Willis chief executive Joe Plumeri has called for the end to broker contingent commissions throughout the industry.

Speaking at the 2005 Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) conference Plumeri said it's time the industry stepped up to a higher standard.

"If contingents create the appearance of a conflict for some brokers, they create that appearance for every broker," Plumeri said. "It doesn't matter whether the broker is global, regional or local—-based in the US, London, or anywhere around the world. It's time to say 'enough'."

Plumeri called for an ongoing review of broker operations. Relying on regulators to instigate broker transparency, he said, was not enough.

"It shouldn't have taken outsiders asking questions for us to review our processes or to think about how we can do better," he said. "And just answering the questions and satisfying the regulators is not sufficient. We should have an ongoing review of our operations."

The chief executive proposed a new model for the industry at large based on three principles:

—Client advocacy.
"It's about understanding the client's unique needs...developing innovative solutions....delivering the intellectual capability to the client through consultation and advice," Plumeri said.

—Transparency.
"Once we understand a client's needs, transparency is about explaining what we as the broker are going to do; what the carrier's participation will be; and ultimately, how we are going to deliver what we promised," he said.

-Innovation.
"We need to invest heavily in this area," Plumeri said. "We have great people in this business and the collective brain power solves some pretty complex problems—but we lose a lot of efficiency, value and service with systems that are as old as I am."