I like Aviva, and I think the CEO Amanda Blanc is doing a good job. However, I have a number of questions. Her engagement with DEI, involving a case study for the 2024 Parker review update, shows this. Regarding race, all of her staff need to attend annual ani racism courses, while an announcement by the IFoA Diversity Action Group by a former employee implies Aviva Norwich was less than ideal for “diverse” (Ms Blanc’s definition) staff.
However, the interesting issue, derived from my header, is the change on the Senior Management Team (of around 1,000 people) over the last 4-odd years. Over this period, two factors are clear:
a) Recruits to that team are more male than female (around 40-45% female)
b) The proportion of females in they group is increasing.
Accordingly, the only way that b) can occur in the light of a) is for the male exit rate to exceed the female exit rate. And it does! I have run many thousands of simulations in this area, and the figures indicate the annual male exit rate exceeds exceeds that for female exits by more than 10% . This is amazing. Clearly, there will be retirements, and some natural wastage – also, Ms Blanc has commented publicly about “non diverse promotions” in the context of sexual misbehaviour. Does this account for such a significant difference? Or is the message going out that there is less of a future for men in Aviva? It remains to be seen whether this trend continues, but this level of management is absolutely crucial to Aviva’s future – if it is less than optimal, Ms Blanc’s level of control over the business will be limited.
I will have more to say about Aviva, especially in the light of the recently announced Direct Line takeover (with potential loss of over 2,000 jobs), but this post covers issues not already in the public domain.