WTW US Equity☆

10-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

(Mark one)

☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year endedDecember 31, 2021

or

☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Commission File Number: 001-16503

WILLIS TOWERS WATSON PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class TradingSymbol(s) Name of each exchange on which registered

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☑

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§ 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes ☑ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of ‘large accelerated filer’, ‘accelerated filer’ and ‘smaller reporting company’ in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☑

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes ☐ No ☑

The aggregate market value of the voting common equity held by non-affiliates of the Registrant, computed by reference to the last reported price at which the Registrant’s common equity was sold on June 30, 2021 (the last day of the Registrant’s most recently completed second quarter) was $29,461,050,498.

As of February 18, 2022, there were outstanding 117,745,623 ordinary shares, nominal value $0.000304635 per share, of the Registrant.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Portions of Part III will be incorporated by reference in accordance with Instruction G(3) to Form 10-K no later than 120 days after the end of the Company’s fiscal year.

WILLIS TOWERS WATSON PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY

INDEX TO FORM 10-K

For the year ended December 31, 2021

Page

Certain Definitions 1

Disclaimer Regarding Forward-looking Statements 2

PART I.

Item 1 Business 3

Item 1A Risk Factors 15

Item 1B Unresolved Staff Comments 35

Item 2 Properties 35

Item 3 Legal Proceedings 36

Item 4 Mine Safety Disclosures 36

PART II.

Item 6 [RESERVED] 40

Item 7A Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk 70

Item 8 Financial Statements and Supplementary Data 73

Item 9A Controls and Procedures 130

Item 9B Other Information 132

Item 9C Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections 133

PART III.

Item 10 Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance 134

Item 11 Executive Compensation 134

Item 14 Principal Accounting Fees and Services 134

PART IV.

Item 15 Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules 135

Certain Definitions

The following definitions apply throughout this annual report unless the context requires otherwise:

‘Miller’ Miller Insurance Services LLP and its subsidiaries

‘U.S.’ United States

‘U.K.’ United Kingdom

‘U.S. GAAP’ United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles

‘FASB’ Financial Accounting Standards Board

‘ASC’ Accounting Standards Codification

‘ASU’ Accounting Standards Update

‘SEC’ United States Securities and Exchange Commission

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Disclaimer Regarding Forward-looking Statements

We have included in this document ‘forward-looking statements’ within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which are intended to be covered by the safe harbors created by those laws. These forward-looking statements include information about possible or assumed future results of our operations. All statements, other than statements of historical facts, that address activities, events or developments that we expect or anticipate may occur in the future, including such things as our outlook, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business, future capital expenditures, ongoing working capital efforts, future share repurchases, financial results (including our revenue, costs or margins), the impact of changes to tax laws on our financial results, existing and evolving business strategies and acquisitions and dispositions, including the sale of Willis Re to Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (‘Gallagher’), demand for our services and competitive strengths, goals, the benefits of new initiatives, growth of our business and operations, our ability to successfully manage ongoing leadership, organizational and technology changes, including investments in improving systems and processes, our ability to implement and realize anticipated benefits of any cost-savings initiatives including the multi-year operational Transformation program, and plans and references to future successes, including our future financial and operating results, plans, objectives, expectations and intentions are forward-looking statements. Also, when we use words such as ‘may,’ ‘will,’ ‘would,’ ‘anticipate,’ ‘believe,’ ‘estimate,’ ‘expect,’ ‘intend,’ ‘plan,’ ‘probably,’ or similar expressions, we are making forward-looking statements. Such statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of the Company’s management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. All forward-looking disclosure is speculative by its nature.

A number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results reflected in these forward-looking statements are identified under ‘Risk Factors’ in Item 1A of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. These statements are based on assumptions that may not come true and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties.

Although we believe that the assumptions underlying our forward-looking statements are reasonable, any of these assumptions, and therefore also the forward-looking statements based on these assumptions, could themselves prove to be inaccurate. Given the significant uncertainties inherent in the forward-looking statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, our inclusion of this information is not a representation or guarantee by us that our objectives and plans will be achieved.

Our forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made and we will not update these forward-looking statements unless the securities laws require us to do so. With regard to these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking events discussed in this document may not occur, and we caution you against unduly relying on these forward-looking statements.

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PART I.

ITEM 1. BUSINESS

The discussion of the general development of our business in this Item 1 Business provides an update on the material changes to our business since our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, filed with the SEC on February 26, 2020 (the ‘2019 Form 10-K’), which included a complete description of our business as of December 31, 2019. We incorporate herein the description of our business, including as specified in the discussion in this Item 1 below, by reference to the 2019 Form 10-K, available at https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/0001140536/000156459020006736/wltw-10k_20191231.htm#ITEM_1_BUSINESS

The Company

WTW is a leading global advisory, broking and solutions company that provides data-driven, insight-led solutions in the areas of people, risk and capital. Leveraging the global view and local expertise of our more than 44,000 colleagues serving more than 140 countries and markets, we help sharpen strategies, enhance organizational resilience, motivate workforces and maximize performance. We design and deliver solutions that manage risk, optimize benefits, cultivate talent and expand the power of capital to protect and strengthen institutions and individuals. Working closely with our clients, we uncover opportunities for sustainable success.

Our clients operate on a global and local scale in a multitude of businesses and industries throughout the world and generally range in size from large, major multinational corporations to middle-market domestic and international companies. Our clients include many of the world’s leading corporations, including approximately 92% of the FTSE 100, 91% of the Fortune 1000, and 90% of the Fortune Global 500 companies. We also advise the majority of the world’s leading insurance companies. We work with major corporations, emerging growth companies, governmental agencies and not-for-profit institutions in a wide variety of industries, with many of our client relationships spanning decades. No one client accounted for a significant concentration of revenue in each of the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019. We place insurance with more than 2,500 insurance carriers, none of which individually accounted for a significant concentration of the total premiums we placed on behalf of our clients in 2021, 2020 or 2019.

Segment Reorganization

With effect from January 1, 2022, we provide a comprehensive offering of services and solutions to clients across two business segments: Health, Wealth and Career (‘HWC’), and Risk and Broking (‘RB’). These changes were made in conjunction with changes in the WTW leadership team, including the appointment of a new chief executive officer who succeeded the prior CEO as the chief operating decision maker on that date. Prior to January 1, 2022, we operated across four segments: Human Capital and Benefits; Corporate Risk and Broking; Investment, Risk and Reinsurance; and Benefits Delivery and Administration. The HWC segment will include businesses currently aligned under the Human Capital and Benefits segment, the Benefits Delivery and Administration segment, and the Investment business, currently under the Investment, Risk and Reinsurance segment. The RB segment will include businesses currently aligned under the Corporate Risk and Broking segment, as well as the Insurance Consulting and Technology business, currently under the Investment, Risk and Reinsurance segment. Beginning with our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the first quarter of fiscal year 2022, segment results will be presented on a retrospective basis to reflect the reorganization.

Willis Re Divestiture

On August 13, 2021, WTW entered into a definitive agreement to sell its treaty-reinsurance business (‘Willis Re’) to Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (‘Gallagher’) for total upfront cash consideration of $3.25 billion plus an earnout payable in 2025 of up to $750 million in cash, subject to certain adjustments. The deal was subject to required regulatory approvals and clearances, as well as other customary closing conditions, and was completed on December 1, 2021 (‘Principal Closing’). Although the majority of the Willis Re businesses transferred to Gallagher at Principal Closing, the assets and liabilities of certain Willis Re businesses were not transferred to Gallagher at the time due to local territory restrictions (‘Deferred Closing’). The Deferred Closing is expected to be completed no later than the end of the second quarter of 2022, and all net earnings of the Deferred Closing businesses accumulated between the Principal Closing and Deferred Closing are payable to Gallagher at that time. We recognized a preliminary pre-tax gain of $2.3 billion upon completion of the sale.

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In connection with the transaction, we reclassified the results of the Willis Re operations as discontinued operations on our consolidated statements of comprehensive income and have reclassified Willis Re assets and liabilities as held for sale on our consolidated balance sheets. Willis Re was previously included in the Investment, Risk and Reinsurance segment.

A number of services are continuing under a cost reimbursement Transition Services Agreement (‘TSA’) in which WTW is providing Gallagher support including real estate leases, information technology, payroll, human resources and accounting. These services are expected to be provided for a period not to exceed two years.

Termination of the Proposed Combination with Aon plc

On March 9, 2020, WTW and Aon plc (‘Aon’) issued an announcement disclosing that the respective boards of directors of WTW and Aon had reached agreement on the terms of a recommended acquisition of WTW by Aon. Under the terms of the agreement each WTW shareholder would receive 1.08 Aon ordinary shares for each WTW ordinary share. At the time of the announcement, it was estimated that upon completion of the combination, existing Aon shareholders would own approximately 63% and existing WTW shareholders would own approximately 37% of the combined company on a fully diluted basis.

The transaction was approved by the shareholders of both WTW and Aon during meetings of the respective shareholders held on August 26, 2020. On June 16, 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice filed suit in U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia against WTW and Aon, seeking to enjoin the proposed business combination between the two companies (among other relief). On July 26, 2021, WTW and Aon announced they had terminated the business combination agreement and that Aon had agreed to pay WTW $1 billion in connection with such termination, which was received by WTW on July 27, 2021 (the ‘Termination’ or the ‘Termination Agreement’). The $1 billion income receipt has been included in transaction and integration, net in the consolidated statements of comprehensive income. Under the Termination Agreement, WTW and Aon on behalf of themselves and certain other related and affiliated parties, each agreed to release the other from all claims and actions arising out of or related to the business combination agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby, subject to certain exceptions.

Available Information

The Company files annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the ‘SEC’). The SEC maintains a website that contains annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information that issuers (including WTW) file electronically with the SEC. The SEC’s website is www.sec.gov.

The Company makes available, free of charge through our website, www.wtwco.com, our Annual Report on Form 10-K, our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, our proxy statement, current reports on Form 8-K and Forms 3, 4, and 5 filed on behalf of directors and executive officers, as well as any amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the ‘Exchange Act’) as soon as reasonably practicable after such material is electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. Unless specifically incorporated by reference, information on our website is not a part of this Form 10-K.

The Company’s Corporate Governance Guidelines, Audit and Risk Committee Charter, Operational Transformation Committee Charter, Compensation Committee Charter, and Corporate Governance & Nominating Committee Charter are available on our website, www.wtwco.com, in the Investor Relations section, or upon request. Requests for copies of these documents should be directed in writing to the Company Secretary c/o Office of General Counsel, Willis Towers Watson Public Limited Company, Brookfield Place, 200 Liberty Street, New York, NY 10281.

General Information

WTW offers its clients a broad range of services and solutions to help them to identify and control their risks, and to enhance business performance by improving their ability to attract, retain and engage a talented workforce. Our risk control services range from strategic risk consulting (including providing actuarial analysis), to a variety of due diligence services, to the provision of practical on-site risk control services (such as health and safety or property loss control consulting), as well as analytical and advisory services (such as hazard modeling and climate risk quantification). We assist clients in planning how to manage incidents or crises when they occur. These services include contingency planning, security audits and product tampering plans. We help our clients enhance their business performance by delivering consulting services, technology and solutions that help them anticipate, identify and capitalize on emerging opportunities in human capital management, as well as offer investment advice to help them develop disciplined and efficient strategies to meet their investment goals.

As an insurance broker, we act as an intermediary between our clients and insurance carriers by advising our clients on their risk management requirements, helping them to determine the best means of managing risk and negotiating and placing insurance with insurance carriers through our global distribution network. We operate a private Medicare exchange in the U.S. Through this exchange and those for active employees, we help our clients move to a more sustainable economic model by capping and controlling the costs associated with healthcare benefits.

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We are not an insurance company, and therefore we do not underwrite insurable risks for our own account.

We derive the majority of our revenue from either commissions or fees for brokerage or consulting services. We do not determine the insurance premiums on which our commissions are generally based. Commission levels generally follow the same trend as premium levels as they are derived from a percentage of the premiums paid by the insureds. Fluctuations in these premiums charged by the insurance carriers can therefore have a direct and potentially material impact on our results of operations. Our fees for consulting services are spread across a variety of complementary businesses that generally remain steady during times of uncertainty. We have some businesses, such as our health and benefits and administration businesses, which can be counter cyclical during the early period of a significant economic change.

Impact of COVID-19 and Related Economic Impacts

Over the last two years, the COVID-19 pandemic generally did not have a material adverse impact on our overall financial results. Initially, the pandemic had a negative impact on our revenue growth, primarily in our businesses that are discretionary in nature, however we later saw an increased demand for these services, which improved revenue growth beginning in the second quarter of 2021. There continues to be increased demand for our services, particularly those services that address the various challenges in the global labor markets and disruptions to the supply chain. While we believe we have adapted to the unique challenges posed by the pandemic surrounding how and where we do our work, we are also impacted by workforce availability, and this may make it difficult for us to meet the demand from our clients. COVID-19 also poses a range of other risks and uncertainties for our business. For information regarding the impact of COVID-19 on our business and measures we have taken in response, see Item 7 ‘Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations-Risks and Uncertainties of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Related Economic Environment’ and Item 1A ‘Risk Factors-Strategic, Operational and Technology Risks-We have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and may be substantially and negatively impacted by it in the future.’

