CLM Voices: Getting to Know Anne Blume

While CLM’s new CEO has some big shoes to fill, she’s more than up for the job. Learn more about this former managing partner and her plans to move the association forward.

The Road to CLM

In 2008, Blume needed some assistance on a D&O case and reached out to fellow attorney Mari Leigh, then a more senior partner, who promised to help her on one condition: Blume had to help plan the annual conference for a little organization called the Council on Ethical Billing. CEB later became the CLM, and Blume has served as education committee chair for every CLM annual conference since then.

Hooked at CLM's First Conference

“I was rubbing elbows with chief claims officers and the ratio of lawyers to insurance people was perfect. It was a really open and engaging group of people who were very interested in sharing experiences and information. I loved it.”

#Goals

Blume says she wants to bring the CLM message of inclusion and collaboration to more insurers, and she wants to help them reach the next generation more effectively. She says that while AI and insurtech may be disruptors, the claims process will never be entirely automated, so figuring out how to attract, maintain, and retain younger claims professionals is essential.

Industry Challenges

“It’s no longer ‘defend and settle’ or ‘defend and try’ cases. Now, it’s ‘How do I resolve the claim faster with less total spend to better serve my customer?’”

Her Defining Three Words

“Collaborative, accountable, and engaged. That’s really what it boils down to. I’m pretty intense in a laid-back way.”

Life-Changing Experiences

After a cancer diagnosis in 2015, Blume found herself literally stopping to smell the roses and snapping photos of things that she finds beautiful or make her laugh. Since her recovery, Blume says that while it might sound trite, she is a happier person. She says she stopped saying, “No, I can’t, I have to work,” and now focuses on saying, “Yes, let’s do that!” a lot more.

Overcoming Implicit Biases

“I think we’re expecting the next generation to conform to us and what we want and how we do things. But what happens when they say, ‘Fine, I don’t need your job.’?”