Videos

By Roadtrip Nation

Grace Ries

Milestones

My road in life has been direct.
Born and raised in Hong Kong—growing up, her family put pressure on her to either be a doctor, a lawyer, or an engineer.
After high school, she decided to move to California where she attended the University of California, Davis.
Received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering with a focus on materials science engineering.
She’s an accomplished pianist and also minored in music performance while in college.
Always had an interest in math and science—says this impacted her choice of majors in college, and has given her a valuable perspective in the insurance industry.
Her first job right out of college was conducting risk identification and assessment as a field engineer for FM Global.
Has been working for FM Global for over 10 years in a variety of roles, most recently as the staff vice president managing cyber risk insurance products.
Grace’s current work is on the forefront of research into cyber risk—her team is developing and engineering the tools necessary to help clients measure cyber threats they may encounter.
Keep following my journey

Career

Staff Vice President, Manager of Cyber Risk Insurance Products

I lead a team focused on developing insurance coverage to meet clients’ needs for first-party cyber solutions.

Career Roadmap

Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Numbers
Technology
Problem Solving

Day to Day

I am responsible for helping to strengthen the linkages between the insurer's loss prevention engineering expertise and the company's cyber insurance product. My team spends a lot of time conducting experiments in a lab to measure risk factors such as earthquakes, fire, flooding, etc. Our challenge now is to design these same kinds of experiments in the digital sphere in order to mitigate our client's cyber risks. No two days are ever the same and my job is definitely not a "9-to-5".

Advice for Getting Started

Here's the first step for college students

Study or work abroad. Living and experiencing different cultures makes you more compassionate and helps you develop a wider understanding of the world, which is invaluable in your life.

Hurdles

The Noise I Shed

From Family:

"You have three choices: you can be a doctor, a lawyer, or an engineer. That's it."

Challenges I Overcame

First-Generation Immigrant

Interviewed By

Risk & Reward

Risk & Reward

Think you know the world of insurance?