Business Strategy

The Company is in the business of people, risk and capital. We believe that a unified approach to these areas can be a path to growth for organizations around the world. In that spirit, we bring the collective power of our colleagues together – as ‘One WTW’ – to serve and support our clients.

We operate in attractive markets – both growing and mature – with a diversified platform across geographies, industries, segments and lines of business.

Our vision is to be the best advisory, broking and solutions company for the benefit of all our stakeholders – creating a competitive advantage and delivering sustainable, profitable growth.

We believe we can achieve this through executing on our three strategic priorities – grow, simplify and transform:

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Grow at or above market in priority areas: Focus on core opportunities with the highest growth and return; innovate and accelerate our offerings through a dynamic, yet disciplined, approach; bring targeted solutions to clients reflecting more connected offerings; and increase scale to fill gaps in capabilities through inorganic expansion.

•

Simplify the business to increase agility and effectiveness: Implement the Company’s streamlined structure of two business segments (Health, Wealth and Career and Risk and Broking; see ‘Segment Reorganization’ within this Item 1 for further information) and three geographies (Europe, International and North America); develop a globally consistent client management model and enhance operations to improve sales and retention outcomes; manage our portfolio of businesses intentionally to drive optimal value; and increase speed of execution through agile decision-making processes.

•

Transform operations to drive savings while enhancing our client and colleague experiences: Maximize global platforms to be as common as possible and as distinct as necessary; right-shore operations to capitalize on our scale; rationalize real estate and build new ways of working; and modernize technology to enhance the digital experience.

We care as much about how we work as we do about the impact that we make. This means commitment to a shared purpose and values, a framework that guides how we run our business and serve clients.

Through these strategies we aim to accelerate revenue, margin improvement, cash flow, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (‘EBITDA’), and earnings growth, and to generate compelling returns for investors, by delivering tangible growth in revenue.

For more information about risks to our strategic plans, see Part I, Item 1A Risk Factors of this Form 10-K.

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Principal Services

During the year ended December 31, 2021, we managed our business across four integrated reportable operating segments: Human Capital and Benefits; Corporate Risk and Broking; Investment, Risk and Reinsurance; and Benefits Delivery and Administration. Below are the percentages of revenue generated by each segment for each of the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019. These percentages exclude revenue that has been classified as discontinued operations in our consolidated statements of comprehensive income.

Year ended December 31,

Human Capital and Benefits 39% 38% 40%

Corporate Risk and Broking 35% 35% 36%

Investment, Risk and Reinsurance 9% 11% 12%

Benefits Delivery and Administration 17% 16% 12%

Human Capital and Benefits

For a description of our Human Capital and Benefits (‘HCB’) segment, see the link above to the 2019 Form 10-K, and see ‘Human Capital and Benefits’ within Part I, Item 1 Business in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, filed with the SEC on February 26, 2020. There have been no material updates to the description of our HCB segment since the 2019 Form 10-K other than the updated information provided below.

Talent & Rewards — Our Talent & Rewards (‘T&R’) business provides advice, data, software and products to address clients’ total rewards and talent issues. T&R has operations across the globe, including centralized software development and analytics teams that support the efficient delivery of services to clients.

Within our Rewards line of business, we address executive compensation and broad-based rewards. We advise our clients’ management and boards of directors on all aspects of executive pay programs, including base pay, annual bonuses, long-term incentives, perquisites and other benefits. Our focus is on aligning pay plans with an organization’s business strategy and driving desired performance. Our solutions incorporate market benchmarking data and software to support compensation administration.

Our Talent line of business focuses on the employee experience with solutions including employee insight and listening tools, talent assessment tools and services, communication and change management services and HR software to help companies administer and manage their talent management programs and analyze talent trends.

Revenue for the T&R business is partly seasonal in nature, with a meaningful amount of heightened activity in the second half of the calendar year during the annual compensation, benefits and survey cycles. While T&R enjoys long-term relationships with many clients, work in several practices is often project-based and can be sensitive to economic changes. The business benefits from regulatory changes affecting our clients that require strategic advice, program changes and communication. Additional areas of growth for T&R include the increasing focus on Environmental, Social, and Governance as a component of executive and board pay, the redefinition of jobs and career paths as technology disaggregates work, and the recalibration of pay and the employee experience amidst shifting labor markets.

Corporate Risk and Broking

The WTW Corporate Risk and Broking (‘CRB’) segment provides a broad range of risk advice, insurance brokerage and consulting services to clients worldwide ranging from small businesses to multinational corporations, and places more than $25 billion of premiums into the insurance markets on an annual basis. The segment delivers integrated global solutions tailored to client needs and underpinned by data and analytics through a balanced matrix of global lines of business across all of the Company’s regions. The global lines of business as of December 31, 2021 included:

Property and Casualty — Property and Casualty provides property and liability insurance brokerage services across a wide range of industries and segments including real estate, healthcare and retail. We also arrange insurance products and services for our affinity client partners to offer to their customers, employees, or members alongside, or in addition to, their principal business offerings.

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Aerospace —Aerospaceprovides specialist expertise to the aerospace and space industries. Our aerospace business provides insurance broking, risk management services, contractual and technical advisory expertise to aerospace clients worldwide, including the world’s leading airlines, aircraft manufacturers, air cargo handlers and other airport and general aviation companies. The specialist InSpace team is also prominent in providing insurance and risk management services to the space industry.

Construction — Our Construction business provides services that include insurance broking, claims, loss control and specialized risk advice for a wide range of construction projects and activities. Clients include contractors, project owners, public entities, project managers, consultants and financiers, among others.

Facultative — Facultative capabilities exist for each of CRB’s offerings to serve as a broker or intermediary for insurance companies seeking to arrange reinsurance solutions across various classes of risk for their clients, some of which may also be broking clients of WTW.

Financial, Executive and Professional Risks (‘FINEX’) — FINEX encompasses all financial and executive risks, delivering client solutions that range from management and professional liability, employment practices liability, crime, cyber and M&A-related insurances to risk consulting and advisory services. Specialist teams provide risk consulting and risk transfer solutions to a broad spectrum of clients across a multitude of industries, as well as the financial and professional service sectors.

Financial Solutions — Financial Solutions provides insurance broking services and specialized risk advice related to credit, surety, terrorism and political risk to clients that range from corporate to professional services firms and financial institutions including, but not limited to, banks, export credit agencies, multilaterals/development finance institutions, private equity funds and special purpose vehicles.

Marine —Marineprovides specialist expertise to the maritime and logistics industries. Our Marine business provides insurance broking services related to hull and machinery, cargo, protection and indemnity, fine art and general marine liabilities, among others. Our Marine clients include, but are not limited to, ship owners and operators, shipbuilders, logistics operations, port authorities, traders, shippers, exhibitors and secure transport companies.

Natural Resources — Our Natural Resources practice encompasses the oil, gas and chemicals, mining and metals, power and utilities and renewable energy sectors. It provides sector-specific risk transfer solutions and insights, which include insurance broking, risk engineering, contractual reviews, wording analysis and claims management.

Investment, Risk and Reinsurance

For a description of our Investment, Risk and Reinsurance (‘IRR’) segment, see the link above to the 2019 Form 10-K, and see ‘Investment, Risk and Reinsurance’ within Part I, Item 1 Business in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, filed with the SEC on February 26, 2020. There have been no material updates to the description of our IRR segment since the 2019 Form 10-K other than the updated information provided below.

During 2021 and 2020, WTW completed divestitures of certain businesses within its IRR segment, including its Willis Re business. See Note 3 — Acquisitions and Divestitures within Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information.

Benefits Delivery and Administration

For a description of our Benefits Delivery and Administration (‘BDA’) segment, see the link above to the 2019 Form 10-K, and see ‘Benefits Delivery and Administration’ within Part I, Item 1 Business in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, filed with the SEC on February 26, 2020. There have been no material updates to the description of our BDA segment since the 2019 Form 10-K.

Human Capital

Colleague experience – Our colleague experience is an important differentiating factor for WTW. It is designed to provide interesting and meaningful work, development and recognition opportunities, foster an inclusive environment where everyone can be their authentic selves, innovate and lead in the market, provide the tools and flexibility colleagues need in how and where they do their work, help colleagues feel connected to their work and why they do it, make our processes efficient, have a continuous improvement mindset and leverage best practices, ensure managers actively engage with colleagues, assess and reward colleagues, and ensure colleagues are heard and valued.

Our values, new vision and refreshed purpose, including our new brand in 2022, set the tone for what to expect at WTW. And, our ‘grow, simplify and transform’ strategic priorities are supporting our focus on how to continually support and improve, as appropriate, our colleague experience. We evaluate process efficiencies, system upgrades and rewards offerings as well as the tradeoffs that may

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be required. We further consider how we can work with flexibility in an on-going hybrid model, and fuel innovation, among other things, to continually attract, engage and retain the most accomplished and aspiring talent.

Headcount – Our success depends on our ability to attract, retain, and motivate the most accomplished and aspiring talent in the industry. The number of employees by segment for the year ended December 31, 2021 is approximated below:

Human Capital and Benefits (i) 14,800

Corporate Risk and Broking (i) 11,800

Investment, Risk and Reinsurance 2,500

Benefits Delivery and Administration 6,900

Corporate and Other (i) 8,200

(i)

Approximately 1,400 colleagues provide region and account management and operational support for the HCB and CRB segments and in prior year were allocated to those segments. These colleagues have been included in Corporate and Other in 2021, consistent with our treatment of other shared resources.

The number of employees by geography as of the year ended December 31, 2021 is approximated below:

Voluntary turnover excluding seasonal employees (rolling 12-month attrition) was 15.2% in 2021 compared to 8.7% in 2020. The turnover rate for 2020 was abnormally low; pre-Covid-19 attrition typically averaged around 12.0%. The increase in attrition in 2021 compared to 2020 and 2019 was attributable, in large part, to both uncertainty associated with the planned combination with Aon, which was terminated in July, and, to a lesser extent, generally increased movement in global talent markets. The prolonged period of uncertainty introduced by the pending transaction, and continuing in the period following the termination of that transaction, drove attrition higher, particularly in certain business units where job insecurity or other uncertainty was most elevated. For example, attrition in CRB North America and Europe was elevated because the perceived risk of business divestiture needed to secure regulatory approval was high. Additionally, in Corporate where deal-related synergy savings were expected to be most concentrated, colleagues sought employment elsewhere in order to avoid role redundancy.

Hiring – Hiring in 2021 increased significantly partly due to hiring in 2020 that was deferred due to the pandemic and business conditions and partly due to increased demand for our services. Hiring and internal movement for 2021, summarized below, excludes seasonal colleagues in Tranzact and Individual Marketplace as the volumes are material and fluctuate significantly:

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Hires increased 73.5% over 2020 to 7,284. Hiring growth was strong across all segments and geographies. At year-end, there were approximately 2,800 open positions, which is higher than historic rates but reflective of the sharp increase in new positions opened in the second half of the year.

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During 2021, 13.9% of open positions were filled with internal candidates compared to 22.4% in 2020, the percentage drop being attributable to the significantly higher number of open positions in 2021. In addition, promotions (changes in levels) and direct appointments into new roles brought additional opportunities for career growth and advancement.

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Rehires represented 13.0% of total hires in 2021.

Inclusion and Diversity (‘I&D’) – We believe that when our individual talents are combined, we unlock our collective potential. We further believe that we are better together because each of us is different. WTW aims to ensure that our values and I&D commitments are reflected in every interaction. To support this, we’re focusing on three key areas:

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Attract and hire to grow our talent pipeline of colleagues from underrepresented communities

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Develop and promote to increase the overall diversity in business leadership

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Promote an inclusive culture that respects each other’s differences and celebrates what’s unique about each of us

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A key underlying theme of these priorities is a sharpened focus on our female talent and an aspirational goal to increase gender balance in leadership levels across the Company. This focus directly supports the statement we made when we joined the Paradigm for Parity® (‘P4P’) coalition in 2016. P4P is committed to reaching gender parity in leadership by 2030.

At December 31, 2021, we had the following global female representation, and in the U.S. where we have the most complete data, we had the following ethnic and racial diversity representation:

Colleague Group All Colleagues Senior Leadership (ii)

Ethnic and racial diversity (U.S. only)

Other non-white (i) 2.3% 0.6%

(i)

Other non-white includes American Indian, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, and two or more races.

(ii)

Senior leadership represents about 5% of our colleagues and includes those with titles of Managing and Senior Directors.

As of January 1, 2022, three new independent directors joined our board of directors, with a fourth new independent director to join on April 1, 2022. This creates a further diverse board (as self-identified), of which, as of April 1, 50% will be female, including the Compensation Committee Chair. Our new board, as of that date, will also have representation from the LGBT+ community and the Black and Asian communities, and also has members with non-U.S. citizenship, including the Audit and Risk Committee Chair.

