The second group of volunteers were led by another head of department, Solomon Tay. This group packed and distributed basic essential items such as milk powder, honey, biscuits, etc, to 52 households of HDB rental flats in Tampines. The objective of distributing such daily necessities is to help families survive, especially those who may be facing financial difficulties. The initiative also emphasises the importance of solidarity within the community, fostering a sense of shared responsibility and care.

In total, we had 31 volunteers who had the opportunity to experience what it feels like to touch the lives of others, bringing them happiness, hope, and support. They may never be able to forget the sight of smiling elderly or the gratitude of families receiving the household essentials.

Looking ahead, this initiative, Ignite Smiles aspires to expand its reach, touching the lives of more individuals and communities.

Back to top

It was a joyful Christmas for a group of underprivileged children as GELM ChildrenCare hosted a Chocolate Making Workshop in Kuala Lumpur.

96 children from four charity homes were given the opportunity to learn how to make moulded chocolate, chocolate stencil, and DIY chocolate bars from scratch to take home. They were also taken on a tour to the Chocolate Museum.

The workshop provided them a chance to develop creative thinking, build confidence and improve their self-esteem.

A heartfelt thank you to all the generous donors whose contribution played a pivotal role in making this event a success and positively impacting the children’s lives in the true spirit of Christmas.

Back to top

This is an annual initiative in collaboration with Great Eastern Singapore to continue creating awareness about recycling angpows. In Malaysia, we partnered with all three entities, Great Eastern Life Malaysia, Great Eastern General Malaysia, and Great Eastern Takaful in executing the two-week Angpow Recycling Campaign from 26 February to 8 March.

Staff are encouraged to bring their used Angpows or any kind of envelopes and drop them off for recycling at the office. We have placed a recycling bin at every floor in the 20-storey building of Menara Great Eastern. Additionally, we also extended the invitation of this recycling campaign to branches across Malaysia. In total, we collected 110kg of Angpows from employees across Great Eastern Malaysia.

Back to top

Great Eastern Takaful had the opportunity to be part of the Takaful Masuk Kampung programme organised by the Malaysian Takaful Association (MTA), at Alor Mengkudu, Kedah. The event aimed to raise awareness about our upcycling initiatives and environmental care, reaching approximately 1,000 members of the local community.

The event was officiated by YB. Muhamad Radhi Mat Din, a member of Kedah State Assemblyman for Alor Mengkudu who later on had the opportunity to operate the 2-in-1 upcycling machine himself. 100 upcycled items were produced during the event. An environmental awareness briefing was also conducted for the community, highlighting concerns about plastic pollution and emphasising how each individual can contribute towards greener environment.

We hope that this initiative sparks creative ideas on managing plastic waste at home and collectively creates a cleaner and healthier environment for a better quality of life.

Back to top

In 2024, Great Eastern Life Indonesia focuses on #MenghapusJejakmu, which is the Carbon Footprint reduced by employees. This will be realised through the implementation of the Top 3 Great Ambassador projects.

GELI also invited Mr. Stevanus Andreas from Rekosistem, a waste management company in Indonesia, to provide insights on waste sorting and carbon emission reduction. He emphasised the importance of sorting waste from an early age to contribute to maintaining environmental health and reducing global greenhouse gas emissions.

The Sustainability Kick Off 2024 is the first step towards environmental sustainability and a greener future. With the spirit and collaboration of all employees, GELI is optimistic that it can make a positive impact on the community and the environment and can Reach for a Greater Tomorrow.

Back to top

Back to top

Great Eastern Singapore held its first on-site Staff Townhall of the year on 28 Feb 2024 at both CFE and Great Eastern Changi. The session was live streamed from CFE to Great Eastern Changi to allow staff across the offices to join in the session. More than 600 staff attended in-person.

Group CEO, Mr. Khor Hock Seng, kicked off the session recapping the Group Financial Performance for FY 2023 and presented the Group’s 5-year strategy for the future.

