Risk is the fuel of our industry. And risk is growing in the world, says Tobias Sonndorfer of VIG Re in the Global Minds podcast

The world is changing rapidly, and with these changes comes an acceleration of new risks. Whether these risks are related to the consequences of natural catastrophes, geopolitical developments or digitalisation, it is a topic not only for insurers. „Both insurer and reinsurer have to deal with new threats. Basically, what we do is deal with the big societal issues and try to absorb and cushion the negative impacts,“ says Tobias Sonndorfer, CEO of reinsurer VIG Re, in the Global Minds podcast, which features prominent foreign personalities speaking on business in the Czech Republic. 

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You can also listen to the full interview at THIS link.

The reinsurance industry is most easily characterised as the insurer´s insurance provider. Although there is inherently a lot of money in it, Sonndorfer says it is a rather niche segment and was not his personal first choice when considering a career. „The industry chose me rather than me choosing it. I studied banking and finance and wanted to pursue a career in banking. I started in banking advisory and it was only after the financial crisis in 2008 that I came into contact with reinsurance. I joined a reinsurance company and started to learn about the industry. Over time, I grew to like it,“ he recalls.

People and purpose

The podcast guest found this liking for the reinsurance industry for two reasons in particular. The first is the people. „Our industry is built on working with people. In business conversations, we sit at the table with specific individuals. That human contact very often develops into a long-term relationship. So then you're dealing with people you've known for maybe ten years or more,“ Sonndorfer explains.

The second important aspect from the perspective of the CEO of VIG Re is the comprehensive mission of the entire industry. „Risk situations have to be dealt with primarily by the insurer, but ultimately also by the reinsurer. To give an example: climate change causes natural catastrophes. Everyone is more or less exposed to them. And we take a large part of this natural catastrophe risk on our books. Another is digital transformation. With the digital transformation comes a lot of new uncertainties in people's lives. Both the insurer and the reinsurer have to deal with these as well. So basically what we are doing is dealing with the big societal issues and trying to absorb and buffer the negative impacts. So the fuel for our industry is risk, and there are more and more risks in the world,“ Sonndorfer adds.

Smaller and more dynamic

Before joining VIG Re, Sonndorfer worked for 12 years for one of the world's largest reinsurers, Munich Re. In contrast, VIG Re operating from Prague, Munich and Paris is a rather intimate business, but one that is undergoing quite dynamic development. From Sonndorfer's point of view, the difference lies in agility and responsiveness. „We put a lot of emphasis on being fast. We have a flat hierarchy and quick decision-making, which is our big advantage. On the other hand, we are part of Vienna Insurance Group, which is a large insurance group, so we cannot play 'free style start-up'. But as a reinsurance company we create a dynamic environment and we try to spread this dynamic nature throughout the organisation,“ Sonndorfer describes.

As an example of a more flexible company setup, Sonndorfer cites a program from earlier this year to partially modify the company's culture around the values centered around the Passion, Partnership, Performance slogans. „We would like to wrap these values into a corporate culture called #oneVIGRe. This means #oneVIGRe globally and in all our offices - in Prague,Munich and Paris. It brings a kind of flexibility that I value very much and that we would like to show day in and day out,“ says the CEO of VIG Re.

Disrupting the status quo

Agility and flexibility necessarily involve change and the courage to embark on it. From Sonndorfer's point of view, it is essential not to be afraid, even though every change may involve the risk of mistakes. Making mistakes, he says, is natural. „It's not that we want to make changes for the sake of making changes. But we have to adapt to the situation we see around us. The world is changing at a rapid pace. Our response to that is that we want people who are not afraid of change, and we want people who are prepared to admit mistakes when they happen, because that can be a logical consequence of change. We have to accept that we make mistakes. We want to create an environment in which it is possible to make mistakes and learn from them. That is a very fundamental idea that we are trying to push through. Otherwise you are always paralysed by the fear of change and then you don't make any change,“ Sonndorfer says. 

Related to this is a long-term corporate strategy to create an environment that encourages people to challenge the status quo. „We don't want to have people who blindly follow the rules because a rule may be right in one situation but wrong in another. We would like to have a team that is open-minded, looks at every situation with fresh eyes and thinks critically about the rules. That's also what we mean by agility and innovation culture. I don't mean that I expect everyone to come up with a new product every day. Let me give you an example. Two years ago, soon after I joined, we started a transformation programme to become more data and technology-driven as a reinsurance company. We wanted to become a digital enabled reinsurance company. And digitally enabled means that we will work in a modern way with today's technology and data. That was a risk because it involves not only a technological change, but also a mindset change. The program is still running, but I'm very excited about how it's evolving, and it's a great wave that's going through the whole organization,“ says Tobias Sonndorfer.

Does Tobias Sonndorfer prefer to work in diversified or homogeneous teams? How satisfied is he with his Czech language skills? And what is meant by reinsurance being the invisible hand of the insurance industry? Find out in the Global Minds podcast.

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Tobias Sonndorfer

Sonndorfer became Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at reinsurance company VIG Re in January 2025. As the reinsurance company of Vienna Insurance Group, VIG Re is headquartered in Prague with offices in Munich and Paris.Sonndorfer joined the company on 1 January 2023 as a Member of the Board of Management, later serving as it Vice-Chairman.  Prior to that, he worked for 12 years for the reinsurance company Munich Re. Previously, he was a senior consultant at PwC and also worked in banking.