Our executive officers have I&D objectives as part of their individual performance component, comprising a portion of their short-term incentive awards. Each year our leaders cascade I&D objectives throughout the organization, and we continue to reinforce objective and fair processes that mitigate bias in all of our talent programs and processes. Examples of key activities include:

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Our global I&D council, sponsored by our CEO and by our CHRO, sets the standard for our I&D initiatives globally. It is driven by regional councils that provide local perspectives and help to translate our global priorities into actions within each region.

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Our inclusion networks are designed to engage our talent and better connect us to each other, our clients and the communities in which we work and live. Current inclusion networks include: Gender Equity, LGBT+, Multicultural, Workability (Asia, North America, the U.K.) and Young Professionals (Asia, the U.K., Western Europe).

Total rewards – We invest significant resources in our most important asset, our colleagues. We offer market competitive rewards packages comprising of a mix of base salary and incentives aligned to our pay-for-performance philosophy plus benefits that support health and wellbeing as well as the ability to plan for the future.

Our total rewards programs align to our commitment to colleague health and wellbeing, ensuring our people are protected in the event of accident or illness, have sufficient paid time off and can accumulate capital for personal needs and retirement. We also understand the need for flexibility in the modern workplace and provide modified work arrangements and schedules where practical (e.g., flex time, part-time, work-from-home) that enable and support colleagues to stay focused on their clients and business needs and balance their personal commitments.

COVID-19 response – In 2021, we continued to support the health and safety of colleagues by:

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Monitoring and adapting both in-office operations and return-to-office approaches for colleagues across our more than 140 countries, prioritizing colleague health and safety as well as client service continuity while complying with all applicable local regulations.

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Offering remote working solutions that address wellbeing, potential travel, at-home office equipment provisioning, collaboration tools and manager resources while also facilitating flexible work-life arrangements and support for home care requirements.

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Monitoring colleague feedback on our response to the pandemic. Our November 2021 all-colleague pulse survey showed strong support for our efforts with over 90% of respondents feeling connected to their teams in an inclusive environment and able to effectively work in a hybrid work model.

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Rethinking how colleagues work (both independently and collaboratively, now and in the future), focusing on the evolving role our offices play. The outcome of this work has been the development of a new work styles model that supports colleagues who are office-based, home-based or a hybrid of the two. For our hybrid colleagues, we are extending a greater level of autonomy over where and how they do their work. Our belief is that colleagues know their work and the people, tools and environment they need to be successful. Therefore, to the extent that role, geography and/or any regulations allow, how and where a colleague works will be determined by the work itself, not arbitrary rules to simply be in the office.

The failure to successfully attract and retain qualified personnel could materially adversely affect our results of operations and prospects. For more information see Part I, Item 1A Risk Factors of this Form 10-K.

Competition

For a description of our competition, see the link above to the 2019 Form 10-K, and see ‘Competition’ within Part I, Item 1 Business in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, filed with the SEC on February 26, 2020.

Regulation

Our business activities are subject to legal requirements and governmental and quasi-governmental regulatory supervision in all countries in which we operate. Also, such regulations may require individual or company licensing to conduct our business activities. While these requirements may vary from location to location, they are generally designed to protect our clients by establishing minimum standards of conduct and practice, particularly regarding the provision of advice and product information, as well as financial criteria. We are also subject to data privacy regulations in many countries. Our most significant regulatory regions are described below:

United States

Our activities in connection with insurance brokerage services within the U.S. are subject to regulation and supervision by state authorities. Although the scope of regulation and form of supervision may vary from state to state, insurance laws in the United States are often complex and generally grant broad discretion to supervisory authorities in adopting regulations and supervising regulated activities. That supervision generally includes the licensing of insurance brokers and agents and the regulation of the handling and investment of client funds held in a fiduciary capacity. Our continuing ability to provide insurance brokerage in the states in which we currently operate is dependent upon our compliance with the rules and regulations promulgated by the regulatory authorities in each of these states. Additionally, some of our private exchange activities, including our TRANZACT business which focuses on direct-to-consumer Medicare policy sales, are overseen by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, which is part of the Department of Health and Human Services. Furthermore, certain of our activities are subject to regulation under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (‘HIPAA’), which is enforced by the Office for Civil Rights within the Department of Health and Human Services. As we implement and expand our direct-to-consumer sales and marketing solutions through our Benefits Delivery and Administration business, we are subject to various federal and state laws and regulations that prescribe when and how we may market to consumers (including, without limitation, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and other telemarketing laws and the Medicare Communications and Marketing Guidelines issued by the Center for Medicare Services).

Certain of our activities are governed by other regulatory bodies, such as investment and securities licensing authorities. Our activities in connection with investment services within the United States are subject to regulation and supervision at both the federal and state levels. At the federal level, certain of our operating subsidiaries are regulated by the SEC through the Investment Company Act of 1940 and the Investment Advisers’ Act of 1940 and by the Department of Labor through the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, or ERISA. In connection with the SEC regulations, we are required to file certain reports, and are subject to various marketing restrictions, among other requirements. In connection with ERISA regulations, we are limited in the actions we can take for plans for which we serve as fiduciaries, among other matters. Our U.S. investment activities are also subject to certain state regulatory schemes, and some activities also are subject to regulation by the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission under the Commodities Exchange Act.

Our Willis Re Securities business, which was sold to Gallagher in December 2021, operated through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Willis Securities, Inc., a U.S.-registered broker-dealer and member of FINRA/SIPC, primarily in connection with advising on alternative risk financing transactions and investment banking services.

Our activities in connection with Third Party Administrator (‘TPA’) services in the United States are also subject to regulation and supervision by many state authorities. Licensing requirements and supervision vary from state to state. As with insurance brokerage services, our continuing ability to provide these services in states that regulate our activities is dependent upon our compliance with the rules and regulations promulgated from time to time by the regulatory authorities in each of these states.

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United Kingdom

In the U.K., our business is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (‘FCA’).

The FCA has a sole strategic objective: to ensure that the relevant markets function well. Its operational objectives are to secure an appropriate degree of protection for consumers, to protect and enhance the integrity of the U.K. financial system, and to promote effective competition in the interests of consumers. The FCA has a wide range of rule-making, investigatory and enforcement powers (including the power to censure and fine) and conducts monitoring visits to assess our compliance with regulatory requirements. In addition, the FCA extended the Senior Managers and Certification Regime (‘SMCR’) which became effective on December 9, 2019 in relation to our U.K. FCA-regulated businesses. The SMCR is designed to drive improvements in culture and governance within financial services firms and to deter misconduct by increasing individual accountability to the FCA. WTW is also subject to the UK General Data Protection Regulation (‘UK GDPR’) subsequent to Brexit.

Brexit will generally cause an increase in regulations that are specific to the U.K. and will result in differences from the regulatory requirements of the E.U. See Item 1A Risk Factors, for a description of Brexit-related risks to the Company.

Furthermore, as a result of Brexit, the WTW Brexit broking solution (the U.K. Branch of Willis Towers Watson SA/NV) will be required to seek authorization from the FCA as a third country branch. This application for full authorization is due for submission by March 31, 2022 and, once approved by the FCA, will result in an increase in FCA supervision in the future with additional requirements for the branch in key areas such as SMCR.

European Union

In 2005, the European Union Insurance Mediation Directive introduced rules to enable insurance and reinsurance intermediaries to operate and provide services within each member state of the E.U. on a basis consistent with the E.U. single market and customer protection aims. Each E.U. member state in which we operate is required to ensure that the insurance and reinsurance intermediaries resident in their country are registered with a statutory body in that country and that each intermediary meets professional requirements in relation to their competence, good repute, professional indemnity cover and financial capacity. The E.U. issued a new Insurance Distribution Directive that expands the 2005 directive, and all E.U. member states in which we operate were required to enact the directive and adopt local country laws by October 1, 2018.

The ‘Whistleblower Protection Directive’, on the protection of persons who report breaches of E.U. law, entered into force on December 16, 2019 (Directive 2019/1937). This Directive includes reporting procedures for these persons. The new rules will require the creation of safe channels for reporting both within an organization - private or public - and to public authorities. They will also provide protection to whistleblowers against retaliation.

In addition, our Willis Re Securities business, which was sold to Gallagher in December 2021, provided advice on securities or investments in the European Union and Australia through our U.K. wholly-owned subsidiary, Willis Towers Watson Securities Europe Limited, which is authorized and regulated by the FCA.

WTW is also subject to the E.U. General Data Protection Regulation (‘GDPR’), which became effective in May 2018. The GDPR is a comprehensive regime that significantly increases our responsibilities when handling personal data, including, without limitation, requiring us to conduct privacy impact assessments, restricting the transmission of data and requiring public disclosure of significant data breaches.

Other

Certain of our entities that undertake pension scheme management are subject to MiFID (Markets in Financial Instruments Directive) and MiFIR (the Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation). In addition, revisions to MiFID (‘MiFID II’) took effect in January 2018. These revisions are aimed at strengthening investor protection and improving the function of financial markets. MiFID II imposes a variety of requirements that include, among others, rules relating to product governance and independent investment advice, responsibility of management bodies, inducements, information and reporting to clients, cross-selling, remuneration of staff, and best execution of trades for clients. Further, some of our entities are also authorized and regulated by certain financial services authorities in countries such as Sweden, Ireland, the Netherlands and the U.K.

All companies carrying on similar activities in a given jurisdiction are subject to regulations which are not dissimilar to the requirements for our operations in the U.S. and U.K. We do not consider these regulatory requirements as adversely affecting our competitive position.

Across most jurisdictions we are subject to various data privacy laws and regulations that apply to health, medical, financial and other types of personal information belonging to our clients, their employees and third parties, as well as our own employees. For example, China is a jurisdiction where a comprehensive Personal Information Protection Law (‘PIPL’) has recently been enacted, and our local entity is subject to this regulation.

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Across many jurisdictions we are subject to various financial crime laws and regulations through our activities, activities of associated persons, the products and services we provide and our business and client relationships. Such laws and regulations relate to, among other areas, sanctions and export control, anti-bribery, anti-corruption, anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorist financing.

Our failure, or that of our employees, to satisfy the regulatory compliance requirements or the legal requirements governing our activities, can result in disciplinary action, fines, reputational damage and financial harm.

See Part I, Item 1A Risk Factors for an analysis of how actions by regulatory authorities or changes in legislation and regulation, including Brexit, in the jurisdictions in which we operate may have an adverse effect on our business.

Information about Executive Officers of the Registrant

The executive officers of the Company as of February 24, 2022 were as follows:

Kristy D. Banas (age 50) - Ms. Banas has served as Chief Human Resources Officer since August 16, 2021. Prior to that, she served as the Senior Director, Global Talent Advisor for Human Capital & Benefits from March 2019 to August 2021. She also served as Senior Director and Head of Global Total Rewards, HR Integration and the HR Business Office from November 2016 to March 2019. From January 2016 to November 2016, Ms. Banas served as Senior Director and Global HR Leader, WTW Operations and Technology. From July 2011 to January 2016, Ms. Banas served as Senior Vice President, Global HR Director for WTW Corporate Functions, and was the Executive HR Sponsor for Global Operations Improvement. Ms. Banas was Vice President and Global HR Partner with XL Capital/ XL Global Services / XL Insurance from November 2001 to June 2011. Ms. Banas has a BS in Business Management from Fairfield University and a partial MS in Human Resource Management from the University of Connecticut.

Anne D. Bodnar (age 65) - Ms. Bodnar has served as Chief Administrative Officer at WTW since May 31, 2019 and also served as Chief Human Resources Officer from January 4, 2016 through August 16, 2021. Previously, Ms. Bodnar served on Towers Watson’s Management Committee since January 2015 and as Towers Watson’s Chief Administrative Officer since January 1, 2010. Ms. Bodnar previously served as Managing Director of HR at Towers Perrin beginning in 2001. From 1995 to 2000, Ms. Bodnar led Towers Perrin’s recruiting and learning and development efforts. Prior to that, she was a strategy consultant in Towers Perrin’s Human Capital business. Earlier in her career, Ms. Bodnar held several operational and strategic planning roles at what is now JPMorgan Chase. Ms. Bodnar graduated cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Smith College and has an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

Matthew S. Furman (age 52) - Mr. Furman has served as General Counsel at WTW since January 4, 2016. Previously, Mr. Furman served as Executive Vice President and Group General Counsel at Willis Group Holdings, where he was a member of the Operating Committee since April 2015. From 2007 until March 2015, Mr. Furman was Senior Vice President, Group General Counsel-Corporate and Governance, and Corporate Secretary for The Travelers Companies, Inc. From 2000 until 2007, Mr. Furman was an attorney at Goldman, Sachs & Co. in New York, where he was Vice President and Associate General Counsel in the finance and corporate legal group. Prior to that, he was in private practice, with almost six years’ experience at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in New York. Mr. Furman also serves as a Trustee of the Jewish Theological Seminary and a Director of the Legal Aid Society. He previously served as a member of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Investor Advisory Committee, where he served on the Executive Committee and chaired the Market Structure Subcommittee. He holds a bachelor’s degree magna cum laude from Brown University and a law degree magna cum laude from Harvard Law School.

