Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich) has outlined ambitious new financial targets for 2020-2022, during which it will enrich its retail offering and focus on increasing the customer base, while further improving the quality of its commercial portfolio.
Group Chief Executive Officer Mario Greco said: “Our performance over the past three years shows that our strategy is working. Our rapid progress is reflected in a total shareholder return of 96% since the start of 2016. We have made Zurich simpler, more agile and efficient, and strengthened the foundations for our long-term success.”
“We have deepened our customer focus and employee engagement by listening to their needs through regular tailored surveys. We have empowered employees to drive change and given our younger generation a stronger voice in shaping our culture and innovative programs such as our Zurich Innovation Championship for startups. Employee satisfaction has jumped over the past three years.”
Expanding Zurich’s long-term leadership position
The insurance sector is undergoing a dramatic transformation and Zurich is preparing for a future of truly service-focused insurance. After having simplified its operations, the Group will shift its focus and investments to applications and products that will enhance the customer experience.
Customers increasingly live within connected ecosystems, regularly interacting with providers with whom they share values and qualities. The Group strategy aims to leverage these relationships and increase engagement with customers to elevate Zurich as a trusted brand. Among Zurich’s new offerings are smart services for business and home protection, health and well-being programs, and travel insurance that keeps customers out of harm’s way.
Data insights are increasingly helping Zurich identify customer needs and prevent incidents, expanding the traditional protection offered by insurance. For 150 years customers have trusted Zurich to do the right thing, and Zurich is honouring this trust with a clear commitment to protect customers’ personal data. The Group has pledged to never sell personal data, nor share it without being fully transparent.
In Commercial, Zurich will build on its leading global position and its progress of the past few years, during which it significantly changed the commercial portfolio, improved profitability and reduced volatility against a challenging market backdrop. It will further improve the quality of the portfolio and take advantage of improved market conditions to selectively grow the business. The Group will increase investment in underwriting capabilities and strengthen its risk selection. Additional focus will be given to scaling up industry-specific solutions, services and selected specialty products such as Accident & Health to fully capitalize on Zurich’s market position and to deepen its penetration of mid-market customers. In addition, the Group will roll out technology aimed at delivering superior insights to claims and underwriting teams.
In Retail, Zurich will build on customer and product insights gained over recent years to deepen its relationship with existing customers and build out new customer segments, with the aim to become their preferred insurance provider. This includes the roll out of innovative and more flexible product offerings to also meet the needs of the Millennial and Gen Z age groups. The needs of small- and medium-sized enterprises will be met by rolling out more standardized and simplified products through existing distribution channels and the continued expansion of the Group’s strategic collaboration with CoverWallet, the online platform for SME insurance, in Europe. The Group will continue to invest in advanced data and analytics, customer insights and digital tools to support its distribution partners and continue to build out its partnership distribution strategy, which provides access to around 200 million customers today.
Farmers is a key part of Zurich’s business and has performed strongly over recent years. The Farmers Exchanges, which are owned by their policyholders, will continue their focus on improving customer experience and satisfaction; strengthening agent productivity; and growing in the life and business insurance segments. A priority of the Farmers Exchanges remains the successful expansion into the Eastern United States and the development of new and innovative products.
Be the first to comment