New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards 2021 by ANZIIF

New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards 2021

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PROUDLY SUPPORTED BY

WITH THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS PLATINUM

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SCRUTINEER

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New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards 2021

2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

Presiding Judge’s Message On behalf of the Australian and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance (ANZIIF) welcome to the 2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards. Now in its 9th year, the New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards recognise the outstanding achievements of both the individuals and businesses in New Zealand and to celebrate our collective success. While it would have been lovely to frock up and celebrate the insurance industry’s ‘night of nights’, we hope you enjoy this professionally produced online movie which celebrates the incredible achievements from individuals and companies and the positive impact we have on the New Zealand community. Whilst the industry has faced challenging circumstances over the past 12 months, the professionalism from the New Zealand Insurance Industry to adapt to change has been second to none. All award categories illustrate the progression our industry is making to support its people, customers and community over the last year. The New Zealand finalists should all be incredibly proud of their achievements and for displaying excellence and incredible professionalism in what was a challenging year. Thank you to our diverse judging panel that have given their time to assess the submissions and to our great partners and sponsors, who continue to support the leading celebration of excellence across our whole industry and help make this year’s event possible. Thank you for helping us celebrate the New Zealand Insurance Industry and the year that was. PRUE WILLSFORD CEO, ANZIIF

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2021

JUDGING PANEL PRUE WILLSFORD

DAMIAN FALKINGHAM

CEO ANZIIF

General Manager Industry Engagement ANZIIF

Prue attended the Queensland University of Technology, graduating with a Bachelor of Laws. Prior to her appointment as ANZIIF CEO, she was the General Manager, Corporate Operations at State Trustees, a role which included the oversight of Finance, Technology, Legal, Compliance, and Investments in a highly complex, medium size financial services company.

Damian is the General Manager of Industry Engagement at ANZIIF. Prior to joining ANZIIF, Damian held management positions across claims, underwriting, client services and sales for Allianz across Victoria, Tasmania and managing Australia wide operations.

She has over 20 years’ experience in the financial services sector, including management accounting at Macquarie Bank and policy development at Investment Funds and Superannuation Association. She has also held leadership roles in financial services product development, marketing and operations at Colonial Mutual and National Australia Bank.

Damian holds a Graduate Diploma in Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation and he spent time in education as a lecturer and tutorial leader for Victoria University and Holmesglen TAFE and recently completed AICD Company Directors course. Damian is passionate about developing people to deliver growth across the insurance and finance sectors.

Prue was the Deputy Chancellor of Victoria University and the Chairman of the Resources Committee and is currently a Board member at Citywide Service Solutions.

2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

TIM GRAFTON

BEN HOLLOWAY

SARAH KNOX

CAROLINE LABAND

Chief Executive ICNZ

Strategic Partnership Manager Special Projects Partners Life

Consumer Affairs Manager ICNZ

Partner DLA Piper

Tim Grafton is Chief Executive of the Insurance Council of New Zealand. Tim has extensive experience in providing strategic, policy and communications advice to public and private sector leaders.

Ben joined the industry at the age of 22 as Financial Analyst with Fidelity Life where he worked for 6 years. Within 4 years, Ben was leading Strategic Alliance team, looking after Fidelity’s largest corporate clients nationwide and was the fastest growing distribution channel. He has recently been employed by Partners Life to support the executive on several special projects including the scoping and design of their distribution strategy out to 2026.

Sarah Knox joined the Insurance Council in 2015 as Communications Manager and took up a new role as Consumer Affairs Manager in 2020.

Caroline is a partner and practice group leader of the litigation team at DLA Piper in New Zealand, where she assists clients in the insurance industry to navigate their way through complex disputes. She has over 20 years’ experience in New Zealand and the United Kingdom representing insurers, brokers, and insured corporations in High Court, Court of Appeal, Supreme Court and arbitration proceedings. Caroline specialises in financial lines including assisting solicitors, accountants, brokers, directors, financial institutions and construction professionals to achieve favourable resolutions to claims.

He is a Chartered Member of the Institute of Directors and holds several governance roles. He is on the Executive Committee of the Global Federation of Insurance Associations, Chairs the Code Compliance Committee of the Fair Insurance Code, is the former Chair of the Representative Users Group of the Deep South Science Challenge which focuses on research to adapt to climate change, and is on the New Zealand Advisory Board of the Australia and New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance, the Advisory Board of Victoria University, Wellington’s Chair in the Economics of Disasters, and the Advisory Committee on the Upgrade of the National Seismic Hazard Model. He has also served on the Governance Committee of the Residential Advisory Service, the Earthquake Support Coordinators Committee and the Chief Executives Group for the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery.

