ANZIIF New Zealand awards recognise Doune Connett and Stephen Cantwell

AIA New Zealand’s Doune Connett is 2021 Lifetime Achiever, while FMG’s Stephen Cantwell was named Young Insurance Professional of the Year at this year’s ANZIIF New Zealand Insurance Industry Awards.  

2021 ANZIIF New Zealand Lifetime Achiever

AIA New Zealand Chief Risk and Compliance Officer Doune Connett has taken every opportunity throughout her insurance career and is a big believer in life-long learning.

Working in insurance runs in the family for AIA NZ’s Chief Risk and Compliance Officer Doune Connett.

She grew up listening to her father talk about his work as an insurance adviser and the way it could help people and was confident it was the career for her.

Fast forward 37 years and Connett’s significant contribution to the New Zealand insurance industry has been recognised with the 2021 Lifetime Achievement Award at this month’s ANZIIF Awards.

‘I always knew about insurance and the value that it could add to families and the community,’ says Connett. ‘My father was a life insurance adviser and he told me about the actuary role and helped me when I was deciding which path to take.’

Sharing the knowledge

Connett’s career has been driven by a desire to make a difference.

‘I’ve always been clear about the value that we add and making sure that our companies are going to be there for the long term to meet our customer's needs,’ she says. ‘It's always driven me, and made me feel that what I was doing was really worthwhile.’

As one of the first female actuaries to qualify in New Zealand, Connett has seen many changes across the industry. When she started out in 1985, she was the only woman in her team and there were very few women in senior leadership roles to look up to.

‘That's changed over the years, which is great, because it's kind of hard when you don't have that many role models,’ says Connett.

‘I learned a lot from the actuaries I worked with in my early years and I want to try and pass some of that wisdom and experience down to the people I come into contact with. It's been something that I've viewed as an important part of my role.

The value of resilience

Connett says embracing opportunities has helped her develop new skills throughout her career and gain a breadth of knowledge about the insurance industry.

‘It’s been really important throughout my career to take opportunities when they come,’ she says. ‘There was a period in the late nineties where the company I worked for went through three mergers and acquisitions in three years, which was pretty full on.

‘I was heavily involved in transitioning those companies through that period and I developed some approaches to systems migration that we’ve since used multiple times. I learned a huge amount through that period, including the importance of resilience.’

Connett says resilience is something the entire industry needs to face given current and emerging challenges, such as the increase in automation and the impact of COVID-19.

‘The big thing hanging over everyone is COVID,’ says Connett. ‘It has brought significant risk implications and there's still a lot of uncertainty around where that's going to end up.

‘Another risk we have to be aware of is automation,’ adds Connett. ‘How do you manage risk in an increasingly automated world? I think that is something companies will need to think about differently.’

Seizing opportunities

Moving away from actuarial work five years ago to her current role as AIA NZ’s Chief Risk and Compliance Officer has been another career highlight for Connett. 

‘I was looking for a change, but I wasn’t expecting to move out of actuarial work,’ she says.

‘I put my hand up and I've never regretted moving into this role. I think you can always keep learning new things and having an actuarial background is a great basis for a Chief Risk and Compliance Officer. I'm very happy doing what I'm doing.’

‘I feel very honoured to have received this award,’ adds Connett. 

2021 ANZIIF New Zealand Young Achiever of the Year

A desire to work in agriculture led Stephen Cantwell to a career in insurance. As head of Client Strategy & Advice Services at New Zealand mutual insurer FMG, he’s helping rural communities to protect their farms, families and livelihoods.

Stephen Cantwell’s love of the land started at a young age while spending time on his grandparents’ farms in regional Victoria. A career in agriculture was always his goal, but he didn’t make the insurance connection until graduating from university.

Cantwell was accepted into the FMG Graduate Program after finishing a Bachelor of Agricultural Sciences/Bachelor of International Development at La Trobe University in Melbourne.

Almost six years later, he leads FMG’s Client Strategy & Advice Services in Wellington and has just completed a Masters in Agribusiness at Melbourne University.

‘I really enjoy the process of learning and the agricultural sector is constantly evolving, so there's just endless things to discover,’ says Cantwell. ‘There are so many clever and passionate people in this industry looking to do things better.’

Mutual values

As the recipient of this year’s ANZIIF Young Achiever of the Year Award, Cantwell has already made a significant contribution to the industry.

He has helped others along their insurance career path and leading a team at the mutual insurance that was founded more than a century ago by a group of Kiwi farmers to help rural New Zealanders to protect for their farms, families and livelihoods at a time when their insurance options were quite limited.

‘Being able to help people start off their journey as an insurance professional and watch them develop is really satisfying,' says Cantwell.

'And helping our clients is something I still find really rewarding. It was an honour to receive this award for doing what I love.’

The insurance industry may not have been an obvious career choice for Cantwell, but he says the work of a mutual insurer like FMG aligns with his own values.

‘What we're trying to do is prevent claims from happening in the first place,' he says.

'FMG is a mutual insurer and while we are a profit-making business, we are not a profit maximising business. If we can reduce the claims that we have, then we can help stabilise premiums, which is great for everyone.’

Global learning

Last year, Cantwell’s work was recognised by FMG through the Development Award, an honour he says is another highlight of his career.

‘Professional development is a big focus for me,’ he says. ‘I am always trying to learn something new and just get better at the craft.

‘In 2019 we hosted the International Cooperatives and Mutual Insurance Federation Conference in Auckland and it was great to meet mutual insurers from around the world. 

‘We are still connected with some of them in Canada and Denmark and it is so interesting to be able to share ideas and learn from each other.’

Making the most of opportunity

Cantwell is motivated by a desire to help others and, having recently moved into his new role, he plans to make the most of his opportunities at FMG.

‘I used to have a portfolio of clients and worked with them on a one-to-one basis, which I enjoyed,' he says. 'Now, I've got a national role where I'm helping our people at FMG who look after our clients.

'I want to be able to help give them the knowledge and the skills to be able to have really good conversations with their clients,' he says.

'The great thing about insurance is you get to be there to help people when they really need it. Not every job can offer that. 

‘Being able to help people start off their journey as an insurance professional and watch them develop is really satisfying,' says Cantwell. 'And helping our clients is something I still find really rewarding. It was an honour to receive this award for doing what I love.’

The insurance industry may not have been an obvious career choice for Cantwell, but he says the work of a mutual insurer like FMG aligns with his own values.

‘What we're trying to do is prevent claims from happening in the first place,' he says. 'FMG is a mutual insurer and while we are a profit-making business, we are not a profit maximising business.

'If we can reduce the claims that we have, then we can help stabilise premiums, which is great for everyone.’