Insular Life exec challenges employees to be disruptors
“The goal of innovation in an organization is to empower employees from all levels to be able to provide meaningful solutions that will impact the company and the community at large.”
These are the words of Insular Life executive chairman Nina Aguas, as she issued a challenge to employees to be disruptors during the company’s innovation conference.
Dubbed as Innovating Solutions for the International Pinoy (ISIP), the conference was the second such event that Insular Life convened in a span of less than a year. The goal of this activity was to immerse the Insular Life community in new trends in technology, innovation, and the importance of digitalization.
Aguas, in her speech, noted that rapid developments in technology and business models are forcing companies to adapt to these changes. Good companies, she said, let their employees ride the tide; but great ones allow their people to create the waves themselves.
“We need to develop significant cultural and mindset adjustments,” she said. “Early this year, we embarked on a dual strategy of intensifying our core businesses to remain financially strong and competitive and for the institution to remain relevant and fit for purpose to the future.”
Among the powerful speakers and industry captains were Union Bank of the Philippines chairman Justo Ortiz, who talked about UBPs transformation journey; Harvard and Yale-educated techpreneur Manny Ayala, who discussed emerging trends in startups; and Singapore-based venture capitalist Justin Hall, who talked about the future of financial technology and where the big opportunities will come.
After the plenary sessions on digital transformation, financial technologies and the startup world, employees were also given the choice to attend breakout sessions that piqued their interest in topics such as: Intrapreneurship and Solving Problems; Digital Sales and Branding; Fintech, Blockchain and Bitcoin; and Design Thinking and User Experience.
The breakout session speakers were Mynt vice president for Marketing Chris Manguera, Storm Learning chief executive officer DM Varun, Style Compass founder Abbie Victorino, Machine Ventures chief executive officer Shahab Shabibi, and Qwikwire founder Ray Refundo.
Hundreds of Insular Life employees gathered at its Alabang headquarters for ISIP. The conference was livestreamed so that employees from its branches nationwide and those who could not physically attend would not miss the talks from some of the country’s top leaders in innovation and technology.