This year began differently – without the usually crowded celebrations and festive events, but with an ongoing lockdown followed by the slow and steady roadmap to the lift of social distancing and travel measures.

2021 was a good opportunity to rethink how the return to the “new normal” should be, both in our personal and professional lives, and as a company how we gain momentum in our strategic growth, further invest in our people, and innovate for the future.

So, what were the highlights of 2021, and what do we expect in the new year?

Putting our people first was more important than ever.

Our priority has always been to support our people in staying healthy, connected, and productive. That’s why returning to the past wasn’t an option, and the only way forward was to adapt and evolve into better ways of working.

We introduced various initiatives throughout the year, such as video-free Fridays, walk and talk meeting formats, and further access to mental health resources to keep reminding our people that wellbeing is a priority – especially after working remotely for an extended time.

We have entered a transition period to our new hybrid ways of working. We took steady steps in opening the r10 offices, prioritising our people’s health and wellbeing while listening and addressing any issues, concerns, and challenges we might have faced on the way. Today, the r10 office is a space to collaborate, innovate, and meet with colleagues, clients, partners, and associates in a flexible way that fits the priorities and needs of each other.

Bigger and better.

2021 was a big year for r10. We had to embrace change to enhance our expertise, improve our offerings, become more resilient, and have a robust company culture.

Although we were sad to say farewell to some old friends this year, our family has grown by a significant percentage. The r10 team has expanded to evolve our expertise and address our clients’ needs in areas such as Project Management, Business Analysis, Technology, as well as Operations. We are proud to have a bigger and more diverse team that supports the r10 culture and principles.

Our people were promoted and recognised for their achievements while being encouraged to learn new skills and expand their knowledge. Also, we introduced Agile Performance Management to address the flaws and limitations inherent in the traditional performance approach and motivate further our employees’ performance and development.

Also, we launched a new website and collateral to present more accurately what we do best as a management consultancy for the insurance industry, while demonstrating our culture, mission and principles.

For another year, we are a member of the Management Consultancy Association (MCA), and committed to adhering to the highest standards in consulting. r10 is now also an affiliate member of the International Underwriting Association of London (IUA) – an organisation aiming to promote and enhance the business environment for international insurance and reinsurance companies operating in or through London.

Acquired Amarillo Technologies.

Amarillo was acquired by r10, as it perfectly fitted our overall growth strategy and vision to incite change in the London insurance market with forward-thinking technology and best-in-class consulting services. Amarillo is a technology incubator focused on investing, designing, and building technology assets.

This acquisition brings together r10’s consulting expertise and Amarillo’s insurance products. Together, we have the capabilities and know-how to enable innovation and much-needed disruption. Clients’ needs are addressed with insurance solutions that add value across the entire insurance life cycle – with a better connection, real-time granular level data and complete visibility for all parties.

New partnerships, new offerings – with the r10 Partner Ecosystem

This year we have launched the r10 Partner Ecosystem – a network of carefully selected partners who bring knowledge and proven solutions to the forefront of our client’s digital transformation journey.

By combining our industry knowledge and implementation expertise with our partners leading technology solutions and services, we can deliver more together, overcome London’s legacy challenges, and facilitate strategic transformation – in a more collaborative, faster, and cost-effective approach.

Currently, the partner ecosystem includes EDII, Eigen Technologies, Amarillo Technologies, Insureflow, Netcall, Vitale Digital, and Vitesse, which provide an end-to-end solution across the entire insurance value chain.

Delivered results and shared expertise.

We continued doing what we do best and focused on delivering high-quality expertise and important projects in the modernisation of the global insurance market.

For example, we delivered a user experience review to an established compliance software to help them cater to the needs of potential London market clients and ensure their collateral, services, and approach is ‘go-to market’ ready. Also, we delivered remote training to a specialty insurer as part of the roll-out of a new Delegated Authority system.

Our experts wrote lots of blogs and delivered insightful webinars. To mention a few – Ben Howell, r10’s Consultant, wrote about Project Management best practices, such as “servant leadership” and smooth handovers. Anu Sareen, r10’s Senior Manager, wrote about the evolutions and future of Business Analysis. Helen Dines, r10’s Solution Director, delivered an insightful webinar in partnership with LTS Architects on taking a look at the Restructured Workplace. Furthermore, Peter Mungeam, r10’s Managing Director, hosted a webinar with Netcalll on Supercharging operational efficiencies in the London Market using low code.

Never stopped supporting and celebrating what matters.

We are advocates of promoting change and transformation, not only in the insurance industry but also for society.

Our employees fundraised for our charity partner, Ellenor Hospice. We won the Accumulator Challenge Gold Award as the company that fundraised the most money throughout the year – such a proud moment. We also supported other organisations and initiatives, such as the Poppy Appeal of the Royal British Legion, Stonewall charity for Pride, my Name’5 Doddie Foundation and more.

We continued supporting sporting talent through the r10 “Talent in Sports” programme, with new sponsorships of the Royal Navy’s Eastern Region Football Club and Swanscombe Tigers Youth Football Club.

We kept advocating, taking pledges and promoting topics that matter, such as diversity and inclusion, equality, and mental health.

And fun – lots of it. From virtual cocktail making classes to bingo shenanigans with RuPaul’s Drag Race star Charlie Hides for International Women’s Day.

We have created two new committees to continue supporting even better what matters – an Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Committee and a Social Committee. ESG overlooks activities aiming to promote the company’s ethical impact and sustainability. The Social Committee aims to create a positive workplace culture that prioritises healthy relationships and work-life balance.

Looking forward to 2022.

2021 showed us that we shouldn’t take things for granted and that we have the power to drive change.

We are hopeful for 2022 that the patience of the last two years will flourish opportunities in more resilient, innovative and intuitive ways. Our clients have fed back that ‘r10 are everywhere’ and we have never been busier talking to new and existing clients about change opportunities. We’re looking forward to working more closely with our ecosystem partners and influencing seismic transformation in the London market.

A big thank you to our community of clients, associates and partners for their ongoing support and the r10 team that stays motivated, adaptable, supportive of each other, and continuously improving.

Wrap up 2021 – What a year.