As part of this 5-Year Strategy, we will focus on driving growth in the following customer segments:

• Premier (Affluent and High-Net-Worth)
• Young (Age 7 – 25)
• Young Seniors and Silvers (Age 50 and Above)
• Small and Medium Enterprises (SME)

Colin Chan, MD of Group Marketing, touched on our sustainability achievements, how employees can continue to participate and support the upcoming CSR initiatives, and recognised the top 10 employee volunteers as well as the top 5 CSR contributing divisions for 2023.

David Yip, Vice President of A&H Business, shared about marketing programmes that were created to make a social impact, such as the GREAT Bundle of Joy and My Legacy. He also said that Great Eastern had sponsored a movie titled “Good Goodbye” that touches on these issues that Singaporeans face and rallied for everyone to support it when it opens in cinemas. More information will be released soon.

James Lee, MD of Group Human Capital, announced the good news that there were improvements in the results of the Culture & Employee Engagement Survey that was completed in 2023. As we move forward in 2024, we will continue to fine tune the programmes and plans to better support our staff to Reach for Great and create a conducive work environment to support exploration of possibilities for our customers.

Hong Siu Ming, Head of People and Rewards, wrapped up the Townhall session with the conclusion of the Workplace Transformation Project for the office levels, with the last phrase focused on the lift lobby for Great Eastern Centre. He elaborated on what the project means for our workplace, technology, people and the future moving forward. He also attributed the success of the project to the Sponsor, Project Steering Committee, Project Team and the Workplace Champions and thanked everyone for their support.

Click here to read more about what was discussed at the Townhall (including slides and recording).

Back to top

Back to top

On 6 and 7 March, Great Eastern Life Malaysia and Great Eastern General Malaysia hosted an event titled Sip & Speak: #InspireInclusion through Conversation to celebrate the International Women's Day.

The women employees from the two entities came together for a delightful gathering, where the aroma of tea mingled with the buzz of excitement and camaraderie. Settling into cozy chairs, they embarked on a unique activity: answering ten thought-provoking questions among themselves that ranged from light-hearted anecdotes to profound reflections on life. They discussed some tough questions like: Where do you feel safe to be who you are? Talk about the time that you struggled in silence? How to balance demands of social expectations, career, family, and personal needs?

As the tea flowed and conversations deepened, laughter and nods of understanding filled the room. With each question, the women found themselves sharing personal stories, discovering similarities, and appreciating the diversity of their experiences. Bonds strengthened as they discovered common ground, empathy, and shared aspirations.

Towards the end of the event, a few participants shared how they felt and what they had gained throughout the hour-long activity. Their words resonated with the group, echoing sentiments of empowerment, resilience, and solidarity. Through these heartfelt stories, the women not only learned more about each other but also gained a deeper understanding of themselves, reaffirming the significance of celebrating women's achievements and fostering supportive communities in the workplace and beyond.

Back to top

At Zoo Negara, the participants navigated through unique challenges designed to stimulate mental agility and teamwork, embracing the collaborative spirit that epitomises Great Eastern’s culture. After the challenges, participants seized the chance to explore Zoo Negara’s wonders. The day concluded with a presentation of prizes to the teams that amassed the highest points, celebrating a sense of achievement and togetherness among all participants.

The GREAT Quest not only served as a platform for team building, but also reinforced the Great Eastern community’s core values: Integrity, Initiative, and Involvement. It was a day well spent for our employees, who brought home cherished memories and strengthened bonds, fostering a workplace culture that is both cohesive and vibrant.

On 17 January, Great Eastern Life Malaysia welcomed five scholars and their families from various academic fields to Menara Great Eastern for the Great Eastern Supremacy Scholarship Award signing ceremony. Amidst the signing and award certifications, the scholars embarked on an insightful office tour, meeting senior management and department heads.

Throughout the ceremony, discussions sparked, and connections formed, fostering a vibrant exchange of knowledge and expertise. CEO Dato Koh Yaw Hui delivered a heartfelt welcoming speech, brimming with congratulatory notes and life advice, while he shared anecdotes and insights of his own journey. His words resonated with the scholars, inspiring them to embrace challenges, pursue excellence, and seize every opportunity that comes their way.

