Robert H. Benmosche, President and Chief Executive Officer, American International Group, Inc., Receives 2013 Insurance Leader of the Year Award

January 17, 2014

St. John’s University’s School of Risk Management (SRM) held its 19th Annual Insurance Leader of the Year Awards Dinner on January 15, 2014 before a crowd of more than 1,400 in New York City. Robert H. Benmosche, President and CEO of American International Group, Inc. (AIG), was named “2013 Insurance Leader of the Year” at the event.  Proceeds from the dinner, which raised more than $2 million for the fourth consecutive year, support the university’s SRM program through scholarships for St. John’s students.

Benmosche was appointed President and CEO by the U.S. Department of Treasury and AIG Board of Directors in 2009. He is best known for his leadership at AIG where he led a historical turnaround in insurance industry annals by improving profits 60% in a few short years, and repaying in full the $182 billion in U.S. government support provided to the company during the financial crisis, plus a combined positive return of $23 billion.

“The miracle at AIG and what’s happened is the result of all of the people of this company pulling together to succeed. I couldn’t have done this alone. I share in this honor with the 63,000 employees who represent AIG today,” said Benmosche during his acceptance speech.

The “Insurance Leader of the Year Award,” has been presented annually since 1995 and recognizes the contributions of outstanding individuals whose leadership in the worldwide insurance and financial services industry sets them apart from their peers.  Last year’s recipient was Nikolaus von Bomhard, Chairman of the Board of Management, Munich Re Group.

"Bob has had an extraordinary career worthy of recognition in its own right.  However, it is his work at AIG that earns him, not only special recognition in the form of our Leader of the Year Award, but also the gratitude of our industry and our country,” said Brian Duperreault, CEO of Hamilton Re, and Chairman of the SRM Board of Overseers of St. John’s University.

The Award Selection Committee was chaired by Ellen Thrower, Ph.D., Professor Emerita and Retired Executive Director, St. John's University’s SRM, and includes George Bernstein, Esq. of The Bernstein Law Firm, P.L.L.C. (Washington, D.C.); Robert P. Hartwig, Ph.D., President of the Insurance Information Institute; Joseph Mauriello, Retired Deputy Chairman and COO of KPMG LLP; Michael J. Morrissey, President and CEO of the International Insurance Society; Patrick J. Shouvlin, Retired Partner of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP; and Peter B. Walker, Director of McKinsey & Company (New York).

Peter Hancock, CEO, AIG Property Casualty, served as Honorary Chairman of the dinner. “Bob has such a magnetic personality and his vision has led AIG back to its proud heritage as a leader in the insurance industry,” said Hancock, who presented Benmosche his award. “He makes it fun to work each and every day even though it can be challenging.”

The School of Risk Management was founded in 1901 as the Insurance Society of New York and over the years evolved into The College of Insurance (TCI).  In June 2001, TCI merged with St. John’s University, becoming a school of The Peter J. Tobin College of Business. 

St. John’s Manhattan location, currently housed in New York City’s downtown financial district (101 Murray Street), will be moving the SRM program and campus to 51 Astor Place in the East Village beginning in the summer of 2014. The university has just closed on a deal to lease 71,000 square feet in the 12-story office building south of Union Square, owned by Edward Minskoff.

SRM awards undergraduate, M.B.A., and M.S. degrees in the insurance, risk management and actuarial science disciplines.  Through its Center for Professional Education, SRM also provides education, training and consulting services to the industry, governments and regulators worldwide.

For more information regarding the Insurance Leader of the Year Dinner please contact Maureen Furlong-Weber of St. John’s University’s School of Risk Management by calling 212-277-5111. Interested media representatives can contact Dominic Scianna, Associate Vice President for External Relations at St. John’s University by calling 718-990-6185 or e-mail inquiries to [email protected].