But it did have five things: Equity ownership – the people doing the business, owned the business A minority external investor with a long-term outlook A product specialty 3 friends (and a dog) A commitment to building a business with independence enshrined in its fabric Today, the business has a global footprint of more than 14,500 employees in 50 countries spanning Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and the Americas. Howden Group is an independent, global insurance group headquartered outside North America, comprising: The largest independent, non-US international retail, specialty and reinsurance broker: Howden Broking (www.howdengroup.com and howdenspecialty.com)