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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.

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 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

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.

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,

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.

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

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

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

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

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.

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 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

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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 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

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

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

Changes in government and accounting regulations in the U.S. and the U.K., two of our principal geographic markets, affecting the value, use or delivery of benefits and human capital programs, may materially adversely affect the demand for, or the profitability of, our various services. In addition, we have significant operations throughout the world, which further subject us to applicable laws and regulations of countries outside the U.S. and the U.K. Changes in legislation or regulations and actions by regulators in particular countries, including changes in administration and enforcement policies, could require operational improvements or modifications, which may result in higher costs or hinder our ability to operate our business in those countries.

Our activities are subject to extensive regulation under the laws of the U.S., the U.K., the E.U. and its member states, and the other jurisdictions around the world in which we operate. In addition, we own an interest in a number of associates and companies where we do not exercise management control. Over the last few years, regulators across the world are increasingly seeking to regulate brokers who operate in their jurisdictions. The foreign and U.S. laws and regulations applicable to our operations are complex, continually evolving and may increase the costs of regulatory compliance, limit or restrict the products or services we sell or subject our business to the possibility of regulatory actions or proceedings. These laws and regulations include insurance and financial industry regulations, antitrust and competition laws, economic and trade sanctions laws relating to countries in which certain subsidiaries do business or may do business (‘Sanctioned Jurisdictions’) such as Crimea, Cuba, Iran, Russia, Sudan, Syria and Venezuela, anti-corruption laws such as the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the U.K. Bribery Act 2010 and similar local laws prohibiting corrupt payments to governmental officials and the Foreign Account Tax Compliance provisions of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act in the U.S., as well as laws and regulations related to data privacy, cyber security and telemarketing. Because of changes in regulation and company practice, our non-U.S. subsidiaries are providing more services with connections to various countries, including some Sanctioned Jurisdictions, that our U.S. subsidiaries are unable to perform.

In most jurisdictions, governmental and regulatory authorities have the ability to interpret and amend these laws and regulations and impose penalties for non-compliance, including sanctions, civil remedies, monetary fines, injunctions, revocation of licenses or approvals, suspension of individuals, limitations on business activities or redress to clients. While we believe that we have substantially increased our focus on the geographic breadth of regulations to which we are subject, maintain good relationships with our key regulators and our current systems and controls are adequate, we cannot assure that such systems and controls will prevent any violations of any applicable laws and regulations. While we strive to remain fully compliant with all applicable laws and regulations, we cannot guarantee that we will fully comply at all times with all laws and regulations, especially in countries with developing or evolving legal systems or with evolving or extra-territorial regulations. In particular, given the challenges of integrating operations, many of which are decentralized, we cannot assure that acquired or decentralized entities’ business systems and controls have prevented or will prevent any and all violations of applicable laws or regulations.

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

In 2010, the Federal government enacted significant reforms to healthcare legislation through Healthcare Reform. Many of our lines of business depend upon the private sector of the U.S. insurance system, its role in financing health care delivery, and insurance carriers’ use of, and payment of commissions to, agents, brokers and other organizations to market and sell individual and family health insurance plans. Healthcare Reform provisions have changed and will continue to change the industry in which we operate in substantial ways. Any changes to the roles of the private and public sectors in the health insurance system could also substantially change the industry.

Healthcare legislation and changes to government-funded healthcare programs remain a focus in Congress, while various aspects of Healthcare Reform have been challenged in the judicial system with some success. Any partial or complete repeal or amendment, judicial modifications or implementation difficulties, or uncertainty regarding such events, could increase our costs of compliance, prevent or delay future adoption or revisions to our business, and adversely impact our results of operations and financial condition. In addition, other members of Congress and certain state governments have expressed a desire to establish alternatives to employer-sponsored health insurance or replace it with government-sponsored health insurance, often referred to as ‘Medicare for All’. Given the uncertainties relating to the potential repeal and replacement of Healthcare Reform or other alternative proposals related to health insurance plans, the impact is difficult to determine, but it could have material negative effects on us, including:

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increasing our competition;

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reducing or eliminating the need for health insurance agents and brokers or demand for the health insurance that we sell;

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decreasing the number of types of health insurance plans that we sell, as well as the number of insurance carriers offering such plans;

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causing insurance carriers to change the benefits and/or premiums for the plans they sell;

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causing insurance carriers to reduce the amount they pay for our services or change our relationship with them in other ways; or

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materially restricting our call center operations.

Any of these effects could materially harm our business and results of operations. For example, various aspects of Healthcare Reform could cause insurance carriers to limit the types of health insurance plans we are able to sell and the geographies in which we are able to sell them. In addition, the U.S. Congress may seek to find spending cuts, and such cuts may include Medicare. If cuts are made to Medicare, there may be substantial changes in the types of health insurance plans we are able to sell, especially through our Individual Marketplace business, which focuses on direct-to-consumer Medicare policy sales. Changes in the law could also cause insurance carriers to exit the business of selling insurance plans in a particular jurisdiction, to eliminate certain categories of products or to attempt to move members into new plans for which we receive lower commissions. If insurance carriers decide to limit our ability to sell their plans or determine not to sell individual health insurance plans altogether, our business, results of operations and financial condition would be materially harmed.

