Ing. Roman Horváth is the co-owner and Managing Director of one of the largest brokerage companies in the Czech Republic, SATUM CZECH s.r.o., which has been providing corporate insurance and risk management services since 1997. The company is a universal insurance broker focusing on property, liability, agriculture and production. Also, in the area of vehicle and road risk insurance, the company has long been a leading insurance provider in the Czech market.
In 25 years of operation, your company has become one of the largest brokerage companies in the Czech Republic. What was the path to success, and what are your goals today?
Paradoxically, our huge advantage was that we started from scratch with our partners when we had to build everything ourselves. At the same time, we were fortunate that all three of us have a likeminded nature, and I do not remember us ever having any confl ict. Our main goal was client satisfaction and making the company work well.
I think it is important to preserve all the values on which the company was founded and which have brought us to this point. The goal is to keep the company growing and maintaining quality.
We want to work more on expanding cooperation with foreign brokers who are similar to us. More and more of our clients have an international footprint and want us to be able to provide our services within Europe or even outside Europe. That is why we have started cooperation with some foreign brokers, for example, in Austria, Germany and Poland. We would also like to expand our branch network in the Czech Republic.
You deal with executives from the private and public spheres. Is insurance understood today as part of good management?
After years of development, insurance is an absolutely essential part of management. In the event of any fatal loss, companies run into existential problems. Today, we no longer see clients underestimating insurance or not having any. It is also important to perceive new types of risks, such as cyber risks and business interruptions, with a sufficient length of coverage. What I see as an essential role for managers is that, together with brokers, they can set the right amounts of movable and immovable property insurance in relation to infl ation and what is happening in the market today. Managers today also do not underestimate their liability insurance for injury caused by a body member’s wrongful decision, the socalled D&O insurance.
Many businesses and households are now addressing energy savings by purchasing solar panels. You probably cannot insure sunshine, but what about solar panels?
The Czech Republic is currently experiencing a solar boom. The investment in a photovoltaic power plant (PV power plant) is not exactly small, so owners should pay attention to insurance. Solar panel insurance can be obtained as part of a property insurance policy. It is necessary to correctly determine whether it is part of the building or an ancillary building and set the insurance amounts accordingly. With some insurance companies, it is necessary to specify the solar panels in the contract and add them as an extra. The terms and conditions for insuring solar and photovoltaic panels are determined separately by each insurance company.
Social responsibility is based on the attitude of your company and employees towards their environment. What is the “SATUM helps” project?
Since we have long been supporting projects in the fi eld of sports, education, charity and others, we have decided to cover this activity under the name SATUM helps. We feel responsible for the environment in which we live and operate as a company. We want to be perceived not only by our clients, but also by our employees and other business artners, as an entity that is not indifferent to the situation of others. We employ 120 colleagues who have families and children, and we want to be a trustworthy partner to them as well, one that can support them. Every year, colleagues have the opportunity to nominate organisations and associations active in the fi eld of sport, culture or other charitable organisations, from which they select five entities to which SATUM will lend a helping hand and support them financially. Our vision is to be a modern company, and such activities and support must surely be an integral part of it.
You support important cultural and sporting events not only in the Moravian-Silesian Region, but also throughout the Czech Republic. Which are among the most important ones?
Within our region, we try to help a large number of cultural and social events such as the Leoš Janáček International Music Festival or the Ostrava Days Festival. As far as charity projects are concerned, these include, for example, support for the Mental Café, where baristas are people with various physical disabilities, or the Polanský charity run in support of Ostrava neonatology.
At the same time, we are very happy to support sports, especially with clubs like FC Baník Ostrava, HC Vítkovice Ridera, basketball club NH Ostrava or floorball club FBC Ostrava.
Among the most important nationwide events that we support annually are NATO Days in Ostrava & Air Force Days.
Thank you for the interview.
