Beth Jacobsen
Captive director
Artex Risk Solutions
Personal bio: I grew up in the northern suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, and lived there for many years after I graduated from college.
I moved to Des Moines, Iowa about four years ago after my husband was transferred there for work. It was quite the shock moving from a big city to a smaller suburb of Des Moines, but we are really enjoying it now and love raising our children here. My biggest passion is spending time with family, especially my two little boys. Outside of work and being a mother, I enjoy yoga, pilates, cooking and reading up on health.
Professional profile: I graduated from Miami of Ohio with a bachelor’s degree in finance and also earned a minor in Spanish. As part of my degree programme, I also studied international business while abroad in Luxembourg.
Upon graduation, I entered the Gallagher summer sales internship programme and was subsequently hired to work for them in a sales and account management role in the downtown Chicago office.
I managed a very diverse book of business, was heavily involved in the marketing efforts for our food-related business niche, and helped with the development of request for proposals responses for larger accounts.
In 2013, after five years in the Chicago office, I was offered an opportunity to take on the assistant captive director role within Artex, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gallagher focused on alternative risk.
In this role, I helped manage several group captives out of our Rolling Meadows, Illinois office. I was recently promoted to captive director where I manage or co-lead five different group captives.
How did you end up in the captive industry?
First of all, I ended up in the insurance industry because my father owned his own insurance agency and I spent many summers helping him out in the office growing up.
I knew from a young age how great the insurance industry could be and that there were endless opportunities for young graduates.
Our family friends, Jim — who had gone through the internship programme and spent his entire career at Gallagher — and Sue Gault, persuaded me to check out the Gallagher sales internship following graduation and the rest was history.
I spent over five years in the retail brokerage side of the business and was recruited over to Artex by the head of their sales team for the assistant captive director position. I was intrigued with captives, ready for a new challenge, and was grateful for the opportunity.
What has been your highlight in the captive industry so far?
There have been many highlights in my career thus far at Artex, however, I would have to say that the ultimate highlight has been the people
From my colleagues to a few incredible mentors to my clients, I have met and had the chance to work with so many engaging and brilliant minds.
Another highlight has been to witness how well group captives work for so many companies. There is nothing more gratifying than being able to report back to the members of these group captives how well they are performing and that the programme is ultimately doing what it should be doing for them: stabilising and driving down their cost of risk over time.
What/who have been your influences in the captive industry?
The continuous mentorship I’ve received has been the biggest influence thus far. I have extremely talented colleagues who continuously go above and beyond to provide education and training. The best part is that many of these mentors have become great friends as well, so I have been very lucky from that standpoint.
What is your impression of the industry?
Most people probably wouldn’t label insurance as exciting, but I can assure you that the captive insurance world is just that. The innovation and creativity in the industry is unparalleled. I love how fast paced it is as well, and how we’re constantly pivoting to bring forth new solutions for our clients
What are your aspirations for your career in the captive industry?
I look forward to growing, evolving and continuing to learn in my new role as captive director.
I am interested in the management track as well and would love to pay it forward and formally mentor colleagues at some point in the near future.
What advice do you have for someone considering a role in the industry?
I was fairly intimidated by captives at first, it felt like the twilight zone compared to the property and casualty side of the business. All I can say is jump right in, get your feet wet and identify a mentor or two whom you can bounce questions off of along the way.
If you are looking for an innovative industry with endless opportunity and challenge, then the captive space is for you!
Jim McElhannon, partner at Reagan Companies “Beth has worked with my team and me for over eight years, and during this time I have come to consider her an invaluable asset. As a captive director, Beth has proven herself to be responsible, dedicated and personable. Over the years I have dealt with many programs and directors and I can attest that Beth has displayed a level of professionalism that is seldom matched. In addition, Beth was instrumental in launching a new captive programme designed specifically for high hazard construction clients, which many of my clients have taken advantage of. Beth puts in long hours in the office and is always available no matter what time of the day or what day of the week it is. In addition to being an excellent captive director, she is a great team leader, friend and a pleasure to work with.”
