Aon is pursuing opportunities to grow on the coat-tails of its clients as they globalise, President and CEO Greg Case says.

Addressing the Merrill Lynch insurance conference in New York last week, he said many clients are asking the company to provide services to their operations globally as they expand outside home markets,

Mr Case and CFO Christa Davies outlined the short-term challenges for the industry, which they believe are soft pricing, the fragile global economy and historically low short-term interest rates.

Ms Davies says Aon has sold one-third of its businesses in the past five years, quitting low-margin capital-intensive underwriting operations, and now has free cashflow to grow. Its goals over the next five years include organic growth, which it expects to achieve this year.

She says Aon has invested heavily in monitoring client satisfaction so it can give clients a solution tailored to them and this has contributed to a 93% retention rate in the US.