It was a celebration of academic achievement and the potential for innovation that lies ahead. After completing their university degrees, these five scholars will join the company and kick start their GREAT careers. Menara Great Eastern stood as a beacon of opportunity and growth for these bright minds.

Back to top

Great Eastern Takaful unveiled the exciting new year by organising the Agency Headstart 2024 event at Malaysia’s first 360-degree rotating theatre auditorium, Encore Melaka. The event was attended by almost 1,400 takaful consultants from across Malaysia, all glammed up in world-culture themed outfits.

Attendees had the great opportunity to mingle with one another during various group activities, competitions, and a scrumptious dinner before heading to the rotating auditorium for the day’s highlight event, a mesmerising theatre performance.

The performance revolved around the journey of a takaful consultant from the initial stages to becoming a successful Group Manager, despite the challenges faced along the way. The wonderful day concluded with several beneficial sessions and celebrity performances, making it a day to remember for all takaful consultants who have shown unwavering commitment to ensuring more Malaysians are protected.

Back to top

A vibrant Townhall session held on 23 January 2024 with the theme ‘Be Brave, Be Bold, Be Focused’. The gathering aimed to ignite enthusiasm in GETB employees for the new year.

The half-day session was packed with insights and updates. It started with GETB CEO, En. Shahrul Azlan Shahriman welcoming and acknowledging the new joiners from September 2023 to January 2024 and the January birthday babies, followed by the recap of the Company’s performance. He emphasised that we need to apply the principles of Fair Treatment of Financial Consumers to ensure we fulfill our purpose of ‘We Help People Help Each Other in Times of Need Because We Can’.

Speakers from various departments continued the session with their presentations. Ahmad Murshidi Ahmad Mukhtar, the Head of Shariah Department represented the GETB Sports Club to share about the past events and upcoming activities. Mastura Abd Rahim, Assistant Vice President of Brand and Corporate Communications shared about the GETB upcycling projects. A total of 583.5kg of plastics materials were collected and upcycled, resulting in 2,173 items being produced through the upcycling project in 2023. Yeoh Zu Dian, Senior Learning and Culture Specialist, represented Human Capital department to speak people strategies and approaches to prepare all of us for the future of work.

Towards the end of the Townhall, there was a photobooth contest open for all the staff. With a renewed perspective and a refreshed mind, we believe that the Townhall has motivated all staff to put in their best efforts to achieve this year’s excellence.

Back to top

As the festive air of Chinese New Year enveloped the GETB office, we gathered on 19 February 2024 for a joyous tradition – a tribute to a Chinese immigrant from Malaya who invented the Yee Sang dish in the 1940s. The dish was a creative idea to revive the catering business after wars and economic downturn, and it gained popularity in Seremban, and subsequently the other states.

The office pantry was decorated with red oriental lanterns, silk fans, and array of colourful Yee Sang ingredients. To add to the excitement, there was a Yee sang Decoration Competition organised for all the staff to participate. The team that could make the most creative Yee Sang dish with the given ingredients, would win the competition. When the competition started, all the participants were eager to outperform the rival teams – it was indeed an all-hands-on-deck situation! When the CEO, En. Shahrul Azlan Shahriman announced the results of the competition, the winning teams cheered. Immediately after that was the time for the main event – the Yee Sang tossing. With chopsticks in hand, the tossing began which created a delightful mess of shared joy and optimism for a great start of the year.

Did you know that the Yee Sang was added into Malaysia’s National Heritage? This dish actually symbolises resilience to go through tough times with innovative solutions, positive hope, and celebration – apart from the fun of tossing the dish, this is what we wish to emulate.

Back to top

The Great Eastern Life Indonesia Bancassurance Team started the year with a Bancassurance Kick Off event at the Marquee Cyber 2 Tower, Jakarta on 18 January 2024. The event aimed to create great strategies and gain insights to sustain the positive performance achieved in 2023 and even improve it in 2024. The Bancassurance Kick Off was attended by 97 participants consisting of Financial Advisors, Regional Bancassurance Managers (RBM), Senior Regional Bancassurance Managers (SRBM), Head of Bancassurance, and the Director of Bancassurance.

