By Anna Lopata – ANZIIF senior writer

New ANZIIF Fellow Julian Coates has built his broking career across Australia and Asia, believing the strongest leaders are defined by trust, resilience and a commitment to continuous learning.

High performance comes from clarity, pace, trust and accountability. When those things are in place, people lift.

It is a deceptively simple philosophy, but one that has guided Julian Coates through a career spanning Australia and Asia, from his early days in Melbourne to leading one of the region’s fastest-growing specialty (re)insurance businesses.

Consistency rather than charisma

As Managing Director and Chief Broking Officer at Price Forbes Broking (Asia), Coates has built his leadership style around consistency rather than charisma, believing that sustainable growth is created by empowered people, specialist expertise and the discipline to keep learning.

That approach has delivered results. Price Forbes has quadrupled its headcount in just two years, while expanding its specialist capabilities across Asia-Pacific.

Yet for Coates, growth is only meaningful if it is supported by genuine technical depth and long-term relationships.

“My leadership philosophy is simple: listen carefully, set clear direction, back good people and create the conditions for them to succeed,” he says.

“Listening matters because no leader has a monopoly on good ideas. Some of the best insights in any business come from the people closest to the client and closest to the work.”

The (re)insurance market, he believes, is entering a period where specialist advice has never been more valuable.

The true nature of resilience

Clients are navigating increasingly interconnected risks, from cyber and geopolitical uncertainty to supply chain disruption, infrastructure investment and the energy transition. Success no longer comes from simply placing (re)insurance.

“Resilience is not a defensive position. It is an operating capability,” Coates says.

“In uncertain markets, clients do not just need capacity. They need advice, options, structure and confidence. The more uncertain the environment becomes, the more important it is to understand what is changing beneath the surface.”

That philosophy extends beyond his clients to the way he builds businesses.

Responding quickly to diverse markets

Rather than chasing scale for its own sake, Coates is focused on creating a specialist platform capable of responding quickly to increasingly complex risks across diverse Asian markets.

“My long-term vision is for Price Forbes to be recognised as the first-call wholesale, specialty and reinsurance broker in Asia-Pacific, not because we are the loudest in the market, but because we are the most relevant,” he says.

“Differentiation cannot just be a slogan. You need to be very clear about where you genuinely add value, where you have technical depth and where you should not try to look like everyone else.”

His comments reflect a broader shift taking place across the region. As clients become more sophisticated, expectations are rising just as quickly.

Buyers increasingly expect brokers to understand not only insurance, but also their industries, operating environments and commercial objectives.

“Asia is not one market,” Coates says. “What works in Singapore may not work in Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Hong Kong or the Philippines.

Regulation, culture, business practices and risk maturity can all be very different, so the ability to adapt is critical.”

Regional experience a competitive advantage

For Australian businesses expanding into Asia, he believes that regional experience has become a genuine competitive advantage.

“Businesses need more than market access,” Coates says. “They need local knowledge, trusted networks and people who understand how business is actually done on the ground.

“Clients do not simply need a policy placed. They need a partner who can help them understand how risk behaves across the region.”

Technology is also reshaping those expectations, although Coates is quick to challenge the idea that digital capability alone will define the future of broking.

“Technology and data will continue to reshape the specialty market by raising expectations around speed, transparency and insight,” he says.

“But technology will not replace judgement. Data can show patterns, but brokers still need to interpret those patterns, understand market sentiment and know how to position a risk.”

Understanding the energy transition

Similarly, he sees ESG as demanding practical thinking rather than simplistic narratives, particularly across Asia’s diverse economies.

“The energy transition is real, but so are energy security, affordability and economic development,” he says.

“Different markets are at different stages of that journey, and clients need advice that reflects the reality on the ground.”

Defining moments

Coates’ ability to balance commercial performance with regional perspective has been shaped by an international career built on strong foundations.

Raised in Melbourne within a multicultural family, he began his insurance career with Aon before relocating to Perth and later Singapore, where he has lived for the past 12 years.

He describes Australia as giving him his technical foundation, while Singapore and Asia broadened his leadership perspective and deepened his understanding of relationships, culture and regional markets.

One of the defining moments in that journey came when he became CEO of Honan Asia, his first chief executive role.

During his tenure, the business achieved approximately 25 per cent compound annual growth while building a regional team that ultimately positioned the company for acquisition by Marsh.

“That experience taught me that leadership is not about having all the answers,” he reflects. “It is about clarity, pace, accountability, resilience and bringing people with you.”

His experiences continue to shape the culture he seeks to create today.

“High-performing people want to be part of something with momentum,” Coates says. “The best people do not want to be micromanaged. They want clarity, trust and accountability.

“My role is to set the direction, remove obstacles and give people the confidence to execute.”

The broader responsibility of leadership

While commercial success remains important, Coates believes leadership ultimately carries a broader responsibility to develop people and strengthen the profession itself.

That commitment has made becoming an ANZIIF Fellow particularly significant.

“Becoming an ANZIIF Fellow is something I am genuinely proud of,” he says. “I did not follow a traditional higher education pathway early in my career, so professional learning has always been particularly important to me.

“It has allowed me to continue developing, stay relevant and build confidence through experience, qualifications and the people I have been fortunate enough to learn from.”

For Coates, the ANZIIF Fellowship represents more than personal recognition. It reinforces his belief that continuous learning underpins both individual careers and the long-term success of the industry.

“Becoming an ANZIIF Fellow is not just a personal milestone. It is a reminder that learning, standards and professionalism matter at every stage of your career,” he says.

“It is not just about what you have achieved individually. It is about what you help build for the people coming through behind you.”

Opportunity for Australia and Asia

As ANZIIF continues to strengthen its presence across Asia, Coates sees an opportunity to deepen the connection between Australian expertise and one of the world’s fastest-growing insurance regions.

“There is enormous talent across Asia, but talent needs pathways,” he says. “Technical training, professional qualifications, mentoring and regional exposure all matter. Learning creates opportunity for individuals, for businesses and for the industry as a whole.”

For a leader who has spent his career building bridges between Australia and Asia, that belief may be his most enduring legacy.

In an industry increasingly defined by complexity and constant change, Coates remains convinced that the strongest competitive advantage is not simply technical excellence, but the willingness to keep learning, keep adapting and help others do the same.

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