We cannot guarantee that trade secret, trademark and copyright law protections, or our internal policies and procedures regarding our management of intellectual property, are adequate to deter misappropriation of our intellectual property (including our software, which may become an increasingly important part of our business). Existing laws of some countries in which we provide services or products may offer only limited protection of our intellectual property rights. Also, we may be unable to detect the unauthorized use of our intellectual property and take the necessary steps to enforce our rights, which may have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition or results of operations. We cannot be sure that our services and products, or the products of others that we offer to our clients, do not infringe on the intellectual property rights of third parties, and we may have infringement claims asserted against us or our clients. These claims may harm our reputation, result in financial liability, consume financial resources to pursue or defend, and prevent us from offering some services or products. In addition, these claims, whether with or without merit, could be expensive, take significant time and divert management’s focus and resources from business operations. Successful challenges against us could require us to modify or discontinue our use of technology or business processes where such use is found to infringe or violate the rights of others, or require us to purchase licenses from third parties, any of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results.

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

It may not be possible to enforce court judgments obtained in the U.S. against us in Ireland, based on the civil liability provisions of the U.S. federal or state securities laws. In addition, there is some uncertainty as to whether the courts of Ireland would recognize or enforce judgments of U.S. courts obtained against us or our directors or officers based on the civil liabilities provisions of the U.S. federal or state securities laws or hear actions against us or those persons based on those laws. We have been advised that the U.S. currently does not have a treaty with Ireland providing for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters. Therefore, a final judgment for the payment of money rendered by any U.S. federal or state court based on civil liability, whether or not based solely on U.S. federal or state securities laws, would not automatically be enforceable in Ireland.

As an Irish company, we are governed by the Irish Companies Act, which differs in some material respects from laws generally applicable to U.S. corporations and shareholders, including, among others, differences relating to interested director and officer transactions and shareholder lawsuits. Likewise, the duties of directors and officers of an Irish company generally are owed to the

company only. Shareholders of Irish companies generally do not have a personal right of action against directors or officers of the company and may exercise such rights of action on behalf of the company only in limited circumstances. Accordingly, holders of our securities may have more difficulty protecting their interests than would holders of securities of a corporation incorporated in a jurisdiction of the United States.

Financial and Related Regulatory, Including Tax, Risks

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

We have material pension liabilities, some of which represent unfunded and underfunded pension and postretirement liabilities. Movements in the interest rate environment, investment returns, inflation or changes in other assumptions that are used to estimate our benefit obligations and other factors could have a material effect on the level of liabilities in these plans at any given time. Most pension plans have minimum funding requirements that may require material amounts of periodic additional funding and accounting requirements that may result in increased pension expense. For example, in 2018 we were required to recognize a £31 million ($40 million) pension settlement expense related to the accelerated recognition of certain accumulated losses in one of our U.K. pension schemes following the transfer out of assets of certain plan participants. Depending on the above factors, among others, we could be required to recognize further pension expense in the future. Increased pension expense could adversely affect our earnings or cause earnings volatility. In addition, the need to make additional cash contributions may reduce our financial flexibility and increase liquidity risk by reducing the cash available to meet our other obligations, including the payment obligations under our credit facilities and other long-term debt, or other needs of our business.

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.

WTW had total consolidated debt outstanding of approximately $4.6 billion as of December 31, 2021, and our interest expense was $211 million for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Although management believes that our cash flows will be sufficient to service this debt, there may be circumstances in which required payments of principal and/or interest on this debt could adversely affect our cash flows and this level of indebtedness may:

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require us to dedicate a significant portion of our cash flow from operations to payments on our debt, thereby reducing the availability of cash flow to fund capital expenditures, to pursue other acquisitions or investments, to pay dividends and for general corporate purposes;

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limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes or challenges relating to our business and industry; and

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put us at a competitive disadvantage against competitors who have less indebtedness or are in a more favorable position to access additional capital resources.

The terms of our current financings also include certain limitations. For example, the agreements relating to the debt arrangements and credit facilities contain numerous operating and financial covenants, including requirements to maintain minimum ratios of consolidated EBITDA to consolidated cash interest expense and maximum levels of consolidated funded indebtedness in relation to consolidated EBITDA, in each case subject to certain adjustments. The operating restrictions and financial covenants in our credit facilities do, and any future financing agreements may, limit our ability to finance future operations or capital needs or to engage in other business activities.

A failure to comply with the restrictions under our credit facilities and outstanding notes could result in a default or a cross-default under the financing obligations or could require us to obtain waivers from our lenders for failure to comply with these restrictions. The occurrence of a default that is not cured, or the inability to secure a necessary consent or waiver, could cause our obligations with respect to our debt to be accelerated and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

The maintenance and growth of our business depends on our access to capital, which will depend in large part on cash flow generated by our business and the availability of equity and debt financing. Also, we could be at risk to rising interest rates in the future to the extent that we borrow at floating rates under our existing borrowing agreements or refinance existing debt at higher rates. There can be no assurance that our operations will generate sufficient positive cash flow to finance all of our capital needs or that we will be able to obtain equity or debt financing on favorable terms or at all, which could have a material adverse effect on us.

A downgrade in our corporate credit rating or the credit ratings of our debt would increase our borrowing costs including those under our credit facilities and reduce our financial flexibility. If we need to raise capital in the future, any credit rating downgrade could negatively affect our financing costs or access to financing sources.

