Digital leadership is key in the AI era: Sun Life’s Laura Money

Sun Life Financial, a Canadian financial services organisation providing insurance, wealth, and asset management solutions to global clients, believes that India is at the forefront of global digital transformation. The company operates in 28 markets, serving over 85 million clients globally, and has a global capability centre (GCC) in India. Sun Life also operates from the Philippines and has a talent pool of around 3,000 employees working from two centres. In an exclusive interaction with TechCircle, Laura Money, EVP and Chief Information & Technology Innovation Officer at Sun Life discusses the company's aim to enhance its digital capabilities with technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and analytics, as well as how the company id tapping into the Indian talent pool to serve its customers globally.
 
Which technologies are you most excited about for your organisation and industry?

There is so much in technology that excites me, but if I had to choose, GenAI tops the list for both our organisation and the industry. At Sun Life, we have been actively experimenting with various GenAI projects, exploring how it can enhance our employees' work and improve our client services. We recently introduced an internal chatbot to boost productivity and efficiency securely. We have also tested a program to help developers code faster and more accurately, along with a virtual assistant pilot to reduce administrative tasks for specific roles, allowing for a greater focus on strategic work. Additionally, we are exploring how GenAI can improve service delivery in our call centres by analysing and summarising calls to provide insights into our clients' top concerns, enabling us to meet their evolving needs more effectively.
 
Is your company's tech budget increasing this year? What areas of technology will be your focus this financial year and why?

Sun Life is continuing to invest more in technology, particularly in priority areas that are crucial for our business. We are dedicated to transforming the way we serve our clients through digital leadership, acquisitions, and partnerships. This involves creating innovative solutions and services for our clients now and in the future. Our digital leadership strategy revolves around delivering exceptional and personalised digital experiences for clients, employees, advisors, and partners, leveraging digital capabilities for quicker and more cost-effective delivery, and evolving our digital ways of working for increased speed, agility, and client-centric focus.
 
Can you share some insights on your technology team at Sun Life Global Solutions in India? Are you planning to expand in the next year?

In the tech realm, we have developed deep expertise in data, digital, cloud, legacy technologies, IT Service Management, and infra engineering, deeply integrated within the Sun Life ecosystem. Our India team excels in engineering, QE, application support, agile practices, business enablement, infrastructure, and governance. We possess a strong pool of tech-aligned resources with expertise in mainframe, Java, .net, automation testing, workflow, and more. Looking ahead, Sun Life India aims to enhance its capabilities with a focus on India and the Philippines, emphasizing modern skills like cloud, Salesforce, SAP, APIs, DevOps, RPA, front-end mobile, SharePoint, Service Now, performance testing, data, and GenAI. Alongside technical skills, Sun Life India teams have also cultivated robust business and domain knowledge, evident in their work across various business groups globally, whether in Hong Kong, Vietnam, the US, or Canada. With our expansion to Bengaluru in 2023, we are on a journey to strengthen our tech prowess and help create extraordinary digitally-enabled interactions with our clients, sponsors, advisors, and brokers.
 
What kind of innovation are you bringing with tech as an enabler? Can you highlight a couple of cases where tech has enhanced business revenues or customer experience?

As we continue to prioritise digital leadership, optimising partnerships becomes crucial in driving meaningful change for our clients. For instance, in the US, our focus on health access led to the acquisition of DentaQuest, where we implemented a provider portal to streamline interactions with our providers. In Asia, we invested in Bowtie, Hong Kong's first virtual insurer, to gain insights into digital's role in fulfilling our purpose. In Canada, our acquisition of Dialogue, a virtual health and wellness provider, has made accessing care and benefits easier for clients through digital channels. These strategic investments have enabled us to leverage digital solutions effectively, enhancing client experiences and driving business growth.
 
On a scale of 1 to 10, where would you rank your organization in terms of digital transformation journey and how did you achieve that?

It's challenging to assign a numerical value, as we measure our progress against our own benchmarks and business outcomes. Sun Life has made significant strides in our digital transformation journey, focusing on modernising our tech stack and adopting agile practices to support clients' health and wealth journeys. Digital is now integrated into all aspects of our operations, driven by partnerships, modern capabilities, and innovation, with a strong emphasis on safety and stability.
 
Considering competitor benchmarking, which technology areas do you believe require more attention based on industry trends?

As a global company, one of our key challenges is meeting diverse geographies' expectations and demands in a rapidly evolving technological landscape. Sun Life's client-centric approach has been a competitive advantage, but staying ahead, particularly in technology, is now more crucial than ever. Keeping pace with industry trends and maintaining a client-centric focus will be essential.
 
What is your technology vision for the next 12-18 months?

Looking ahead, our focus will be on further enhancing digital leadership to meet evolving client expectations and streamline business processes. We aim to leverage technology to simplify client interactions, increase automation, and utilise AI for better client service. Our goal is to embed digital thinking across all levels of the organisation, fostering innovation and client-centric practices while prioritising safety and security. Sun Life will continue to explore emerging technologies like AI, chatbots, and digital assistants to enhance client experiences and drive digital innovation responsibly.