Meet the Speakers: GAIN Summer Workshop Panel Event

As Summer comes to a close and we reflect on the successful launch of our Summer Workshop series for corporate members, which brought together line managers, HR representatives and employees at all levels to learn how to foster neuroinclusion in their workplace, we will be rounding out the series with an exclusive panel and networking event.

We're excited to see some of you join us on Thursday 3rd October at noon, at the beautiful Swiss Re offices at The Gherkin in London, to hear from expert speakers from within our membership who have direct experience to offer.

Our workshops focused on empowering individuals with knowledge. The first, an introduction to neurodiversity, provided the basics around neurodiversity, the spiky profile, the legal obligation companies have to support their employees, and practical ways to act as an ally and foster neuroinclusion. The second, focused on skills for line managers, talked about the ways a manager can support their team in a neuroinclusive way, and included break-out sessions and a take-away guide for educating teams on the topic. The third, aimed at hiring managers and HR, talked about the recruitment process and followed a similar format.

Our speakers on 3rd October 2024 all have direct experience of one or more topics covered in those workshops. Whether they are neurodivergent themselves and have been on the receiving end of good and bad experiences with management and recruitment, or are a leader, manager or HR representative who have worked with neurodivergent colleagues and have experience with putting neuroinclusion theory into practice.

So let's get to know our speakers a bit, starting with our moderator for the event.

Francis McGee

Executive Chair, GAIN

(He/Him)

Francis is Executive Chair of GAIN, a non-profit advocating for neurodiverse people working in financial services, which he joined in 2023. This is one of a number of roles he holds as Board member, strategic adviser and consultant helping businesses, public bodies and charities with issues around policy and practice. ​

He specialises in financial services, where he worked for 30 years, and in issues relating to diversity, inclusion/exclusion and vulnerability. ​

His varied career includes spells in regulation, Government, insurance, credit, debt and debt advice, financial advice and guidance, and open banking.

Vivine Cameron

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager, CII

(She/Her)

Vivine Cameron is Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Manager at the Chartered Insurance Institute. Vivine’s role and remit is the promotion of greater diversity and inclusion within the Chartered Insurance Institute as an organisation and within the wider insurance and financial planning profession as a whole. ​

During her career, Vivine has worked within a range of fields from Legal, Schools, Further & Higher Education, Retail, Tech, Tech Start-ups, NHS and Construction, to Insurance and Financial Planning. Vivine is an enthusiastic Learning and Development professional, passionate to enable all to achieve their desired personal and professional goals. ​

• 2024 IBUK Elite Women Award Winner, recognising one of many distinguished contributors to the insurance industry. ​

• 2024 - UnderOne Diversity and Inclusion Awards Celebrating and Commending International DEI Champions – DEI Rising Star Award nominee. ​

• 2022 NextGen Planners Education Initiative of the Year Award Winner recognising tireless work to improve values in Financial Planning through quality education and support. ​

• 2008 American Express Regent’s Club Award Winner, recognising the outstanding top performing 3% of employees globally for their goal achievements and leadership behaviours.

Asil Motala

L&H IN-Force Structuring Actuary, Swiss Re

(He/Him)

Asil is the Co-Chair of Great Minds UK, the Neurodiversity ERG at Swiss Re. ​

​He is a qualified actuary with experience in L&H Reinsurance across Europe, Middle East and Africa. Originally from South Africa, he relocated to the UK in February 2021 and has been based in London since. ​​

Asil became involved with Neurodiversity through personal experiences, and a passion to make changes that will benefit all. While not formally diagnosed, he believes himself to be neurodiverse and looks to transform lived experiences into practical changes for others.

Anna Delves

Internal Communications Manager, Simply Business

(She/They)

Anna Delves is an autistic and ADHD writer, speaker, and communications expert. After being diagnosed with dyspraxia at age five, Anna’s other neurodivergences weren’t discovered until adulthood. Despite the struggles this caused, Anna went on to receive a degree in English from the University of Cambridge, and is now a successful communications professional in the world of FinTech.​​

Speaking candidly about her life both before and after her diagnosis, Anna captivates audiences with a unique blend of personal experiences and professional expertise. As someone who has spent time unpicking their worldview since learning of her neurodivergence, Anna brings a wealth of knowledge and insights to her speaking engagements. In her talks, she shares practical strategies for navigating the complexities of the corporate world, engaging in productive dialogue with neurodiverse colleagues, building a supportive community, and what professional settings can do to be neuroinclusive spaces.​