Adam L. Garrard (age 56) - Mr. Garrard has served as Head of Corporate Risk and Broking, and International since August 14, 2019. Prior to that, he served as Head of International at WTW since January 4, 2016. Previously, Mr. Garrard served as Chief Executive Officer for Willis Group Holdings in Asia since September 2012. Prior to that, Mr. Garrard served as Chief Executive Officer for Willis in Europe since January 2009, Chief Executive Officer for Willis in Australasia since May 2005 and Chief Executive Officer for Asia since January 2002. Mr. Garrard has resided in Singapore, Shanghai, Sydney and London while undertaking his Chief Executive Officer roles. After graduating from De Montfort University with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in 1992, Mr. Garrard joined SBJ Stephenson Insurance Brokers before joining Willis in 1994.

Julie J. Gebauer (age 60) - Ms. Gebauer has served as Head of Health, Wealth and Career at WTW since January 1, 2022. Previously, Ms. Gebauer served as Head of Human Capital & Benefits at WTW since January 4, 2016 and, prior to that, as Managing Director of Towers Watson’s Talent and Rewards business segment since January 1, 2010. Beginning in 2002, Ms. Gebauer served as a Managing Director of Towers Perrin and led Towers Perrin’s global Workforce Effectiveness practice and the global Towers Perrin-International Survey Research Corporation line of business. Ms. Gebauer was a member of Towers Perrin’s Board of Directors from 2003 through 2006. She joined Towers Perrin in 1986 as a consultant and held several leadership positions at Towers Perrin, serving as the Managing Principal for the New York office from 1999 to 2001 and the U.S. East Region Leader for the Human Capital Group from 2002 to 2006. Ms. Gebauer is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries. Ms. Gebauer graduated Phi Beta Kappa and with high distinction from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and was designated a Chancellor’s Scholar.

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Carl A. Hess (age 60) - Mr. Hess has served as Chief Executive Officer at WTW since January 1, 2022 and, prior to that, served as President since August 16, 2021. Mr. Hess was formerly Head of Investment, Risk and Reinsurance from October 27, 2016 to August 16, 2021. Previously, Mr. Hess served as the Co-Head of North America at WTW since January 4, 2016. Prior to that, Mr. Hess served as Managing Director, The Americas of Towers Watson since February 1, 2014, and before that, he served as the Managing Director of Towers Watson’s Investment business since January 1, 2010. Before his service at Towers Watson, Mr. Hess worked in a variety of roles for over 20 years at Watson Wyatt, lastly as Global Practice Director of Watson Wyatt’s Investment business. Mr. Hess is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and the Conference of Consulting Actuaries and a Chartered Enterprise Risk Analyst. He has a bachelor’s degree cum laude in logic and language from Yale University.

Andrew J. Krasner (age 46) - Mr. Krasner has served as Chief Financial Officer at WTW since September 7, 2021. From February 2021 to August 2021, Mr. Krasner served as Chief Financial Officer for Assured Partners. From June 2018 to January 2021, Mr. Krasner was Global Treasurer and Head of M&A of WTW, and from 2012 to June 2018, was Head of M&A, responsible for the Company’s Treasury operations and M&A, joint venture, divestiture, and strategic investment activity. Mr. Krasner started with Legacy Willis in June 2009 as Senior Vice President, working on the client side with Willis Capital Markets & Advisory between June 2009 to June 2012. Prior to joining WTW, Mr. Krasner was a Principal with Banc of America Securities from October 2003 to June 2009, an Associate with Deutsche Bank from July 2002 to October 2003 and a Senior Associate with PricewaterhouseCoopers from August 1997 to August 2000. Mr. Krasner has a B.S. degree in applied economics and business management and an M.B.A. with distinction from Cornell University. He is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Anne Pullum (age 39) - Ms. Pullum has served as Head of Europe at WTW since August 30, 2021 and, prior to that, as Head of Western Europe from May 31, 2019 to August 30, 2021. Previously, she served as the Chief Administrative Officer and Head of Strategy and Innovation since October 27, 2016. Beginning on January 4, 2016, Ms. Pullum served as WTW’s Head of Strategy, where she has played a key role in determining the Company’s strategy and worked across all business segments and functional areas. Previously, Ms. Pullum served as the Head of Strategy for Willis Group since May 2014. Before joining Willis, Ms. Pullum worked at McKinsey & Company, where she served financial services and natural resource clients since October 2010. Prior to that, Ms. Pullum conducted economic research at Greenspan Associates in Washington, D.C. and served as an analyst in the Goldman Sachs Equities Division in London. Ms. Pullum holds an M.B.A. from INSEAD and a bachelor’s degree in international economics from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.

Imran Qureshi (age 51)- Mr. Qureshi has served as Head of North America at WTW since August 30, 2021. Prior to that, he served as the Co-Leader, U.S. from February 2017 to August 30, 2021. He also chaired the North American Inclusion & Diversity Council during this time. He served as Region Leader, U.S. Midwest from February 2017 to October 2019, and was Market Leader, Greater Chicago and Wisconsin from February 2016 to February 2017. Mr. Qureshi was Managing Consultant of the Chicago office from January 2013 to January 2016, and has been with WTW in other roles since March 1999. Mr. Qureshi is currently a board director at The Executives' Club of Chicago. Previously, he was the board chair of the Human Resources Management Association of Chicago, and he served on the M&A Faculty of WorldatWork where he taught M&A and taught the International Benefits Course for the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans. In 2004, Mr. Qureshi was honored by Business Insurance magazine as one of “40 Under 40 People to Watch” in the commercial insurance and risk/benefits management services industries. He also has lectured on governance and globalization at The Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and The University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Mr. Qureshi holds a bachelor’s degree in pure mathematics and statistics with honors from the University of Manchester in the U.K. and has an actuarial background.

Gene H. Wickes (age 69) - Mr. Wickes has served as the Head of Benefits Delivery and Administration at WTW since April 1, 2016. Prior to that, Mr. Wickes served as an Executive Sponsor of the combined WTW Merger integration team since January 4, 2016. Previously, he served as the Managing Director of the Benefits business segment of Towers Watson from January 1, 2010 until the closing of the WTW merger. Prior to that, he served as the Global Director of the Benefits practice of Watson Wyatt beginning in 2005 and as a member of Watson Wyatt’s Board of Directors from 2002 to 2007. Mr. Wickes was Watson Wyatt’s Global Retirement Practice Director in 2004 and the U.S. West Division’s Retirement Practice Leader from 1997 to 2004. Mr. Wickes joined Watson Wyatt in 1996 as a senior consultant and consulting actuary. Prior to joining Watson Wyatt, he spent 18 years with Towers Perrin, where he assisted organizations with welfare, retirement, and executive benefit issues. Mr. Wickes is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and a member of the Conference of Consulting Actuaries, and he has a B.S. in mathematics and economics, an M.S. in mathematics and an M.S. in economics, all from Brigham Young University.

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Board of Directors

A list of the members of the Board of Directors of the Company and their principal occupations is provided below:

Carl A. Hess Michael P. Hammond Michelle R. Swanback

Inga K. Beale Wendy E. Lane Paul D. Thomas

Anna C. Catalano Brendan R. O’Neill Wilhelm Zeller

Victor F. Ganzi Linda D. Rabbitt

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ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

Executive Summary of Risk Factors

The following contains a summary of each of our risk factors. For the complete disclosure of each risk factor contained herein, please click on the respective summary.

Strategic, Operational and Technology Risks

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Our success largely depends on our ability to achieve our global business strategy as it evolves, and our results of operations and financial condition could suffer if the Company were unable to successfully establish and execute on its strategy and generate anticipated revenue growth and cost savings and efficiencies.

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We may not be able to fully realize the anticipated benefits of our growth strategy.

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We have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and may be substantially and negatively impacted by it in the future.

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The sale of Willis Re to Gallagher, including transitional arrangements and pending transactions, creates incremental business, operational, regulatory and reputational risks.

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Demand for our services could decrease for various reasons, including a general economic downturn, increased competition, or a decline in a client’s or an industry’s financial condition or prospects, all of which could materially adversely affect us.

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Our ability to successfully manage ongoing organizational changes could impact our business results, where the level of costs and/or disruption may be significant and change over time, and the benefits may be less than we originally expect.

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Changes in our management structure and in senior leadership could affect our business and financial results.

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The loss of key colleagues or a large number of colleagues could damage or result in the loss of client relationships and could result in such colleagues competing against us.

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Data security breaches or improper disclosure of confidential company or personal data could result in material financial loss, regulatory actions, reputational harm or legal liability.

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From time to time, we receive claims and are party to lawsuits arising from our work, which could materially adversely affect our reputation, business and financial condition.

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As a highly regulated company, we are subject from time to time to inquiries or investigations by governmental agencies or regulators that could have a material adverse effect on our business or results of operations.

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Our growth strategy depends, in part, on our ability to make acquisitions. We face risks when we acquire or divest businesses, and we could have difficulty in acquiring, integrating or managing acquired businesses, or with effecting internal reorganizations, all of which could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations or reputation.

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Our inability to successfully recover should we experience a disaster or other business continuity problem could cause material financial loss, loss of human capital, regulatory actions, reputational harm or legal liability.

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Interruption to or loss of our information processing capabilities or failure to effectively maintain and upgrade our information processing hardware or systems could cause material financial loss, regulatory actions, reputational harm or legal liability.

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The United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union, which occurred on January 31, 2020, and the risk that other countries may follow, could adversely affect us.

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Allegations of conflicts of interest, including in connection with accepting market derived income (‘MDI’), may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operation or reputation.

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Damage to our reputation, including due to the failure of third parties on whom we rely to perform services or public opinions of third parties with whom we associate, could adversely affect our businesses.

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Our business performance and growth plans could be negatively affected if we are not able to effectively apply technology, data and analytics to drive value for our clients through technology-based solutions or gain internal efficiencies through the effective application of technology, analytics and related tools.

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Our business may be harmed by any negative developments that may occur in the insurance industry or if we fail to maintain good relationships with insurance carriers.

Legal, Non-Financial/Tax Regulatory and Compliance Risks

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Our inability to comply with complex and evolving laws and regulations related to data privacy and cyber security could result in material financial loss, regulatory actions, reputational harm or legal liability.

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In conducting our businesses around the world, we are subject to political, economic, legal, regulatory, cultural, market, operational and other risks that are inherent in operating in many countries.

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Sanctions imposed by governments, or changes to such sanction regulations (such as sanctions imposed on Russia), and related counter-sanctions, could have a material adverse impact on our operations or financial results.

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Our business will be negatively affected if we are not able to anticipate and keep pace with rapid changes in government laws or regulations, or if government laws or regulations decrease the need for our services or increase our costs.

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Our compliance systems and controls cannot guarantee that we comply with all applicable federal and state or foreign laws and regulations, and actions by regulatory authorities or changes in applicable laws and regulations in the jurisdictions in which we operate could have an adverse effect on our business.

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Changes and developments in the health insurance system in the United States could harm our business.

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Limited protection of our intellectual property could harm our business and our ability to compete effectively, and we face the risk that our services or products may infringe upon the intellectual property rights of others.

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The laws of Ireland differ from the laws in effect in the United States and may afford less protection to holders of our securities.

Financial and Related Regulatory, Including Tax, Risks

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We have material pension liabilities that can fluctuate significantly and adversely affect our financial position or net income or result in other financial impacts.

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Our outstanding debt could adversely affect our cash flows and financial flexibility, and we may not be able to obtain financing on favorable terms or at all.

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A downgrade to our corporate credit rating and the credit ratings of our outstanding debt may adversely affect our borrowing costs and financial flexibility and, under certain circumstances, may require us to offer to buy back some of our outstanding debt.

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If a U.S. person is treated as owning at least 10% of our shares, such a holder may be subject to adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences.

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Legislative or regulatory action or developments in case law in the U.S. or elsewhere could have a material adverse impact on our worldwide effective corporate tax rate.

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Our significant non-U.S. operations, particularly our London market operations, expose us to exchange rate fluctuations and various other risks that could impact our business.

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Changes in accounting principles or in our accounting estimates and assumptions could negatively affect our financial position and results of operations.

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Our quarterly revenue and cash flow could fluctuate, including as a result of factors outside of our control, while our expenses may remain relatively fixed or be higher than expected.

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Increasing scrutiny and changing expectations from investors, clients and our colleagues with respect to our environmental, social and governance (‘ESG’) practices may impose additional costs on us or expose us to reputational or other risks.

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It is unclear how increased regulatory oversight and changes in the method for determining as well as the anticipated discontinuation of the London Interbank Offered Rate (‘LIBOR’) may affect the value of the financial obligations to be held or issued by us that are linked to LIBOR, or how such changes could affect our results of operations or financial condition.

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We are a holding company and, therefore, may not be able to receive dividends or other distributions in needed amounts from our subsidiaries.

