S4 EP53: Attracting high performance talent through turnaround results - Karen Caddick, Chief Human Resources Officer, SiriusPoint

“A lot of businesses talk about it, but do they really analyse what they need to do to build it? We've spent a lot of time thinking about what high performance looks and feels like within the context of a turnaround”, says Karen. “When I joined the business, I prioritized improving the culture, establishing values that really mean something, as well as working with Scott Egan (CEO) to ensure we've got the right leaders at every level that exude those values.We've created a really strong accountability culture. I think the key to making sure culture change sticks is integrity." On the Insurance Coffee House Podcast this week, Karen shares her 30-year HR career journey. Starting in insurance, she has moved through some of the most recognizable brands in insurance, financial services, hospitality and media, before returning to insurance with roles at Saga Plc and RSA.  She joined SiriusPoint in November 2022. Karen discusses working across a wide variety of sectors, and how she has found transitioning back in to insurance. “When I started my career, for many insurers, there wasn't a big focus on culture and values. People talked about it, but I don't think they did it as well as we did it in hospitality and retail.I think in the past, in in financial services, technical skills have tended to be rewarded with bigger and bigger roles, and I felt that the leadership aspects were secondary.What I found in retail, hospitality and also media, is because the customer is just so central and critical, there's just much more focus on leadership of the people, the values and the culture within the business. It's just such a heartbeat of the business at every level in those industries. I'm a massive believer in values and culture, and I love being part of businesses where these are really central. I think that's become true, probably now more so in the insurance industry than it was when I started. That's certainly true for SiriusPoint.”Karen explains how some of her best experiences have come through the tough times and the importance of HR’s relationship with the CEO. “The relationship I have with Scott and other bosses I've worked really well with, are where you've got mutual respect but sometimes differences of opinion.That’s where the real spark comes. Sometimes we come at things with different opinions and we'll explain them to each other.But we'll end up in a different place, and it's a better place than either of us had thought of. That ability to challenge with mutual respect and actually stand your ground is so important.” Headquartered in Bermuda, with offices in New York, Liege, London, Stockholm and Zurich, Karen gives insight in to SiriusPoint and the ambition to be a best-in-class insurance business. “We're a global underwriter of insurance and reinsurance. With over $3billion capital, our business lines include accident and health, aviation, space, casualty, credit, energy, marine, property and life insurance.Our global headcount is around 1000. In terms of growth, we really want to become a top performing reinsurance and insurance company in the coming years. Our aim is really to be among the names who consistently outperform the market year on year.”Karen emphasizes how creating a high-performance culture is more than an HR task, as well as the role integrity plays.  “From day one, our CEO has made building a high-performance culture, one of our executive leader leadership team’s top priorities. We've created real integrity around what we say we're going to do and what we're actually doing. If there's any mismatch there, people see through the cracks and they just lose trust very, very quickly. My strong belief is that culture can be built. But culture can also be damaged in a nanosecond. If you don't have integrity, you can just lose trust so...