After a painful restructuring, Zurich Insurance is planning a new offensive in Germany. To this end it has rejigged its German group management and operating structure.
«Zurich Gruppe Deutschland has successfully completed its profitability and restructuring phase and is now embarking on a targeted offensive»: This was the message trumpeted by Carsten Schildknecht, head of the Swiss insurer’s German subsidiary in a statement Monday.
The group is planning to attack the market in its northern neighbor on two strategic fronts, it said. On the one hand it plans to push its existing offerings from Zurich and DA Direkt, and on the other hand will accelerate its internal and external digitalization process, it promised.
New Digitalization Briefs
This pincer strategy will be complemented by an upheaval in management. From November Dorothée Appel (pictured below) will head its newly created information technology and digital unit. The 50-year-old is moving from the Dutch ING Bank, where she is presently chief operating officer. She replaces Klaus Endres, who is leaving Zurich of his own accord, it said.
There is no mention of IT-head Thomas Kuehne leaving the company to join insurer Mobiliar, as reported earlier today. A new operations and claims business unit will be formed under Horst Nussbaumer effective from November.
Greco Buddy
Also new to Zurich’s German management group is Peter Stockhorst who joins in August after heading its DA Direkt business. No successor has apparently yet been found for the head of its bank/partner unit Christine Theodorovics, who has apparently decided to leave the German group.
German group head Schildknecht, with his links to Zurich CEO Mario Greco, is seen as the right person to head the group’s planned offensive. Key will be his ability to cut $1.5 billion in costs by the end of 2019.