The main highlights of the Bancassurance Kick Off were the two training sessions delivered by experienced trainers. The first session focused on the topic of Qualified Wealth Planner and was presented by Philip Mulyana, CFP, QWP, AEPP. It focused on practice so that participants could understand the financial planning process and be able to use the Qualified Wealth Planner software which is practical and user friendly. In this first session, all Great Eastern Life Indonesia Financial Advisors are expected to be able to improve their financial planning skills, especially in assisting their clients in setting financial goals and preparing protection solutions.

The next session discussed Personal Branding and Effective Communication, presented by Mia Dharma. She emphasised the importance of building a positive image by personal branding of financial representatives. Mia also shared tips on effective communication to build customer trust, including how self-confidence needs to be built through good posture and body language.

During the Bancassurance Kick Off, Ms Nina Ong, Director of Bancassurance Great Eastern Life Indonesia, also presented a Bancassurance Update on the positive achievements of the Bancassurance Team in 2023 and its growth over the past 5 years. Ms Nina also motivated the entire team to give their best performance and even to improve it this year. The event also marked the launch of the Great Champion Program 2024 and a moment of appreciation for the Top Financial Advisors and Top Region. Hopefully, the Bancassurance Kick Off 2024 will be a good start that can inspire the entire Bancassurance Team to deliver the best performance throughout the year.

Back to top

Great Eastern Life Indonesia successfully held a three-day Great Fun Learning Kuala Lumpur Trip, from 19 to 21 January 2024, as appreciation for the Bancassurance Team's great performance in 2023. Participants of the Great Fun Learning Kuala Lumpur Trip were those who achieved 101% YTD or a minimum of 95% YTD during the period January to December 2023. Based on that, there were a total of 17 RBMs and SRBMs who participated in the Great Fun Learning Kuala Lumpur Trip.

Great Fun Learning was not just a vacation trip, it also included an educational workshop. The workshop was held on the first day of the Great Qualifiers' arrival in Kuala Lumpur. The workshop discussed the Bancassurance perspective at Great Eastern Life Malaysia, presented by Faizal Md. Khir, Head of Business Development and Product Transformation Great Eastern Life Malaysia.

After the workshop, the Great Qualifiers were invited to tour the Great Eastern Malaysia office. The Office Tour was very memorable for the Great Qualifiers—marked by the many photos taken at various corners of the Great Eastern Life Malaysia office. After the office tour, the Great Qualifiers were invited to enjoy a meal at De Wan Restaurant—one of the Michelin Guide restaurants in Malaysia. The day ended with a durian feast on Jalan Alor after dinner.

The second day of the trip was shopping time for the Great Qualifiers at the Kuala Lumpur shopping centre. In the evening, the Great Qualifiers enjoyed an appreciation dinner at Marble 8, Menara Petronas, 56th floor. On the third and final day, the Great Qualifiers were given free time to shop or explore the city of Kuala Lumpur. This Great Fun Learning is expected to motivate the Bancassurance Team to always put in their best performance to achieve even better performance in 2024.

The first Great Eastern Life Indonesia Townhall in 2024 was attended by all employees. Held on 6 March 2024, the event took place in a hybrid format, with both offline and online participation. The offline event was hosted at Bonn Café, Level 25 Menara Karya, while the online session was conducted via Teams.

The energetic opening by Sebastianus Yudhy (Head of People Development and Recruitment at Great Eastern Life Indonesia) as the MC set the tone for the day, followed by inspiring opening remarks from Mr Khor Hock Seng, Group Chief Executive Officer. In his speech, he expressed his pride in GELI's achievements in 2023 and emphasised the importance of teamwork in achieving the company's goals for 2024.

Nina Ong, Bancassurance Director Great Eastern Life Indonesia, then presented the company's performance in 2023, which showed positive results. She also outlined the company's strategy and targets for 2024, which focus on increasing business growth and developing customer segments across various sales distribution channels.