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Risk Factors

In addition to the factors discussed elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, the following are some of the important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those projected in any forward-looking statements. These risk factors should be carefully considered in evaluating our business. The descriptions below are not the only risks and uncertainties that we face. Additional risks and uncertainties that are presently unknown to us could also impair our business operations, financial condition or results. If any of the risks and uncertainties below or other risks were to occur, our business operations, financial condition or results of operations could be materially and adversely impacted. With respect to the tax-related consequences of acquisition, ownership and disposal of ordinary shares, you should consult with your own tax advisors.

Strategic, Operational and Technology Risks

Our success largely depends on our ability to achieve our global business strategy as it evolves, and our results of operations and financial condition could suffer if the Company were unable to successfully establish and execute on its strategy and generate anticipated revenue growth and cost savings and efficiencies.

Our future growth, profitability and cash flows largely depend upon our ability to successfully establish and execute our global business strategy. As discussed under Item 1, ‘Business - Business Strategy’, we seek to be an advisory, broking and solutions provider of choice through an integrated global platform. While we have confidence that our strategic plan reflects opportunities that are appropriate and achievable, there is a possibility that our strategy may not deliver projected long-term growth in revenue and profitability due to inadequate execution, incorrect assumptions, global or local economic conditions, competition, changes in the industries in which we operate, sub-optimal resource allocation or any of the other risks described in this ‘Risk Factors’ section. In addition, our strategy continues to evolve, and it is possible that we will be unable to successfully execute the associated strategy changes, due to factors discussed above or elsewhere in this ‘Risk Factors’ section. In pursuit of our growth strategy, we may also invest significant time and resources into new product or service offerings, and there is the possibility that these offerings may fail to yield sufficient return to cover their investment. The failure to continually develop and execute optimally on our global business strategy could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may not be able to fully realize the anticipated benefits of our growth strategy.

We have stated certain goals at our 2021 Investor Day and our outlook for the next several years, including with respect to our cash flows, our growth and margin targets and our share repurchases. New initiatives aiming to implement such objectives pose potential operational risks and may result in distraction of management and employees. We cannot be certain whether we will be able to realize benefits from current revenue-generating or cost-saving initiatives and ultimately realize our objectives. There can be no assurance that our actual results will meet these financial goals.

We have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and may be substantially and negatively impacted by it in the future.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an adverse impact on global commercial activity, including the global supply chain, and at times has contributed to strain in financial markets, including, among other effects, significant volatility in equity markets, changes in interest rates and reduced liquidity on a global basis. It has also resulted in increased travel restrictions and extended shutdowns of businesses in various industries including, among others, travel, trade, tourism, health systems and food supply, and significantly reduced overall economic output. As such, there is a risk that COVID-19 and its variants could have a substantial negative impact on client demand and cash flow in certain or all of our businesses.

COVID-19 risks magnify other risks discussed in this report and any of our other SEC filings. For example, the effectiveness of external parties, including governmental and non-governmental organizations, in combating the spread and severity of COVID-19 and its variants could have a material impact on demand for our business. In addition, steps taken by market counterparties such as (re)insurance carriers to limit their exposures to COVID-19 and related risks could have an impact on their willingness to provide or renew coverage for our clients on historical terms and pricing, which could again impact demand for our business. Coverage disputes arising out of the pandemic, some of which have already emerged, could also increase our professional liability risk by increasing the frequency and severity of allegations by others that, in the course of providing services, we have committed errors or omissions for which we should have liability. Also, travel restrictions have caused the postponement, modification or cancellation of various conferences and meetings around the world and adversely impacted sales activity. The rapid development and fluidity of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the continued development, availability, distribution and acceptance of effective vaccines and the emergence of vaccine-resistant variants, precludes any prediction as to the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ultimate adverse impact of COVID-19 on our business. Nevertheless, COVID-19 continues to present material uncertainty and risk with respect to demand for our products and services.

In addition, COVID-19 has disrupted certain aspects of our business and could continue to disrupt, possibly materially, our business operations and the services we provide, as well as the business operations of our clients, suppliers and other third parties with whom

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we interact. As an increasing percentage of our colleagues continue to work remotely, we face resiliency risks, such as the risk that our information technology platform could potentially be inadequate to support increasing demand, as well as the risk that unusual working arrangements could impact the effectiveness of our operations or controls. Economic disruption caused by COVID-19 or other factors may impact the pace at which we make information technology-based investments, and we may continue to make fewer information technology-based investments than previously anticipated, which could potentially create business operational risk. In addition, we depend on third-party platforms and other infrastructure to provide certain of our products and services, and such third-party infrastructures face similar resiliency risks. These factors have exposed us to increased phishing and other cybersecurity attacks as cybercriminals try to exploit the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as an increase in the number of points of potential attack, such as laptops and mobile devices (both of which are now being used in increased numbers as many of our employees work remotely), to be secured. A failure to effectively manage these risks, including to promptly identify and appropriately respond to any cyberattacks, may adversely affect our business.

Also, a potential COVID-19 infection of any of our key colleagues could substantially and negatively impact our operations. Further, it is possible that COVID-19 causes us to close down call centers and other processes on which we rely, or impacts processes of third-party vendors on whom we rely, which could also materially impact our operations. Resultant changes in financial markets could also have a material impact on our own hedging and other financial transactions, which could impact our liquidity. In addition, it is possible that COVID-19 restrictions could create difficulty for satisfying our legal or regulatory filing or other obligations, including with the SEC and other regulators.

Supply and labor market disruptions caused by COVID-19 as well as other factors, such as accommodative monetary and fiscal policy, have contributed to significant inflation in many of the markets in which we operate. This impacts not only the costs to attract and retain employees but also other costs to run and invest in our business. If our costs grow significantly in excess of our ability to raise revenues, our margins and results of operations may be materially and adversely impacted and we may not be able to achieve our strategic and financial objectives.

All of the foregoing events or potential outcomes, including in combination with other risk factors included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, could cause a substantial negative effect on our results of operations in any period and, depending on their severity, could also substantially and negatively affect our financial condition. Furthermore, such potential material adverse effects may lag behind the developments related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Such events and outcomes also could potentially impact our reputation with clients and regulators, among others.

The sale of Willis Re to Gallagher, including transitional arrangements and pending transactions, creates incremental business, operational, regulatory and reputational risks.

The completion of the agreed-upon transaction to sell our Willis Re business to Gallagher, which has occurred in many but not all jurisdictions globally, entails important risks, including, among others: the risk that the post-closing transition arrangements, which are complex, may impose costs or liabilities or may give rise to errors in execution, be distracting to our management, or cause disruption to our business or our relationships with clients, employees, suppliers, regulators and other third parties; the risk that the triggers for the potential earnout payment may not be met; the risk that transaction and/or transition costs may be greater than expected, including as a result of the complexity of the transition arrangements or conditions that regulators may put on any approvals of the transaction in jurisdictions that have not yet closed; the potential impact of the consummation of the transaction and transition arrangements on relationships, including with employees, suppliers, regulators, clients, competitors and other third parties; the risk that management’s attention is diverted from other matters during the post-closing period and in the period prior to closing in jurisdictions where closing has yet to occur; the risk that litigation associated with the Gallagher transaction or with contingent liabilities we have retained, if any, arises; the risk, as described more below, that we are unable to obtain the requisite regulatory approvals or satisfy all of the other conditions required to consummate the Gallagher transaction in remaining jurisdictions on the terms and expected schedule, if at all; the risk of disruptions from the completion of the Gallagher transaction and transition arrangements that impact our business, including current plans and operations, including the risk of exacerbating existing disruptions or challenges we face; and other risks in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and in our other SEC filings.

Demand for our services could decrease for various reasons, including a general economic downturn, increased competition, or a decline in a client’s or an industry’s financial condition or prospects, all of which could materially adversely affect us.

We can give no assurance that the demand for our services will grow or be maintained, or that we will compete successfully with our existing competitors, new competitors or our clients’ internal capabilities. Client demand for our services may change based on the clients’ needs and financial conditions, among other factors.

Our results of operations are affected directly by the level of business activity of our clients, which in turn is affected by the level of economic activity in the industries and markets that they serve. For example, any changes in U.S. trade policy (including any increases in tariffs that result in a trade war), ongoing stock market volatility or an increase in, or unmet market expectations with respect to, interest rates could adversely affect the general economy. As a result, global financial markets may continue to experience disruptions,

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including increased volatility and reduced credit availability, which could substantially impact our results. Likewise, COVID-19 and related economic disruption could have a material adverse impact on global demand from our clients, in addition to the potential impact of pandemics on our own operations discussed elsewhere in this report. While it is difficult to predict the consequences of any deterioration in global economic conditions on our business, any significant reduction or delay by our clients in purchasing our services or insurance or making payment of premiums could have a material adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations. In addition, the potential for a significant insurer to fail, be downgraded or withdraw from writing certain lines of insurance coverages that we offer our clients could negatively impact overall capacity in the industry, which could then reduce the placement of certain lines and types of insurance and reduce our revenue and profitability. The potential for an insurer to fail or be downgraded could also result in errors and omissions claims by clients.

In addition, the markets for our principal services are highly competitive. Our competitors include other insurance brokerage (including direct-to-consumer Medicare brokerage), human capital and risk management consulting and actuarial firms, and the human capital and risk management divisions of diversified professional services, insurance, brokerage and accounting firms and specialty, regional and local firms.

Competition for business is intense in all of our business lines and in every insurance market, and some competitors have greater market share in certain lines of business than we do. Some of our competitors have greater financial, technical and marketing resources than us, which could enhance their ability to finance acquisitions, fund internal growth and respond more quickly to professional and technological changes. New competitors, as well as increasing and evolving consolidation or alliances among existing competitors, have created and could continue to create additional competition and could significantly reduce our market share, resulting in a loss of business for us and a corresponding decline in revenue and profit margin. In order to respond to increased competition and pricing pressure, we may have to lower our prices, which would also have an adverse effect on our revenue and profit margin.

In addition, existing and new competitors (whether traditional competitors or non-traditional competitors, such as technology companies) could develop competing technologies or product or service offerings that disrupt our industries. Any new technology or product or service offering (including insurance companies selling their products directly to consumers or other insureds) that reduces or eliminates the need for intermediaries in insurance sales transactions could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations. Further, the increasing willingness of clients to either self-insure or maintain a captive insurance company, and the development of capital markets-based solutions and other alternative capital sources for traditional insurance needs, could also materially adversely affect us and our results of operations.

An example of a business that may be significantly impacted by changes in customer demand is our retirement consulting and actuarial business, which comprises a substantial portion of our revenue and profit. We provide clients with actuarial and consulting services relating to both defined benefit and defined contribution pension plans. Defined benefit pension plans generally require more actuarial services than defined contribution plans because defined benefit plans typically involve large asset pools, complex calculations to determine employer costs, funding requirements and sophisticated analysis to match liabilities and assets over long periods of time. If organizations shift to defined contribution plans more rapidly than we anticipate, or if we are unable to otherwise compensate for the decline in our business that results from employers moving away from defined benefit plans, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected. Furthermore, large and complex consulting projects, often involving dedicated personnel, resources and expenses, comprise a significant portion of this business, which are based on our clients’ discretionary needs and may be reduced based on a decline in a client’s or an industry’s financial condition or prospects. We also face the risk that certain large and complex project contracts may be reduced or terminated based on dissatisfaction with service levels, which could result in reduced revenue, write-offs of assets associated with the project, and disputes over the contract, all of which may adversely impact our results and business.

In addition, the demand for many of our core benefit services, including compliance-related services, is affected by government regulation and taxation of employee benefit plans. Significant changes in tax or social welfare policy or other regulations could lead some employers to discontinue their employee benefit plans, including defined benefit pension plans, thereby reducing the demand for our services. A simplification of regulations or tax policy also could reduce the need for our services.

Our ability to successfully manage ongoing organizational changes could impact our business results, where the level of costs and/or disruption may be significant and change over time, and the benefits may be less than we originally expect.

We have in the past few years undergone several significant business and organizational changes, including multi-year operational improvement programs and a new management structure, among others. There are also a number of other initiatives planned or ongoing to transform and update our systems and processes and gain efficiencies. In addition, our strategy continues to evolve, and such evolution may result in further organizational changes or more or different investments than we currently anticipate. In connection with all these changes, we may manage a number of large-scale and complex projects. Such projects may include multiple and connected phases, many of which may be dependent on factors that are outside of our control. While we plan to undertake these types of large, complex projects based on our determination that each is necessary or desirable for the execution of the Company’s

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business strategy, we cannot guarantee that the collective effect of all of these projects will not adversely impact our business or results of operations or that the benefits will be as we originally expect. Effectively managing these organizational changes (including ensuring that they are implemented on schedule, within budget and without interruption to the existing business or that transitions to new systems do not create significant control vulnerabilities during the period of transition) is critical to retaining talent, servicing clients and our business success overall. Many of the risks described herein increase during periods of significant organizational change. The failure to effectively manage such risks could adversely impact our resources or business or financial results.

Changes in our management structure and in senior leadership could affect our business and financial results.

