Inspiring Female Leaders in Insurance in Asia
| Elite Women 2023

“My aim is to take financial advisory to the next level through social media awareness. We are working in a digital connected world. When we are empowered with knowledge, that’s when we can make good financial decisions that impact not just our generation but also future generations”
Jaslyn NgPrudential Assurance Company

A new era of female leaders breaking barriers

The need for female role models is becoming increasingly clear.  

“The lack of representation of women in senior and decision-making roles creates a scarcity of role models and mentors, making it more difficult for women to navigate their careers and envision themselves in leadership positions – and indeed can reinforce the unconscious bias of what leadership looks like,” asserts Naidu.

For Lei Yu, QBE Asia’s chief executive for North Asia and regional head of distribution, obstacles are an opportunity to grow and strengthen the team bonds she has built within her organisation. Since 2019, Yu has driven profitable growth and turned the company’s performance around. She has prioritised innovation and modernised traditional insurance practices in tandem with employee engagement. She counts among her successes a recent survey showing 85% of QBE Asia staff are highly engaged.

“I feel very fortunate and privileged to lead such a highly engaged workforce,” she notes. “We did a lot in the past few years to ensure our colleagues feel cared for, and we invested in their development.”

Among Yu’s notable accomplishments are:

• leading successful digital transformation projects resulting in QBE Hong Kong clinching three industry awards 
   

• forming the QBE Hong Kong Circle, an employee network group promoting gender equality and fostering a supportive and inclusive environment  
   

• addressing regional economic challenges as a Pacific Basin Economic Council board member  
   

The Elite Women have tackled obstacles relating to gender bias, lack of women in leadership positions in Asia, and work-life balance that can create the incorrect perception that women are less committed than men.

“It’s important to remember it’s not just one person, you have your whole team, and you can overcome obstacles together,” explains Yu. “Focus on taking baby steps to make changes.”

To motivate others to keep moving forward, Yu draws on her experience leading a team of women on a trek to Mount Everest base camp. As a collaborative leader, she has focused on promoting flexible work policies and parental leaves within her organisation. Over 50% of QBE Asia staff are women, including in technical roles such as underwriting.

“The next phase of my career is about how I can attract more women into the insurance industry and help more women break this glass ceiling,” she adds.

She highlights how the post-Covid acceptance of remote working has led to some benefits.

“Many women in insurance struggle to balance work and family responsibilities, and flexible working has helped women to manage their obligations.”

“We can only transform our industry to be more relevant if we attract more young people and women, and we can modernise with the use of digital technology”
Lei YuQBE Asia

What challenges have Asia’s female leaders in insurance risen above?

Singapore-based financial services director Jaslyn Ng has led her all-female team at Prudential Assurance Company adeptly. She credits her background in the HR sector with instilling an ability to connect in a genuine and ethical way.

In addition, her insights and financial knowledge in service of others has amassed her a following on social media and the conference circuit.

Despite only joining the financial services industry over five years ago, Ng is regarded as a “legendary” figure for achieving sales breakthroughs. Her resilience and ability are evidenced by adapting to challenging personal circumstances, including divorce and parenting two children.

“I’ve been through a lot in life, and any of the obstacles I faced could have defeated me,” she explains. “When I feel like I don’t have an ounce of energy left, I think about my kids, and I find the strength to move on because I want them to grow up in the best and healthiest ways possible.”

Ng’s top-performing achievements have been recognised by the insurance trade association The Million Dollar Round Table, from which she and her agency received the following awards:

• Top of the Table 2023  
   

• Multi-Million Dollar Agency 2022 
   

• Court of the Table 2019–2022  
   

• Million Dollar Round Table 2018   
   

Ng’s leadership skills fast-tracked her into management. She was promoted to financial services director within five years, was certified as a high-net-worth advisor and completed the ChFC designation within seven months.

Armed with the realisation that female role models are scarce and women lack representation in senior and decision-making insurance roles, Ng prioritised sharing her success story with other women. She is also a prolific contributor on LinkedIn and has written books to help guide financial consultants.

“My team are all working mothers, and I want to push that out to the wider community to help women succeed,” she explains. “I want to pay it forward and inspire more women leaders; that is my key motivator.”

