Strategic Risk Career Transitions with Susan Hiteshew

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Talent, communication, and empathy

Susan emphasizes communication, empathy, and on-the-ground learning as essential for effective risk management talent.

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Episode notes

Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.

In this episode, Justin interviews Susan Hiteshew about her career path, from long-time risk manager to broker, and how her foundation in risk provides her with corporate empathy and understanding of her clients. They cover key principles Susan learned on the way, how she intentionally made a change, and how her risk philosophy helps her as a broker. Susan shares points from her risk philosophy and the benefits she realized from the RIMS-CRMP, as well as from serving on the National RIMS Board.

Listen for key factors in a great trisk management team.

Key Takeaways:

[:01] About RIMS and RIMScast.

[:17] About this episode of RIMScast. We will be joined by Susan Hiteshew, a long-time risk professional, to discuss how she successfully transitioned over to the broker side. We will also get her ERM philosophy and how it still guides her to this day. But first…

[:47] RIMS-CRMP and Some Prep Courses. The next virtual prep courses will be held on March 110th and 11th and again on April 21st and 22nd. Links to these courses can be found through the Certification page of RIMS.org and through this episode's show notes.

[1:04] RIMS Virtual Workshops are coming up. On February 2nd and 3rd, Pat Saporito will host the debut of the two-day course, "Storytelling with Data for Risk Management".

[1:18] On February 4th and 5th, Ken Baker will return to deliver the course, "Applying and Integrating ERM".

[1:28] The full schedule of virtual workshops can be found on the RIMS.org/education and RIMS.org/education/online-learning pages. A link is also in this episode's notes.

[1:39] RIMS members always enjoy deep discounts on the virtual workshops.

[1:43] The next RIMS Webinar will celebrate Women's History Month by exploring "Hard Hats & High Stakes: Women Leaders Shaping Construction Risk Management" on March 6th.

[1:53] We'll be joined by a Chief Risk Officer, an underwriter, and a broker, who will explore their career paths and risk and safety philosophies, and lend some insight as to why this is the time for the next generation of leaders to rise.

[2:08] Visit RIMS.org/webinars and check out the link in this episode's show notes.

[2:12] On with the show! Our guest today is the Managing Director and Office Head for Marsh's Washington, D.C. Office. Before accepting that role, she had 16 years of experience in risk management. She was one of the first RIMS-CRMP certificate holders. She's Susan Hiteshew.

[2:35] We're going to talk about her career and why she decided to make a transition over to the broker side with Marsh. We'll also talk about her ERM philosophy and how it continues to guide her to this day.

[2:47] We will also talk about strategy and the concept of professional empathy. Let's get to it…

[2:54] Interview! Susan Hiteshew, welcome to RIMScast!

[3:34] Susan can't imagine a better way to start 2026 than getting to be here on RIMScast with Justin!

[4:00] For years, Susan was a corporate risk manager. Most recently, she was the VP of Risk at a real estate investment trust. Before that, she was Senior Director of Insurance at a major hotel brand and had filled other risk roles.

[4:25] Susan says that before she got started as a risk manager, she began her career in claims. She worked in a specialized unit on the carrier side, analyzing legacy claims for coverage. They printed policies, read them, and manually wrote claims notes on them.

[4:57] Susan says it was a great way to learn the coverages and understand the underwriting intent of the policies. That foundation taught her that insurance is technically complex and that there's a policyholder on the other end who will be getting your coverage letter in the mail.

[5:19] Susan says insurance is a people business, even though it is very much a technical business. It's a form of strategic finance.

[5:28] Susan learned as a risk manager the value in building that downside protection for your company and creating predictability in your cost of risk so that your business can operate with confident margins.

[5:44] As a risk manager, Susan implemented that approach into how she thought about ERM. She thinks the most successful ERM programs are very collaborative across different business units and are built upon the spirit that everyone's a risk manager.

