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15/09/2020

The fact that msg can celebrate its 40th anniversary this year is largely due to many committed and loyal employees, some of whom have been ensuring the continuous development of the company and its products since the 1980s. One of them is Susanne Sigethy, who has accompanied and decisively contributed to the development of the insurance sector at msg. In this interview, she talks about corporate and personal milestones, the very first msg product, motivation and stretch limousines.

Could you please briefly outline how you came to msg?

Susanne Sigethy: (laughs) Almost the same way of the company's founders. During my studies, I was doing an internship at IBM and wrote my thesis at that time. There had been a hiring freeze at IBM when I finished my studies in the summer of 1988. A good friend of mine had studied with two of the founders of msg, Pius Pflügler and Herbet Enzbrenner, and brought me into contract with msg. I started working at msg in October 1988, together with six other new employees. Hans Zehetmaier was a bit nervous because by the standards of the time six new employees was a huge number. At that time, msg had 30 employees.

I took on a project at the Vereinten Versicherung (United Insurance Company), out of which msg’s very first product came. First of all, the existing software had to be buried, which was accomplished at a departmental barbecue party at the Isar. At that time, Vereinte was a subsidiary of Schweizer Rück (Swiss Re/SR), which already owned a standard reinsurance solution, SICS. This is still today our main competitor in the market. The deciding factor was that we had so much confidence and also the agreement of the local management to build another RI product within the SR Group and we were sure to do better.

In your opinion, what were entrepreneurial and personal milestones in the development of the insurance industry?

In my opinion, it was more of a process than individual milestones. Our comprehensive product SAP Reinsurance Management (formerly KORVAS) was ultimately developed over a period of 30 years. Personally, I have always appreciated that we have retained a certain spirit of optimism, willingness to take risks and spontaneity within msg. This enables us to keep pace with the dynamic innovations in IT. I am - we all are - particularly proud of having achieved global market leadership. Who can say that about themselves? This also included overcoming Hans Zehetmaier’s initial skepticism towards software products (laughs). In the beginning, msg's business model was purely focused on project business, with all employees at that time programming in projects on behalf of customers, for example.

Sounds almost like a flawless success story...

We also had to overcome a dry spell when we decided to modernize the software by adopting an architectural approach that was ultimately not practical. But we learned from this mistake, revised it and then KORVAS became the SAP solution SAP Reinsurance Management, which is still successful today. But this is real life. Not everything goes perfectly to plan. The art is to do it better at the second attempt. We have succeeded in this and are certainly indebted to the msg culture.

Market and industry are constantly changing. How can msg carry this success into the future and set itself apart from the competition?

Success also requires the courage to leave one's comfort zone, to venture into the unknown like back then and to trust in the abilities of one's employees. When this is combined with respectful cooperation, then you have the msg culture that enabled us to begin the reinsurance success story more than 30 years ago. Coupled with a healthy self-confidence and the sound knowledge of the employees, this is certainly also an essential piece in the mosaic of future success. It is clear that customers are becoming more and more demanding. Software must be able to do more and more, and development is becoming permanently more expensive. Therefore, we must constantly keep an eye on the latest technical possibilities and have a good understanding of customer processes. Then there is always the possibility to close a niche. Customers want ready-made solutions. This means that the products must contain even more ready-made and intuitively configurable functions. Our solutions must start at a high level and directly support the business process. In addition, we must remain fast in every respect.

Which moments remain unforgotten?

I wouldn't want to miss the first years and the encounters with colleagues. We were just a start-up. Everybody rolled up their sleeves and jointly pursued a goal with great motivation. There was a real spirit of optimism. There were no hierarchies, everyone was taken everywhere, even to meetings with the boards of the largest insurance companies. This time has closely connected me a lot with the company and many colleagues are still here. I also have to personally and specially thank one colleague - who has been a visionary during the development of the product. Also, that it is still fun working in this area after more than 30 years. I always have to smile about a visit to Schweizer Rück (Swiss Re) in Zurich. After a business meeting, I was driven to the airport by the company's own chauffeur in uniform and white gloves in a stretch limousine. Like in a film - with a sightseeing tour through Zurich. Especially in the early years, we already encountered a very stylish, almost luxurious approach of the insurance industry to its business partners.

What do you wish for the future?

That reinsurance at msg not only has a history, but a successful future.