Suncorp shuffles commercial insurance management

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8 February 2010

Suncorp has confirmed 12 changes to its senior management ranks as restructuring continues under new Commercial Insurance CEO Anthony Day.

The changes include the integration of similar functions in a bid to achieve greater efficiency and reduce duplication in systems and processes.

Mr Day told insuranceNEWS.com.au the changes, announced on Friday, have “achieved the optimal design to suit the market, our brokers, customers and our people”.

“The functional structure ensures our brokers get the best out of our business and that we can provide superior service and have clarity of responsibility for brokers.”

Six roles reporting to Executive GM Commercial Portfolio and Underwriting Management Darren O’Connell have been announced:

Alex Green has been appointed Head of Casualty, John Phillips is Head of SME, Brad Dalton is Head of Specialty and David Hoffmann is Head of Property. These roles are all newly created.

Greg Steel has been appointed Executive Manager Commercial Motor Portfolio, while Cheryl Chantry is Executive Manager Portfolio Innovation and Optimisation.

Six further appointments affecting the areas run by Executive GM Intermediated Distribution Andrew Mair have also been announced:

Opie Loi becomes Executive Manager National Relationship Management, while Executive Manager Broker Distribution Northern Nicole Mann takes on a new role as Executive Manager SME Underwriting Services. Her replacement in the northern region is Warren Joslin; Andrew Borden remains Executive Manager Broker Distribution Southern.

Greg Merriman is acting in the role of Executive Manager Distribution Technology, while Gabriele McDonald has been confirmed as Executive Manager Market Management.

It’s understood a number of redundancies have also taken place, with a Suncorp spokesman telling insuranceNEWS.com.au “several roles were significantly changed during the restructure, several remained the same, and a handful were made redundant”.

One of those affected by the reshuffle is Executive Manager Intermediary Partnerships Peter Jones, who will leave the company on March 1.

Mr Day told insuranceNEWS.com.au Suncorp’s commercial insurance business needs to be able to readily adapt. “You can’t afford to be stagnant as the needs of brokers and customers continue to change, just as the economic conditions do,” he said.

“We see more confidence in business now than we have seen in the past 18 months, and it’s imperative that our business is designed to deliver on our strategy – with the results all our stakeholders expect.”