Zurich CPO: ‘People sustainability is fundamental to the success of every organization’

Sustainability is a central part of the business strategy of $56 billion revenue-Swiss insurance giant Zurich. The insurer wants to be one of the most socially and environmentally responsible business in the world.

This sustainability focus, of course, is about Zurich committing to reduce its impact on the planet and the environment (and move towards net-zero and a low carbon economy).

It has achieved huge success here to date – for instance, Zurich’s latest sustainability report shows that the employer has invested $9.3 billion in climate solutions, reduced its CO2e emissions from its own operations by 66%, and avoided 4.5 million metric tons CO2e through climate-related impact investment.

But sustainability also comes to the fore in how the insurance giant works with customers and employees to fulfill its purpose to ‘create a brighter future together’.

So, when Zurich talks about people sustainability for its 61,000 people across 200 countries worldwide, this means putting “our people are at the heart of what we stand for”, Zurich’s Group Chief People Officer Jolanda Grob tells UNLEASH in an exclusive interview.

The insurance giant sees its people as a “key differentiator” – ultimately, when employees are at their best, this is good for the business as a whole.

To enable this, Zurich prioritizes learning and development, diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) and wellbeing in order to create an environment where employees can thrive.

I strongly believe that people sustainability is fundamental to the success of every organization and is the key to attracting and retaining the best talent,” states Grob.

At UNLEASH World 2024, Zurich’s CPO will be sharing the inside track on the company’s people sustainability approach and how it is a blueprint for a thriving workforce.

Ahead of the show, UNLEASH caught up with Grob to find out some more detail about secrets to success and to find out why Grob is looking forward to our upcoming Paris event.

Inside Zurich’s ambition to be a sustainable employer

A core tenant of Zurich’s people sustainability strategy is to be internal first – this means prioritizing internal hires, over external ones, wherever possible.

Grob tells UNLEASH: “In today’s fast changing world, we can’t simply rely on recruiting skills for the future. So, we are building skills and the necessary experiences from within.”

Huge progress has been made here in the past few years – in 2021, the number of internal hires sat at 66%, this grew to 71.2% in 2022 and increased another 5.4% to 73.4% in 2023.

To enable this, Zurich invests significantly in learning and career development to “ensure our people are equipped with the right skills today and in the future”, adds Grob.

All of this helps them be more resilient and future-ready, which in turn makes Zurich as a business better placed to address the needs of customers by ensuring they are also prepared for the future.

The employer’s commitment to continuously upskilling, reskilling and career diversification also fits into Zurich’s wider DEIB part of the people sustainability strategy.

This is because career development is available to all, no matter their seniority, gender, age – in fact, Zurich has achieved an equal gender split on promotions in 2023.

“Technology is a key enabler” of sustainable careers at Zurich. Grob continues: “We use technology to assess, map and develop skills across the Group”, and the employer is always experimenting with new technologies, including AI.

One example is a newly launched joint venture with Spanish banking giant Santander – the Zurich Santander Talent Acquisition Hub – which aims to make it easier for employees to spot (and apply for) new roles internally.

People sustainable secrets to success at Zurich

The data demonstrates just how enthusiastic Zurich employees are about these opportunities – they completed 1.1 million hours of learning on the insurance giant’s MyDevelopment learning platform in 2023. This equates to 20.2 hours per employees.

Plus, the employer launched its new Group-wide Zurich Experience Survey in 2023. It had an impressive 82% response rate in its first year, and found that 85% of employees would recommend as a great place to work.

That’s 5 percentage points higher than high-performing companies, and 8 percentage points higher than Zurich’s global insurance peers, thereby showing that “our people sustainability strategy clearly pays off”, Grob notes.

For Grob, “now is the time to prioritize people sustainability, helping employees to adapt to our changing world of work”.

Her advice to her HR peers who are unsure where to start on this journey is “to take time to understand what sustainability means for your own people and organization”.

Don’t just copy word for word what other employers have done, instead engage all key stakeholders, set a clear set of goals (and link them with your business outcomes).

Jolanda Grob and UNLEASH World 2024

Want to find out more about Zurich’s secret to success in creating a thriving, future-ready workforce, and how you can replicate it in your organization?

You’re in luck! Grob is going to be at UNLEASH World 2024 from 16 to 17 October.

She is “very excited” about the show; “I genuinely look forward to having an opportunity to engage with old friends and make new ones to tackle shared challenges”.

In the afternoon of Wednesday 16 October, Grob’s session will take the audience under the lid of Zurich’s approach to not just skills, but also DEIB and wellbeing, and how that fortifies company-wide resilience to ultimately deliver business strategy.

It’s not too late to join us in Paris – you can buy a pass here!