Young risk professional of the year, Milica Aksic, Axa XL
Milica Aksic joined Axa XL in 2015 and was key in the integration efforts of XL Group and Axa.
She has risen through the ranks of claims handling via numerous long-term assignments in both Zurich and London. As energy, property and construction claims manager Americas at Axa XL, she currently manages a team of five individuals in Chicago, with whom she oversees a portfolio of about $1bn for Axa XL.
Aksic has shown qualities beyond the norm. She worked on client exposures in the wake of hurricanes Harvey and Michael and met with people impacted by the hurricanes. Her visits to those insured, and ensuring people struggling at the time received advanced payments, led to tremendously positive feedback.
Among her achievements, Aksic was integral in helping Axa XL develop a robust bill review process that effectively paid vendors within 15 days of submission and considerably reduced internal efforts. This process freed up time for her team of claims specialists to focus on managing losses and was later implemented by other departments within the organisation resulting in further savings.
She also successfully reduced allocated loss adjustment expenses (ALAE) on some challenging excess and surplus businesses. Specifically, she reduced the book by 100% ALAE spend, while shortening the claims process for a specific book from 7.5 months for an average cycle to a 5-day average on about 90% of the book.
Aksic has also shown dedication recruiting and developing the next generation of insurance professionals. She regularly returns to her alma mater and hosts educational sessions for the Department of Risk and Insurance to educate students about opportunities in insurance, as well as demonstrate the satisfaction and challenges of working in claims.