Fabian Winter
Chief Data Officer
Munich Re
Fabian joined Munich Re in 2009, and since then, he has built up several analytics teams in primary- and reinsurance for Munich Re and its clients. From 2016 to 2019, Fabian acted as Global Head of Data Analytics, and since January 2020, he has acted as the Chief Data Officer of Munich Re. As CDO, he is responsible for Data Hunting, Data Engineering (including the Munich Re Data Lake), Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Analytics.
Based on more than 10 years in data analytics for insurers and nearly 20 years’ experience in the insurance industry, including several activities in actuarial societies all around the world, Fabian has an outstanding track record of implementing data analytics solutions in the insurance industry.
Prior to his work with Munich Re, Fabian worked as Management Strategy Consultant with a focus on primary and reinsurance topics. He holds a Diploma in Statistics from the University of Munich and a PhD from the University of Heidelberg.
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Give us a brief overview of the path that led to your current role.
After completing my master’s and PhD in Statistics, I moved into a strategy consulting role specialized in insurance – so something completely different. More or less by coincidence, I found my way back to statistics and data by joining Munich Re in 2009. Originally invited for a strategy consulting job interview, one of the hiring managers asked me during the interview if – given my quant background – I would be interested in building up predictive modelling capabilities for the international health insurance business of Munich Re.
Since then, I worked on data, analytics and AI topics within Munich Re. Starting as a Data Scientist, I progressed through the roles of Head of Health Analytics and Head of Global Data Analytics, towards my current role as Group Chief Data and Analytics Officer. Overall, a fantastic journey of 13 years, developing our data analytics community from a few single individuals to hundreds of data scientists, engineers, and data hunters.
What is one of your guiding leadership principles?
Trust.
With disruption being a key theme of the past few years, where do you see your role as a CDAO going in the next 1-2 years?
- Democratization of data, analytics, and AI by increasing data literacy.
- Monetization of data and AI.
- Development of new innovative business models.
What advice would you give to someone just starting out in the role as a CDAO?
Hire the right people! Otherwise, it will be quite hard to compensate.
Tell us 3 fun facts about yourself.
- My CDO role was not really my planned career path, but more based on coincidence, and the fact that I met a really nice guy in my first interview at Munich Re.
- I am still looking to talk with my company data. Inspired by Knight Rider and Max Headroom in the 80s, the current technology stack still frustrates me sometimes…
- Although I prefer a burger or a schnitzel after waking up in the morning, my wife motivates me to start the day with something healthier.
What is the value of participating in a professional community through Evanta?
There are many formats for peer exchange out there. At the end of the day, it’s all about the people participating, and Evanta does a great job at steering this.
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