Swiss Re announced that Nicole Pieterse, currently Swiss Re’s Head Human Resources for Property & Casualty Reinsurance (P&C Re), will become Chief People Officer effective 1 January 2026. She will be taking over from Cathy Desquesses, who will step down for personal reasons.
Nicole Pieterse joined Swiss Re in 2015 and currently serves as Head Human Resources for P&C Re. She brings deep HR leadership expertise and a strong track record across the financial services industry, where she held a range of senior HR roles prior to joining Swiss Re.
Jacques de Vaucleroy, Swiss Re’s Chairman of the Board of Directors, said: “The Board welcomes Nicole Pieterse to the Group Executive Committee as a distinguished and highly accomplished HR leader. The Board of Directors and I personally regret yet fully understand and support Cathy’s decision to step down. We are grateful for four and a half years of outstanding collaboration during which she was instrumental in shaping Swiss Re’s path to renewed success.”
Cathy has played a pivotal role in Swiss Re’s transformation. We are sorry to see her leave and wish her the very best as she takes time to focus on her health.
Andreas Berger, Swiss Re’s Group CEO
“I am pleased that with Nicole we have appointed an excellent leader from within our own ranks. Together with my Group Executive colleagues I look forward to advancing Swiss Re’s strategic people agenda with her,” Andreas Berger said.
Nicole Pieterse joined Swiss Re in 2015 and has since held several senior HR leadership roles across the Group. Nicole will assume the role of Chief People Officer effective 1 January 2026.
Since April 2023, she has served as Head of HR for the Property & Casualty Reinsurance Business Unit, leading HR strategy and HR teams across Europe and Asia. In this role, she delivered organisational improvements, introduced a strategic workforce model and launched Swiss Re’s first Industry Thought Leader programme.
She is a member of the HR and BU Executive Committees and, since 1 May 2025, a member of the Board of Swiss Re Management Ltd.
From 2021 to 2023, she was Head of HR EMEA, responsible for HR across Swiss Re Europe and Switzerland, driving an HR operating model transformation and stabilising post-COVID workforce dynamics.
Between 2017 and 2020, she served as Global Head of HR for Corporate Solutions, strengthening leadership and the global talent pipeline. From 2015 to 2016, she was Global HR Partner for Group Underwriting and Asset Management. Earlier roles include HR leadership positions at Credit Suisse, ABN AMRO and Fortis across Europe.
Swiss Re reported a profit of $1.4 bn for the Q3 2025, resulting in a net income of $4 bn and a return on equity (ROE) of 22.5% for the 9M 2025.
The Group’s financial performance benefited from strong underwriting results in both P&C businesses and a solid investment return.
Swiss Re’s Group Chief Executive Officer Andreas Berger said: “We have two priorities: delivering on our financial targets and increasing the resilience of the Group. Our results for the first nine months of 2025 reflect this. After significant large loss events in the first quarter, the second and third quarters benefited from low natural catastrophe losses”.
Swiss Re’s Group Chief Financial Officer Anders Malmström said: “Alongside a strong underwriting result for the 9 months of the year in our property and casualty businesses, we have maintained healthy margins on new business written in the period. Additionally, all Business Units continue to benefit from robust recurring investment income.”
