Cost Pressure Is Fragmenting Across the Insurance Org Chart

Results from our latest Insurance 150 proprietary microsurvey (N=192) show that while loss costs and reinsurance remain structural concerns, technology spend and talent costs are increasingly defining how different leaders experience pressure.

Across all respondents, cost pressure is relatively balanced: Reinsurance (28%) leads narrowly, followed by Technology spend (26%), Talent/compensation (23%), and Loss costs (22%). But that aggregate view masks meaningful divergence by seniority.

At the C-suite level, concern is highly concentrated. Half of executives (50%) cite reinsurance as their primary cost pressure heading into 2026—far outpacing any other category. This reflects mounting unease around capacity constraints, pricing volatility, and capital efficiency, particularly in catastrophe-exposed and specialty lines. For top leadership, reinsurer economics remain the most immediate lever on earnings stability.

By contrast, Directors are signaling a different priority. Technology spend dominates at 40%, nearly double any other cost category. This points to growing scrutiny around core system modernization, AI deployment, and vendor consolidation, as operational leaders are increasingly tasked with justifying ROI on digital investments made over the last cycle.

Meanwhile, VPs and Partners show a more evenly distributed cost profile. Among VPs, reinsurance (28%) and loss costs (25%) edge out other pressures, suggesting a focus on portfolio performance and underwriting discipline. Partners, often closer to execution and delivery, highlight technology spend (28%) and talent costs (26%)—underscoring the operational friction of scaling platforms while retaining specialized expertise.

The “Other” leadership group—often spanning functional and regional heads—leans hardest into reinsurance (33%), reinforcing how widely risk transfer economics are felt beyond the executive suite.

The takeaway: insurers are entering 2026 with shared constraints but fragmented pain points. While senior executives remain fixated on risk transfer and capital exposure, operational leaders are grappling with the cost of transformation itself—from systems to skills. For insurers looking to rebalance expense ratios without stalling growth, alignment across these perspectives may be just as critical as any single cost-cutting initiative.