New Era, New Energy for NWCDC: Submit Your Session Proposal Now

Attention speakers! National Comp is launching its 2020 virtual show with fresh ideas and fresh leadership. Submit your proposal now to be a part of what's next and share your best ideas with attendees.

By: Michelle Kerr | December 5, 2019

Yes, the National Workers’ Compensation and Disability Conference – National Comp – is going virtual! We’re eager to bring everyone together in person as soon as it’s safe and sensible to do so. But for 2020, there’s still plenty to look forward to, this fall and throughout the year.

Our virtual conference program is designed to make it easier to maximize your learning opportunities in a way that suits the busy schedules of workers’ comp professionals.

National Comp will kick off with a free one-day virtual event to take place on Oct. 21, 2020 featuring top-level thought leadership mixed with the practical takeaways organizations need right now.

After that, we’ll be keeping you connected to conference content via informative digital education sessions presented two or three times a month — right up until it’s time to meet up in Las Vegas for our 2021 event.

Here’s what’s happening when we meet again in person.

The once-staid workers’ compensation industry is now evolving at a rapid pace, and our conference along with it.

NWCDC is now under the ownership of The Institutes, the leading provider of risk management and property-casualty insurance education for more than 100 years. The Institutes is committed to the long-term success of NWCDC and shares our mission of providing vital risk management and risk finance knowledge to the workers’ comp community.

Our conference will also benefit from the fresh perspective of new management, with the Risk & Insurance team taking the helm and driving new innovations and ideas.

All of these exciting changes are coalescing to bring attendees a 2021 conference experience that’s energized and modernized. We’re refocusing our content to give attendees more of the practical ideas and solutions they need, and to better align with today’s complex workers’ compensation challenges.

New Themes for 2020-2021

To accomplish this, we’ve identified four meaningful themes we see impacting employers large and small, public and private. As we select educational presentations, we’re looking for these ideas infused throughout, strengthening the lens that will best focus the value NWCDC has to offer industry professionals.

1. The First Word in Workers’ Comp Is Workers. Across the spectrum from employers to service providers to brokers and carriers, what we all share is that we’re here to help injured people get better. Advocating the best for our valued human assets – not claimants – isn’t a passing fad; it’s why we’re here. Our educational content across the board will reflect the strong worker-centric ethos the industry needs to keep pushing forward.

2. Technology Is a Universal Tool. From AI to exoskeletons, advances in technology are driving improvements in worker outcomes, productivity and cost efficiencies. There’s incredible technology across every sector. That’s why we’re striving to infuse technology throughout our program offerings. As we evaluate educational session proposals for 2020 and beyond, we’re looking for proven solutions to the challenges employers face, and all of the technology and tools being used to solve them.

3. Our Industry Is Evolving. As our industry undergoes a period of rapid change, we’re focused on helping people advance their careers and navigate the industry’s changing roles. With this year’s programming, we want to facilitate more discussions about the industry’s future, about the influences reshaping the industry, and the skills workers’ comp professionals need to excel in those roles. As employers work to attract a diverse mix of talent, we seek to support their growth and offer the ideas and information they need to lead.

4. Insurance Is Vital. In an ideal world, there would never be a workplace injury. But the world we live and work in isn’t always ideal, and insurance provides the resilience and strength employers need for a thoughtful and complete risk management strategy. We believe there’s a need to connect with the insurance community on a different level in order to reach a more well-rounded perspective. Throughout the evolution of this conference, it’s been our mission to embrace the full range of risk mitigation from prevention through claims management through risk transfer strategies. But we feel we have drifted from that mission in recent years. We believe that insurance and the services that insurers can provide are vital pieces of a strong workers’ comp risk mitigation program.

New Tracks for 2020

As a key part of revitalizing our educational content, we’ve realigned our session tracks to better reflect the scope of the complex issues facing the industry now and moving forward. We’re eager to host presenters who can help attendees address challenges across these categories. National Comp seeks a mixture of critical topics, hot-button issues and emerging challenges throughout these tracks.

Medical Management/Pharmaceuticals. Navigating a path to the best possible medical outcome has never been more challenging, with the array of advanced diagnostics and treatments available. Meanwhile, the evolving landscapes of pain management and specialty pharmaceuticals continue to leave the employer and payer communities with more questions than answers. Industry professionals need fresh ideas to help them secure high-quality care for injured workers, while also ensuring that care is appropriate for each individual and cost effective for the payer.

Legal/Regulatory. The legal and regulatory landscape impacting the industry seems to take on new wrinkles by the hour, from the recent surge in paid-leave legislation to key decisions on medical marijuana and the gig economy. Workers’ comp professionals need innovative strategies for limiting current exposures, and the latest intel on the trends that could impact them around the corner. We’re looking for content that meets these needs and can help employers get the most from their legal resources.

