Case StudyBuilding the leadership behind Arbol and LilyPad’s new insurance model

Leading climate risk analytics company Arbol acquired property insurer LilyPad to create a new model for insurance, combining advanced risk analytics with carrier capability.

Because we understood both the business strategy and the specialist leadership required to deliver it, Wenham Carter helped establish the leadership capability behind the transformation, beginning with a targeted introduction of its Chief Innovation Officer.

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Business ContextCreating a new model for climate insurance

Arbol acquired LilyPad as part of its strategy to combine climate risk analytics with insurance carrier capability.

By bringing together advanced modelling, underwriting expertise, and carrier infrastructure, the business could move beyond analysing risk to developing, distributing, and servicing insurance products directly.

At a time when increasing catastrophe losses were reducing insurance capacity across many US coastal communities, the combined business set out to create more intelligent, technology-enabled insurance solutions.

The Integration ChallengeLeadership for a new operating model.

LilyPad needed leadership capable of building entirely new product, operational, and commercial capabilities. From product innovation and claims modernisation to commercial growth, each appointment would play a different role in establishing the foundations of a technology-enabled insurer.

The most critical appointment was a Chief Innovation Officer capable of combining deep insurance product expertise with catastrophe risk knowledge, quantitative modelling, and commercial vision—an exceptionally rare combination.

The business needed leadership capable of creating entirely new capability.

Our ApproachRecognising the right leader before launching the search

Rather than approaching each role independently, we focused on the capability the business was building.

Having developed a long-standing understanding of both the market and Arbol’s strategic direction, we recognised an exceptional fit between the company and Rajiv Matta. His background spanning specialty insurance products, quantitative risk modelling, environmental risk, and programme innovation aligned precisely with the business’s ambitions, leading us to make a targeted introduction rather than conduct a broad executive search.

The strength of that alignment meant the process moved quickly, with Rajiv appointed following a focused interview process and no wider search required.

Building on that appointment, we strengthened two further pillars of the leadership team. A new Head of Claims brought the expertise to modernise claims operations through technology and automation, while Tyler Warden joined as Head of Sales to establish the commercial capability needed to scale distribution and accelerate market adoption.

Business OutcomeLeadership that established the foundations for a technology-enabled insurer

Together, these appointments established the leadership capability behind LilyPad’s evolving business model.

The business strengthened its ability to develop new insurance programmes, modernise claims operations, and build a scalable commercial organisation aligned to Arbol’s data-driven approach to risk.

Today, LilyPad is expanding its portfolio with both traditional indemnity and parametric insurance products designed to address coverage gaps in catastrophe-exposed communities, supported by the executive team assembled to help deliver that vision.

The business strengthened its ability to develop new insurance programmes, modernise claims operations, and build a scalable commercial organisation.

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