In addition, under the indentures for our 3.600% senior notes due 2024, our 4.625% senior notes due 2023, our 6.125% senior notes due 2043, our 4.400% senior notes due 2026, our 2.125% senior notes due 2022, our 4.500% senior notes due 2028, our 5.050% senior notes due 2048, our 2.950% senior notes due 2029, and our 3.875% senior notes due 2049, if we experience a ratings decline together with a change of control event, we would be required to offer to purchase these notes from holders unless we had previously redeemed those notes. We may not have sufficient funds available or access to funding to repurchase tendered notes in that event, which could result in a default under the notes. Any future debt that we incur may contain covenants regarding repurchases in the event of a change of control triggering event.

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.

Under current U.S. federal tax law, many of our non-U.S. subsidiaries are now classified as ‘controlled foreign corporations’ (‘CFCs’) for U.S. federal income tax purposes due to the expanded application of certain ownership attribution rules within a multinational corporate group. If a U.S. person is treated as owning (directly, indirectly or constructively) at least 10% of the value or voting power of our shares, such a person may be treated as a U.S. shareholder with respect to one or more of our CFC subsidiaries. In addition, if our shares are treated as owned more than 50% by U.S. shareholders, we would be treated as a CFC. A U.S. shareholder of a CFC may be required to annually report and include in its U.S. taxable income, as ordinary income, its pro-rata share of Subpart F income, global intangible low-taxed income, and investments in U.S. property by CFCs, whether or not we make any distributions to such U.S. shareholder. An individual U.S. shareholder generally would not be allowed certain tax deductions or foreign tax credits that would be allowed to a corporate U.S. shareholder with respect to a CFC. A failure by a U.S. shareholder to comply with its reporting obligations may subject the U.S. shareholder to significant monetary penalties and may extend the statute of limitations with respect to the U.S. shareholder’s U.S. federal income tax return for the year for which such reporting was due. We cannot provide any assurances that we will assist investors in determining whether we or any of our non-U.S. subsidiaries are CFCs or whether any investor is a U.S. shareholder with respect to any such CFCs. We also cannot guarantee that we will furnish to U.S. shareholders any or all of the information that may be necessary for them to comply with the aforementioned obligations. U.S. investors should consult their own advisors regarding the potential application of these rules to their investments in us.

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.

We cannot give any assurance as to what our effective tax rate will be in the future, because of, among other things, uncertainty regarding the tax policies of the jurisdictions where we operate. Our actual effective tax rate may vary from expectations, and that variance may be material. Additionally, the tax laws of Ireland and other jurisdictions could change in the future. There may be an enactment of additional, or the revision of existing, state, federal and/or foreign regulatory and tax laws, and/or a development of case law as well as regulations and policy changes in the U.S. or abroad. Any such changes could cause a material change in our effective tax rate.

Further, it is possible that significant changes to the U.S. tax policies may be proposed, and legislative action may be taken by the U.S. Congress which, if ultimately enacted, could limit the availability of tax benefits or deductions that we currently claim, override tax treaties upon which we rely, or otherwise affect the taxes that the U.S. imposes on our worldwide operations. Regulations or administrative guidance from the U.S. Treasury Department that are currently proposed or newly issued in the future could have similar consequences. Such changes could materially adversely affect our effective tax rate and/or require us to take further action, at potentially significant additional expense, to seek to preserve our effective tax rate. In addition, if proposals were enacted that have the effect of limiting our ability as an Irish company to take advantage of tax treaties with the U.S., we could incur additional tax expense and/or otherwise experience business detriment.

In addition, the U.S. Congress, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (‘OECD’), the World Trade Organization and other government agencies in non-U.S. jurisdictions where we and our affiliates do business have had an extended focus on issues related to the taxation of multinational corporations. One example is in the area of base erosion and profit shifting, where payments are made between affiliates from a jurisdiction with high tax rates to a jurisdiction with lower tax rates. Several jurisdictions have enacted legislation that is aligned with, and in some cases exceeds the scope of, the recommendations in the OECD’s 2015 reports addressing 15 specific actions as part of a comprehensive plan to create an agreed set of international rules for fighting base erosion and profit shifting. On October 8, 2021, the OECD announced an international agreement with more than 130 countries to implement a global minimum effective corporate tax rate of 15% for certain large multinational companies starting in

2023. The agreement also introduced rules that would result in the reallocation of certain taxing rights from multinational companies from their home countries to the markets where they have business activities and earn profits, regardless of physical presence, and could impact certain tax measures in the European Union. As a result, the tax laws in the U.S., Ireland, and other countries in which we and our affiliates do business could change on a prospective or retroactive basis, and any such changes could adversely affect us and our affiliates.

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.

A significant portion of our operations is conducted outside of the U.S. Accordingly, we are subject to legal, economic and market risks associated with operating in foreign countries, including devaluations and fluctuations in currency exchange rates; imposition of limitations on conversion of foreign currencies into Pounds sterling or U.S. dollars or remittance of dividends and other payments by foreign subsidiaries; hyperinflation in certain foreign countries; imposition or increase of investment and other restrictions by foreign governments; and the requirement of complying with a wide variety of foreign laws. Additionally, and as noted above, the unknown impacts of Brexit may expose us to additional exchange rate fluctuations in the Pounds sterling.

We report our operating results and financial condition in U.S. dollars. Our U.S. operations earn revenue and incur expenses primarily in U.S. dollars. In our London market operations however, we earn revenue in a number of different currencies, but expenses are almost entirely incurred in Pounds sterling. Outside of the U.S. and our London market operations, we predominantly generate revenue and expenses in local currencies.