The final session was led by Yungki Aldrin, Human Capital Director Great Eastern Life Indonesia, who provided updates on Human Capital, including the announcement of two new directors for Great Eastern Life Indonesia: Hana as Finance Director Great Eastern Life Indonesia and Roy Hendrata Gozalie as Marketing Director Great Eastern Life Indonesia.

These newly appointed directors bring with them wealth of expertise and experience that are well-matched to the company's future challenges. They both have proven track records of bringing innovation and new insights that will support the achievement of the company's vision and mission. The entire Great Eastern Life Indonesia family is hopeful that the new directors will bring about positive change, drive growth, and make significant contributions to the company's sustainability in both the short and long term.

Yungki Aldrin also announced various activities that will be held during the month of Ramadan to enhance employee engagement in light of the ongoing Ramadan fasting period, which began on 12 March 2024.

This Townhall concluded on a high note, with enthusiasm and optimism among employees throughout the event, reflecting their commitment to achieve greater performance in 2024 and beyond.

In line with our commitment to encourage a healthy and active lifestyle among employees, Great Eastern Life Indonesia launched one of its LIFE Programs, called the Vertical/Walk Challenge. This challenge, which happened from 5 to 29 February 2024, invites employees to take a step towards health.

For Work In Office (WIO) fighters, the challenge begins at Menara Karya Fl. BM (Emergency Exit). The main mission is to climb the stairs until reach one reaches the 5th floor. An excellent stamina is key to completing this Vertical Challenge.

For Work From Home (WFH) employees, outside Jakarta, and Work Out of Office (WOO), they can take part in the Walk Challenge with the challenge of walking a distance of 2km wherever they are. Specifically for this walk employees are required to download the Strava application and create an account with a full name that matches the name registered with HRMS. And then, employees join Club Strava GELI to calculate the distance they have achieved.

It is not just a challenge, but also a fun activity for all participating employees. Participants who complete the Vertical Challenge get served drinks and healthy food at the finish point. They will also enjoy 10 LIFE points which will be accumulated at the end of the program to get attractive rewards.

Back to top

Since financial representatives are an important pillar for GEGI with almost 30% business coming from Agency, President Director Aziz Adam Sattar, expressed his gratitude and appreciation to all of them. Chun Ling, Marketing Director, delivered an update on the company's performance in 2023 and the company's direction and strategy for financial representatives in 2024.

Other speakers from the Underwriting team, explained the capacity, support and commitment of GEGI Underwriting as well as GEGI product strategy in 2024. Steve Tandjung, our Head of Retail, explained Agency Updates, Schemes and Rewards.

Agency Kick Off & Open Day 2024 aims to provide direction to our existing agency force. It encourages enthusiasm and provide motivation for all agents to Reach for Great and creates a movement to accelerate success. This event is continued with a Roadshow to other branches during March including Semarang, Bali, Medan, Batam and Samarinda.

GEGI launched Agency Portal and Transaction Portal

The event also included the launch of the Agency Portal and Transaction Portal for Agents by Lee Pooi Hor, Operations Director. The Agency Portal is a new feature on our online web-based application for agents that can help financial representatives track their Productivity, Renewal Business, Claim Progress and Unpaid Premiums. Moving forward there will be more new reports, training tracking, agency administration, campaign tracking, prospecting.

The Transaction Portal: Integral Front End (IFE) Travel and PA are two comprehensive online products that are now available in our web-based portal for financial representatives to sell GEGI insurance product to their potential customers. It has premium calculation engine to provide quotations and queries, and to integrate with payment gateways, including a full integration to the GEGI core system. Overall, the portals are aimed to help them do business and transact with GEGI.

In 2024, GEGI IT Team will continue to develop innovations, based on our customer needs and combined with our technological expertise.

Back to top

Back to top

GETB started the year with a bang – three product-centric campaigns for i-Great Nova, i-Great Prestij and critical illness plans.