[6:05] Risk is something we all own for our company. Susan's focus was always on supporting her executive team and board, and giving them information in clear, cogent, and actionable ways.

[6:24] Susan speaks of frameworks. Risk and strategy are two sides of the same coin. Some risks are quantifiable and insurable; some risks are not.

[6:36] Enterprise risk management is about understanding all risks, creating awareness around them, and mobilizing your company to focus on those risks in every part of your organization, at every level. Susan finds value in both ISO and COSO. She leans more toward COSO.

[7:19] ERM was different at every company Susan worked with, tailored to the company and the business. It was collaborative. So much of enterprise risk management is taking who you are as a company, where you're trying to go, and building a framework that makes the most sense.

[8:11] Susan was a risk manager for about 16 years.

[8:20] Susan had reached the point where she wanted to broaden her impact across the board. Every time she made a change in her career, it was because she wanted to try something new and learn something different.

[9:09] The timing felt right. She had had a lot of different in-house experiences, so she could sit across from a client and say she had been in their seat and knows what they are thinking through from an insurance perspective, and she can help them solve their issues.

[9:32] At different companies, a risk manager does different things. Susan had had different areas of responsibility in insurance, claims, captive management, and enterprise risk management. What she loved the most was the insurance side.

[10:05] Susan asked herself, wouldn't it be great if she could do what she loved most, all the time, for lots of clients? She loves that in her role now, leading the D.C. office for Marsh, she gets to help lots of clients with lots of different problems. She loves supporting risk managers.

[10:44] Susan says the reason that she's been able to do what she's done in her career is because of support from others in the industry. She's having a lot of fun, working on helping clients with interesting problems. She thinks professional empathy helps her support clients.

[11:23] Quick Break! The RIMS CRO Certificate Program in Advanced Enterprise Risk Management is RIMS' live virtual program, led by James Lam. Great News! A brand new cohort has been announced. Registration closes on April 6th.

[11:44] Beginning on April 14th, bi-weekly workshops will be held from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time through June 23rd. Register now! A link is also in this episode's show notes.

[11:57] Save the dates, March 18th and 19th, 2026, for the RIMS Legislative Summit, which will be held in Washington, D.C. Join us for two days of Congressional Meetings, networking, and advocating on behalf of the risk management community.

[12:13] Visit RIMS.org/advocacy for more information and updates and to register.

[12:21] Let's Return to Our Interview with Susan Hiteshew!

[13:08] Susan says that where her background is most helpful is in her claims foundation. It trained her to interpret coverage, to understand the intent of policy language, and to understand all that goes into resolving complex claims.

[13:24] As a risk manager, Susan learned what Accounting needs, what Finance needs, and what a CFO needs when something "has gone bump in the night" and there's a significant claim issue.

[13:37] Susan can tie all that together to support a risk manager and say, "You might want to have a conversation with Accounting about this. What do you have budgeted for this? Let's have a conversation with Finance about this. Is Legal involved? Do we have clarity on Operations?"

[13:55] Susan's years in-house taught her how to pull all of those different components of the organization together. A good risk manager knows and works with everybody in their company. There are many internal and external stakeholders.

[14:19] Susan helps risk managers navigate tough situations and know whom to talk to before needing to get in front of them, to bring a tough situation to a good resolution, with everybody being aware and having the opportunity to give input to bring the situation to a close.

[14:41] Justin notes that the risk manager needs to be the point guard for the organization. Susan agrees. She coaches her daughter's basketball team.

[15:20] Susan notes that risk managers save the company money, but in most cases, they don't generate income, so it's important to run an efficient risk management team with the resources to work with and support everybody in the company. The team size differs for every business.

[16:19] Susan has loved every stop along the way in her career. Each one has been different. She has worked with amazing people. She looked for work where she would be professionally challenged, learn a lot, and work with awesome people she can learn from at every level.