Because of devaluations and fluctuations in currency exchange rates or the imposition of limitations on conversion of foreign currencies into U.S. dollars, we are subject to currency translation exposure on the profits of our operations, in addition to economic exposure. Furthermore, the mismatch between Pounds sterling revenue and expenses, together with any net Pounds sterling balance sheet position we hold in our U.S. dollar-denominated London market operations, creates an exchange exposure. While we do utilize hedging strategies to attempt to reduce the impact of foreign currency fluctuations, there can be no assurance that our hedging strategies will be effective.

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

We prepare our financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Any change to accounting principles, particularly to U.S. GAAP, could have a material adverse effect on us or our results of operations.

U.S. GAAP accounting principles require us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of our financial statements. We are also required to make certain judgments that affect the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during each reporting period. We periodically evaluate our estimates and assumptions, including those relating to revenue recognition, valuation of billed and unbilled receivables from clients, discretionary compensation, incurred-but-not-reported liabilities, restructuring, pensions, goodwill and other intangible assets, contingencies, share-based payments and income taxes. We base our estimates on historical experience and various assumptions that we believe to be reasonable based on specific circumstances. Actual results could differ from these estimates, and changes in accounting standards could have an adverse impact on our future financial position and results of operations.

In addition, we have a substantial amount of goodwill on our consolidated balance sheet as a result of acquisitions we have completed. We review goodwill for impairment annually or whenever events or circumstances indicate impairment may have occurred. Application of the impairment test requires judgment, including the identification of reporting units, assignment of assets, liabilities and goodwill to reporting units and the determination of the fair value of each reporting unit. A significant deterioration in a key estimate or assumption or a less significant deterioration to a combination of assumptions, or the sale of a part of a reporting unit, could result in an impairment charge in the future, which could have a significant adverse impact on our reported earnings.

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.

Quarterly variations in our revenue, cash flow and results of operations have occurred in the past and could occur as a result of a number of factors, such as: the significance of client engagements commenced and completed during a quarter; seasonality of certain types of services; the number of business days in a quarter; colleague hiring and utilization rates; our clients’ ability to terminate engagements without penalty; the size and scope of assignments; our ability to enhance our billing, collection and working capital management efforts; differences in timing of renewals; non-recurring revenue from disposals and book-of-business sales; and general economic conditions.

We derive significant revenue from commissions for brokerage services, but 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 a percentage of the premiums paid by the insureds. Fluctuations in the premiums charged by the insurance carriers can therefore have a direct and potentially material impact on our results of operations. Due to the cyclical nature of the insurance market and the impact of other market conditions on insurance premiums, commission levels may vary widely between accounting periods. A period of low or declining premium rates, generally known as a ‘soft’ or ‘softening’ market, generally leads to downward pressure on commission revenue and can have a material adverse impact on our commission revenue and operating margin. We could be negatively impacted by soft market conditions across certain sectors and geographic regions. In addition, insurance carriers may seek to reduce their expenses by reducing the commission rates payable to insurance agents or brokers such as us. The reduction of these commission rates, along with general volatility and/or declines in premiums, may significantly undermine our profitability.

A sizeable portion of our total operating expenses is relatively fixed or may even be higher than expected, encompassing the majority of administrative, occupancy, communications and other expenses, depreciation and amortization, and salaries and employee benefits excluding fiscal year-end incentive bonuses. Therefore, a variation in the number of client assignments and collection of accounts receivable, or in the timing of the initiation or the completion of client assignments, or our inability to forecast demand, can cause significant variations in quarterly operating results and could result in losses and volatility in our stock price.

There is increased focus, including from governmental organizations, investors, colleagues and clients, on ESG issues such as environmental stewardship, climate change, diversity and inclusion, racial justice and workplace conduct. Negative public perception, adverse publicity or negative comments in social media and other forums could damage our reputation if we do not, or are not perceived to, adequately address any one or more of these issues. Any harm to our reputation could impact colleague engagement and retention and the willingness of clients and others to do business with us.

Investors, in particular, have increased their emphasis on the ESG practices of companies across all industries, including with respect to climate and human capital management. Certain investors have developed their own ESG ratings while others use third-party benchmarks or scores to measure a company’s ESG practices and make investment decisions or otherwise engage with the company to influence its practices in these areas. Additionally, our clients may evaluate our ESG practices and/or request that we adopt certain ESG policies in order to work with us. Also, organizations that provide ratings information to certain investors on ESG matters may assign unfavorable ratings to the Company, which may lead to negative investor sentiment and the diversion of investment capital to other companies or industries, which could have a negative impact on our stock price and our costs of capital.

New government regulations could also result in new or more stringent forms of ESG oversight and new mandatory and voluntary reporting, diligence and disclosure. As we work to align with the recommendations of the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board and our own ESG assessments and priorities, we may disclose additional metrics against which we may measure ourselves or be measured and tracked by others over time. Our failure to meet expectations of metrics, whether expectations set by us or by investors or other stakeholders, or to any other failure to make progress in this area on a timely basis, or at all, may negatively impact our reputation and our business.

