Can Casserley fill Plumeri’s shoes at Willis?

Willis Group today announced that Dominic Casserley will become its chief executive in January, replacing Joe Plumeri, who has filled the role for 12 years.

For Casserley, comparisons with the larger-than-life Plumeri will be unavoidable, perhaps more so than anyone taking over another top job in insurance. Plumeri’s evangelical, gung-ho management style was the stuff of insurance legend and led to great change at the company. He came in with a bang in 2000 and is widely credited with shaking up the stuffy Willis culture of the time.

During his tenure, Plumeri also oversaw sea changes at Willis such as a successful flotation, decamping the firm into new London offices at 51 Lime Street and renaming Chicago’s Sears Tower the Willis Tower.

Some of his changes may not have chimed well with many Willis staff – the introduction of the controversial Willis lapel pins being one example – but no-one questioned Plumeri’s passion for the role and ability to get results.

Casserley joins Willis from management consultants McKinsey & Company, with no apparent experience of insurance broking, so he faces a learning curve when he takes up his new role. It is not an unsolvable problem – after all, Plumeri had no experience of the sector when he joined Willis either, but showed he could learn quickly.

The market will be watching to see what Casserley does next. Will he make big sweeping changes like Plumeri, or will he be a more restrained boss? Time will tell, but no doubt Casserley will be keen to prove himself quickly in his new role and get out of Plumeri’s shadow.