1. Business Scope and Scale: Allianz, founded around 1890, is one of the world's largest insurance and asset management providers. The global company has roughly 157,000 employees across roughly 70 countries. The Allianz UK business has roughly 4,200 employees in the United Kingdom, and over 1,000 support service professionals in Trivandrum, India.
2. Sustainability Strategy: Allianz Group published its first Net-Zero Transition Plan in 2023. The plan sets targets and commitments for 2030 -- including:
Increase Climate Solutions investments by at least € 20 billion from current level (€ 37 billion as of 31 December 2023) until 2029, subject to market environment and constraints.
Strive to reduce CO2 emissions by 30% absolute in the retail motor segment and 45% with regards to the GHG intensity in the commercial insurance segment by 2030.
Reduce emissions by 50% by 2030 compared to 2019 for the corporate portfolio.
Reinforce decarbonization goals with customers, partners and policymakers through advocacy and partnerships.
3. Allianz UK - New Head of Sustainability Role: The senior leadership position "underscores the importance placed on sustainability across the entire business, with the role encompassing Allianz UK’s multi-brand portfolio including Petplan and LV=," the company said.
As Allianz UK's head of sustainability, Bethany Thomas reports to CFO Ulf Lange. Thomas is responsible for "developing and leading the implementation of the UK sustainability strategy across the business segments of commercial, personal, specialty, and central corporate functions."
Thomas joined Allianz in 2014 on the underwriting graduate scheme and subsequently held a number of roles within underwriting including head of multinational, the company noted. She then joined Allianz Group as executive assistant to the global head of property and casualty, a role that included all aspects of sustainability for the P&C business, the company added. Most recently, Thomas rejoined Allianz UK to lead the CEO office team overseeing projects, governance, reporting and strategy, the company concluded.
Ulf Lange, CFO, Allianz
4. Executive Perspectives: In a prepared statement, CFO Ulf Lange said: “I’m very happy to announce Bethany as our new head of sustainability. She has extensive knowledge of our business and a global network to ensure that we are sharing and driving best practice. She will be able to utilise this technical knowledge, alongside a genuine passion for the topic, to be a trusted business advisor while also bringing our employees along on the journey with us, as an insurer and employer."
Concluded Lange: “Sustainability has always played an important part in our UK strategy, but the creation of this role signals our aligned approach across all parts of our UK business and maximises the opportunities we can create for ourselves, our brokers and our customers.”
Chief Sustainability Officers: Why Technology Partners Should Care
By 2027, 25% of Global 2000 companies will have assigned a chief sustainability officer (CSO) responsible for meeting their organization’s ESG goals and making ESG-related IT purchasing decisions, according to IDC.
The bottom line: Technology partners need to extend their sales, marketing, engagement and support strategies to successfully fulfill those CSO customer needs, Sustainable Tech Partner believes.
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