As of January 1, 2022, Carl Hess succeeded John Haley as our chief executive officer and previously announced changes to our management structure became effective. Additionally, on September 7, 2021, Andrew Krasner succeeded Michael J. Burwell as our chief financial officer. Leadership transitions can be difficult to manage and may cause disruptions to our operations. A leadership transition may also increase the likelihood of turnover among our employees and result in changes in our business strategy, which may create uncertainty and negatively impact our ability to execute our business strategy quickly and effectively. Leadership transitions may also impact our relationships with customers and other market participants, and create uncertainty among investors, employees, and others concerning our future direction and performance. Any significant disruption, uncertainty or change in business strategy could adversely affect our business, operating results and financial condition.

The loss of key colleagues or a large number of colleagues could damage or result in the loss of client relationships and could result in such colleagues competing against us.

Our success depends on our ability to attract, retain and motivate qualified personnel, including key managers and colleagues. In addition, our success largely depends upon our colleagues’ abilities to generate business and provide quality services. In particular, our colleagues’ business relationships with our clients are a critical element of obtaining and maintaining client engagements. Labor markets have continued to tighten globally, and we have experienced intense competition and increased costs for certain types of colleagues, especially as new entrants, in the insurance business (among others), expend significant resources in hiring. Also, in the past and following the announcement and the termination of the proposed Aon combination, we have lost colleagues who manage substantial client relationships or possess substantial experience or expertise; if we lose additional colleagues such as those, or if we lose a large number of other colleagues, it could result in such colleagues competing against us. Voluntary attrition in a number of business lines remains elevated, and it may take longer than expected to hire new colleagues to replace colleagues who have left and/or these new colleagues may be subject to restrictive covenants that impact the amount of business they can generate while those covenants are in effect. The failure to successfully attract and retain qualified personnel could materially adversely affect our ability to secure and complete engagements or could disrupt our business or cause increased operational risk, which would materially adversely affect our results of operations and prospects.

Data security breaches or improper disclosure of confidential company or personal data could result in material financial loss, regulatory actions, reputational harm or legal liability.

We depend on information technology networks and systems to process, transmit and store electronic information and to communicate among our locations around the world and with our alliance partners, insurance carriers/markets, clients and third-party vendors. Additionally, one of our significant responsibilities is to maintain the security and privacy of our clients’ confidential and proprietary information and the personal data of their customers and employees. Our information systems, and those of our third-party service providers and vendors, are vulnerable to an increasing threat of continually evolving cybersecurity risks. We are the target of computer viruses, hackers, distributed denial of service attacks, malware infections, ransomware attacks, phishing and spear-phishing campaigns and/or other external hazards, as well as improper or inadvertent workforce behavior which, could expose confidential company and personal data systems and information to security breaches.

Many of the software applications that we use in our business are licensed from, and supported, upgraded and maintained by, third-party vendors. Our third-party applications include, but are not limited to, enterprise cloud storage and cloud computing application services provided and maintained by third-party vendors. These third-party applications store or may afford access to confidential and proprietary data of the Company, our employees and our clients. We have processes designed to require third-party vendors that provide IT outsourcing, offsite storage and other services to agree to maintain certain standards with respect to the storage, protection and transfer of confidential, personal and proprietary information. However, this data is at risk of compromise or unauthorized access or use in the event of a breakdown of a vendor’s data protection processes, a data breach due to the intentional or unintentional non-compliance by a vendor’s employee or agent, or as a result of a cyber-attack on the product, software or information systems of a vendor in our software supply chain. Any compromise of the product, software, data or infrastructure of a Company vendor, including a software or IT vendor in our supply chain, could in turn result in the compromise of Company data or infrastructure or result in material operational disruption. Further, the risk and potential impact of a data breach on our third-party vendors’ products, software or systems increase as we move more of our data and our clients’ data into our vendors’ cloud storage, engage in IT outsourcing, and consolidate the group of third-party vendors that provide cloud storage or other IT services for the Company. Over time, the

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frequency, severity and sophistication of the attacks against us and our vendors have increased, including due to the use of artificial intelligence for purposes of cybercrime, and the broader range of threat actors, including state-sponsored actors and hacker activists.

We and our vendors regularly experience cybersecurity incidents, including successful attacks from time to time, and we expect that to continue going forward. Cybersecurity incidents include those resulting from human error or malfeasance, implantation of malware and viruses, phishing and spear-phishing attacks, unauthorized access to our information technology networks and systems, and unauthorized access to data or individual account funds through fraud or other means of deceiving our colleagues, clients, third-party service providers and vendors. We have experienced successful attacks, by various types of hacking groups, in which personal and commercially sensitive information, belonging to the Company or its clients, has been compromised. However, none of these cybersecurity incidents or attacks to our knowledge have been material to our business or financial results. We cannot assure that such cybersecurity incidents or attacks will not have a material impact on our business or financial results in the future. When required by law, we have notified individuals, clients and relevant regulatory authorities (such as insurance/financial services regulators and privacy regulators) of such cybersecurity incidents or attacks.

We maintain policies, procedures and administrative, physical and technological safeguards (such as, where in place, multifactor authentication and encryption of data in transit and at rest) designed to protect the security and privacy of the data in our custody and control. However, such safeguards are time-consuming and expensive to deploy broadly and are not necessarily always in place or effective, and we cannot entirelyeliminate the risk of data security breaches, improper access to, takeover of or disclosure of confidential company or personally identifiable information. We may not be able to detect and assess such issues, or implement appropriate remediation, in a timely manner. We are engaged in an ongoing effort to enhance our protections against such attacks; this effort will require significant expenditures and may not be successful. Our technology may fail to adequately secure the private information we hold and protect it from theft, computer viruses, hackers or inadvertent loss.

If any person, including any of our colleagues, intentionally or unintentionally fails to comply with, disregards or intentionally breaches our established controls with respect to such data or otherwise mismanages or misappropriates that data, we could be subject to monetary damages, fines, regulatory enforcement and/or criminal prosecution. Unauthorized disclosure of sensitive or confidential client, supplier or employee data, whether through systems failure, accident, employee negligence, fraud or misappropriation, could damage our reputation and cause us to lose clients. Similarly, unauthorized access to or through our information systems or those we develop for our clients, whether by our colleagues or third parties, could result in significant additional expenses (including expenses relating to incident response and investigation, remediation work, notification of data security breaches and costs of credit monitoring services), negative publicity, operational disruption, legal liability and damage to our reputation, as well as require substantial resources and effort of management, thereby diverting management’s focus and resources from business operations.

The methods used to obtain unauthorized access to, disable or degrade service or sabotage the Company’s systems are also constantly evolving, are increasingly sophisticated, and may be difficult to anticipate or detect. For example, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (‘FBI’), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and other U.S. federal agencies continue to issue warnings about trends in cybercriminal and nation-state activity and other threats that are consistent with some of the types of incidents we have experienced. To our knowledge, these incidents have not had a material impact on our business or operations thus far. However, our reputation could be harmed and our business and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected if we were to be the target of such attacks in the future, or if, despite our controls and efforts to detect breaches, we were to be the victim of an undetected breach.

We have implemented and regularly review and update processes and procedures to protect against fraud and unauthorized access to and use of secured data and to prevent data loss. The ever-evolving threats mean that we and our third-party service providers and vendors must continually evaluate, adapt, enhance and otherwise improve our respective systems and processes, especially as we grow our mobile, cloud and other internet-based services. There is no guarantee that such efforts will be adequate to safeguard against all fraud, data security breaches, unauthorized access, operational impacts or misuses of data. For example, our policies, employee training (including phishing prevention training), procedures and technical safeguards may be insufficient to prevent or detect improper access to confidential, personal or proprietary information by employees, vendors or other third parties with otherwise legitimate access to our systems. In addition, we may not be able to implement such efforts as quickly as desired if, for example, greater resources are required than originally expected or resources and management’s focus are insufficient. Any future significant compromise or breach of our data security or fraud, whether external or internal, or misuse of client, colleague, supplier or company data, could result in additional significant costs, lost revenue opportunities, disruption of operations and service, fines, lawsuits, and damage to our reputation with our clients and in the broader market.

From time to time, we receive claims and are party to lawsuits arising from our work, which could materially adversely affect our reputation, business and financial condition.

We depend in large part on our relationships with clients and our reputation for high-quality services to secure future engagements. Clients that become dissatisfied with our services may terminate their business relationships with us, and clients and third parties that claim they suffered damages caused by our services may bring lawsuits against us. We are subject to various actual and potential

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claims, lawsuits, investigations and other proceedings relating principally to alleged errors and omissions in connection with the provision of our services or the placement of insurance and reinsurance in the ordinary course of business. We are also subject to actual and potential claims, lawsuits, investigations and proceedings outside of errors and omissions claims. See Note 15 - Commitments and Contingencies in Item 8 in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for examples of claims to which we are subject.

Because we often assist our clients with matters involving substantial amounts of money and complex regulatory requirements, including actuarial services, asset management, technology solutions development and implementation and the placement of insurance coverage and the handling of related claims, errors and omissions claims against us may arise that allege our potential liability for all or part of the substantial amounts in question. The nature of our work, particularly our actuarial services, necessarily involves the use of assumptions and the preparation of estimates relating to future and contingent events, the actual outcome of which we cannot know in advance. Our actuarial and brokerage services also rely on substantial amounts of data provided by clients, the accuracy and quality of which we may not be able to ensure. In addition, we could make computational, software programming or data management errors in connection with the services we provide to clients.

Clients may seek to hold us responsible for alleged errors or omissions relating to any of the brokerage advice and services we provide, including when claims they submit to their insurance carriers are disputed or denied. This risk is likely to be higher in circumstances, such as claims related to COVID-19 (some of which have already emerged), where there are significant disputes between clients and insurance carriers over coverage and clients allege claims against us. This risk also may be higher in circumstances where we have significant numbers of departures or new joiners or other disruptions to our business, such as changes in ways of working. Given that many of our clients have very high insurance policy limits to cover their risks, alleged errors and omissions claims against us arising from disputed or denied claims are often significant. Moreover, in certain circumstances, our brokerage, investment and certain other types of business may not limit the maximum liability to which we may be exposed for claims involving alleged errors or omissions; and as such, we do not have limited liability for the work we provide to the associated clients.

Further, given that we frequently work with large pension funds and insurance companies as well as other large clients, relatively small percentage errors or variances can create significant financial variances and result in significant claims for unintended or unfunded liabilities. The risks from such variances or errors could be aggravated in an environment of declining pension fund asset values and insurance company capital levels. In almost all cases, our exposure to liability with respect to a particular engagement is substantially greater than the revenue opportunity that the engagement generates for us.

Clients may seek to hold us responsible for the financial consequences of variances between assumptions and estimates and actual outcomes or for errors. For example, in the case of pension plan actuarial work, a client’s claims might focus on the client’s alleged reliance on actuarial assumptions that it believes were unreasonable and, based on such reliance, the client made benefit commitments that it may later claim are not affordable or funding decisions that result in plan underfunding if and when actual outcomes vary from actuarial assumptions.

We also continue to create new products and services (including increasingly complex technology solutions) and to grow the business of providing products and services to institutional investors, financial services companies and other clients. The risk of claims from these lines of business and related products and services may be greater than from our core products or services, and such claims may be for significant amounts as we take on increasingly complicated projects, including those with complex regulatory requirements.

We also provide advice on both asset allocation and selection of investment managers. Increasingly, for many clients, we are responsible for making decisions on both of these matters, or we may serve in a fiduciary capacity, either of which may increase liability exposure. In addition, the Company offers affiliated investment funds, including in the U.S. and Ireland, with plans to launch additional funds over time. Given that our Investment business may recommend affiliated investment funds or affirmatively invest such clients’ assets in such funds under delegated authority, this may increase our liability exposure. We may also be liable for actions of managers or other service providers to the funds. Further, for certain clients, we are responsible for some portions of cash and investment management, including rebalancing of investment portfolios and guidance to third parties on the structure of derivatives and securities transactions. Asset classes may experience poor absolute performance, and investment managers may underperform their benchmarks; in both cases the investment return shortfall can be significant. Clients experiencing this underperformance, including from our affiliated investment funds, may assert claims against us, and such claims may be for significant amounts. In addition, our failure to properly execute our role can cause monetary damage to our clients or such third parties for which we might be found liable, and such claims may be for significant amounts. Our expected expansion of this business geographically and in new offerings will subject us to additional contractual exposures and obligations with investors, asset managers and third party service providers, as well as increased regulatory exposures. Overall, our ability to contractually limit our potential liability may be limited in certain jurisdictions or markets or in connection with claims involving breaches of fiduciary duties or other alleged errors or omissions.

The ultimate outcome of all of the above matters cannot be ascertained and liabilities in indeterminate amounts may be imposed on us. In addition, our insurance coverage may not be sufficient in type or amount to cover us against such liabilities. It is thus possible that future results of operations or cash flows for any particular quarterly or annual period could be materially adversely affected by an

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unfavorable resolution of these matters. In addition, these matters continue to divert management and personnel resources away from operating our business. Even if we do not experience significant monetary costs, there may be adverse publicity associated with these matters that could result in reputational harm to the industries we operate in or to us in particular that may adversely affect our business, client or employee relationships. In addition, defending against these claims can involve potentially significant costs, including legal defense costs.

