For the first time, the Asia life insurance industry celebrated the lifeblood of its operations at the 1st Asia Trusted Life Agents and Advisers Awards gala dinner on 12 July, honouring the achievements and dedication of the many agents and related operators that connect the industry to its clients. Featuring nine categories, the Awards saw some 500 entries, eventually pared down to 50 finalists, who then underwent a rigorous judging process by a panel of 20 international judges made up of business leaders and influential figures within the industry.
Congratulations to all the deserving winners and rousing cheer to all the participants!
These agents and advisers have a bright future ahead of them, not just as members of the industry, but as leaders and exemplars for the others following them. In the following pages, we capture the brilliance of the evening and the shining stars of the night.
Agents making a difference
Unacknowledged champions
“Agents and advisers remain all-too-often the unacknowledged champions of the life insurance industry. That is why it is so important to see their efforts and energies recognised.
This Awards provides a new platform to showcase the significance of these insurance intermediaries who have a key role in meeting the vital protection and savings needs of millions of people across the region.
It is another step towards creating greater awareness that the work being done every day by agents and advisers has a profound impact on people’s lives. I commend all those who submitted an entry this year and congratulate the well-deserved winners. I hope all of you will continue to make a real difference in the lives of the customers you serve and also their communities across the region.”
– Mr Mark Tucker
Group Chief Executive and President, AIA
Patron of the Awards
Contributing to their community
“We’re looking beyond the numbers and the productivity. Tonight’s finalists put the customer in front of the commission. Some of the nominees from tonight have contributed on a larger scale to their community, and for that they are to be commended.
Whether you win an award or not, you are a leading light in our profession.”
– Mr David Grant
Acting Chief Distribution Officer, Manulife Financial Asia
Chairman, Judging Panel
Winners’ Profiles
Insurance Agent of the Year: Ms Agassi Wang, Manulife (International) Limited, Hong Kong
Over Ms Agassi Wang’s 22-year career in the insurance industry, she has come to be viewed as a leader and an icon in the Hong Kong insurance industry.
An outstanding agency leader, she leads by example in the field and is strongly committed to helping her clients find the perfect financial planning solutions to address their needs. Her consistently strong results and a high policy persistency rate, reaching as high as 99% in 2015, affirm this commitment.
Rookie Insurance Agent of the Year: Ms Jessica Mok Nga Ching, AIA Hong Kong
Ms Jessica Mok began her career as a financial news anchor woman in Hong Kong. Her exposure and research into the financial market, her interviews with industry experts as well as connections with the public gave her an insight into the needs, motives and dreams of people.
A member of the Life Underwriters Association of Hong Kong, Ms Mok is also an active supporter of charities such as UNICEF, Po Leung Kuk and Nourish the Children.
Insurance Agency Leader of the Year: Mr Gabriel Tan Yong Kai, AIA Singapore
A 26-year veteran of the industry, Mr Gabriel Tan has been AIA Singapore’s Top Group Financial Services Director (FSD) for three consecutive years. Last year, he led his district to achieving the top number of recruits totalling more than 170 Financial Services Consultants (FSCs).
His strong industry and product knowledge enabled him to train and develop competent FSCs, able to provide customers with comprehensive financial health checks and suitable financial solutions to help meet their needs.
Rookie Agency Leader of the Year: Dato’ Irene Gan Ai Ling, Great Eastern Life Assurance (M) Bhd, Malaysia
Ms Irene Gan Ai Ling has had a good year. Alongside her promotion to Agency Manager at Great Eastern Life Assurance (M) Bhd, she has also received several accolades celebrating her success in the field.
Her achievements in 2015 include MDRT Court of the Table, Top Rookie Agency Manager, Top Agency Manager and Top Personal Producer. She was also instrumental in developing two agents who achieved rookie awards within two years of their service in Great Eastern.
Inspirational Agent/Leader of the Year: Dr Mary Chen Ming Li, AIA Singapore
This year marks Dr Mary Chen’s 30th year as a Life and Qualifying MDRT member with 28 consecutive years as a Life and Qualifying TOT member. She was also the first Chinese speaker on the Main Platform of MDRT and was the first and only AIA Agency Ambassador from 2010 to 2014.
Dr Chen started the Motion Heart Project together with her Agency Leader, Rayner Lee, to give back to society, building schools in rural China and a gym school in Cambodia for orphans.
Affinity/Bank Partner of the Year: Axis Bank, India
Axis Bank is the third largest private sector bank in India. It has strong international presence with branches in Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai (at DIFC), Colombo, Shanghai; representative offices in Dhaka, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and an overseas subsidiary in London, UK. As of 2016, it services about 17.2 million customers.
The bank has adopted an end-to-end digital sales process which covers all the stages and uses an electronic fulfilment process that enables the issuance of policies within four hours of application submission.
Technology Provider of the Year for Agents: EAB Systems Limited, Hong Kong
EAB Systems is a leading enterprise software company in the Asia Pacific, offering robust, flexible and scalable solutions to insurers, both regionally and internationally.
Leveraging their IT expertise and experience in the life insurance industry, they help customers enhance their distribution capabilities at the point of sale, accelerate the introduction of new products to the market and automate administration processes.
Insurance Company of the Year for Agents: Fubon Life Insurance Co Ltd, Taiwan
Fubon Life is one of the leading life insurers and frequent multi-award winners in Taiwan, with nearly 19,000 agents serving over four million clients.
The insurer encourages entrepreneurship, supporting agents to develop professional capacities and characters via its “Fubon Life Holistic Career Training Plan”. To aid young agents to achieve their goals, it implemented the largest-scale cloud digital training platform available and features the “Four- Ring Training Framework”, one of the most systematic training programmes around.
Executive Champion of the Year: Mr John Cai, CEO, AIA China
Mr John Cai has been the CEO of AIA China since July 2009. Since then he has transformed the business into one of the most successful life insurance companies in China.
He had led the entire AIA China team to launch the Premier Agency Strategy in late 2010, which saw remarkable growth of the financial performance and profitable new business of the company over the past six years.
Special mention: Ms Lourdes ‘Lulu’ Del Mundo , Philam Life, Philippines
Ms Lulu was commended on her tireless quest to provide the best protection available to her clients and for being an inspiration to the insurance industry for generations to come.
A 63-year veteran of the life insurance industry, Ms Lulu was the oldest participant of the Awards. The judges highlighted her service and commitment to the industry during the event, shining a light on the example she sets.
About the Awards
The Awards, with defined criteria and a highly transparent process with EY as independent auditor, is backed by a distinguished judging panel of 20 insurance leaders, life association heads and experts.
The winners were chosen through a two-stage judging process which focused on more than just financial performance and commissions, looking at the individual’s commitment to the industry, their passion, professionalism and the impact they had on their clients and the industry.
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