Spencer Interviews 'Funding Their Future' Campaign Honoree, Peter Garvey, Vice Chairman of Galway Insurance Holdings

Tell us a little about yourself! What led you to your current position as Vice Chairman of Galway Insurance Holdings?

Like a lot of other people, I was just happy to get a job out of college, and my best option somewhat randomly ended up to be in the insurance business in an underwriting training program. In a few years’ time that led to a long successful stint at Marsh, which gave me a fairly broad perspective of the business. In 2005 I had the opportunity to join my mentor, Bob Clements, in founding a brand new multinational broker---Integro---which was great fun and eye opening having been in an institutional environment like Marsh. Seven years ago my old friend John Hahn asked me to join him in taking EPIC, his new venture, national---and it’s been a wild ride. Now having grown it into the ranks of the “billion dollar brokers” we created Galway Holdings to enable shepherding fast growing affiliated businesses alongside EPIC and JenCap.

Having been in the insurance industry for over 40 years, how have you seen the industry change for the better? How do you think yourself and the companies you have worked for have contributed to that change?

Of course the business has changed substantially over the time I’ve been in it, and much of that has been for the better as the magnitude, complexity and nature of risks we face has evolved. The pace of change has been remarkable. Start with capital formation—a few decades ago it took years to fully deploy large amounts new capital in response to shortfalls in market capacity. That now takes a few months. For clients, the business has come a long way in meeting the challenge of emerging and substantial risks through that rapid deployment of capital, powerful analytics and risk management innovations. Having previously lived up to its reputation as being slow to adopt new technologies and methods, there’s a broad wave of ideas and new ventures utilizing AI, big data and alternative distribution strategies. These are very exciting times. Still, more needs to change for the industry to develop and thrive, starting with greater diversity in the workforce at all levels.

This year, the Spencer Educational Foundation has decided to honor you during their Funding Their Future Campaign which runs from June 15 until September 15. Why is Spencer’s mission and industry education in general important to you?

I was really honored when the Spencer board called. Spencer’s mission is one that’s important to me and should be to anyone who cares about the future of the insurance business. Attracting diverse, interesting and talented young people to an insurance career and supporting the education needed for them to thrive is one of the things insurance companies and brokerages have done poorly. The Spencer Educational Foundation has been doing something about that for some time now and we should all contribute the means to do more of it.

What would you say is your proudest achievement (career-wise) so far?

I’ve been lucky enough to have been involved in a number of transformative projects, but the one that counts as my favorite involved leaving a pretty comfortable position at a big company to building a new venture from scratch. The sense of camaraderie with others willing to put it on the line and the personal achievement when you pull it off is like no other. Betting it all on yourself and your colleagues is exhilarating.

What is your biggest piece of advice for the future leaders of this industry?

Do the right thing, bet on yourself, and work with people you respect.

Thank you to Peter Garvey and Galway Insurance Holdings!