FORTY under 40:Warren Miller
Warren Miller, Senior relationship manager, Performa Investment Management
Warren Miller is a senior relationship manager responsible for managing client relationships as well as working with Performa’s marketing and business development team to cultivate new relationships. In addition, he develops relationships with existing clients and their service providers and assists in the development of new business opportunities.
Over the years Miller has been a conference task force member for various captive insurance associations, is currently president of the SCCIA (South Carolina) board and was chair of the 2019 and 2020 SCCIA conferences. Prior to joining Performa in 2014, he held various positions with BuysideFX, a foreign exchange trading software provider based in Burlington, Vermont. Miller graduated from the University of Vermont with a BS in business administration with a concentration in entrepreneurship and economics.
How did you become involved in captive insurance?
I grew up in Vermont, one of the world’s largest captive insurance domiciles, and attended the University of Vermont, yet did not have much exposure to the industry early on as my focus in college was on entrepreneurship, economics and finance.
I started my career at a startup financial technology firm building a currency trading platform for pension funds. As I was looking to transition to a role within the investment management industry, I was introduced to Scott Mildrum from Performa (another 40 Under 40 finalist) and have never looked back.
What are the biggest challenges of working in this industry, and what do you find most rewarding?
“We are lucky to have such great clients where we act as a strategic member of their team.”
It may sound cliché, but I have not encountered any major challenges to working within the captive insurance industry. Not yet anyway! Performa has been focused on partnering with captives for over 30 years, which we believe speaks volumes about how we view the industry.
Personally, the people are the most rewarding aspect for me. We are lucky to have such great clients where we act as a strategic member of their team and contribute to the success of the captives as their investment partner. Additionally, the other captive industry service providers are second to none in terms of quality and professionalism and are also just wonderful people.
Would you recommend the captive insurance industry to young people as a future career path?
I would absolutely recommend pursuing a career in the captive insurance space, regardless of age. However, it is vital that we continue to encourage young folks to join the captive insurance industry so that we continue to build the bench of talent who will become future leaders of the captives world.
What developments do you see ahead for captives?
We have been very fortunate to work in such a vibrant, growing industry the last few years and based on recent data, it appears the industry is off to a strong start in 2024. We continue to see very strong interest from potential new captive owners as well existing captive owners utilising their captives more broadly by retaining more risk, writing new lines of coverage, etc.
We believe captives will continue to be a vital risk management tool for business owners and I think more great things are ahead for the industry.
Do you think that your long-term future remains in the captives market?
Without a doubt. As an independent, 100 percent employee-owned firm that has focused on helping captives design customised investment programmes since 1992, we certainly do not plan on changing our stripes any time soon.
Performa is committed to the captives industry, and as a partner in our business, I plan to be a member of this team for the rest of my career.
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