Kelly Stuart, manager of claims capability at FMG, has been awarded the Gallup Manager of the Year title at the Gallup at Work Summit in Omaha, Nebraska.
Stuart (pictured), from Palmerston North, was one of 10 global finalists and is the first New Zealander to receive this recognition.
The Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award program asks participating organisations to nominate a manager who significantly influences employee experience and maintains high performance, retention, and team engagement.
FMG nominated Stuart, who began with the company in July 2017 as a learning and capability consultant and has since progressed to lead the claims lodgement team.
“I’ve been a fan of Gallup for a long time, and as a leader, [I] have always prioritised my people’s engagement,” Stuart said. “The last organisation I worked for also used Gallup to measure engagement, and even before I started working at FMG, my teams consistently scored in the 90th percentile. I’m proud to say I continued that trend while working here.”
Additionally, FMG was named one of 40 Gallup Exceptional Workplaces globally in 2022, 2023, and 2024.
It also recently enhanced its core business functions by implementing Guidewire InsuranceSuite on Guidewire Cloud. This transition aims to help the company respond more quickly to market demands and customer requirements.
Gallup conducts employee engagement surveys for FMG and other organisations using the Q12 tool, which measures 12 drivers of workplace engagement.
For nearly two decades, it has honoured organisations that meet its rigorous standards with the Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award. This award is based on extensive studies analysing the experiences of over 2.7 million workers across more than 100,000 teams.
Gallup’s research underscores the significant role managers play in influencing employee engagement, attributing up to 70% of the variation in engagement scores to management. To highlight this importance, the firm created the Manager of the Year Award.
Organisations vying for the Gallup Exceptional Workplace Award nominate one manager who consistently enhances the employee experience and achieves high performance, retention, and team engagement.