In the recent past, concerns have been publicized regarding the calculation of LIBOR, the London interbank offered rate, which present risks for the financial instruments that use LIBOR as a reference rate. LIBOR has been the basic rate of interest used in lending between banks on the London interbank market and is widely used as a reference for setting the interest rate on loans globally. On March 5, 2021, LIBOR’s regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, and administrator, ICE Benchmark Administration, Limited, announced that the publication of the one-week and two-month USD LIBOR maturities and non-USD LIBOR maturities will cease immediately after December 31, 2021, with the remaining USD LIBOR maturities ceasing immediately after June 30, 2023. Accordingly, uncertainty as to the nature of such changes may affect the market for or pricing of any LIBOR-linked securities, loans, derivatives and other financial obligations or extensions of credit held by or due to us or on our overall financial condition or results of operations. In addition, any further changes or reforms to the determination or supervision of LIBOR may result in a sudden or prolonged increase or decrease in reported LIBOR, which could have an impact on the market for or pricing of any LIBOR-linked securities, loans, derivatives and other financial obligations or extensions of credit held by or due to us, including our revolving credit facility, or on our overall financial condition or results of operations. For example, on July 27, 2017, the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates LIBOR, announced that it intends to stop persuading or compelling banks to submit LIBOR rates after 2021. Currently, there is not an agreement on what rate or rates may become accepted alternatives to LIBOR; however, the Alternative Reference Rate Committee in the U.S., comprised of a group of large banks and other financial institutions, selected the Secured Overnight Finance Rate (‘SOFR’), as an alternative to LIBOR. In May 2018, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York began to publish the alternative rate. SOFR is a broad measure of the cost of borrowing cash overnight collateralized by Treasury securities. Furthermore, as of April 23, 2018, the Bank of England has commenced publication of a reformed Sterling Overnight Index Average (‘SONIA’), comprised of a broader set of overnight Sterling money market transactions. The SONIA has been recommended as the alternative to Sterling LIBOR by the U.K. Working Group on Sterling Risk-Free Reference Rates.

The Company has incorporated provisions for the use of successor benchmarks where required in all of its external borrowing facilities that provide for floating-rate borrowing, including our recently amended and restated $1.5 billion revolving credit facility. Additionally, where the Company engages in floating-rate intercompany lending, we have made arrangements to benchmark the borrowing off successor market rates to maintain arms-length pricing. While we do not expect that the transition from LIBOR and risks related thereto will have a material adverse impact on our financing costs, it is still uncertain at this time.

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

The Company is organized as a holding company, a legal entity separate and distinct from our operating subsidiaries. As a holding company without significant operations of our own, we are dependent upon dividends and other payments from our operating subsidiaries to meet our obligations for paying principal and interest on outstanding debt obligations, for paying dividends to shareholders, for repurchasing shares of common stock and for corporate expenses. Legal and regulatory restrictions, foreign exchange controls, as well as operating requirements of our subsidiaries, may limit our ability to obtain cash from these subsidiaries. For example, Willis Limited, our U.K. brokerage subsidiary regulated by the FCA, is currently required to maintain $140 million in unencumbered and available financial resources, of which at least $83 million must be in cash, for regulatory purposes. In the event our operating subsidiaries are unable to pay dividends and other payments to the Company, we may not be able to service debt, pay obligations or pay dividends on, or repurchase shares of, common stock. In the event we are unable to generate cash from our operating subsidiaries for any of the reasons discussed above, our overall liquidity could deteriorate.

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 2. PROPERTIES

We operate offices in many countries throughout the world and believe that our properties are generally suitable and adequate for the purposes for which they are used. The principal properties are located in the United States and the United Kingdom. In addition, we have other offices in various locations, including among others, Europe, Asia, Australia and Latin America. Operations of each of our segments are carried out in owned or leased offices under operating leases that typically do not exceed 10 years in length, except for certain properties in key locations. We do not anticipate difficulty in meeting our space needs at lease expiration.

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

From time to time, we are party to various lawsuits, arbitrations or mediations that arise in the ordinary course of business. The disclosure called for by Item 3 regarding our legal proceedings is incorporated by reference herein from Note 15 — Commitments and Contingencies, within Item 8 in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

PART II.

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Share Data

Our ordinary shares trade on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol ‘WTW’ as of January 10, 2022. Our ordinary shares previously traded under the symbol ‘WLTW’ starting on January 5, 2016. As of February 18, 2022, there were 1,118 shareholders of record of our shares.

Dividends

We normally pay dividends on a quarterly basis to shareholders of record on March 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31. In February 2022, the board of directors approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.82 per share ($3.28 per share annualized rate), which will be paid on or around April 15, 2022 to shareholders of record as of March 31, 2022.

There are no governmental laws, decrees or regulations in Ireland that restrict the remittance of dividends or other payments to non-resident holders of the Company’s shares.

In circumstances where one of Ireland’s many exemptions from dividend withholding tax (‘DWT’) does not apply, dividends paid by the Company will be subject to Irish DWT (currently 20 percent). Residents of the United States should be exempt from Irish DWT provided relevant documentation supporting the exemption has been put in place. While the U.S.-Ireland Double Tax Treaty contains provisions reducing the rate of Irish DWT in prescribed circumstances, it should generally be unnecessary for U.S. residents to rely on the provisions of this treaty due to the wide scope of exemptions from Irish DWT available under Irish domestic law. Irish income tax may also arise in respect of dividends paid by the Company. However, U.S. residents entitled to an exemption from Irish DWT generally have no Irish income tax liability on dividends.

With respect to non-corporate U.S. shareholders, certain dividends from a qualified foreign corporation may be subject to reduced rates of taxation. A foreign corporation is treated as a qualified foreign corporation with respect to dividends received from that corporation on shares that are readily tradeable on an established securities market in the United States, such as our shares. Non-corporate U.S. shareholders that do not meet a minimum holding period requirement for our shares during which they are not protected from the risk of loss or that elect to treat the dividend income as investment income pursuant to section 163(d)(4) of the Code will not be eligible for the reduced rates of taxation regardless of our status as a qualified foreign corporation. In addition, the rate reduction will not apply to dividends if the recipient of a dividend is obligated to make related payments with respect to positions in substantially similar or related property. This disallowance applies even if the minimum holding period has been met. U.S. shareholders should consult their own tax advisors regarding the application of these rules given their particular circumstances.

