Amanda Whiting (President)
IAG New Zealand
Amanda Whiting was appointed CEO of IAG New Zealand Limited on 1 July 2021. Since March 2021, Amanda has been Acting Group Executive Intermediated Insurance Australia and will retain this role for the time being, focusing on maintaining the momentum the team has built in that business over the past few months. Amanda was previously Acting Group Executive Direct Insurance Australia. Prior to her appointment into this role in November 2020, she was Executive General Manager Consumer Distribution in IAG’s Australia Division. Leading Consumer Distribution in Australia gave her responsibility for the distribution of brands including NRMA Insurance, CGU Insurance, SGIO and SGIC across multiple distribution channels. Amanda joined IAG from iiNet in 2008 and has more than 20 years’ experience in the insurance industry in both general and health insurance, having held senior roles in these industries as well as telecommunications. As well as finding opportunities to live IAG’s purpose, ‘to make your world a safer place’, Amanda’s personal focus is to create opportunities for herself and others to learn and grow.
Declan Moore
QBE
Declan is a passionate advocate of QBE’s purpose, which is to enable a more resilient future, helping those around us build strength and embrace change to their advantage. Declan has 35 years of Financial Services experience gained in a variety of roles, across a range of geographies. Declan has worked in the Life Insurance, Superannuation and General Insurance industries, with the past 25 years in General Insurance. Declan has worked at QBE in several roles, in Operations, as Group Chief Actuary, Chief Underwriting Officer Australia & NZ, and, from August 2019, CEO and MD, NZ & Pacific.
Dave Morrow
Chubb Insurance NZ
Dave Morrow is Country President of Chubb Insurance in New Zealand. In this role, he has responsibility for the company’s general insurance business in New Zealand, including commercial property and casualty, traditional and specialty personal lines, and accident and health insurance. Dave has more than 25 years’ experience in the insurance industry globally, including 15 years with Chubb in various leadership positions. He joined Chubb (formerly ACE) in 2009 as Property Manager for New Zealand, and during his career at Chubb spent 10 years working across Asia in Thailand, Malaysia and Japan as the Head of Property and Casualty. Prior to his appointment as Country President, Dave most recently held the role of Head of Property and Casualty for Chubb in New Zealand.
Michelle James
AA Insurance
Michelle has recently joined AA Insurance and is responsible for building on the customer centric culture and shared vision to earn the trust of every New Zealander by protecting what matters most. Michelle has 20 years’ experience in Executive and Senior Leadership roles on both sides of the Tasman, specialising in transformation and the creation of innovative customer and digital experiences.
Adam Heath (Vice President)
Farmers' Mutual Group (FMG)
Adam joined the Mutual as Chief Executive in December 2021. In his previous role he was the Executive General Manager, Insurance Solutions with Suncorp New Zealand. Adam has a strong background in general and life insurance, banking and telecommunications and has a real connection to and empathy for FMG’s values, the Mutual model and the rural sector. Adam describes FMG as an iconic New Zealand and rural brand with a long and proud history of supporting rural communities, as well as an ambitious growth strategy to improve and support clients and members in an increasingly digitalised world.
Jimmy Higgins
Suncorp New Zealand
Jimmy is the CEO for Suncorp NZ, which includes the Vero, Asteron Life and AA Life brands, and is responsible for the strategy and operational delivery. Jimmy is also a Director of Vero Liability, AA Insurance and AA Finance. Since joining the Suncorp Group in 2008, Jimmy has worked in the general insurance business, delivering customer outcomes across the many Suncorp brands and portfolios. He was instrumental in leading Suncorp’s flood recovery in 2010. He and his family then moved to NZ to set up and manage the NZ Earthquake recovery programme. Jimmy was appointed Chief Financial Officer for Suncorp New Zealand in June 2019, where he was accountable for financial performance and management, statutory and regulatory reporting, strategy, corporate affairs, business transformation and operations. Prior to joining the Suncorp Group, Jimmy was a Detective in the Queensland Police Force and later a Chartered Accountant with KPMG and McGrathNicol.
Blair Turnbull
Tower
Blair Turnbull joined Tower Insurance as CEO in 2020, bringing with him 25 years of insurance and financial services experience from across NZ & Australia, Asia, UK, and Europe. Prior to joining Tower, Blair was Managing Director, Digital & Retail, UK & International at Aviva, Britain’s largest general insurer. Prior to this, he was Executive General Manager, Wealth and Insurance at ASB Bank. At Tower, Blair’s focus is on continuing to accelerate Tower’s modernisation by leveraging digital and data, being lean and agile in delivery, and championing a culture that is diverse, talent-led and synonymous with innovation. Blair brings his extensive international experience to the ICNZ Board, with a proven global track record in using data to deliver disruptive customer-focussed models in a proactive way.
Andrea Dry
Swiss Re
Andrea Dry is Senior Client Manager P&C at Swiss Re Australia & New Zealand, based in the Sydney office. Andrea brings more than 20 years' experience in underwriting, actuarial, and relationship management across the (re)insurance industry. In her current role, she is responsible for relationship management with large General Insurance clients, including those with significant market share in New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific Islands. Before moving to Client Markets, Andrea was a key senior member of Swiss Re's Property Treaty Underwriting team. In recent years, she has taken an interest in the application of Behavioural Economics principles to insurance, with customer outcomes a key success metric and ethics a core guiding principle. Andrea started her career in the Actuarial departments of AMP Limited in Wellington, followed by GIO Re Limited in Sydney. She holds a Bachelors Degree of Science, Operations Research, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Organisational Psychology from Massey University, with contribution from her studies at the University of California, Berkeley.
John Lyon
Hollard
John is CEO of Ando Insurance Group Limited and represents Hollard on the Insurance Council of New Zealand. Ando is jointly owned by Hollard and the Ando management team, and delivers innovative propositions tailored to the NZ insurance market. John is a past President of ICNZ, and has over 40 years’ experience in the insurance industry in Ireland, the UK, and in NZ since 1991. John was previously CEO at Lumley NZ, and has held a number of senior executive and governance roles in the industry. He is a Chartered Member of the NZ Institute of Directors, and a Senior Associate of ANZIIF.
Simone Labady
Aioi Nissay Dowa Insurance
Simone Labady was appointed CEO for Aioi Nissay Dowa Management New Zealand (the NZ subsidiary of Aioi Nissay Dowa Insurance Company) in 2018 and also appointed as a director. With 30 years of experience in the insurance industry, she has led organisations through significant cultural change programs and IT system transformations. Simone is dedicated to enhancing customer experiences while ensuring that the insurance industry provides robust support during customers' times of need. With a background spanning finance, insurance, statistics, and technology in both Australia and New Zealand — along with a reputation for strategic leadership and operational management — Simone is passionate about building and shaping cultures that inspire trust, collaboration, and problem solving.
Our Board
Tō Mātou Poari