With a natural warmth, Anna creates a safe and inclusive space where individuals can feel seen, understood, and empowered. Anna's eloquence and humour pair with the raw and authentic perspective she brings, both challenging societal norms and misconceptions, as well as leaving audiences inspired and motivated to embrace their differences.​

Anna has delivered keynote speeches, workshops, and fireside chats to a variety of corporate audiences, including senior leaders and HR professionals.​

We are also delighted to introduce our other panellists; Angela Hames (Swiss Re), Emily Fraser (RSA) and Mark Bailey (Zurich). As well as our General Manager, Vic Mazonas (they/them) who will present a summary of tips and tricks learned through the previous three workshops.

There's still time to register, but spaces are filling up fast. If you'd like the chance to learn more about neuroinclusion at work, meet our speakers in person and network with other members, you can register your place at our event here.

Event is open to individual and corporate members of GAIN only. Registering for the event will automatically register you for GAIN individual membership of you are not already a member. Individual membership of GAIN is free.

Insurance: Why It Matters

The Purpose of Insurance – The Social Safety Net 

Most people will be familiar with insurance as a customer.  If you own and drive a car in the UK, having some form of insurance cover for your vehicle is required by law.  And even if you don’t, you’ll likely have been offered insurance any time you made a significant purchase such as a washing machine, TV, computer or mobile phone. 

Insurance doesn’t have a very popular reputation with the average person – most people, hopefully, will never need to make a claim on their insurance and therefore may see it as little more than an extra expense.  However, when insurance works the way it’s supposed to, the people who are impacted by unforseen events and challenges can find it a lifeline. 

Insurance exists as a financial safety net.  A household fire or flood can cause damage and loss to entire rooms full of belongings.  Even the most frugal person who sources most of what they own through freecycle will likely to struggle to replace a large amount of their belongings at such short notice.  Additionally, the damage from fire and flood can render all or part of a home uninhabitable for weeks and result in the need for more substantial work to the property.  Homeowners and tenants both feel the impact of this and may find themselves needing to quickly find a short-term alternate living option. 

It isn’t just accidents like household fires that can make insurance a lifeline.  In 2023, insurers in the UK paid out £573,000,000 in weather-related property claims.  And as global warming makes extreme weather conditions more common globally, the impact this can have not only on the individual person but entire infrastructures will continue to grow.  A recent example of this is the payout that the Moroccan government received to help rebuild following quakes in September 2023. 

Insurance doesn’t only benefit the world by providing a safety net in cases of crisis, although this is one excellent application of it.  Insurance can also influence how we all behave in other ways. 

The Purpose of Insurance – Supporting Responsible Risk-Taking 

Chances are, you’ve had an amazing idea for a business venture at some point in your life.  If not you, then at least some of your friends and family will have talked about plans for what they would love to do professionally.  The skilled baker in the family who has been successfully selling cakes online on the side of their day-job, and would love to rent premises where they could start a dedicated bakery.  The tech wizard who has been developing an app but can’t find time to spend marketing it with their other responsibilities.  The older relative who dreams of taking over a local bar or music venue that is in need of new investment.  All of these dreams carry potential, but they also carry risk.  It can be very scary to quit a stable paying job to work for yourself, especially if you have children or other people dependent on you.  For most, the fear of what could go wrong can prevent them from ever making their dream a reality. 

But the purpose of insurance is to collectivise risk, and provide a layer of security in the face of losses.  Small business insurance can help protect against business interruptions, supply chain breakdowns, liability issues and stock or premises damages, empowering people to take a risk that could positively transform their lives.   

Even insurance companies cover themselves against the risk of doing business through reinsurance, which allows an insurance company to reduce the impact of a large payout on their own financial security. 

The Purpose of Insurance – Engineering Social Responsibility 

If you drive a car, you’ll be familiar with the way both incentives and exclusions in insurance can encourage you to act more responsibly on the road.  We all know that certain behaviours can make driving safer, such as wearing seatbelts, avoiding alcohol, keeping within the speed limit.  Car insurance policies that exclude claims for incidents where specific irresponsible behaviour caused the incident can encourage people to learn to act more responsibly.   

Whether it’s the loss of a no claim bonus, an increase in premium the next year or finding it hard to find insurance in the first place, the existence of specific exclusions and clauses around behaviour of the policyholder makes it less likely that people will act irresponsibly and, as a result, reduced the amount of accidents, injuries and losses day-to-day. 

