriting levels. I certainly feel that this sets us apart from a number of our competitors.
What trends do you see shaping the future of the insurance industry, and how is Sage preparing for them?
There are a number of trends that are shaping the future of insurance but the two that stand out the most in my opinion are the impact of technology, mainly generative AI and climate risk.
As we have seen over the past 20 years, the frequency and severity of natural catastrophe’s have caused insurers and re-insurers to take a much closer look at their portfolio’s, risk accumulation and capacity. Put simply, with population growth driving urban expansion, it is becoming more likely that infrastructure will be built in some of Australia’s most exposed regions.
From a technology perspective, AI is expected to transform our industry both from an operational efficiency and product innovation perspective. As I stated above, our industry is based around people and relationships and I feel that whilst it won’t be a replacement mechanism it will definitely make our teams more efficient.
Travis has over 23 years of insurance broking and advisory experience, having worked in global brokerages such as Marsh and Aon. In 2018, he joined Honan Insurance Group, where he held several senior roles, including Head of Corporate and Head of Placement. Travis has developed exceptional relationships with insurers, both locally and overseas. His extensive experience and leadership skills are pivotal in supporting our clients whilst setting Sage up for growth and success.
Welcome, Travis! Thank you for joining us for this Sage Spotlight. Firstly, welcome to the Sage team. Can you share with us what motivated you to embark on this new venture at this stage of your career?
Thank you. I have had the privilege of working for and learning from some incredibly talented and experienced people during my time at Marsh, Aon and Honan. Over my career, I have represented clients across many industry segments, including manufacturing, retail, food & beverage, professional services, mining, power and energy, which has allowed me to build a broad understanding of the risks and exposures within these sectors.
My motivation to establish my own business stemmed from a desire to leverage my unique skill set to provide clients with tailored service and deliver solutions, supported by my broad industry knowledge and experience. Having worked with Michael Fennessy and Jasmin Gabrielli previously at Honan, I felt there were real synergies in their passion to not only represent their clients in the insurance market but also their strive to create a strong business where everyone can thrive.
I really am thrilled to be a partner of Sage Insurance and can’t wait to help the team grow and develop, just like those who have helped me over my career.
In your role as Senior Client & Placement Director, how do you plan to leverage your experience to enhance the company’s service offerings and address client needs in the coming year?
The answer is simple: spend time with our clients, see them, and truly listen. Lasting relationships are created by being present year-round, not only at renewal.
I, for one, enjoy the opportunity to meet with clients and discuss their business, what keeps them up at night, and their key pain points. Whenever possible, walking around their operations and interacting with crucial members of their business is another chance to educate yourself. From these interactions, we gain a better understanding of where our service offering can be enhanced and improved.
Given your successful track record of working closely with clients, what strategies will you employ to strengthen relationships and ensure exceptional service delivery as the company evolves?
I have spent my career helping many clients find the right insurance & risk solutions for their unique challenges. As we all know, no two businesses are the same and likewise, no two solutions are the same; therefore, I can draw on my past experience to help clients create an insurance program that is absolutely tailored to their needs and exposures.
As we have seen over the past 10 years, the market has been somewhat tough as reduced capacity, more stringent underwriting, lower coverage and increased pricing have made the procurement of insurance quite difficult and in some cases almost impossible. Within my role, I can leverage my relationships with insurers and wholesale partners to ensure that our clients obtain the most competitive terms, no matter what industry they operate in.
Much is said about the importance of the tripartite relationship between broker, client, and insurer. From my experience, when that relationship is strong and connected, clients see far better results. That’s why I focus on building strong ties with insurers to help close the gap and deliver the best outcomes.
You have spent the majority of your career building and establishing relationships with local and overseas insurance markets. How do you see this supporting Sage and your clients?
As I mentioned earlier, the insurance industry is people and relationship-oriented, underpinned by trust and professionalism. I see the opportunity in drawing clients and insurers closer together; we do this through formal and informal connectivity; informal could be a quarterly client/insurer check-in, whilst formal would be for the client to present to an insurer or insurers.
Our clients know their business like no one else, so by bringing insurers closer, we can ensure a better understanding of our clients’ operations. The means fewer assumptions, quicker response times and in some cases a lesser need for third-party reinsurance protection, the result of which is better outcomes for clients.
From a carrier management perspective, our desire is to grow and support our key trading partners. For us to better serve our clients, it’s imperative that we have strong and sustainable market backing with connectivity across all underwriting levels. I certainly feel that this sets us apart from a number of our competitors.
What trends do you see shaping the future of the insurance industry, and how is Sage preparing for them?
There are a number of trends that are shaping the future of insurance but the two that stand out the most in my opinion are the impact of technology, mainly generative AI and climate risk.
As we have seen over the past 20 years, the frequency and severity of natural catastrophe’s have caused insurers and re-insurers to take a much closer look at their portfolio’s, risk accumulation and capacity. Put simply, with population growth driving urban expansion, it is becoming more likely that infrastructure will be built in some of Australia’s most exposed regions.
From a technology perspective, AI is expected to transform our industry both from an operational efficiency and product innovation perspective. As I stated above, our industry is based around people and relationships and I feel that whilst it won’t be a replacement mechanism it will definitely make our teams more efficient.