Total Shareholder Return

The graph below depicts cumulative total shareholder returns for WTW for the period from December 31, 2016 through December 31, 2021.

The graph also depicts the total return for the S&P 500 and for a peer group for WTW comprised of Accenture plc, Aon plc, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., Brown & Brown Inc., Cognizant Technology Solutions Corporation, Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. and Robert Half International Inc. The graph charts the performance of $100 invested on the initial date indicated, December 31, 2016, assuming full dividend reinvestment.

Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds

During the year ended December 31, 2021, no shares were issued by the Company without registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers

The Company is authorized to repurchase shares, by way of redemption, and will consider whether to do so from time to time, based on many factors, including market conditions. Since April 20, 2016, when the WTW board reconfirmed, reapproved and reauthorized the remaining $529 million portion of the Legacy Willis program to repurchase the Company’s ordinary shares on the open market or by way of redemption or otherwise, the following additional authorizations have occurred:

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November 10, 2016 — the Company announced that the board of directors approved an additional authorization of $1.0 billion.

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February 23, 2018 — the Company announced that the board of directors approved an additional authorization of $400 million.

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February 26, 2020 — the Company announced that the board of directors approved an additional authorization of $251 million.

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July 26, 2021 — the Company announced that the board of directors approved an additional authorization of $1.0 billion.

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September 16, 2021 — the Company announced that the board of directors approved an additional authorization of $4.0 billion.

There are no expiration dates for these repurchase plans or programs. The following table presents specified information about the Company’s repurchases of ordinary shares in the fourth quarter and the Company’s repurchase authority.

At December 31, 2021, the maximum number of shares that may be purchased under the existing stock repurchase program is 16,306,580, with approximately $3.9 billion remaining on the current open-ended repurchase authority granted by the board. An estimate of the maximum number of shares under the existing authorities was determined using the closing price of our ordinary shares on December 31, 2021 of $237.49.

Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans

For information on our securities authorized for issuance under our existing equity compensation plans, see ‘Securities Authorized for Issuance under Equity Compensation Plans’ in our proxy statement filed with the SEC.

ITEM 6. [Reserved]

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

This discussion includes forward-looking statements. See ‘Disclaimer Regarding Forward-looking Statements’ for certain cautionary information regarding forward-looking statements and Part I, Item 1A Risk Factors for a list of factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted in those statements.

This discussion includes references to non-GAAP financial measures as defined in the rules of the SEC. We present such non-GAAP financial measures, specifically, adjusted, constant currency and organic non-GAAP financial measures, as we believe such information is of interest to the investment community because it provides additional meaningful methods of evaluating certain aspects of the Company’s operating performance from period to period on a basis that may not be otherwise apparent under U.S. GAAP, and these provide a measure against which our businesses may be assessed in the future.

Our methods of calculating these measures may differ from those used by other companies and therefore comparability may be limited. These financial measuresshould be viewed in addition to, not in lieu of, the consolidated financialstatements for the year ended December 31, 2021.

See ‘Non-GAAP Financial Measures’ below for further discussion of our adjusted, constant currency and organic non-GAAP financial measures.

Executive Overview

Market Conditions

Typically, our business benefits from regulatory change, political risk or economic uncertainty. Insurance broking generally tracks the economy, but demand for both insurance broking and consulting services usually remains 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.

Within our insurance and brokerage business, due to the cyclical nature of the insurance market and the impact of other market conditions on insurance premiums, commission revenue may vary widely between accounting periods. A period of low or declining premium rates, generally known as a ‘soft’ or ‘softening’ market, generally leads to downward pressure on commission revenue and can have a material adverse impact on our revenue and operating margin. A ‘hard’ or ‘firming’ market, during which premium rates rise, generally has a favorable impact on our revenue and operating margin. Rates, however, vary by geography, industry and client segment. As a result, and due to the global and diverse nature of our business, we view rates in the aggregate. Overall, we are currently seeing a modest but definite increase in pricing in the market.

Market conditions in the broking industry in which we operate are generally defined by factors such as the strength of the economies in the various geographic regions in which we serve around the world, insurance rate movements, and insurance and reinsurance buying patterns of our clients.

The markets for our consulting, technology and solutions, and marketplace services are affected by economic, regulatory and legislative changes, technological developments, and increased competition from established and new competitors. We believe that the primary factors in selecting a human resources or risk management consulting firm include reputation, the ability to provide measurable increases to shareholder value and return on investment, global scale, quality of service and the ability to tailor services to clients’ unique needs. In that regard, we are focused on developing and implementing technology, data and analytic solutions for both internal operations and for maintaining industry standards and meeting client preferences. We have made such investments from time to time and may decide, based on perceived business needs, to make investments in the future that may be different from past practice or what we currently anticipate.

With regard to the market for exchanges, we believe that clients base their decisions on a variety of factors that include the ability of the provider to deliver measurable cost savings for clients, a strong reputation for efficient execution and an innovative service delivery model and platform. Part of the employer-sponsored insurance market has matured and become more fragmented while other segments remain in the entry phase. As these market segments continue to evolve, we may experience growth in intervals, with periods of accelerated expansion balanced by periods of modest growth. In recent years, growth in the market for exchanges has slowed, and we expect this trend may continue.

