What are the primary responsibilities of your current role, and what aspects of your job do you most enjoy?

As the Director of Operations Worldwide, I am responsible for the operational service delivery across our 28 Assistance Centres, working in partnership with our medical and security leadership. Collectively we lead our teams in delivering an integrated service providing information and solutions to our customers. We ensure that a consistently high quality of service is provided 24/7 utilising our resources, network of providers and information that we gather through our information and analysis teams.

After 25 years in operations, I still enjoy the diversity in the services we provide in an unpredictable environment where no two cases or situation are the same. Working alongside highly professional, passionate, skilled and dedicated teams making a difference in people’s lives daily is very rewarding and gives purpose to our cause.

I can say it is not a boring job!

What are the most significant changes you’ve noticed in the international risk management and assistance sector in recent years?

The frequency of crisis events globally, because of geopolitical instability and weather-related events, has increased.

It is not uncommon to be faced with more than one crisis event occurring simultaneously. Our ability to respond to these frequent crisis events requires a robust business continuity plan that allows an effective crisis response while maintaining the day-to-day routine assistance activity. Our global footprint of 28 Assistance Centres have been instrumental in recent years responding to global events.

Our ability to respond to these frequent crisis events requires a robust business ‎continuity plan

Clients also have an increased expectation from their domestic workforce to provide solutions during events including hurricanes, cyclones and, more recently, wildfires in the US. As the assistance partner to many large organisations, we monitor global threats closely and take a proactive position anticipating likely scenarios – many learned from previous events. We also structure our advice and information to help clients prepare their domestic workforce, as well as validating our response capability in advance of an anticipated event.  

What are the biggest risks facing travellers in 2025, and how is International SOS working to address them?

Our recent Risk Outlook research uncovers a fragmenting world, with 65% of the surveyed senior risk professionals perceiving that risks have increased over the past year, and 69% think it is likely geopolitical tensions will have a significant impact on their business and/or people this year. Seventy-five per cent of the primary decision-makers surveyed see social and political unrest as a top risk. This comes as 78% think it is likely burnout and stress will have a significant impact on their business and/or people in 2025.

With our 40 years of experience supporting organisations and their people through the impacts of risks, including conflict, pandemics and extreme weather, our services have evolved with the needs of our clients. We work with our clients to anticipate and prepare for all health and security risk eventualities, building resilience in their processes and plans so that their people are protected.

When help is needed our 12,000-strong staff are on hand to assist. This includes highly skilled and dedicated physicians and security professionals, ensuring our own business continuity so that we can help clients in any circumstance. With operations in 90 countries, our cross-border assistance provides extensive local capabilities, resources, and presence on the ground.

Technology is increasingly important across the assistance sector – how is International SOS exploring new tech to improve operations?

We are continuously exploring how technology can support our teams in the Assistance Centres, with automation of some of the behind-the-scenes tasks to free up the teams to focus on our clients. Aligning our assistance services and our digital suite of tools is also a key focus, improving visibility for our teams and our clients when and how we are assisting, and making sure access to support is as easy as possible.

We have also introduced some self-service capabilities to our assistance app, allowing our subscribers to access our credentialled provider network via our ‘Find a doctor’ facility. This is in addition to our recently launched pre-trip advisory, which is also available via the app.

Clients also have an increased expectation from their domestic workforce to provide ‎solutions during events including hurricanes, cyclones and, more recently, wildfires

Privacy and cybersecurity represent a key focus for International SOS as we continuously invest in our technology stack, to ensure we remain compliant and secure.

How is International SOS looking to develop its business in the future?

What sets us apart is our fusion of digital innovation and real-time, human-verified risk intelligence and information. One of the most exciting developments we are currently working on is our new Quantum platform. Providing a unified platform for travel and critical event management, it will transform the way managers are able to protect their workforces and operations 24/7, 365 days a year. Combined with our global workforce providing assistance and on-the-ground support, we are driving the industry forward in helping organisations manage risk and strengthen their resilience in the face of adversity.