Aon Founder Retired at 71, Then Built a $10 Billion Business

By the time he stepped down from Aon Plc at age 71, Patrick Ryan had earned a retirement fit for a king.

He’d founded the world’s second-largest insurance brokerage nearly from scratch and run it for 41 years as chief executive officer. But once away from the office, he didn’t know what to do with himself.

“I really felt like I needed another career,” Ryan said in an interview.

So he decided to do it all over again.

Patrick Ryan

Source: Ryan Specialty Group

After leaving Aon in 2008, he started Ryan Specialty Group Holdings Inc. and has pursued acquisitions to build the firm into ...