From time to time, including but not limited to the period after the announcement of the proposed Aon combination through the period that has followed the termination of the proposed combination, we have lost (and may in the future continue to lose) colleagues who manage substantial client relationships or possess substantial experience or expertise; when we lose colleagues such as those, it often results in such colleagues competing against us. Further, the full impact of this competition may be delayed due to the timing of restrictive covenants or client renewals. We believe that this dynamic, which was most pronounced in our Corporate Risk and Broking

segment in the second and third quarters of 2021, has caused the segment’s near-term growth rates in the fourth quarter and expected into 2022 to be meaningfully slower than other competitors. This dynamic may be difficult to predict, given that the adverse impact in future periods is more significant than in the periods in which employees departed. Growth may also be adversely affected by the fact that 2021 performance in a number of businesses, particularly commercial risk broking and health & benefits broking, benefited from revenue from book sales, which is non-repeatable revenue. It is possible that growth could be different than expected and our results of operations could be significantly and adversely impacted.

See Part I, Item 1A Risk Factors in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for discussions of risks that may affect our ability to compete.

Brexit

Following the occurrence of Brexit and the end of the formal transition period on December 31, 2020, a trade agreement has been established between the U.K. and E.U. As expected, the agreement largely addressed goods and not services, and the Company has therefore completed the establishment of appropriate arrangements for the continued servicing of client business in all relevant E.U. countries. Further negotiations between the U.K. and E.U. resulted in the agreement of a Memorandum of Understanding to address matters related to financial services, though the outcome of future engagement between the U.K. and E.U. in relation to services, including financial services and potential impact on the Company, are not yet fully known. For a further discussion of the risks of Brexit to the Company, see Part I, Item 1A Risk Factors in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Although approximately 18% of our revenue from continuing operations is generated in the U.K. on an annual basis, about 12% of revenue from continuing operations is denominated in Pounds sterling, as much of the insurance business is transacted in U.S. dollars. Approximately 18% of our expenses from continuing operations is denominated in Pounds sterling,thus we generally benefit from a weakening Pound sterling in our income from continuing operations. However, we have a Company hedging strategy for this aspect of our business, which is designed to mitigate significant fluctuations in currency.

Risks and Uncertainties of the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Related Economic Environment

The COVID-19 pandemic has had an adverse impact on global commercial activity, particularly on the global supply chain and workforce availability, and has contributed to significant volatility in the global financial markets including, among other effects, occasional declines in the equity markets, changes in interest rates and reduced liquidity on a global basis. With regard to the effects on our own business operations and those of our clients, suppliers and other third parties with whom we interact, the Company has regularly considered the impact of COVID-19 and the wider economic results on our business, taking into account our business resilience and continuity plans, financial modeling and stress testing of liquidity and financial resources.

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 the negative effect on workforce availability, which could hamper our ability to grow our capacity on pace with increasing demand for our services. We expect the market for talent to remain highly competitive for at least the next several months. We will continue to monitor the situation and assess any implications to our business and our stakeholders.

The extent to which COVID-19 impacts our business and financial position will depend on future developments, which are difficult to predict. These future developments may include the severity and scope of the COVID-19 outbreak and the emergence of new variants, which may unexpectedly change or worsen, and the types and duration of measures imposed by governmental authorities to contain the virus or address its impact. We continue to expect that the COVID-19 pandemic and the related impacts on the wider economic environment may cause volatility to our revenue and operating results in fiscal 2022. We believe that, as a general matter, these trends and uncertainties are similar to those faced by other comparable registrants as a result of the pandemic. See Part I, Item 1A Risk Factors in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for a discussion of actual and potential impacts of COVID-19 on our business, clients and operations.

Daily Operations - We continue to closely monitor the spread and impact of COVID-19, including the availability and efficacy of vaccines, while adhering to government health directives. The Company continues to administer its own restrictions on business

travel, office access, and meetings and events, where appropriate, but has developed its return-to-work plans with a focus on safe utilization based on appropriate social-distancing guidelines and a continued hybrid work model. We have had thorough business continuity and incident management processes in place and operating effectively for the past two years and will continue to do so through the end of the pandemic.

Transformation Program

In the fourth quarter of 2021, we initiated a three-year ‘Transformation program’ designed to enhance operations, optimize technology and align our real estate footprint to our new ways of working. We expect the program to generate annual cost savings of approximately $300 million by the end of 2024. The program is expected to include cumulative costs of approximately $490 million and capital expenditures of approximately $260 million, for a total investment of $750 million. The main categories of charges will be in the following four areas:

•

Real estate rationalization — includes costs to align the real estate footprint to our new ways of working (hybrid work) and includes breakage fees and the impairment of right-of-use assets and other related leasehold assets.

•

Technology modernization — these charges are incurred in moving to common platforms and technologies, including migrating certain platforms and applications to the cloud. This category will include the impairment of technology assets that are duplicative or no longer revenue-producing, as well as costs for technology investments that do not qualify for capitalization.

•

Process optimization — these costs will be incurred in the right-shoring strategy and automation of our operations, which will include optimizing resource deployment and appropriate colleague alignment. These costs will include process and organizational design costs, severance and separation-related costs and temporary retention costs.

•

Other — other costs not included above including fees for professional services, other contract terminations not related to the above categories and supplier migration costs.

