The best way to remain influential as a leader, according to Rohit Verma, is to be a good listener, especially when you are leading a fast-track generation and being a perpetual learner. “An influential leader doesn’t have one specific style of management or leading, but instead adopts styles that are best for different situations,” he said.
As the CEO of Crawford & Company, Verma believes leaders of successful companies barely falter because their priority is their vision and ways to inspire everyone in the company. “The days of utopia are over in the traditional workplace,” he said. “The only way a leader can influence others is when they view themselves as less authoritative and more accommodative and empowering.”
Crawford & Company is the world’s largest publicly listed independent provider of claims management and outsourcing solutions to carriers, brokers and corporations with an expansive global network serving clients in more than 70 countries. The firm’s purpose is to restore and enhance lives, businesses and communities.
Before joining Crawford & Company as the COO and eventually CEO, Verma led a successful career as a management consultant, leading several insurance and banking engagements for companies such as Deloitte, Zurich and 3Com Corporation rising through the ranks with a career that has spanned three continents. Along the way, Verma realized that every industry is touched by insurance somehow, which further increased his passion.
“Insurance is a business that has a great combination of the emotional side because you’re working with people and at the end of the day, you’re helping them,” Verma said. “But then there’s a whole technical side to it, which is very interesting.”
Verma said that the claims space is poised for transformation. “The opportunity to lead a global organization was something that I felt would be extremely exciting to do, and three years into it, I feel every bit of that excitement,” he said.
Under his leadership, the company has been focused on developing a growth mindset and cascading empowerment within the culture to increase decision making efficiency and speed.
“Crawford is a people business, and it’s our people who make the biggest difference,” said Verma. “Without a healthy culture, it is difficult to achieve long term success.”