When launched, i-Great Nova was positioned as an affordable high coverage plan. From 5 to 31 January, the Triple Reward #SinarNova campaign allowed customer rewards through three ways. They could participate in the plan with a lowered minimum Basic Sum Covered of RM150,000 with a more affordable contribution, as opposed to RM250,000. Alternatively, customers could receive cashback of up to 3 months’ contribution, when subscribing to the plan with a Basic Sum Covered of RM300,000 and above. All customers who subscribed to i-Great Nova during the campaign period stood a chance to win an Umrah (pilgrimage) package for one, or cash amounting to RM2,024.

i-Great Prestij is a Takaful plan with a savings element and investment booster benefit. Running from 1 to 29 February, the #ImpianPrestij campaign encouraged subscription to the plan with a lower minimum contribution of just RM200 for a payment term of 10 or 20 years. Typically, the minimum contribution for the aforementioned payment terms is RM350 a month. Hence, this gave an opportunity for interested individuals to get protected under i-Great Prestij at a lower contribution.

Throughout February, the 3x3x3 Cashback Campaign offered up to 3 months’ contribution cashback for customers who have participated in the i-Great Harapan CI10, i-Great Nova with Additional Lifetime Critical Illness Term Rider, or i-Great Evo with i-Lifetime Critical Illness Benefit Term Rider plans. The amount of cashback will be awarded based on the Basic Sum Covered of the i-Great Harapan CI10 and Rider Sum Covered of the other two plans. This campaign also allowed individuals to cover themselves against implications of critical illness.

GETB indeed had an exciting start to the year and aims to fly with this momentum for the rest of 2024!

Back to top

Back to top

To nurture today’s generation of customers such as the Gen Z and Millennials, Great Eastern General Insurance Indonesia (GEGI) consistently carries out a series of branding campaigns on social media. The latest one is a Podcast called Great Sharing, that was started in December 2023. It has a new and fresh format to provide a livelier discussion.

Ibu Chun Ling, Marketing Director of GEGI, hosts the podcast and discusses various interesting and trending topics with guest speakers related to the importance of insurance from GEGI.

The first episode was about the economy in 2024 featuring Yansen Dave Purwanto, Economic Analyst, Global Markets at Bank OCBC Indonesia. In the second episode was the inspiring story of Sadam, a traveller, content creator and photographer. He also shared recommendations of places in Indonesia worth exploring. GEGI social media highlights various hidden gems in Indonesia, and this has become one of the most popular pieces of content.

The third episode was about learning to develop a business featuring the owner of successful Toko Kopi Tuku (coffee shop), Andanu Prasetyo, who is also Founder and Owner of Toko Kopi Tuku, CEO of MAKA Group.

Moving forward, GEGI will continue to present inspiring stories on trending topics linked to the benefits of having insurance from GEGI.

Back to top

GELI AWARDS:

GELI was most recently recognised as Indonesia Most Visionary Company with Reliable Insurance Product and Service to Increase Market Penetration for the category Life Insurance by Warta Ekonomi.

GELI also received:

• Digital Financial Excellence Award 2023
  GELI was awarded the 1st Life Insurance with Equity of Less than IDR 1.5 Trillion in the Digital Financial Excellence Award 2023 organised by Media Asuransi.
  
  
• The Best Indonesia Good Corporate Governance Award 2024
  GELI won the Best Indonesia Good Corporate Governance Award (2024) in the Gold Award category with the Predicate Excellent by Economic Review.
  
  
• Indonesia Excellence Good Corporate Governance Award 2024
  GELI won the Indonesia Excellence Good Corporate Governance Ethics in Impressive Campaign to Strengthen Brand Image, for the category Life Insurance, by Warta Ekonomi.

GEGI AWARDS:

Great Eastern General Insurance Indonesia (GEGI) won an award from PT Reasuransi Maipark Indonesia at 2023 Maipark Award on Tuesday, 28 November 2023. GEGI was named as BEST CEDANT 2023, General Insurance Company, in Category Equity IDR 300 – 500 Billion.

GEGI won the award as one of the general insurance companies that provides the largest earthquake premium session in the category of equity mentioned above.

Back to top