AIA: Developing agency force a focus of new honcho

| 06 Jun 2017

Newly appointed AIA Group Ltd group chief executive and president Ng Keng Hooi aims to develop and grow people both at the staff and agency level, in order to take the company into its next phase of growth.

The Hong Kong-based Ng said that helming AIA Group, a leader in the APAC (excluding Japan) life insurance market, has put him in a privileged position to develop the group’s human resources, according to a report in Malaysia daily The Star.

“I have passion for people and want them to succeed in their career. There are huge opportunities for growth and expansion at different levels within the organisation.”

“In order to do so, they have to prove themselves and show their capabilities,” Mr Ng said, adding that employees have the opportunity to work and be transferred among the Group’s operations throughout the region. He is the first Malaysian to helm an international financial services group,

Out of the eight senior appointments made this year, seven were from within the company.

Mr Ng told The Star that the company’s focus is to build a world class agency force.

He said the group was looking at quality and dedicated agents who want to progress in the agency business, and highlighted AIA’s premier agency strategy, which has helped in successfully developing Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) qualifiers. AIA was named the No.1 MDRT company in the world for two consecutive years, in 2015 and 2016.

Another company initiative to develop skills is the establishment of AIA’s leadership training centre in Bangkok, which was launched in March 2016.

In addition, the group's people review process, which is stringent and carried out twice a year, ensures there are successors for all roles and levels. In the event there are “gaps” for a person who has been identified as a successor, measures will be put in place to ensure he or she succeeds in becoming one, reported The Star.