More responsible driving means fewer accidents, which means more people safe and healthy.  But it also means fewer traffic interruptions caused by crashes or other incidents, positively impacting everyone who has to drive or travel for work or personal reasons, which has a further knock-on effect of improving business outcomes.  It’s possible to measure the economic impact of traffic congestion on business. 

The industry doesn’t always work perfectly, of course, and there are always improvements to be made.  Customer duty and the needs of vulnerable customers are big topics of discussion in the industry right now, with organisations like the ABI – the Association of British Insurers – developing good practice guides and organising research to help push standards of care forward. 

While this all makes the industry a worthwhile one, there are other – more personal – reasons why it’s a good industry to work in. 

Why Pursue an Insurance Career?

The insurance industry offers significant opportunities for meaningful, long-term roles, and offers significant benefits to employees.  There is a high amount of competition for talent right now, with estimates that the industry will lose 400,000 people globally between 2023-2026 by attrition.  With over a quarter of industry employees aged over 50 and capable, talented individuals retiring faster than they can be replaced, there is a high incentive for insurance companies to offer competitive salaries, generous benefits packages and significant opportunities for development and advancement. 

Employees of insurance companies can expect to enjoy access to training and advancement supported both financially and with time allowances for study and exams.  For individuals at more entry-level roles, secondments are a very common practice whereby individuals are encouraged to take temporary placements in other departments, to gain a more diverse skillset and find potential career paths that could last a lifetime.  The range of career roles in the industry is incredibly diverse, and exposure to other roles, skillsets and working styles is actively encouraged. 

Beyond the desire we all have for meaningful, secure and well-compensated employment, insurance roles can also offer opportunities for more personal fulfilment through engagement with social causes. 

Many insurance companies will sponsor national and/or regional charities to provide substantial additional funding, including both large-scale donations from the company itself and fundraising campaigns organised by the employees.  It’s also increasingly common for insurance companies to offer “charity away days” and “volunteering days” as an additional employee benefit, wherein employees are given an additional allowance of leave each year to spend volunteering at specific projects for sponsored charities. 

Ecclesiastical, a Company that forms part of Benefact Group, is one example of an insurance company that puts charitable activities and social good at the heart of their work.  Benefact Group is charity-owned, and gives all available profits to charities and good causes.  Over £200 million has been donated over the past 10 years to a range of communities, charities and good causes, with funds being distributed both in smaller amounts such as £1,000 grants, up to and including larger grants of £10,000 or more. 

There is a lot more to cover than can be included in a single article.  Over the next few months, the Career Club newsletter will feature a new article series diving into the details of the industry; how it works, what roles are available and what skillsets they use, how to establish a career in the industry, and more.   

Looking for a career in the industry? Career Club subscribers have access to a monthly newsletter offering insights into the industry, opportunities to learn more about specific careers and companies, and regular email alerts for vacancies offered by GAIN member companies.

If you're not already a Career Club subscriber, you can sign up here.

Swiss Re's Neurodiversity Journey - An Update

By Asil Motala, Co-chair of Swiss Re UK Neurodiversity ERG

Swiss Re began our neurodiversity journey during the pandemic with a group of parents getting together to discuss the support available for their children. It started here in the UK as a group of parents sharing knowledge, but since then has grown to a network providing support for all individuals and their families globally.

This year during Neurodiversity Celebration Week, we officially launched our Neurodiversity ERG globally in multiple offices across the world. This was a key moment for us, and since then we have looked to accelerate our progress on our Neurodiversity journey.

One of our targets for the year was enhancing the benefits we had for neurodiverse individuals and their family. In the UK, the benefit prior to 1 July was based on a case by case where funding was provided for diagnosis and relevant follow-up support. While our PMI provided coverage for individuals with a diagnosis, there was a gap for those who were undiagnosed or looking to get a diagnosis which this benefit looked to address.

Well, starting from 1 July, we looked to improve our approach. Using feedback from the GAIN Individual and Corporate Member survey, as well as news on what our peers in the industry were doing, we looked to include this benefit within our PMI. Our PMI coverage has now been enhanced from the 1st of July to provide support for individuals and their families. It provides access to an assessment for autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dysgraphia, as well as the support needed to provide more comfortable at work or school.

This is just one aspect of our journey that we're progressing on, and we're looking to progress further across all aspects. We look forward to learning from others in the industry, as well as sharing our own learnings as we embark on this journey together.