For Belinda Au, the digital journey at work began around 18 months ago, but advancing it is just one of the major responsibilities set to keep her fully occupied in 2019.
“The younger generation want to deal more online, so we’ll give them that option and keep pushing it forward,” says the general manager of distribution and marketing for Sun Life Hong Kong. “We have already launched a client app and will put more in, adding things like automatic claim submission.”
In every digital project, she explains, a key objective is to look at the current “pain points” for clients. This could be anything from difficulty in understanding a document to having to sign one’s name 20-plus times for a specific product.
“Besides making sure the risk profile matches, we must have the customers’ best interests at heart in other ways,” says Au, who assesses each proposed development from the user’s perspective. “With technology, I see myself as a client and ask: is it easy to understand? Our aim is not just to improve existing distribution, but also to enhance the activity, productivity and professional image of the company.”
That, of course, is essential in meeting what is always the main challenge — growing the business. Au already oversees a 2,200-strong sales force, many as tied agents selling only Sun Life products, others acting as brokers who place business with any insurance company that is able to provide the required products and services.
“In terms of headcount, we need to double our size to get into the ‘big boys’ game in Hong Kong, and that’s what I want to do,” says Au, noting that tied agency currently accounts for about 70 per cent of the company’s total sales mix. “Hiring is easy; having scale helps because the effort for advertising, seminars and marketing is the same for recruiting 50 as it is for 100. But we also lose a lot of people poached by others in the industry or because they decide to leave the sector.”
To deal with that, the company has been investing more in training and development programmes to improve, inform and support employees at all levels. In addition, it is making sustained efforts to build the corporate brand in large part by introducing new products custom-designed for new or evolving customer needs.
For instance, there is a child plan which was launched in mid-2018. It grew from the findings of a survey which showed that many parents of today’s “Generation Y” children feel an obligation to help out financially even after their kids have a first job or get married.
Recognising this, the resulting insurance product is basically a savings plan, where the beneficiary is the child. It can be purchased by parents or grandparents, and some trust features are built in.
“We make sure the savings go all the way to the target number of years,” Au says. “It is quickly gaining momentum.”
Separately, a retirement annuity plan is already in place, and this year will see the introduction of the Voluntary Health Insurance Scheme, allowing everyone to buy standard cover and top it up as well.
“It is going to be a competitive market because the plan itself is government regulated and the price range is stipulated,” she says. “A lot of the newcomers say they will launch it as a digital product so customers can buy easily online. We don’t know if that will be disruptive, but we have to be ready.”
Now based in Tsim Sha Tsui, Au grew up in Jordan, so by a reckoning she has taken a somewhat roundabout route to reach her current position.
Her father was a businessman who did well in ventures ranging from restaurants to real estate, and she recalls a carefree childhood, roaming the neighbourhood, playing in the streets until dinnertime, but having to pitch in with cooking, washing and cleaning the house.
“Those were good times, but my parents divorced and my mother’s second marriage was to a Canadian, so we migrated to Canada when I was 12. However, I’m a very optimistic person and saw that move as an opportunity to learn new things.”
Attending high school in Brampton near Toronto, she made friends quickly and, for a while, lived with an uncle, who tried to steer her towards a degree in computer science or engineering.
“I wanted to do arts or languages and, as a grudge, said whatever you pick, I won’t do it. In the end, I looked at the syllabus for the University of Toronto, saw actuarial sciences, and chose that even though I had no clue what it was. Luckily, it was a fun four years; I was one of only three women in a class of 150.”
On graduating in 1987, it made obvious sense to go straight into the insurance business, so she joined the sales division of Metlife in Toronto. There were inevitable ups and downs, but it was all good experience and when, after a spell with State Farm Insurance, she and her husband decided to move back to Hong Kong in 1992, she stayed in the sector. The first stop was Zurich, then AIA, before the move to Sun Life in 2012 as chief agency officer in charge of sales.
“In every job, I wanted to improve myself and fill in any gaps in my knowledge. By doing that, the bosses would give me more chances,” says Au, who is a mother of three. “Also, every time I got pregnant, I looked at things differently in career terms and felt motivated when I went back to work again.”
To keep sharp, she now hikes and runs, competing in long-distance races and company-related team events.
“I’m not a born athlete, but I believe if you can do it, then do it. Also, I truly believe that people can live to 120. Good living standards, exercise and medical technology will allow us to do that.”
