Associate Director / Director of ESG Integration

Posted:
6/17/2024, 5:00:00 PM

Location(s):
Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong

Experience Level(s):
Senior

Field(s):
Business & Strategy

At AIA we’ve started an exciting movement to create a healthier, more sustainable future for everyone.

It’s about finding new ways to not only better people's lives, but to better the communities and environments we live in. And we build on this every day with our ambition to engage one billion people to live Healthier, Longer, Better Lives by 2030.

And to get there, we need leaders with the courage, clarity and humanity to inspire, guide and support their teams to thrive every day - in the work they do and the life they live. Our leaders always have and will play a vital part in our journey to help more people live Healthier, Longer, Better Lives, build healthier societies and cultivate healthier environments that better everyone.

If you sound like that leader, read on.  

About the Role

AIA is looking to hire an experienced leader who will embed ESG organization wide and make it an enterprise-wide passion. The person is required to build a program that will build knowledge, capability of AIA leadership, employee and agents, build an internal culture of sustainability (i.e. Win Hearts & Minds) and encourage ownership and accountability of ESG, with clear ESG KPIs in markets.

The person will develop and deploy market workshops, supporting the development of market specific plans and markets governance for ESG strategy and KPIs.

Roles and Responsibilities:

ESG Integration

  • Build community of practice within BU ESG leads and cultivate sharing of best practices and drive delivery of strategy and KPIs in BUs, including planning and hosting annual ESG Leaders conference and activating engagement mechanisms such as regular BU ESG leads calls
  • Strategize and hold in-market ESG workshops to deepen the localization of ESG strategy at the BU level
  • Deliver on functional integration to hold the business accountable, including development and communication of master ESG interaction roadmap with key functions.
  • Collaborate with Group Sourcing on the integration of ESG within the vendor supply chain, and potentially expand the program to all third parties
  • Ensure achievement of milestones over, and regular reporting of ESG KPIs
  • Incorporate ESG KPIs into business strategic planning, tracking, and monitoring process to ensure delivery of ESG strategy and accountability to management

ESG governance and risk integration

  • Develop and refine ESG governance practices and workflows to ensure timely and consistently high-quality flow of information to relevant governance bodies
  • Plan and lead preparation of meetings and other events for ESG governance bodies
  • Establish and enforce guardrails to ensure centralized review and endorsement of significant transactions with ESG elements throughout the Group
  • Act as secretariat for Group ESG Committee
  • Lead development of new projects and initiatives on ESG oversight group-wide
  • Manage and lead responses to regulators and other authoritative bodies regarding ESG issues
  • Create policies, standards, and guidelines to reinforce ESG governance controls
  • When needed, support Group Head of Sustainability in and/or represent AIA at conferences, seminars, press conferences and meetings to build brand equity and showcase AIAs ESG leadership
  • Support the Group Head of Sustainability in all matters related to ESG governance
  • Act as main liaison with Group Risk to ensure proper and effective integration of ESG factors within the enterprise risk management framework
  • Work with Group Risk and other functional partners in advancing ESG reporting and disclosures to meet regulatory and other stakeholder expectations

Build a Governance Framework and ensure delivery of ESG priorities on-time / flag and address delays / course correct for delivery particularly

Maintain governance for delivery of High quality ESG report & ratings

Deliver on TCFD in compliance with ISSB

Lead on ESG integration into Risk

Administrator for ESG as a function in AIA

  • Anticipate, lead, and manage corporate functions and tasks for Group ESG as it increases in size and maturity within AIA
  • Work with team members to understand budgeting and other resource demands, help build business cases to optimize spends necessary to carry out our ESG strategy, and strategize communications to BUs
  • Work with Group Finance in preparing ESG function budget and other cost centre-related requirements
  • Train and educate ESG team members to build internal capability over common corporate tasks such as onboarding of vendors and assessing their Third Party risk

ESG process oversight and stakeholder management

  • Take part in key initiatives taking place across the Group ESG function and advise on best course of action to ensure optimal outcomes, such as for Net Zero and Climate, and financial inclusion efforts
  • When required, work with team members to deliver highly urgent and important tasks, such as for ESG Education, and Partnership and Communications
  • Assimilate ESG team members to AIA culture and processes, and actively participate in stakeholder management for key ESG activities

Provide high quality input to other initiatives and step in when required

Minimum Requirements:

  • Ability to implement and embed new strategies and thinking
  • Effective in working with multiple stakeholders (Leadership team, Business Heads, Country CEOs etc.) and driving change
  • Track record of creating awareness, transforming culture, building brand and aligning teams on ESG agenda
  • Sector Experience – Nice to have but not mandatory
  • Passionate about sustainability
  • High EQ, effective communicator and influencer
  • Highly proficient in English – Written and Spoken
  • A minimum of 8 years working experience in Sustainability / related areas such as Risk  
  • Ability to understand and disseminate information related to ESG aspects of the business, including policies and practices, in a short time frame
  • Strong understanding of global sustainability issues, and sustainable finance principles and practices
  • Strong written and spoken skills
  • Strong interpersonal skills and stakeholder management experience, with ability to develop and maintain relationships across the business and at local and international level
  • Ability to engage senior leaders on ESG, including informing on industry practices and seeking consensus on stakeholder feedback 
  • Multi-tasker, with proven project management experience
  • Continue to identify opportunities and lead on ESG integration across the business in-line with strategic priorities
  • Degree in relevant disciplines and master’s degree is advantageous

Build a career with us as we help our customers and the community live Healthier, Longer, Better Lives.

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