Speakers at ITIC Global 2026

Sharon is an experienced leader in the travel and health insurance sector, with over 20 years of experience in international travel, risk management, and global assistance operations. At Allianz Partners, Sharon plays a key role in supporting international travellers and expatriates through thoughtful leadership and a strong focus on operational delivery.

With a self-confessed customer obsession, Sharon is dedicated to consistently delivering first-class service and seamless customer journeys. She brings a deep knowledge of supply chain management, continuous operational improvement, and quality management initiatives, as well as commercial acumen and proven stakeholder management skills.

Sharon’s leadership philosophy is grounded in purpose and trust. She sets high standards for herself and her teams, prioritising engagement, resilience, and high performance. As a mentor, she focuses on recognising and building on individual strengths.

A pioneer at heart, Sharon has led the successful implementation of new systems throughout her career, championing innovative approaches that improve service delivery and efficiency. Driven by a clear sense of fairness and impartiality, Sharon’s work continues to shape how the industry delivers support to travellers around the world.

With a career spanning over 25 years in financial services, insurance and assistance, Alastair Crossley now leads the Global Travel Solutions team at AXA Partners. He is responsible for the end-to-end value proposition, innovation, commercial framework, customer solution delivery & implementation for the AXA Travel Insurance offering globally. Having started his career in asset finance, Alastair soon moved into a commercial role in the UK for an automotive data services business, before joining the RAC (Royal Automobile Club) as Head of Motoring Services. In 2020, Alastair joined AXA Partners to head their Global Roadside Assistance programme, before switching industries to lead the Travel Solutions team. An accomplished public speaker, Alastair regularly covers travel and travel insurance topics from Security to Sustainability and Insuretech to Risk.

Dr. Jong is the Group CEO and Group Medical Director at EMA Global, a company he established in 1991. Renowned for contributions to clinical anaesthesia, intensive care medicine, and aeromedical expertise, Dr. Jong holds a prominent position as a leading sub-specialist in aeromedical medicine. He also meticulously supervises all transports and actively engages in the aeromedical training and quality assurance initiatives for EMA Global’s medical escorts.

Taisia is the founder of Expat Psychologist, established in 2009 as the world’s first psychological practice dedicated exclusively to internationally mobile individuals. With over 15 years of specialist experience, she has pioneered the recognition of expat mental health as a distinct clinical and professional field – building her practice at a time when the travel insurance and assistance industries had yet to recognise the scale of what was coming.

Operating across the Netherlands and Switzerland, with online services reaching clients worldwide, Taisia works with expatriates, trailing spouses, global nomads, international students, and corporate employees on international assignments. Her practice addresses the full arc of the internationally mobile experience. Having lived and worked across multiple countries herself, she brings both clinical depth and lived understanding to the communities she serves.

Taisia works with insurers, assistance companies, and corporate HR teams to bridge the gap between what internationally mobile individuals actually need psychologically and what the industry currently provides.

Laura Hilton has over 25 years’ experience creating quality-driven, cost-effective global healthcare networks. The architect of a worldwide healthcare network available to over 62 million insured members in 180+ countries, Laura is passionate about leveraging technology to simplify the healthcare experience. Laura has developed customized international healthcare solutions for multinational corporations, family offices, study abroad programs, NGOs and professional sports teams. A graduate of Yale University, Laura speaks five languages.

Declan McDermott is the Director of Global Provider Networks at Healix International, where he leads the organisation’s global provider network strategy, operational performance, and financial stewardship. He is responsible for driving the evolution of Healix’s Global Network Team, ensuring best‑in‑class quality standards across international partners, and overseeing key global cost‑containment initiatives. With extensive experience managing complex medical provider ecosystems and 10 years within the medical assistance and travel risk management space, Declan brings a combination of strategic thinking, operational discipline, and stakeholder engagement.

Graeme is a multiple founder and recognised authority in the Insurtech and global insurance markets, with deep expertise in complex, high-risk, and non-standard insurance solutions. He is the Founder and CEO of Hotspot Cover, a specialist insurer supporting individuals and organisations operating in high-risk and conflict-affected regions worldwide. Graeme has built and scaled insurance platforms spanning underwriting, distribution, and technology, working closely with brokers, reinsurers, security providers, and regulators. Known for combining commercial rigour with on-the-ground risk insight, he focuses on building innovative insurance products that address real-world operational challenges in emerging and volatile markets.

Sebastien Bedu is the General Manager of the Middle East team, based at the International SOS office in Dubai. He joined International SOS as the Branch Manager of MedAire, the Aviation & Maritime division of International SOS, in 2015.

In 2021, Sebastien was promoted as General Manager, GCC, where he led the Commercial and Operations teams for the region. In 2023, Sebastien’s scope was extended to the whole Middle East with a specific focus on International SOS’ Health & Security Travel Risk Management solutions.

Prior to joining International SOS, Sebastien worked for several large corporations where he was the Director of Sales for the Middle East.

David is the Founder, Managing Director and Head of AI at Lodestone Solutions, provider of a global-leading travel claims system. Lodestone’s platform has expanded internationally on the strength of highly automated claim processing, incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) since 2019.

In designing and implementing AI solutions, David combines strategic technical analysis with a sharp focus on business objectives. He has particular knowledge of travel insurance and travel medical claims, and in the deployment of AI across FNOL, customer interaction, claims examination/decisioning, and fraud detection. He has led agentic AI deployments for leading travel insurers in the USA, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

Celal Emre Dursun is the CEO of Redstar Aviation, with over 20 years of experience in the aviation industry. Throughout his career, he has led large-scale international projects, specializing in aviation operations, safety and quality management, project development, and customer relations. He has extensive experience in offshore aviation operations and has successfully managed projects in collaboration with major international energy companies. Mr. Dursun is recognized for his expertise in operational efficiency, strategic management, and transparent service solutions within the aviation and air ambulance sectors.

Constanza ‘Connie’ Traub is the Vice President of Marketing at VIP Universal Medical Insurance Group (VUMI), where she leads global marketing, communications, product innovation, and strategic market expansion across the Americas, Europe, and emerging regions. With more than 15 years of experience in international private medical insurance (IPMI), Connie has played a key role in positioning VUMI as a leader in high-quality, patient-centric healthcare solutions.

Her work is deeply rooted in the company’s mission of improving healthcare access, cost transparency, and service quality throughout Latin America – a region facing rising medical inflation, inconsistent standards of care, and growing demand for international coverage. Connie collaborates closely with actuarial, underwriting, provider relations, and leads the product development team to design solutions that balance affordability with superior patient experience, including specialty products like My VIP Care and Travel VIP.