The latest Wisdom Wednesday webinar, hosted through the Insurance Institute of Gauteng and sponsored by Old Mutual Insure, explored an important topic: “The Questions Risk Managers Ask.” Presented by Xiluva Mathebula on 19 August 2026, the session helped brokers understand how risk managers and actuaries think about insurance risk.
One of the strongest messages was that the role of the broker continues to change. In the past, brokers were mainly seen as policy placers. Today, clients need brokers who can identify real exposures, explain possible gaps and help them prepare for an uncertain future. Data, analytics, artificial intelligence and scenario thinking are becoming as important as strong market relationships.
The webinar explained the Enterprise Risk Management cycle in simple terms. Risks must be identified, assessed, prioritised, managed, monitored and communicated. For brokers, this means asking better questions. What could cause a loss? How serious could that loss be? Could one event affect several parts of the business? Is the client’s insurance still suitable as the business changes?
The discussion also covered exposure, claims frequency, severity, tail risk, correlation, and emerging risks. These ideas may sound technical, but they lead to practical conversations with clients. Brokers should test whether declared values are accurate, whether policy limits are enough and whether one major event could threaten the survival of the business.
Emerging risks, including cyber threats, changing weather patterns, supply-chain disruption, lithium-battery fires and new technology, show why insurance advice cannot only happen at renewal. Risk profiles change throughout the year, and client conversations must change with them.
The key lesson was clear: placing insurance remains important, but advice creates real value. When brokers understand the questions behind underwriting decisions, they can communicate risk more clearly, prevent surprises at claims stage and help clients build stronger, more resilient businesses.
Co-opt Council Education 2026 – Insurance Institute of Gauteng
Strategic Relationship Manager – HDI Global SE
