Five questions for René Doff, Thomas Miller

Who are you and what is your job?

I am René Doff and I am the Chief Risk Officer of Thomas Miller in Rotterdam. We manage the European presence of the UK P&I Club and TT Club from our – still relatively new – office just next to Hotel New York.

What does a typical day for you look like?

We manage the UK P&I Club’s and TT Club’s presence, so my days are typically like a middleman. In our role our teams are in daily contact with our members – these can be ship owners, ship operators, port authorities, transport operators across Europe. Obviously, we work with insurance brokers like for instance Aon, DUPI or Marsh. In case a claim occurs somewhere in Europe, we work with the local salvage experts, lawyers or other experts to make sure our members are serviced as needed.

What was the best advice (workwise) someone gave you?

To be honest, I learned something myself a long time ago that I would like to share here as an advice. As Chief Risk Officer, I am of course interested in events that could harm us in some sort of way. My lesson learned from that case is that if something smells, you better start digging. Even if there is no time or no urgency. Ultimately, the digging could uncover something in time before it explodes in your face. Perhaps a bit cryptic, but you probably get what I mean.

How could you be of help to others in the industry or the RMSC?

We are a small team in Rotterdam but part of a global maritime and transport insurance firm. Perhaps our Rotterdam team could access that grand body of knowledge in case of questions. And personally I am more than happy to act as match-maker.

And lastly: what’s in the news that relates directly to your profession?

Well, maritime incidents are daily news. Perhaps not always Suez-canal or Baltimore bridge incidents. But nonetheless, our company serves shipping and transport companies every single day. Personally I think the sustainability developments is going to drive change in our industry that we have not seen before. I am looking forward to be a part of that.