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Ben is a proud and passionate farmer, with a proven track record of delivering new rural based insurance solutions and products to the New Zealand market. Ben holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree (BCom) with a double major in Economics and Commercial Law, am a member of Institute of Directors (IOD) and have held multiple board positions across the Non-For-Profit sector, including Chairman of the Graeme Dingle Foundation for Auckland. In 2019, Ben was fortunate to be named the youngest ever recipient of the Young Insurance Professional of the Year at the New Zealand Insurance industry awards at the age of 26.

Sarah has 20 years’ communications and issues management experience across a range of sectors. The Consumer Affairs role is responsible for working with the general insurance sector to improve customer outcomes, providing consumer views to members, and improving the financial capability of youth and people with vulnerabilities. Sarah also runs the industry’s Personal Lines (home and contents) and Employment and Education committees and takes a leading role in coordinating the insurance industry’s response to emergency events.. She holds a MSc (Distinction) in Responsible Business Practice from the University of Bath UK and a Bachelor of Management Studies (Honours) from the University of Waikato.

SARA MALINS

GLEN PHILLPOTTS

REBECCA SLINGO

KAREN STEVENS

General Manger Operations Sedgwick New Zealand

New Zealand Operations Manager ANZIIF

General Manager Learning ANZIIF

Insurance and Financial Services Ombudsman

Sara is the General Manager of Operations for Sedgwick New Zealand and is responsible for delivering service excellence for all operations across the New Zealand business.

Glen joined ANZIIF in 2020, after being a supportive client of ANZIIF from a large New Zealand brokerage firm. Glen’s role in that business was to head up Learning and Organisational Development function, so he fully understands the needs of our learners and our clients. Glen’s career in Learning, has seen him prosper in many types of companies, not just insurance. He has worked in Publishing, Advertising, Telecommunications, FMCG, IT and even owned his own restaurant. Therefore, we think Glen not only knows the needs of our clients, but knows yours too.

Rebecca Slingo is the General Manager, Learning at ANZIIF and has been an

Karen Stevens was appointed Insurance & Savings Ombudsman (ISO) in May 1998. Before this, Karen graduated with BA and LLB degrees from Victoria University and was admitted as a barrister and solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand in 1987. Karen practised as a lawyer in the area of civil litigation and alternative dispute resolution.

Sara started her insurance career in 1988 in the claims team of an insurance company and then joined the marine team at Cunningham Lindsey in 1990. During her tenure, Sara has held a wide variety of roles including loss adjuster, branch manager, quality and training manager prior to being promoted to the executive team as regional manager, and then General Manager of Operations. Sara specialises in the development, education and training of Sedgwick colleagues, and is the Chairperson for ANZIIF NZ Members Advisory Board and a member of the ANZIIF Claims Faculty board supporting and promoting professional development in the industry. Sara holds a certificate in Business Studies and is an ANZIIF (Snr Assoc) CIP.

L&D practitioner for more than 26 years. Leading learning functions across a range of industries including publishing, broadcasting and law and more recently 17 years in the insurance industry. Rebecca has participated on various committees including a four year tenure as Treasurer of the Enterprise Registered Training Organisations Association (ERTOA) and has been an active member of the Financial Services Industry Reference Committee since 2019. Rebecca is a Fellow of the Institute of Learning Professionals and a Member of the Australian Institute of Training and Development.

Since her appointment as ISO, Karen qualified as an Associate of The Arbitrators’ and Mediators’ Institute of New Zealand, a Member of The Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (UK) and a Fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Management. In 2009, she also completed an LLM degree from La Trobe University in Melbourne, majoring in conflict resolution. From 1 November 2015, after 20 years of financial dispute resolution and to better reflect its current membership, the ISO Scheme changed its name to the Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman Scheme (IFSO Scheme). Karen now holds the role of IFSO and the IFSO Scheme has over 4,000 Participants across the financial services sector. 2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

