Diversity statements

Here you can find the diversity statements for our UK legal entities.

The Board of Zurich Assurance Ltd sets a statement to promote diversity amongst its membership. The key principles of the statement are set out below.

The Board:

• Recognises that diversity can brings insights and behaviours that make a valuable contribution to the effectiveness of the Company and of the Board;
• Recognises that diversity improves effective decision making, oversight and governance;
• Believes in equal opportunities and supports the principle that due regard should be given to the benefits of diversity, including gender, when undertaking a search for both executive and non-executive candidates;
• Believes that the Board should have a diverse blend of skills, experience, independence and knowledge amongst its individual members that is appropriate to its needs in order to be effective;
• Is committed to an inclusive culture based upon merit and free of conscious or unconscious bias;
• Will require Board members to complete the Unconscious Bias, Dignity at Work and Race Awareness training that all employees are required to do. They will also require any Board members involved in recruitment of new Board members to undertake the ‘Training for Hiring Managers’ online training module;
• Will take overall Board diversity and collective contribution into account in the selection and recruitment of new Board members;
• Recognises that people from ethnic minorities are currently under-represented on the Board and aspires to address this gap in future appointments;
• Will aim to use future vacancies to improve diversity within the Company’s senior management, to provide more diverse succession potential for executive Board positions;
• Is committed to evaluating, on an annual basis as part of a wider effectiveness review, the balance of skills, experience, independence and knowledge of the Company on the Board and its diversity including gender. In undertaking any recruitment process to appoint new members to the Board, the Nomination and Remuneration Committee leads on an objective selection process. An external professional executive search firm is instructed to prepare a role profile that includes the requirement for candidates to have a diversity of skills, independence, knowledge and experience to enhance the overall effectiveness of the Board, as well as working to attract candidates with protected characteristics. A long list of candidates is sought which is considered and reduced to a shot list of candidates that are interviewed. A final recommendation on candidates is then considered by the Board.

In undertaking any recruitment process to appoint new members to the Board, the Nomination and Remuneration Committee leads on an objective selection process. An external professional executive search firm is instructed to prepare a role profile that includes the requirement for candidates to have a diversity of skills, independence, knowledge and experience to enhance the overall effectiveness of the Board. The Nomination and Remuneration Committee will ensure that all lists of candidates presented for consideration are diverse. A long list of candidates is sought which is considered and reduced to a short list of candidates that are interviewed. A final recommendation on candidates is then considered by the Board.

Succession planning is also undertaken by the Nomination and Remuneration Committee who considers the composition of the Board and the requirements to promote diversity amongst members of the Board.

Diversity statement of the Branch Management Committee of Zurich Insurance Company Ltd UK Branch

The Branch Management Committee of the UK Branch of Zurich Insurance Company Ltd (ZIC UK) sets a statement to promote diversity amongst its membership. The key principles of the statement are set out below.

The Branch Management Committee:

• Recognises that diversity brings insights and behaviours that make a valuable contribution to the effectiveness of ZIC UK and of the Branch Management Committee;
• Recognises that diversity improves effective decision-making, oversight and governance;
• Believes in equal opportunities and supports the principle that due regard should be given to the benefits of diversity, including gender, when undertaking a search for executive candidates;
• Believes that the Branch Management Committee should have a diverse blend of skills, experience, independence and knowledge amongst its individual members that is appropriate to its needs in order to be effective;
• Is committed to an inclusive culture based upon merit and free of conscious or unconscious bias;
• Will take overall Branch Management Committee diversity and collective contribution into account in the selection and recruitment of new Branch Management Committee members;
• Will aim to use future vacancies to further improve diversity within ZIC UK senior management to provide more diverse succession potential for executive positions.