Building networks is key for Asia’s leading women in insurance

As chief commercial officer at Aon Asia-Pacific, Jane Drummond consistently drives double-digit growth and exceptional employee engagement. Her ability to foster positive relationships while propelling the organisation forward is evidenced by employees rating her as the top manager that “connects with me as a person”.

She has distinguished herself as a leader in risk management and insurance solutions, and her unwavering passion for serving clients led to the creation of the Aon Insights Series, Asia, a platform to connect leaders who make enterprise-wide risk decisions.

That initiative regularly attracts registrants of more than 1,500 and is now hosted in the United States, Europe, Australia, and Singapore. Sub-events are also being created in person in Manila, Tokyo, and Hong Kong for the first time.

Drummond aims to continue blazing a path for colleagues to challenge, innovate, and deliver market-leading solutions. And she is resolutely focused on mentoring aspiring female leaders to reach the next level of their development.

“I am always willing to step up, challenge, lead and support all colleagues in our day to day to service delivery in APAC and globally.”

She has earned a reputation among her peers, insurers, and clients for being efficient and effective over her 25-year career. Her biggest strength is unquestionably communication, closely followed by positivity and ‘woo’.

“Woo is the ability to win over others, and I thrive on meeting new people and winning them over, which aligns to my passion for sales,” explains Drummond. “My philosophy and approach to obstacles is that tomorrow is another day and therefore another opportunity; you must be resilient and be ready to pick yourself and your team back up.”

Drummond’s outstanding accomplishments include:

• sponsoring Aon’s partnership with the Pan-Asia Risk Management Association, maintaining platinum sponsorship for a decade
   

• delivering Aon United, a blueprint guiding employees to bring top-notch service to clients, credited with kick-starting a significant culture shift toward agnostic client leadership
   

• championing DE&I initiatives such as Dive In and WIN

“I thrive on problem-solving and helping colleagues to achieve their goals, and I hope to continue this well into the future”
Jane DrummondAon

Inspiring Female Leaders in Insurance in Asia | Elite Women 2023

• 
  Jane Drummond
  Chief Commercial Officer, Asia-Pacific
  Aon
   
  
• 
  Jaslyn Ng
  Financial Services Director
  Prudential Assurance Company Singapore
   
  
• 
  Lei Yu
  Chief Executive Officer for North Asia and
  Regional Head of Distribution
  QBE Asia
   
  
• 
  Cecilia Chang
  Chief Executive Officer
  Generali Hong Kong
   
  
• 
  Jeanette Lim
  Regional Head of Development and Incentives,
  Independent Distribution Partners
  Chubb Asia Pacific
   
  
• 
  Sue Coulter
  Head of Group Digital
  AIA
   
  

• Cindy Kua
  Co-Founder and CEO
  Sunday
• Cynthia Yeung
  Senior Vice President, Construction Practice Leader
  Marsh
• Diana Gobeawan
  Director of Travel Partnerships, APAC
  Cover Genius
• Goh Geok Cheng
  Non-Executive Director
  IPPFA
• Jenny Lim
  Chief Executive Officer
  Howden Insurance Brokers
• Jess Tan
  Chief Distribution Officer
  Etiqa Insurance Singapore
• Karren Tan
  Head of Recoveries and Subrogation Malaysia 
  Crawford & Company
• Loh Guat Lan
  Managing Director and CEO
  Hong Leong Assurance Berhad
• Monami Mukherjee
  Director and Head of P&C Analytics, Asia Pacific
  Swiss Re
• Nikki Davies
  Group Diversity and Inclusion Director
  Prudential plc
• Shirley Tan
  Chief Marketing Officer
  Etiqa Insurance Singapore
• Stella Soh
  Head of TPA Singapore 
  Crawford & Company
• Tanja Magas
  Chief Data and Analytics Officer
  Democrance
• Teresa Wong
  Chief Risk Officer and Head of Sustainability Risk
  Zurich General Insurance Malaysia
• Veronica Grigg
  President of Asia
  Crawford & Company
• Yen Yen Koh
  General Manager, Singapore
  bolttech