Claims/Return to Work. Administer benefits, get people better, get them back to work. Simple goals that are rarely simple to achieve. National Comp attendees are continuously looking to add to the arsenal of tools and strategies to eliminate the obstacles that can delay or halt recovery and return to work, including biopsychosocial issues, provider communication gaps and worker education. Whether injuries are common or catastrophic, medical only or permanently disabling, payers and employers need up-to-date intelligence on the best way to get injured or disabled workers back on the job and back to their lives.

Insurance/Risk Finance. With the growing complexity of workers’ compensation risk exposures, employers can’t rely on cookie-cutter solutions to manage their insurance needs. We seek presentations highlighting ways employers can more effectively partner with brokers and insurers to enhance their risk mitigation as well as leverage the best risk transfer strategies to meet their needs.

Injury Prevention. Of course, the best claim is the one that never happens. Nationwide, employers are making great strides in reducing injury frequency. But in order to keep moving the needle, they need the freshest ideas on mitigating injury risks, fostering a strong safety culture, measuring results and getting the executive buy-in they need to support their efforts.

Steal These Ideas! Inspired by our popular presentation of Teddy Award-winning workers’ comp programs, this track will feature real-world solutions employers are using right now and achieving measurable results, with peer-to-peer guidance on lessons learned and pitfalls to avoid.

Career and Industry. The oft-discussed talent gap has been felt as acutely across our industry as any other. That’s why it’s the right time to spark more conversations about recruitment and retention, about furthering diversity and about the skills and expertise an evolving industry needs. In addition, we seek educational presentations designed to provide attendees with the critical professional skills they need to advance and elevate their careers and take on larger leadership roles.

And a Brand-New Short-Form Educational Platform

This year, we’re making room in the expo hall for new energy, new ideas and a new venue for sharing and learning. We’re inviting speakers to help us launch Comp Talks, a dynamic series of short-form talks, 20 minutes on any topic that will benefit, enlighten or inspire attendees.

Our goal is to make room for content that is powerful and valuable for industry professionals, but might not be an ideal fit for a 60 or 75-minute session. Do you have a message or an idea you can deliver effectively in 20 minutes? Tell us about it!

We’re open to ALL ideas across the rich spectrum of topics that matter to workers’ comp professionals. Claims management and injury prevention? Of course. Risk finance? Return to work? Yes! But we also want to help attendees succeed as leaders and advance their careers. Can you help your peers understand how to speak the language of a CEO? Do you have some killer tips that will help negotiate like a pro?

Think outside the box. Heck, break the box – we don’t mind. We’re open to all ideas. All we ask is that speakers abide by the Golden Rule: No selling of any kind.

Don’t Click this Red Button Just Yet!

Please take the time to read over NWCDC’s 2020 proposal requirements. We’ve also included some useful suggestions on crafting a dynamic proposal and thinking ahead to your presentation.

If you have any questions or problems submitting this form, please contact Michelle Kerr at [email protected] or 215-341-4914.

Michelle Kerr is Workers’ Compensation Editor and National Conference Chair for Risk & Insurance. She can be reached at [email protected].

How a Carrier Partner Can Help Navigate a Challenging Management and Professional Liability Market

A combination of a choppy economy with increased claims frequency and severity could lead to rate increases in the Management & Professional Liability market.

By: Risk & Insurance | April 3, 2024

Rates in the management & professional liability (M&PL) markets were on the rise from 2020 to early 2023 and are now falling rapidly.

M&PL divisions manage a number of different insurance products including management liability (D&O), professional liability (E&O), employment practices liability (EPL), fiduciary liability policies, cyber, etc. In 2023 and into 2024, a big influence on the marketplace has been the extremely aggressive and softening public company D&O market.

Though these rates have been softening for management liability, that may change over the next few years as companies continue to adjust their business models motivated by economic uncertainty. Layoffs were up nearly 200% last year, Forbes reported, even as other recession indicators, like the inflation rate, improved. A recession could lead to an increased claim activity and force carriers to raise rates.

“Whenever there is a meaningful downturn in the economy, we tend to see claim frequency pop up,” said George Schalick, Jr., senior vice president of the Management and Professional Liability Division at Philadelphia Insurance Companies (PHLY).

With continued fiscal uncertainty, businesses potentially already burdened with pandemic-related claims should seek a carrier with a long history in M&PL products. They will provide much-needed risk management guidance and be better positioned to support their insureds during market fluctuations.

Why Insureds Might See an Uptick in M&PL Claims

George Schalick, Jr., Senior Vice President of the Management and Professional Liability Division, Philadelphia Insurance Companies

The current soft market might come as a bit of a surprise as it does not track with previous underwriting cycles and economic conditions. Afterall, many privately held and non-profit organizations struggled during the early days of the pandemic with shutdowns and rapidly declining revenues. But the Government assistance programs, like the Paycheck Protection Program loans, helped keep many afloat during the tough times.