[17:06] When Susan was ready to try being on the broker side, she was very intentional about it. She is so grateful for her choice. She has absolutely loved this transition.

[17:23] Quick Break! RISKWORLD 2026 will be held from May 3rd through the 6th in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. RISKWORLD attracts more than 10,000 risk professionals from across the globe. It's time to Connect, Cultivate, and Collaborate with them. Booth sales are open now!

[17:45] General registration and speaker registration are also open right now! Marketplace and Hospitality badges will be available starting on March 3rd. Links are in this episode's show notes. Be sure to check out RIMS.org for more information.

[18:01] Let's Return to Our Interview with Susan Hiteshew!

[18:22] Susan joined RIMS in 2011. She attended RISKWORLD in Philadelphia and is excited that RISKWORLD is back in Philadelphia this year, from May 3rd through 6th. There is a lot to do in Philadelphia, and it's very convenient for East Coast members.

[19:07] Susan says it's awesome to have RIMS-CRMP as part of her title. It's a designation that means something. It's tied to helping a risk manager get to the next level of connecting the risk and strategy for their organization.

[19:32] Susan took the RIMS-CRMP in the first group, in San Diego, in 2016. She was so excited to get the certification. Having the RIMS-CRMP and being active in RIMS gave her a wider lens on the profession than just seeing risk through the lens of one industry or company.

[20:14] RIMS exposed Susan to a much broader network and helped her build her professional network.

[20:34] Susan says the RIMS-CRM shows you keep up with all the CEs every two years.

[20:51] Susan says serving on the National RIMS Board and as the Board liaison for the Audit Committee in the past was an incredible experience. It put her at the intersection of governance, oversight, and strategic risk thinking. She saw how the Board evaluates controls.

[21:19] When Susan was on the Board, they had outside counsel come in and give several different board trainings on governance and how to be good supporters and board members, and understand how to do their job effectively.

[21:34] Working in that capacity helped Susan to sharpen her appreciation for transparency and disciplined communication, which were skills she was able to bring back to her role as a risk manager and other work she does.

[21:50] Susan serves on an advisory board for her daughter's school and on the board of a privately-held real estate firm in D.C. Being on the RIMS Board taught her about how to be a good advisor for the executive team.

[22:35] Susan says it's interesting to look at how the risk environment has changed. Marsh published the "World Economic Forum Global Risk Report" at the end of 2025. It talks about how risks are managed across the world by business executives, experts, and academics.

[23:01] Susan says it's interesting to see what risks they call out and how the risks change from one year to the next. The report is a fascinating read for people who are looking at external risks and how they might impact their company.

[23:16] Susan says the risk environment is incredibly dynamic. There are risks in the Risk Report that weren't there two years ago that are now in the top five risks.

[23:30] Susan believes Enterprise Risk Management is strategic, not administrative. Leaders need dynamic, real-time insights to help them connect risk directly to their business outcomes.

[23:45] Susan says tools and analytics are being used to help break down historically uninsurable risks into parts that can be actionable and solvable.

[24:15] Susan says expectations for talent are changing. We need risk professionals who can interpret analytics, communicate clearly, and help support executive decision-making processes. The connection between risk and strategy is becoming more imperative.

[25:10] How you identify your risks and communicate a message around your risks is going to be what matters and sets risk managers apart. You can have a policy and a process around managing a risk, but people at every level of a company need to internalize it.

[25:33] Susan says you need a level of validation and ownership. It has to be instilled into the corporate culture. That starts with empathy, connection, and keeping things real for folks. That will be the ultimate driver of success.

[26:04] Justin and Susan agree that risk management is a people business. It's about making things real for folks.

[26:22] When Susan worked as a risk manager for a major retailer with warehouses, she spent time in the warehouse, working at every station, so she understood the jobs that everyone was doing.

[26:38] She could see for herself how a workers' compensation injury happens. How are we getting these soft tissue issues? What do we need to do about them?