Large Broking Company of the Year

INSURANCE ADVISERNET NEW ZEALAND

Congratulations to the 2021 Award Winners

Underwriting Agency of the Year

DELTA INSURANCE

General Insurance Company of the Year

AA INSURANCE

Life Insurance Company of the Year

ASTERON LIFE

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Innovation

Insurance Learning

Insurance Leaders

of the Year

Program of the Year

of the Year

GALLAGHER BASSETT

AA INSURANCE

JIMMY HIGGINS SID MILLER CAMPBELL MITCHELL BLAIR WILLIAMS

Professional Services

Young Insurance Professional

Firm of the Year

MCLARENS

of the Year

STEPHEN CANTWELL

Service Provider

Broking Professional

to the Insurance Industry

of the Year

CORELOGIC NZ

FAITH OWENS

Excellence in Workplace Diversity and Inclusion

ANZIIF Lifetime Achievement Award DOUNE CONNETT

SUNCORP NEW ZEALAND 2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

Large Broking Company of the Year

INSURANCE ADVISERNET NEW ZEALAND

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Insurance Advisernet New Zealand (IANZ) has been awarded Large Broking Company of the Year for the second consecutive year. Judges felt the organisation displayed a strong focus on professionalism throughout 2020. Noting the critical nature of communication during the pandemic, judges commended the additional communication tools IANZ introduced to support its clients. IANZ also celebrated an improved client retention score — achieved through a consistently high quality of service.

The judging panel applauded IANZ for its support of the New Zealand community, clearly evident in the organisation’s promotion of numerous charity campaigns. IANZ were also praised for launching a new wellness initiative, which provided informative support for its network. The business expanded its professional development and training offering to employees in 2020, which resulted in a positive uptake of claimed CPD points compared to the previous year.

Underwriting Agency of the Year

DELTA INSURANCE

Delta Insurance made a strong contribution to the industry through thought leadership and participated in several community initiatives in 2020. Judges praised the business for its prolific support for health entities and professional bodies with whitepapers on medical malpractice, risk management and cyber security. Over the past 12 months, Delta Insurance also displayed a strong focus on learning and development as well as compliance training.

The organisation also encouraged employees to attend external industry webinars while rolling out its own webinar platform which achieved strong engagement and positive feedback. As a direct result, client retention rates were high over the past year. The judging panel also commended Delta Insurance for its support for the community, highlighted by its work to promote and support its charity organisation of choice, Lazy Sneakers.

2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

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General Insurance Company of the Year

AA INSURANCE

The high calibre of submissions in the General Insurance Company of the Year award prompted judges to describe it as a ‘fabulous category to judge’. The panel collectively praised all finalists for submitting ‘seriously impressive submissions’. In what was an extraordinary year, AA Insurance showcased a unique response to community and industry needs. The organisation was commended for its handling of COVID-19 challenges, both internally and externally. In 2020, AA Insurance went above

and beyond to support vulnerable customers who were financially affected by the pandemic. Judges praised AA Insurance for its ongoing promotion of customer services and promotion of industry in the New Zealand media. The organisation clearly outlined its direction and focus on ‘Customer, Conduct and Culture’, and presented forward thinking and well-thoughtout approaches to climate issues and insurance affordability. AA Insurance achieved excellent customer satisfaction NPS scores, as well as record breaking staff engagement scores in 2020. Sponsored by

Finalists AA Insurance AIG New Zealand FMG (Farmers Mutual Group) Vero

2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

Congratulations to all of the Life Insurance Company of the Year finalists

anziif.com PAGE 14

Life Insurance Company of the Year

ASTERON LIFE

In 2020, Asteron Life achieved incredible success through its community support and focus on vulnerable customers. The judging panel praised Asteron Life for its digital capabilities, which helped improve customer outcomes during the pandemic in 2020. Insurance advisers placed great value on Asteron Life’s services, which was evident in the significant uptake of new advisers in the past 12 months. Asteron Life achieved outstanding customer satisfaction scores, as well as improved survey responses in 2020.

The organisation demonstrated great support of its employees while working remotely, and provided additional resources including educational seminars, workshops, the promotion of its EAP service and offering 1:1 professional coaching and training to build resilience and manage change. Judges were also impressed by the organisation’s significant investment in an employee training program designed to gain, develop and further the skills of frontline staff responding to customers who were experiencing vulnerability.

Finalists AIA New Zealand Asteron Life Fidelity Life

2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

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Innovation of the Year

GALLAGHER BASSETT

Gallagher Bassett was awarded Innovation of the Year, after submitting a standout submission detailing its Poster Designer, a free online tool that helps employers run targeted health and safety campaigns in the workplace.

Poster Designer provides organisations with a tool to help employers communicate health and safety messages effectively and promote the benefits of a safer workplace in New Zealand, cutting time and costs.

Judges stated that ‘the submission took them on a journey highlighting this interesting innovation’s ability to enhance engagement and promote health and safety information within organisations’.