“During COVID many organizations stopped doing business until they were able to sort out all of the health and safety challenges,” Schalick said. “They were forced to lock down, but then all the government assistance programs allowed them to keep people employed. The increased volume of claims we anticipated we would see coming from the lockdowns and restrictions that were imposed upon businesses in the U.S. didn’t manifest at first.”

“Just because there wasn’t an onslaught of reported claims at the beginning of the pandemic, doesn’t mean the circumstances that would give rise to a claim being reported didn’t occur. Courts and the judicial system were closed or slowed and now that they are back open, we’re starting to see the circumstances that occurred during the COVID lockdowns becoming claims today,” Schalick said. “Litigation is progressing.”

Added to the delayed pandemic litigation is a concern over newer claims that might be filed as the country inches toward an economic downturn. Though a recession was avoided in 2023, experts think a soft dip could occur in 2024, with 76% of economists saying there’s a 50% or less chance of an economic downturn this year — that almost always results in more management liability claims.

“During the Great Recession in 2008, we saw an almost immediate spike in claims because of the economic conditions and the pressure it placed on organizations. They were making personnel changes with significant belt tightening almost immediately.” Schalick said.

What’s in Store for M&PL Policy Rates in 2024?

Despite an uptick in claims and increased economic uncertainty, management liability rates haven’t increased, resulting in market-wide pricing levels that may not meet the increased pressure of rising settlements and jury verdicts.

“Rates are going the other direction and settlement values are not falling,” Schalick said.

The mismatch between rates, claim frequency and severity is, in part, because carriers experiencing the dramatic soft market in the public D&O market are seeking premium gain in the private and non-profit market.

“In the public company market, the rates have been decreasing significantly. The rates were increasing in the private, not-for-profit market, and rightfully so, but there’s a desire to supplement overall mid-size D&O for carriers who also write private not-for-profit, and they see that as an opportunity to aggregate premium,” Schalick said. “So the always competitive landscape in the private, not-for-profit market has dramatically increased in the last 18 to 24 months.”

Still, companies of all sizes and types should be concerned about management liability rates in the future. Legal system abuse is resulting in increases in both the amount of litigation and the size of verdicts plaintiffs are receiving.

Certain areas of the country are particularly vulnerable to this type of legal system abuse. As a result, insureds in these localities are likely to be vulnerable to rate increases.

“The environment is so positive for the plaintiff that forces premium increases so carriers are able to stay in that market long term,” Schalick said.

Why a Tenured Carrier Partner Can Help Insureds Navigate An Uncertain Market

It’s clear that insureds are facing an uncertain M&PL market over the next few years. Fortunately, carriers with a long history in the M&PL space will be there to offer stability.

Philadelphia Insurance Companies has been supporting this market for 35 years. PHLY is committed to offering long-term rate stability, even as economic and claims trends start to push premiums upwards. They have an appetite for all sorts of companies, large and small, for-profit and nonprofit alike.

“We’ve been at this game for a long time and are one of the most tenured underwriters in this space,” Schalick said. “We like to stay very consistent.”

PHLY has worked with both for-profit and non-profit on management liability policies. With dedicated M&PL teams throughout the company’s 13 regions, PHLY provides the support agents and brokers are looking for on behalf of their clients. The teams know their regions well and can respond to local trends. They’re also dedicated to making the renewal process as easy as possible for their partners and policyholders.

“We have real confidence in our results, so we focus a lot on making the renewal experience as painless as possible for all agents and insureds,” Schalick said.

The company is also investing in tools to help insureds avoid losses. Earlier this year, they launched a new online risk management platform, PHLYGateway, which offers resources for insureds on how to create an employee handbook and trainings on issues such as recognizing workplace sexual harassment and discrimination.

If insureds have questions, they can consult a Best Practices Help Line, provided via the platform. That way, they can get on the spot risk management guidance to help them prevent claims.

To learn more, visit: https://www.phly.com/mplDivision/managementLiability/default.aspx.

This article was produced by the R&I Brand Studio, a unit of the advertising department of Risk & Insurance, in collaboration with Philadelphia Insurance Companies. The editorial staff of Risk & Insurance had no role in its preparation.

Rising Star Abby Flaherty of Risk Strategies Details Her Entertainment Brokering Journey and How Industry Tragedy Has Impacted Coverage

Planck’s Leandro DalleMule Discusses the Ethics of AI in Insurance

3 Keys to Combat ‘Big Brother’ Fears with Safety Technology

2024 RIMS President David Arick Shares How COVID and AI Have Changed the Risk Management Space

More from Risk & Insurance

The Top 3 Things Risk Managers Can Do to Minimize the Impact of Potential Litigation

Three Ways to Tackle Supply Chain and Quality Control Challenges in Life Sciences

The 2024 Entertainment Power Brokers

Insured Cannot Block D&O Coverage for Another Insured’s Settlement