[26:50] Learning from the people who are doing it every day, you learn things you would never pick up, otherwise. You can tailor your training programs, business processes, and the real risk management work to the people who need it, whom you are helping keep safe.

[27:46] Susan's biggest piece of advice is to reframe the role. Risk management's role isn't reporting on risk; it's enabling competent business processes and competent decision-making. Speaking the language of strategy, and not just severity and probability, is very impactful.

[28:11] Susan says building relationships before you need them and infusing risk management into the culture of the company helps a business build a competent risk management approach at every level within the organization.

[28:30] Risk managers are really good at identifying issues and stumbling blocks, but offering options and solutions is where there is true value. Thinking about how we support our executives and leadership team is a key part of being a great risk manager.

[28:49] Our executives have several things coming at them, all day, every day. They've got to make decisions and move expediently.

[28:58] The more we can distill complicated risk issues into a straightforward framework, the more executives can confidently move forward on specific risk decisions. That is incredibly valuable.

[29:20] Susan says that from both the practitioner and the advisory perspective, when you're a risk manager and you position yourself as a strategic partner, you can be relied upon, not only to help protect the organization but also to help accelerate its success.

[29:40] Susan learned from a former boss to ask during ERM analyses, "Why do expensive race cars have very expensive brakes? It's not so you can stop, but so you can go fast confidently." A great risk management program helps enable speed, confidence, and resilience.

[30:34] Susan says that's what she loves about the value that risk managers bring to the table.

[30:56] Susan, you've been such a wonderful guest. You've been so giving with your perspective. Also, where are you going to be from May 3rd through the 6th, 2026? She'll be at RISKWORLD 2026 in Philly! It will be a great time, seeing all her RIMS friends!

[31:23] Some of Susan's favorite things about her profession are the friendships she created through RIMS.

[31:27] At RISKWORLD 2026, May 3rd through 6th in Philadelphia, you will Connect, Cultivate, and Collaborate! I can't wait to get the chance to finally meet you in person!

[31:38] Anybody who wants to learn a little more about Susan can check out her RIMS-CRMP Stories. It's one of the first ones. Susan is also on LinkedIn. Susan would love it if you reached out with a question for her, either on LinkedIn or RIMS Engage.

[32:05] Special thanks again to Susan Hiteshew for joining us here on RIMScast. I've got a link to her RIMS-CRMP Stories interview, which will hopefully inspire you to sign up for and study for the RIMS-CRMP exam.

[32:21] The link is in this episode's show notes. You can also check out RIMS.org/certifications.

[32:27] Plug Time! You can sponsor a RIMScast episode for this, our weekly show, or a dedicated episode. Links to sponsored episodes are in the show notes.

[32:54] RIMScast has a global audience of risk and insurance professionals, legal professionals, students, business leaders, C-Suite executives, and more. Let's collaborate and help you reach them! Contact pd@rims.org for more information.

[33:12] Become a RIMS member and get access to the tools, thought leadership, and network you need to succeed. Visit RIMS.org/membership or email membershipdept@RIMS.org for more information.

[33:29] Risk Knowledge is the RIMS searchable content library that provides relevant information for today's risk professionals. Materials include RIMS executive reports, survey findings, contributed articles, industry research, benchmarking data, and more.

[33:45] For the best reporting on the profession of risk management, read Risk Management Magazine at RMMagazine.com. It is written and published by the best minds in risk management.

[33:59] Justin Smulison is the Business Content Manager at RIMS. Please remember to subscribe to RIMScast on your favorite podcasting app. You can email us at Content@RIMS.org.

[34:10] Practice good risk management, stay safe, and thank you again for your continuous support!

Links:

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RIMS Legislative Summit — March 18‒19, 2026 on Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C. | Register now!

RIMS-CRO Certificate Program In Advanced Enterprise Risk Management | April‒June 2026 Cohort | Led by James Lam

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