AIA boss back

Stanhope took leave in November and has now returned to lead the company.

He says he is looking forward to the challenges and opportunities 2022 presents for AIA.

“This year brings further conduct regulation with the Financial Markets (Conduct of Financial Institutions) Amendment Bill (CoFi) later this year, and AIA is focused on making sure we have the right tools in place to support our people, partners and the wider industry in complying with these new requirements.”

Stanhope says his attention this year will be centred on reconnecting – with his people and AIA’s business partners.

“The past two years have been challenging with very few employees in any of our AIA NZ offices. We did this purposely with our people’s health, safety and wellbeing at the forefront, and to minimise the risk of Covid-19 spreading throughout our workforce. I feel we need to start getting back to more of a ‘business as usual’ mindset, while embracing these new ways of working. 

“It really felt like we were all in survival mode for a large part of last year, and I look forward to having more in-person interactions, reconnecting at events, and getting out there to see our advisers and business partners in 2022.”

Stanhope also indicated AIA’s intention to bring new innovations to the New Zealand market.

“We’re exploring how to extend the current insurance pool to help protect more Kiwis. The traditional new business risk market is in decline, and we want to help close the protection gap by addressing unmet customer through focussing on seamless digital and affordable solutions.

“I’m excited about what AIA could create by leveraging our global support network, and how it will deliver on AIA’s dream of championing New Zealand to be one of the healthiest and best protected nations in the world.”