What Investing in Partnerships Looks Like: Highlights From the 2026 ICS Partner Invitational

There’s a moment at every event where you can feel whether it’s working or not. Not when the speeches are going well, or when the food comes out hot, or even when people are laughing. It’s quieter than that. It’s the moment you look around the room, and everyone is exactly where they want to be.

I had that moment at the 2^nd Annual ICS Partner Invitational. The room was full of some of the sharpest minds in captive insurance—brokers, carriers, our Innovative Captive Strategies (ICS) team—and nobody was thinking about leaving. They were swapping stories from the golf course and connecting with people they’d normally compete against. The ICS team was scattered across the room and engaged in conversations, not because we planned it that way, but because that’s what happens when the relationships are real. And that, more than anything, is what the ICS Partner Invitational is about.

Why Partnerships Matter

ICS doesn’t work with every broker in the industry. That’s intentional. We’re selective because the ICS model only works with the right people at the table.

Just as the captive model isn’t right for every company, not every broker is the right fit for ICS. We partner with brokers who understand their clients deeply and aren’t afraid to do insurance differently. And our carrier partners? They’ve been with us since the beginning because trust like that isn’t built overnight.

We created The ICS Partner Invitational as an invitation-only event hosted in Des Moines to recognize and connect our top broker and carrier partners in the industry. This year, we brought together over 30 broker partners from across the country—some long-standing ICS collaborators, some newer faces. And our sponsorships from AIG, AXA, and Zurich North America helped us create an unforgettable experience for our brokers.

Most attendees are competitors after all, so it only makes sense to include some friendly competition on the golf course followed by a Master’s-worthy custom ICS purple jacket fitting for the Champions!

There are plenty of ways to stay in touch with partners: phone calls, text messages, webinars, client meetings. But our Partner Invitational is a unique touchpoint that’s all about creating and nurturing partnerships in an environment where fun and fellowship lead the way.

Invested in More Than the Moment

ICS was built on the belief that Employee Benefits and Property Casualty group captive insurance works best when everyone in the relationship, from the broker and client to the captive manager, is genuinely invested. Not transactionally, not just at renewal—all the time.

The ICS Partner Invitational isn’t just a golf outing. It’s not even a partner appreciation event. It’s an experience. It’s how we say: we see you, we value you, and we’re invested in this partnership.

Everyone in the room had earned their place there, and they knew it. The competition was real. So were the conversations. Relationships don’t deepen on a quarterly call—they deepen like this.

Will Guidara writes in “Unreasonable Hospitality”: “Intention means every decision, from the most obviously significant to the seemingly mundane, matters.”

We felt that this year. And our partners did too. For us, intentionality looked like this having our 2025 Partner Invitational Champion personally select the menu for the Champions Dinner. Our ICS team, fitted in custom caddie uniforms, carrying clubs and showing up ready to support our people.

Bold Business Powered by Real Relationships

Captive insurance is a relational business. A captive is a group of businesses that choose to come together—sharing risk and accountability and trusting that the people across the table are as committed as they are. That trust is built over time, through performance, transparency, shared experience, and consistent partnership.

Every broker in our network chooses to work with ICS. They don’t have to. They have options. What keeps them here, and what keeps their clients here, is the belief that ICS will show up, do the work, and never stop earning your trust. That’s the ICS difference.

The most honest version of that comes from the people who said it themselves. Team members Jason McMurray and Will Roth took home the championship trophy this year, and shared their thoughts after the event:

“In an industry where every firm in this room competes with one another, ICS has built something that feels genuinely collaborative. The relationships feel more like friendships than rivalries. We’re a group of highly competitive people who push each other, help each other, and ultimately believe in the same mission: creating better outcomes for clients through alternative risk solutions.”

ICS has always believed that the best outcomes come from people who are genuinely committed to each other’s success. Our captive model, just like our Partner Invitational, is built on that belief.

To every broker, carrier, and member of the ICS team who made the trip to Des Moines—thank you! And to our 2026 Champions, Jason McMurray and Will Roth: the trophy is yours, the 2027 dinner menu is yours to curate, and the target is officially on your backs. Good luck!

To learn more about our broker partnership opportunities, visit our website or reach out today,