In addition, Gallagher Bassett presented detailed evidence of the New Zealand organisations that have adopted the tool. Gallagher Bassett’s innovation is making waves for its clients, and there’s no doubt the tool will help contribute to making a safer and healthier workplace for New Zealanders. Sponsored by

Finalists Gallagher Bassett Pinnacle Life Tower

2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

Professional Services Firm of the Year

MCLARENS

McLarens received overwhelming praise for adopting new, innovative technologies to assess risk and provide clients with in-depth disaster modelling.

Judges were truly impressed with the innovation and the benefits it unlocked for the New Zealand insurance industry and its customers in 2020.

In a standout submission, McLarens demonstrated how it grew its business in 2020, to become one of the largest loss adjusters in New Zealand.

McLarens was also praised for its ongoing support for employees during the COVID pandemic, by focussing on mental health and wellbeing, flexible work arrangements and regular video communication from the CEO and senior leaders. The organisation also launched a new intranet to enhance internal communication and connection with employees, which contributed to improved employee engagement and a reduction in turnover during 2020.

Notably, McLarens launched ModeConnect, an automated system to enable smaller insurers to send straight-forward claims directly to its national repair network, thereby cutting out the need for a traditional loss adjuster.

Finalists DLA Piper Finity McLarens Sedgwick New Zealand Wotton + Kearney RMS

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Service Provider to the Insurance Industry

CORELOGIC NZ

CoreLogic NZ was praised by the judges for its exemplary approach and actions to support the insurance industry in 2020. The organisation presented a slick and professional submission that clearly outlined its vision, programs and policies. Of particular note, CoreLogic NZ’s climate and flood hazard risk solutions made a significant difference to clients suffering the effects of severe weather events. For example, new, innovative technologies were launched including APIs to calculate flood risk and catastrophe modelling platforms.

CoreLogic NZ actively collaborated with industry to support New Zealanders during times of need. The business recorded high industry NPS scores, a testament to its improved customer offerings and services. The judging panel stated that ‘CoreLogic NZ has set-up sustainable, long-term goals for the future and has presented a well-thought-out approach to how it will achieve them’.

Finalists CoreLogic NZ IVAA JB Hi-Fi Smith&Smith®

2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

Excellence in Workplace Diversity and Inclusion SUNCORP NEW ZEALAND

Finalists DLA Piper Suncorp New Zealand Zurich General Insurance, Australia & New Zealand

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Suncorp New Zealand has been recognised with the Excellence in Workplace Diversity and Inclusion award for the second year. Judges were in awe of the proactive steps this year’s winner and each of the finalists have taken to support workplace diversity and inclusion. In 2020, Suncorp New Zealand provided education and training to its employees on diverse and inclusive workplaces, as well as celebrating key dates of importance to staff, introducing improvements to the organisation’s parental leave policy and empowering its people living with a disability. Suncorp New Zealand now has five employee groups that focus on different areas of diversity. Judges praised this year’s winner for supporting a broad spectrum of initiatives and networks, many of which were created and organised by employees. The submission

presented clear evidence that senior management had been actively involved in the initiatives and highlighted a positive shift in the gender diversity of senior leaders. Judges were pleased to see Suncorp New Zealand had achieved its mature aged targets, as well as investing in future talent which saw eight graduate hired in 2020. Suncorp New Zealand also outlined its community partnerships, which helped create employment opportunities for indigenous communities and migrants. The result was strong employee satisfaction scores for diversity and inclusion-based questions. Finally, judges stated that ‘Suncorp New Zealand has shown it cares about the wellbeing of its employees and the New Zealand community, something that should be commended’.

Insurance Learning Program of the Year

AA INSURANCE

AA Insurance can celebrate awards in multiple categories this year, having been awarded with Insurance Learning Program of the Year and General Insurance Company of the Year. Judges collectively praised the organisation for its focus on increased professionalism and learning outcomes supported by data-driven evidence. AA Insurance was described as ‘a true winner, having achieved massive growth through cross functional methodologies’.

Specifically, judges praised AA Insurance for its Compliance eLearning Suite, which focusses on supporting customers experiencing vulnerability. The submission noted that the program received incredible feedback from learners. AA Insurance identified how its compliance tools are positively influencing professionals and creating meaningful change for the organisation. The company was also commended for displaying great transparency when describing key learnings and future challenges.