As a highly regulated company, we are subject from time to time to inquiries or investigations by governmental agencies or regulators that could have a material adverse effect on our business or results of operations.

We have also been and may continue to be subject to inquiries and investigations by federal, state or other governmental agencies regarding aspects of our clients’ businesses or our own businesses, especially regulated businesses such as our insurance broker, securities broker-dealer and investment advisory services. Such inquiries or investigations may consume significant management time and result in regulatory sanctions, fines or other actions as well as significant legal fees, which could have a material adverse impact on our business, results of operations and liquidity. Also, we may face additional regulatory scrutiny as we expand our businesses geographically and in new products and services that we offer.

Examples of these inquiries or investigations are set forth in more detail in Note 15 — Commitments and Contingencies in Item 8 in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. These include various ongoing civil investigation proceedings in respect of alleged exchanges of commercially sensitive information among competitors in aviation and aerospace insurance and reinsurance broking.

All of these items reflect an increased focus by regulators (in the U.K., U.S. and elsewhere) on various aspects of the operations and affairs of our regulated businesses. We are unable to predict the outcome of these inquiries or investigations. Any proposed changes that result from these investigations and inquiries, or any other investigations, inquiries or regulatory developments, or any potential fines or enforcement action, could materially adversely affect our business and our results of operations.

Our growth strategy depends, in part, on our ability to make acquisitions. We face risks when we acquire or divest businesses, and we could have difficulty in acquiring, integrating or managing acquired businesses, or with effecting internal reorganizations, all of which could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations or reputation.

Our growth depends in part on our ability to make acquisitions. We may not be successful in identifying appropriate acquisition candidates or consummating acquisitions on terms acceptable or favorable to us. We also face additional risks related to acquisitions, including that we could overpay for acquired businesses and that any acquired business could significantly underperform relative to our expectations. In addition, we may not repurchase as many of our outstanding shares as anticipated due to our acquisition activity or investment opportunities, as well as other market or business conditions. If we are unable to identify and successfully make, integrate and manage acquisitions, our business could be materially adversely affected. In addition, we face risks related to divesting businesses, including that we may not receive adequate consideration in return for the divested business, we may continue to be subject to the liabilities of the divested business after its divestiture (including with respect to work we might have performed on behalf of the divested business), and we may not be able to reduce overhead or redeploy assets or retain colleagues after the divestiture closes. For example, we completed the sale of Miller and the principal closing of the Willis Re business, and are in the process of completing the remaining closings of our sale of the Willis Re business, which may give rise to such risks including risks in managing transition arrangements.

In addition, we cannot be certain that our acquisitions will be accretive to earnings or that our acquisitions or divestitures will otherwise meet our operational or strategic expectations. Acquisitions involve special risks, including the potential assumption of unanticipated liabilities and contingencies and difficulties in integrating acquired businesses, and acquired businesses may not achieve the levels of revenue, profit or productivity we anticipate or otherwise perform as we expect. In addition, if the operating performance of an acquired business deteriorates significantly, we may need to write down the value of the goodwill and other acquisition-related intangible assets recorded on our consolidated balance sheet.

We may be unable to effectively integrate an acquired business into our organization and may not succeed in managing such acquired businesses or the larger company that results from such acquisitions. The process of integrating an acquired business may subject us to a number of risks, including, without limitation, an inability to retain the management, key personnel and other employees of the acquired business; an inability to establish uniform standards, controls, systems, procedures and policies or to achieve anticipated savings; and exposure to legal claims for activities of the acquired business prior to acquisition.

With respect to any such acquisition transactions, we face the risk related to the potential impacts of the transaction and integration on relationships, including with employees, correspondents, suppliers, clients and competitors, as well as the risk related to contingent liabilities (including litigation) potentially creating material liabilities for the Company. The following risks, in addition to those described above, may also adversely affect our ability to successfully implement and integrate these acquisitions: material changes in U.S. and foreign jurisdiction regulations (including those related to the healthcare system and Medicare and insurance brokerage services); changes in general economic, business and political conditions in relevant markets, including changes in the financial

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markets; significant competition in the marketplace; and compliance with extensive and evolving government regulations in the U.S. and in foreign jurisdictions.

If acquisitions are not successfully integrated and the intended benefits of the acquisitions are not achieved, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected, as well as our professional reputation. We also own an interest in a number of associates and companies where we do not exercise management control and we are therefore limited in our ability to direct or manage the business to realize the anticipated benefits that we could achieve if we had full ownership.

Ourinability to successfully recover should we experience a disaster or other business continuity problem could cause material financial loss, loss of human capital, regulatory actions, reputational harm or legal liability.

Shouldwe experience a disaster or other business continuity problem, such as an earthquake, hurricane, terrorist attack, pandemic, including prolonged effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, security breach, ransomware or destructive malware attack, power loss, telecommunications failure or other natural or man-made disaster, our continued success will depend, in part, on the availability of our personnel, our office facilities, access to data, and the proper functioning of our computer, telecommunication and other related systems and operations. In such an event, we could experience operational challenges with regard to our operations.

A disaster on a significant scale or affecting certain of our key operating areas within or across regions, or our inability to successfully recover should we experience a disaster or other business continuity problem, could materially interrupt our business operations and cause material financial loss, loss of human capital, regulatory actions, reputational harm, damaged client relationships or legal liability, particularly if any of these problems occur during peak times.

Interruption to or loss of our information processing capabilities or failure to effectively maintain and upgrade our information processing hardware or systems could cause material financial loss, regulatory actions, reputational harm or legal liability.

Ourbusiness depends significantly on effective information systems. Our capacity to service our clients relies on effective storage, retrieval, processing and management of information. Our information systems also rely on the commitment of significant financial and other resources to maintain and enhance existing systems, develop and create new systems and products in order to keep pace with continuing changes in information processing technology or evolving industry and regulatory standards. We rely on being at the forefront of a range of technology options relevant to our business, including by staying ahead of the technology offered by our competitors, and attracting, developing, and retaining skilled individuals in the cybersecurity space.The market for such qualified individuals is competitive and we may be unable to hire the necessary talent to mitigate the foregoing risks.

In addition, many of the software applications, including enterprise cloud storage and cloud computing application services, that we use in our business are licensed from, and supported, upgraded and maintained by, third-party vendors. We are significantly increasing our use of such cloud services and expect this to continue over time. These third-party applications store confidential and proprietary data of the Company, our clients and our employees. A suspension or termination of certain of these licenses or the related support, upgrades and maintenance could cause temporary system delays or interruptions that could adversely impact our business. As a global organization, we occasionally acquire other companies or divest certain of our existing business lines and companies. These strategic business decisions may require us to manage complex integrations or dissolutions of information systems or the transfer of information from one system to another, and we may fail to identify vulnerabilities in our targets’ information systems or in integrated components of our respective information systems. These transactions may make us more susceptible to cyberattacks and could result in the theft of Company intellectual property, the compromise of Company, employee, and client data or operational disruption.

Any finding that the data we rely on to run our business is inaccurate or unreliable, that we fail to maintain effective and efficient systems (including through a telecommunications failure, failure to replace or update redundant or obsolete computer hardware, applications or software systems, or the loss of skilled people with the knowledge needed to operate older systems), or that we experience cost overruns, delays, or other disruptions, could result in material financial loss, regulatory action, reputational harm or legal liability.

TheUnited Kingdom’s exit from the European Union, which occurred on January 31, 2020, and the risk that other countries may follow, could adversely affect us.

In2021, approximately 18% of our revenue from continuing operations was generated in the U.K., although only about 12% of revenue from continuing operations was denominated in Pounds sterling as much of the insurance business is transacted in U.S. dollars. Approximately 18% of our expenses from continuing operations were denominated in Pounds sterling. It remains difficult to predict with any level of certainty the impact that Brexit will have on the economy; economic, regulatory and political stability; and market conditions in Europe, including in the U.K., or on the Pound sterling, Euro or other European currencies, but any such impacts and others we cannot currently anticipate could materially adversely affect us and our operations. Among other things, we could experience: lower growth in the region due to indecision by businesses holding off on generating new projects or due to adverse market conditions; and reduced reported revenue and earnings because foreign currencies may translate into fewer U.S. dollars due to

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the fact that we translate revenue denominated in non-U.S. currencies, such as Pounds sterling, into U.S. dollars for our financial statements. In addition, there can be no assurance that our hedging strategies will be effective.

On December 24, 2020, the E.U. and the U.K. agreed to the terms of a Trade and Cooperation Agreement (the ‘TCA’) that reflects certain matters agreed upon between the parties in relation to a broad range of separation issues, which provisionally applied as of January 1, 2021, and entered into force on May 1, 2021. While many separation issues have been resolved, some uncertainty remains in relation to the future regulation of financial services, among other matters. The TCA addresses issues related to financial services on a limited basis. The E.U. and the U.K have separately agreed to a Memorandum of Understanding to establish a framework for future regulatory cooperation. The British government and the E.U. will therefore continue over time to negotiate certain terms of the U.K.’s future relationship with the E.U. that are not addressed in the TCA. The Company is heavily invested in the U.K. through our businesses and activities. If the outcomes of Brexit and the TCA negatively impact the U.K., then it could have a material adverse impact on us. Brexit has resulted in greater restrictions on business conducted between the U.K. and E.U. countries and has increased regulatory complexities. There also remains uncertainty as to how changes to the U.K.’s access to the E.U. Single Market and the wider trading, legal, regulatory, tax, social and labor environments, especially in the U.K. and E.U., will be impacted over time, including the resulting impacts on our business and that of our clients. These changes may adversely affect our operations and financial results. For example, a loss of pre-Brexit passporting rights or other changed regulations relating to doing business in various E.U. countries by relying on a regulatory permission in the U.K. (or doing business in the U.K. by relying on a regulatory permission in an E.U. country) may over time increase our costs of doing business, or our ability to do so, and thereby adversely impact our operations and financial results.

We believe we have implemented appropriate arrangements for the continued servicing of client business in the countries most affected. These arrangements include the transaction of certain businesses and/or the movement of certain businesses outside of the U.K. However, various significant risks remain in relation to the effects of the post-Brexit arrangements between the E.U. and U.K. some of which have yet to be agreed upon, including the following, among others:

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the risk that our implemented business solutions could cost more than expected, or that regulators in the U.K. or E.U may issue amended guidance or regulations in relation to those solutions or that we fail to gain regulatory authorizations which could affect our business, operations or strategic plans;

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the risk that we may require further changes to client contract terms and have to address additional regulatory requirements, including with respect to data protection and privacy standards;

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the risk over time of a loss of key talent, or an inability to hire sufficient and qualified talent, or the disruption due to client servicing as a result of equivalence not being granted on qualifications;

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the risk that the efforts and resources allocated to the post-Brexit evolution of regulations and laws, and associated changes to our operations, cause disruptions to our existing businesses, whether inside or outside the U.K., or both;

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the risk that the U.K. will continue to have in place a limited number of trade agreements with the E.U. member states and/or any non-E.U. states leading to potentially adverse trading conditions with other territories; and

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the risk that the way in which the U.K.-E.U. regulatory and legal environment evolves differs from current expectations, resulting in the need to quickly and materially change our plans, and the risks described above with respect to any associated changes in such plans.

There is also a risk that other countries may decide to leave the E.U. We cannot predict the impact that any additional countries leaving the E.U. will have on us, but any such impacts could materially adversely affect us.

Allegations of conflicts of interest, including in connection with accepting market derived income (‘MDI’), may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operation or reputation.

We could suffer significant financial or reputational harm if we fail to properly identify and manage potential conflicts of interest. Conflicts of interest exist or could exist any time the Company or any of its employees have or may have an interest in a transaction or engagement that is inconsistent with our clients’ interests. This could occur, for example, when the Company is providing services to multiple parties in connection with a transaction. In addition, as we provide more solutions-based services, there is greater potential for conflicts with advisory services. Managing conflicts of interest is an important issue for the Company, but can be a challenge for a large and complex company such as ours. Due to the broad scope of our businesses and our client base, we regularly address potential conflicts of interest, including, without limitation, situations where our services to a particular client or our own investments or other interests conflict, or are perceived to conflict, with the interests of another client. If these are not carefully managed, this could then lead to failure or perceived failure to protect the client’s interests, with attendant regulatory and reputational risks that could materially adversely affect us and our operations. There is no guarantee that all potential conflicts of interest will be identified, and undetected

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conflicts may result in damage to our professional reputation and result in legal liability which may have a material adverse effect on our business. Identifying conflicts of interest may also prove particularly difficult as we continue to bring systems and information together and integrate newly acquired businesses. In addition, we may not be able to adequately address such conflicts of interest.

In addition, insurance intermediaries have traditionally been remunerated by base commissions paid by insurance carriers in respect of placements we make for clients, or by fees paid by clients. Intermediaries also obtain other revenue from insurance carriers. This revenue, when derived from carriers in their capacity as insurance markets (as opposed to as corporate clients of the intermediaries where they may be purchasing insurance or reinsurance or other non-market-related services), is commonly known as market derived income or ‘MDI’. MDI is another example of an area in which allegations of conflicts of interest may arise. MDI takes a variety of forms, including volume- or profit-based contingent commissions, facilities administration charges, business development agreements, and fees for providing certain data to carriers.

