(Bloomberg) -- Ajit Jain, one of Warren Buffett’s top managers at Berkshire Hathaway Inc., has a message for the staff that he oversees at Gen Re: It’s time for their business to get much leaner and less bureaucratic.
After taking charge of the reinsurer this year and installing a longtime deputy to lead the operation, Jain sent a memo to employees detailing five areas, including compensation and sales channels, where changes should be made. He also called for increasing business unit autonomy, accepting modifications on the terms of some risk-transfer deals and reducing complexity.
“They are all related to one overarching issue that has emerged over the last ninety days, and that is Gen Re’s costs problem,” he wrote in the Aug. 20 letter, which was obtained by Bloomberg. “The ratio of expenses to premiums is not where it should or could be.” Contacted by phone, Jain declined to comment.
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