For the year ended December 31, 2021, restructuring charges under our Transformation program totaled $26 million. From the actions taken in 2021, we expect to have annualized savings of $20 million primarily from the reduction of real estate costs, the benefits of which will be recognized in 2022.

For a discussion of some of the risks associated with the Transformation program, please see Part I, Item 1A Risk Factors - ‘We may not be able to fully realize the anticipated benefits of our growth strategy’ and other Risk Factors in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Financial Statement Overview

For all financial information presented herein, the operating results of Willis Re have been reclassified as discontinued operations (see Note 3 — Acquisitions and Divestitures within Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for further information).

The tables below set forth our summarized consolidated statements of comprehensive income and data as a percentage of revenue for the periods indicated.

Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income

($ in millions, except per share data)

Years ended December 31,

Costs of providing services

Restructuring costs 26 — % 24 — % — — %

Transaction and integration, net (806 ) (9 )% 110 1 % 13 — %

Provision for income taxes (536 ) (6 )% (249 ) (3 )% (197 ) (2 )%

INCOME FROM DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS, NET OF TAX 2,080 23 % 258 3 % 224 3 %

Income attributable to non-controlling interests (14 ) — % (24 ) — % (29 ) — %

Diluted earnings per share from continuing operations $ 16.63 $ 5.67 $ 6.30

Consolidated Revenue (Continuing Operations)

We derive the majority of our revenue from commissions from our brokerage services and fees for consulting and administration services. No single client represented a significant concentration of our consolidated revenue for any of our three most recent fiscal years.

The following table details our top five markets based on percentage of consolidated revenue (in U.S. dollars) from the countries where work was performed for the year ended December 31, 2021. These figures do not represent the currency of the related revenue, which is presented in the next table.

Geographic Region % of Revenue

United States 51 %

United Kingdom 18 %

France 4 %

Canada 3 %

Germany 3 %

The table below details the approximate percentage of our revenue and expenses from continuing operations by transactional currency for the year ended December 31, 2021.

Transactional Currency Revenue Expenses (i)

U.S. dollars 58 % 53 %

Pounds sterling 12 % 18 %

Other currencies 15 % 16 %

(i)

These percentages exclude certain expenses for significant items which will not be settled in cash, or which we believe to be items that are not core to our current or future operations. These items include amortization of intangible assets and transaction and integration, net.

The following table sets forth the total revenue for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 and the components of the change in total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2021, as compared to the prior year:

Components of Revenue Change (i)

As Constant

Years Ended December 31, Reported Currency Currency Acquisitions/ Organic

2021 2020 Change Impact Change Divestitures Change

($ in millions)

(i)

Components of revenue change may not add due to rounding.

Revenue for the year ended December 31, 2021 was $9.0 billion, compared to $8.6 billion for the year ended December 31, 2020, an increase of $383 million, or 4%, on an as-reported basis. Adjusting for the impact of foreign currency and acquisitions and disposals, our organic revenue growth was 6% for the year ended December 31, 2021. The increase to our as-reported revenue was driven by strong performances in all segments and $134 million from book-of-business settlements, partially offset by disposals in our IRR segment in 2020 and early 2021.

Our revenue can be materially impacted by changes in currency conversions, which can fluctuate significantly over the course of a calendar year. For the year ended December 31, 2021, currency translation increased our consolidated revenue by $171 million. The primary currencies driving these changes were the Pound sterling and Euro.

The following table sets forth the total revenue for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 and the components of the change in total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2020, as compared to the prior year:

Components of Revenue Change (i)

As Constant

Years Ended December 31, Reported Currency Currency Acquisitions/ Organic

2020 2019 Change Impact Change Divestitures Change

($ in millions)

(i)

Components of revenue change may not add due to rounding.

Revenue for the year ended December 31, 2020 was $8.6 billion, compared to $8.4 billion for the year ended December 31, 2019, an increase of $245 million, or 3%, on an as-reported basis. Adjusting for the impact of foreign currency and acquisitions and disposals, our organic revenue growth was 1% for the year ended December 31, 2020. The CRB and BDA segments had organic revenue growth during the year, while the HCB and IRR segments were flat, in part due to the impact of the COVID-19 reduction in demand for our discretionary services, mostly for HCB. The revenue from acquisitions related primarily to TRANZACT, which generated revenue of $557 million for the year ended December 31, 2020 as compared to $245 million for the year ended December 31, 2019, which represents revenue included from the date of the acquisition of July 30, 2019.

For the year ended December 31, 2020, currency translation decreased our consolidated revenue by $8 million. The primary currencies driving this change were the Canadian dollar, Australian dollar, and Malaysian Ringgit, partially offset by the Pound sterling.

Definitions of Constant Currency Change and Organic Change are included in the section entitled ‘Non-GAAP Financial Measures’ elsewhere within this Form 10-K.

Segment Revenue

At December 31, 2021, we managed our business across four reportable operating segments: Human Capital and Benefits; Corporate Risk and Broking; Investment, Risk and Reinsurance; and Benefits Delivery and Administration. On January 1, 2022, we began managing across two new reportable operating segments. See Part I, Item 1, ‘Business – Segment Reorganization’ for a discussion of the new segments. Discussion of segment results in this Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations reflects the segments as of December 31, 2021.

WTW US Equity

WTW · 10-K · period ended 2021-12-31

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

ITEM 2. PROPERTIES

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

ITEM 6. [Reserved]

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

WTW US Equity☆

WTW · 10-K · period ended 2021-12-31

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

ITEM 2. PROPERTIES

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

ITEM 6. [Reserved]

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

WTW US Equity