MDI creates various risks. Intermediaries in many markets have a duty to act in the best interests of their clients and payments from carriers can incentivize intermediaries to put carriers’ or their own interests ahead of their clients. Accordingly, MDI may be subject to scrutiny by various regulators under conflict of interest, anti-trust, unfair competition, conduct and anti-bribery laws and regulations. While accepting MDI is a lawful and acceptable business practice, and while we have established systems and controls to manage these risks, we cannot predict whether our position will result in regulatory or other scrutiny and our controls may not be effective.

In addition, the Company offers affiliated investment funds, with plans to launch additional funds over time. Given that our Investment business may recommend affiliated investment funds or affirmatively invest such clients’ assets in such funds under delegated authority, there may be a perceived conflict of interest. While the Company has processes, procedures and controls in place intended to mitigate potential conflicts, such perception could cause regulatory inquiries, or could impact client demand and the business’ financial performance, and our controls may not be effective. In addition, underperformance by our affiliated investment funds could lead to lawsuits by clients that were invested in such funds.

The failure or perceived failure to adequately address conflicts of interest could affect the willingness of clients to deal with us, or give rise to litigation or enforcement actions. Conflicts of interest may also arise in the future that could cause material harm to us.

Damage to our reputation, including due to the failure of third parties on whom we rely to perform services or public opinions of third parties with whom we associate, could adversely affect our businesses.

Maintaining a positive reputation is critical to our ability to attract and maintain relationships with clients and colleagues. Damage to our reputation could therefore cause significant harm to our business and prospects. Harm to our reputation can arise from numerous sources, including among others, employee misconduct, litigation or regulatory action, failure to deliver minimum standards of service and quality, compliance failures, allegations of conflicts of interest and unethical behavior. Such harm could also arise from negative public opinion or political conditions arising from our association with third parties in any number of activities or circumstances. Negative perceptions or publicity, whether or not true, may result in harm to our prospects. In addition, the failure to deliver satisfactory service and quality performance, on time and within budget, in one line of business could cause clients to terminate the services we provide to those clients in many other lines of business. This risk has increased as the Company has become larger and more complex and as we take on increasingly complicated projects for our clients (such as complex outsourcing engagements and technology solutions development/implementation projects that require a significant amount of dedicated personnel resources and expenses).

In addition, as part of providing services to clients and managing our business, we rely on a number of third-party service providers. Our ability to perform effectively depends in part on the ability of these service providers to meet their obligations, as well as on our effective oversight of their performance. The quality of our services could suffer, or we could be required to incur unanticipated costs if our third-party service providers do not perform as expected or their services are disrupted. This could have a material adverse effect on our reputation as well as our business and results of operations.

Our business performance and growth plans could be negatively affected if we are not able to effectively apply technology, data and analytics to drive value for our clients through technology-based solutions or gain internal efficiencies through the effective application of technology, analytics and related tools.

Our success depends, in part, on our ability to develop and implement technology, data and analytic solutions that anticipate, lead or keep pace with rapid and continuing changes in technology both for internal operations and for maintaining industry standards and meeting client preferences. We may not be successful in anticipating or responding to these developments in a timely and cost-effective manner or in attracting and maintaining personnel with the necessary skills in this area. Additionally, our ideas may not lead to the desired internal efficiencies or be accepted in the marketplace. In addition, we may not be able to implement technology-based solutions as quickly as desired if, for example, greater resources are required than originally expected or resources are otherwise needed elsewhere. The effort to gain technological and data expertise and develop new technologies or analytic techniques in our business requires us to incur significant cost and attract qualified technical talent who are in high demand. Our competitors are seeking

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to develop competing or new technologies, and their success in this space may impact our ability to differentiate our services to our clients through the use of unique technological solutions. In certain cases, we may decide, based on perceived business needs, to make investments that may be greater than we currently anticipate. If we cannot offer new technologies or data and analytic services or solutions as quickly or effectively as our competitors, or if our competitors develop more cost-effective technologies or analytic tools, it could have a material adverse effect on our ability to obtain and complete client engagements.

Our business may be harmed by any negative developments that may occur in the insurance industry or if we fail to maintain good relationships with insurance carriers.

Many of our businesses are heavily dependent on the insurance industry. Any negative developments that occur in the insurance industry may have a material adverse effect on our business and our results of operations. In addition, if we fail to maintain good relationships with insurance carriers, it may have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

The private health insurance industry in the U.S. has experienced a substantial amount of consolidation over the past several years, resulting in a decrease in the number of insurance carriers. In the future, it may become necessary for us to offer insurance plans from a reduced number of insurance carriers or to derive a greater portion of our revenue from a more concentrated number of carriers as our business and the health insurance industry continue to evolve. The termination, amendment or consolidation of our relationships with our insurance carriers could harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Legal, Non-Financial/Tax Regulatory and Compliance Risks

Our inability to comply with complex and evolving laws and regulations related to data privacy and cyber security could result in material financial loss, regulatory actions, reputational harm or legal liability.

We are subject to numerous laws and regulations in the U.S. and foreign jurisdictions, only certain of which are named here, designed to protect the personally identifiable information of client and company constituents and suppliers, notably the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (‘GDPR’) and the California Consumer Privacy Act and its implementing regulations (‘CCPA’). We are also subject to regulations from other countries that prohibit or restrict the transmission of data outside of such countries’ borders, and to various U.S. federal and state laws governing the protection of health, financial or other individually identifiable information. The GDPR, which became effective in May 2018, as well as other more recently-enacted privacy laws, significantly increased our responsibilities when handling personal data including, without limitation, requiring us to conduct privacy impact assessments, restricting the transmission of data, and requiring public disclosure of significant data breaches. Violations of the GDPR may result in possible fines of up to 4% of global annual turnover for the preceding financial year or €20 million (whichever is higher). A July 2020 judgment by the Court of Justice of the European Union on Schrems II has made cross border data transfers to organizations outside the European Economic Area more onerous and uncertain, pending definitive guidance by European Union authorities. Further, as a result of the U.K.’s withdrawal from the European Union (‘Brexit’), the data transfer regime between the U.K. and the European Economic Area is subject to some uncertainty if the U.K.’s data strategy diverges from the E.U.’s in the coming years. The Company is also subject to numerous U.S. and foreign marketing and telecommunications laws and regulations designed to protect consumers from unwanted or fraudulent communications. A violation of any such law may lead tolitigation or regulatory liability, including substantial financial damages or fines.

Laws and regulations in this area are evolving and generally becoming more stringent, including, without limitation, the U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (‘HIPAA’), enforced by the Office for Civil Rights within the Department of Health and Human Services, and the New York State Department of Financial Services’ cybersecurity regulations outlining required security measures for the protection of data. Certain U.S. states have also recently enacted laws requiring certain data security and privacy measures of regulated entities, notably the CCPA. We expect that both other U.S. states and other countries will follow in implementing their own data privacy and data security laws. For example, Brazil recently enacted the Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados Pessoais, a national data protection law modeled on the GDPR. The People’s Republic of China and India, among other countries, are also expected to enact data protection laws that could, among other things, restrict data transfers out of each of those countries.

Each of these evolving laws and regulations, in the United States and abroad, as well as laws applicable to the Company that are not named here, may be subject to evolving and conflicting interpretations, restrict the manner in which we provide services to our clients, divert resources from other important initiatives, increase the risk of non-compliance, impose significant compliance and other costs that are likely to increase over time, and increase the risk of fines, lawsuits or other potential liability, all of which could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations. Our failure to adhere to or successfully develop processes in response to legal or regulatory requirements, including legal or regulatory requirements that may be developed or revised due to economic or geopolitical changes such as Brexit, and changing customer expectations in this area, could result in substantial legal liability and impairment to our reputation or business.

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In conducting our businesses around the world, we are subject to political, economic, legal, regulatory, cultural, market, operational and other risks that are inherent in operating in many countries.

In conducting our businesses and maintaining and supporting our global operations, we are subject to political, economic, legal, regulatory, market, operational and other risks. Our businesses and operations continue to expand into new regions throughout the world, including emerging markets. The possible effects of political, economic, financial and climate change related disruptions throughout the world could have an adverse impact on our businesses and financial results. These risks include:

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the general economic and political conditions in the U.S. and foreign countries (including political and social unrest in certain regions);

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the imposition of controls or limitations on the conversion of foreign currencies or remittance of dividends and other payments by foreign subsidiaries;

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the imposition of sanctions by both the U.S. and foreign governments;

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the imposition of withholding and other taxes on remittances and other payments from subsidiaries;

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the imposition or increase of investment and other restrictions by foreign governments;

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fluctuations in currency exchange rates or our tax rates;

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difficulties in controlling operations and monitoring employees in geographically dispersed and culturally diverse locations; and

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the practical challenges and costs of complying, or monitoring compliance, with a wide variety of foreign laws (some of which are evolving or are not as well-developed as the laws of the U.S. or U.K. or which may conflict with U.S. or other sources of law), and regulations applicable to insurance brokers and other business operations abroad (in more than 140 countries, including many in emerging markets), including laws, rules and regulations relating to the conduct of business, trade sanction laws administered by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control, the E.U., the U.K. and the United Nations (‘U.N.’), and the requirements of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act as well as other anti-bribery and corruption rules and requirements in all of the countries in which we operate.

Sanctions imposed by governments, or changes to such sanction regulations (such as sanctions imposed on Russia), and related counter-sanctions, could have a material adverse impact on our operations or financial results.

As described above, our businesses are subject to the risk of sanctions imposed by the U.S., the E.U., the U.K. and other governments. In the past year, there was an increase in U.S. designations in relation to Russia and China (including recent sanctions imposed on Russia by the U.S. as well as the E.U. and U.K. due to Ukraine), and there has also been an increased risk of counter-sanctions in some locations, such as China and Russia in response to the recently imposed sanctions. We have also seen a maturing of the U.K. sanctions regime, which has navigated a differing path from the E.U. and U.S. sanctions regimes but largely with the same objectives. A number of volatile geopolitical events are likely to affect the implementation of sanctions such as the change of regime in Afghanistan, the escalation of sanctions towards Belarus, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the uncertainty around the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, negotiations between the E.U., U.S. and Iran over a new nuclear deal as well as the continuing trade war between the U.S. and China with their sanctions and subsequent counter-sanctions. Some of these jurisdictions, such as China or Russia, may be significant businesses for us. As a result, we cannot predict the impacts of any changes in the U.S., E.U., U.K. or other sanctions, and whether such changes could have a material adverse impact on our operations or financial results.

Our business will be negatively affected if we are not able to anticipate and keep pace with rapid changes in government laws or regulations, or if government laws or regulations decrease the need for our services or increase our costs.

A material portion of our revenue is affected by statutory or regulatory changes. An example of a statutory or regulatory change that could materially impact us is any change to the U.S. Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (‘PPACA’), and the Healthcare and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, (‘HCERA’), which we refer to collectively as ‘Healthcare Reform’. While the U.S. Congress has not passed legislation replacing or fundamentally amending Healthcare Reform (other than changes to the individual mandate), such legislation, or another version of Healthcare Reform, could be implemented in the future. In addition, some U.S. political candidates and representatives elected to office in the recent election have expressed a desire to amend all or a portion of Healthcare Reform or otherwise establish alternatives to employer-sponsored health insurance or replace it with government-sponsored health insurance, often referred to as ‘Medicare for All’. Furthermore, various aspects of Healthcare Reform have been challenged in the judicial system with some success. The status of some of those challenges are in flux but could materially change U.S. healthcare. If we are unable to adapt our services to potential new laws and regulations, or judicial modifications, with respect to Healthcare Reform or otherwise, our ability to provide effective services in these areas may be substantially impacted. In addition, more restrictive rules or interpretations of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services marketing rules, or judicial decisions that restrict or otherwise

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change existing provisions of U.S. healthcare regulation, could have a material adverse impact on our healthcare-related businesses. In addition, as we implement and expand our direct-to-consumer sales and marketing solutions, we are subject to various federal and state laws and regulations that prescribe when and how we may market to consumers (including, without limitation, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and other telemarketing laws and the Medicare Communications and Marketing Guidelines issued by the Center for Medicare Services of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service). Changes to these laws could negatively affect our ability to market directly to consumers or increase our costs or liabilities.

Many other areas in which we provide services are the subject of government regulation, which is constantly evolving. For example, our activities in connection with insurance brokerage services are subject to regulation and supervision by national, state or other authorities. Insurance laws in the markets in which we operate are often complex and generally grant broad discretion to supervisory authorities in adopting regulations and supervising regulated activities. That supervision generally includes the licensing of insurance brokers and agents and the regulation of the handling and investment of client funds held in a fiduciary capacity. Our continuing ability to provide insurance brokerage in the markets in which we currently operate is dependent upon our compliance with the rules and regulations promulgated from time to time by the regulatory authorities in each of these locations.