Aon plc - Acquisitions
Aon has a long history of acquisitions and mergers. In the first phase of acquisitions in the 1940's/50's through the mid 1980's, it appears they were implementing a horizontal and related diversity strategy. In the 1980's they began to grow their insurance brokerage business, a related but slightly vertically shifted integration strategy. Then, beginning with the purchase of the Reinsurance Agency, which at the time was the 9th largest reinsurance firm, they began a more pronounced vertical integration strategy into the reinsurance business. In the 1990's their acquisitions turned international, mostly of a horizontal integration type. And finally, the 2010 acquisition of Hewitt Associates, which was more than twice the size of Aon's existing human resources consulting business, marked a broadening into a somewhat related horizontal integration.
Aon plc - Notable Acquisitions
1947: American Casualty Insurance Company
1949: Boston Casualty Group
1954: First National Casualty Company
1981: Union Fidelity Corporation
1982: Ryan Insurance Company
1982: Rollins Burdick Hunter
1986: Life Insurance Company of Virginia
1988: Miller, Mason & Dickenson
1988: Reinsurance Agency
1991: Hudig-Langeveldt (Netherlands - The world's first commercial insurance agency)
1992: Frank B. Hall
1996: Alexander & Alexander - $1.23 Billion
1997: The Minet Group
1998: 10 firms including Gil y Carvajal (Spain), Groupe Leblace de Nicolay (France) and Bain Hogg (Britain)
1999: Nikols Sedgwick Group (Italy) and others
2008: Benfield
2010: Hewitt Associates (see Hewitt Associate Acquisition page for more)
1949: Boston Casualty Group
1954: First National Casualty Company
1981: Union Fidelity Corporation
1982: Ryan Insurance Company
1982: Rollins Burdick Hunter
1986: Life Insurance Company of Virginia
1988: Miller, Mason & Dickenson
1988: Reinsurance Agency
1991: Hudig-Langeveldt (Netherlands - The world's first commercial insurance agency)
1992: Frank B. Hall
1996: Alexander & Alexander - $1.23 Billion
1997: The Minet Group
1998: 10 firms including Gil y Carvajal (Spain), Groupe Leblace de Nicolay (France) and Bain Hogg (Britain)
1999: Nikols Sedgwick Group (Italy) and others
2008: Benfield
2010: Hewitt Associates (see Hewitt Associate Acquisition page for more)