Hannah Witzel, Operations Senior Vice President at FM, has grown from joining the company straight out of high school to leading operations across Germany, Austria and Eastern Europe at FM. In this interview, Hannah shares key moments from her 17-year journey, the challenges of navigating a male-dominated industry, the importance of networks and feedback, and how curiosity and flexibility help her steer teams through an evolving risk landscape.

Interviewed by Anastasiia Hresko

You began in student roles and grew into Operations Senior Vice President after 17 years at FM. Looking back, what have been some of the most defining moments in your career and how did they shape your path?

The first defining moment actually came right after high school, when I joined FM. It felt like the perfect transition from school to the real world and workforce as I was on rotation and could get a good overview of the entire company and build a network.

The second pivotal moment for me was taking over managerial responsibility that came with the Assistant Client Service Manager  role. I was the youngest team member there and now I was managing people who had been my colleagues before. This experience, former colleagues  reporting to me, taught me a lot about trust in my skills and experience and that of others. Finally, there is the operations leadership momentum that started two and a half years ago, and brought with it the responsibility for not only one department but for the entire entity, a role that is both challenging and rewarding.

Looking back, each career milestone didn’t just teach me new skills—it shaped me as a person. From learning to earn trust as the youngest manager to navigating leadership across cultures, these experiences reminded me that growth often happens in moments of discomfort. I wouldn’t call it a perfect journey, but every challenge helped me become the leader—and the woman—I am today, still learning and still curious.

What were the key challenges and opportunities in your career path?

Of course, I worked very hard, but I’d also say I was lucky in the sense that timing worked extremely well. Over 17 years with FM, I worked three years as a student, five years in the claims department, and then progressed through roles as Underwriter, Account Manager, Assistant Client Service Manager, Client Service Manager. In between these steps, I was prepared to take over a new role whenever it came up. At the same time, support and trust I received from my network helped me avoid  developing imposter syndrome, which women are more prone to.

Speaking of challenges, I have three children, and each of them arrived during different career transitions. I remember interviewing for a new role and finding out I was pregnant at the same time.

What I learned is that staying flexible is just as important as having a plan.Although my career path looks perfect from the outside, it doesn’t mean I didn’t have to maneuver through failure.

The commercial property insurance landscape evolves constantly. How do you stay attuned to emerging risks and translate them into meaningful action for your teams and clients?

Listening skills are the key component, in a sense of staying informed of both internal and external developments. I try to stay aware of global news as well as industry specific developments, in the insurance sector as well as sectors our clients operate in. I also value personal interactions with our partners, clients, employees. Be it over a coffee or while traveling, I learn a lot from them, which is why I put a lot of value on the network.

Not only do I stay curious, but I also block some time to think about all this big information. This is how meaningful actions arise – when I am not just concerned about day-to-day things, but also dedicate time to create vision and strategy based on the perspective of my team and all the knowledge I gathered.

Your current role spans Germany, Austria and Eastern Europe. How do you approach understanding the distinct business cultures and market needs across such varied regions?

Curiosity and listening are also key in this aspect. I’ve always enjoyed traveling and getting to know new cultures: I did some backpacking tours through China, Thailand, Australia, spent parental leave with my family in e.g. Canada, South Africa and France I believe that the wealth of diversity that comes from working with teams from different countries is invaluable, and that cultural awareness and open-mindedness are needed to succeed. I think we need to realise that adaptability in terms of communication styles is also a must.

In the insurance sector, costs also need to be taken into account: it is not always easy to organise many touchpoints, but I still try to maximise time with those from abroad, be it for a client meeting or aChristmas event. I think effective collaboration across countries is doable, it simply requires a bit more effort. For instance, just before this interview, I had a phone call with one colleague from the Czech Republic to congratulate him on being 25 years with FM. Little efforts like this make a big difference and foster a culture of collaboration and exchange

From your experience as an engineer now leading large operations, what technical or leadership skills do you believe young professionals should develop to thrive in the future of risk management? And what advice would you give them?

Soft skills come to my mind first. Young professionals need to be flexible, learn fast, be curious, respectful and think critically. Technical skills open doors, but curiosity and courage keep them open. For women especially, my advice is: don’t wait until you feel ready—raise your hand and ask for support. Later in your career, the ability to make decisions fast also comes in handy, considering the fast-paced risk management environment.

Openness to feedback is crucial.  Feedback is love, because I believe that only those people who truly care about you will take their time to provide meaningful feedback. A lot of joy at work comes not only from personal success but also from the success of entire team

You mentioned before that working in a male-dominated field is usually related to some specific challenges for emerging women leaders. Is there something that you would say to those women leaders who may feel overwhelmed by it?

My career path generally progressed well and I’d say that one of the key things is not being afraid to speak up. It should not be rude or pushy, but standing up for your skills and talent is important. Also don’t let anyone else own your career and be the one who drives it and is vocal about it. I’d say you need to reach out to your personal manager, share your ambitions, and ask for support whenever needed. Build your own kind of Board of Directors, have people around you who give you feedback, cheer you up, challenge you on technical side.

Make yourself visible and be clear about what you want to achieve. Don't let anyone else own your career and be vocal about what you want.

If you had a chance to change something in your career journey, would you change something and if yes, what would that be?

For me, it comes down to the experience of working abroad. Being a part of one company for so many years now has many advantages: a strong network, knowledge of processes in detail, and extensive experience. Yet, at the same time, there is a risk of being in a “tunnel view” mode and being perceived as lacking external views or experience of work in another company or location.

I try to overcome this by being aware of different developments in the industry, participating in different forums, becoming a part of FIDI, which is a women in insurance industry network in Germany and now a part of WIL. Once again, this shows the power of my network, since it was during a client event where I met Helena Kazamaki, Board Member of WIL, and she recommended me to join the organisation. Our network has huge power: I recently won a “Top 40 under 40” award thanks to the nomination from the CEO of our competitor.

Overall, I feel I am managing it well, but if I could go back in time, I would make sure I gained pure international experience as well.