Commercial insurance broker Konsileo has appointed veteran broker leader Howard Lickens (pictured) as chair.
His arrival comes as Konsileo continues to expand its UK footprint, following strong organic growth, the recruitment of additional brokers across the regions and increasing market recognition for its tech‑enabled approach to commercial lines.
Lickens is a respected insurance industry figure with more than 40 years of experience. He co-founded Clear Insurance Management in 2001 and served as chief executive and later executive chair of the company. Under his leadership, Clear doubled in size roughly every three years, ultimately growing to more than 1,100 employees, over 35 locations and in excess of £1 billion of gross written premium (GWP).
He stepped down as executive chair in December, by which point Clear -- now the Clear Group -- had become one of the UK's larger independent commercial broking consolidators.
Lickens is the latest senior industry figure to join Konsileo’s strengthened board. The broker has been on a steep growth curve in recent years and completed an £8 million funding round in late 2024 to support further expansion and tech development.
In June 2025, US insurance and investment executive Joe Zuk joined the business. Meanwhile, former FTSE 100 HR leader Geoff Lloyd, who previously worked for Meggitt and Serco, joined investment director Judy Welch as a non-executive director in December 2023.
"When we launched Konsileo [Howard] was the first person I sought out for guidance," said Konsileo founder and CEO John Warburton. "Having Howard's deep market insights and intuition for culture and client excellence in broking really augments our board and I'm so pleased that Konsileo will benefit even further from his experience."
Konsileo’s appointment of Howard Lickens comes amid a wider wave of senior board and governance changes across the UK broking market over the past year.
At Clear Group, where Lickens previously worked, former Swiss Re executive Simon Smith was appointed group chief operating officer in March 2025. Smith also joined the company's executive board.
Larger global brokers have also refreshed their UK boards. In February 2025, Marsh announced that Nigel Hinshelwood will be appointed chair of Marsh Limited in the UK on March 31. In the same month, PIB Group also hired former Aon executive Laurence White as chair of its group placement practice, a new role focused on bolstering UK and international placement operations.
Industry experts said the moves point to increasing focus on experienced board‑level oversight and governance in UK broking, particularly around growth, M&A integration, placement strategy and operational resilience