Finalists AA Insurance AIG New Zealand

2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

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Young Insurance Professional of the Year

STEPHEN CANTWELL FMG

Finalists Stephen Cantwell, FMG Amy Cavanaugh, Pinnacle Life Len Elikhis, AIA New Zealand Joseph Fitzgerald, Wotton + Kearney Steph Kelly, FMG Daniel Mathieson, Sherpa Megan Wolak, Delta Insurance

Congratulations to Stephen Cantwell who is this year’s Young Insurance Professional of the Year. Inspired by a love of helping people when they need it, Stephen moved from Australia to New Zealand in February 2016, where he began his career in insurance as a Graduate with FMG. Stephen quickly excelled in his role which incorporated time spent working across the whole insurance value chain including the call centre, claims, underwriting, product, loss assessment and sales. It was not long before Stephen’s passion for agriculture and food production was sparked following his promotion to Rural Manager in Hauraki Plains and Coromandel. For three years, Stephen managed a portfolio of farming clients before moving into his current role as Manager Advice Services in Wellington.

The judging panel praised Stephen for his achievements in 2020, which comprised assisting frontline teams with resources for advising clients during COVID-19, media promotion, risk workshops and the completion of thermal imaging for client sites despite multiple disruptions. Stephen has made a consistent effort to give back to industry by leading community groups and presenting claims insights at conferences and webinars. The judging panel commended Stephen for detailing both macro and micro views of the industry and how it can be improved. Stephen clearly demonstrated an understanding of how the industry can make a difference to people’s lives, especially during challenging times such as weather events, pandemics and loss. His submission established how much thought he has invested in his short and long-term career goals and that he is an emerging leader with genuine care for others in the insurance industry profession. Sponsored by

2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

2021 SPONSOR Broking Professional of the Year

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Broking Professional to the Year

FAITH OWENS BRIDGES INSURANCE

There is no doubt Broking is where Faith Owen’s true passion lies. Faith has over 10 years of industry experience in both Loss Adjusting and Broking roles. The judge panel collectively praised Faith for displaying strong relationships with her clients. Judges commented ‘when you see her in that helper mode, you see how customer centric she is’. In her current role, Faith manages a significant portfolio, and maintains a strong relationship with all of her clients no matter the size. She has celebrated a 95% increase in business from referrals, which is testament to her exceptional service to clients.

Faith has displayed great conduct and culture, especially in a competitive market. She is actively involved in industry, presenting at multiple conferences and participating on industry advisory boards. Faith places great emphasis on her career and is an active academic achiever. She has completed multiple qualifications and continues to strengthen her formal learning each year. Industry leaders have praised faith for taking the time to understand every one of her clients individual needs and was noted as an inspiration for other young women aspiring to advance their career in insurance broking. Sponsored by

2021 New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards

Celebrating success DLA Piper is proud to sponsor the Insurance Leader of the Year award and congratulates the winner for achieving excellence. Compliments to all nominees and winners. We wish you the greatest success in the year ahead.

DLA Piper is a global law firm operating through various separate and distinct entities. Further details of these entities can be found at dlapiper.com. This may qualify as “Lawyer Advertising” requiring notice in some jurisdictions. Copyright © 2021 DLA Piper. All rights reserved.

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Insurance Leader of the Year JIMMY HIGGINS SUNCORP NEW ZEALAND

SID MILLER EARTHQUAKE COMMISSION

CAMPBELL MITCHELL SUNCORP NEW ZEALAND

BLAIR WILLIAMS IAG NEW ZEALAND

We should all recognise that we stand on the shoulders of giants. Those who have come before us make what we do possible. The earthquakes in Canterbury and Kaikoura, and our industry response, identified and enabled a pathway to change. Sometimes, a leader can make a lasting contribution to our industry through sheer force of cleverness and will, but more often it takes a collaborative mindset to bring truly significant change to life. Learning from the past, looking to the future, a project came to life through 2020 that has fundamentally changed the experience of our customers who experience the devastating effects of earthquakes and other natural disasters. It takes people who are committed to customer outcomes and the benefits that our industry provides in a way that goes way beyond their ‘day job’, and builds on a lifetime of knowledge, connections, skills, and experiences to create a legacy that is truly customer focused. The development and implementation of a new Natural Disaster Response Model is just

such a project, and no single leader can make that happen. It takes an army to climb that mountain. Through this award we recognise all the people who contributed to this new and improved future. In particular, the role of the ICNZ in coordinating this project and the myriad of stakeholders. The 8 companies who are signatories to the new arrangements are to be recognised and commended. Every person involved in this project should feel justly proud of truly making a difference to people’s lives at a time when they are most vulnerable. But there are some who really drove the change and built the conditions for success – creating fertile ground, learning from, and building on the past, and looking to the future. The winners in the end are our customers and the community, and so, in celebrating the achievements of the many who contributed to the new natural Disaster Response. Congratulations to Jimmy Higgins, Sid Miller, Campbell Mitchell and Blair Williams, ANZIIF acknowledges your exceptional industry leadership.