What it does: Financial services including insurance products, savings, investment and retirement plans.
Best known for: Aviva Singapore is the regional unit of Aviva plc, a London-based global insurance provider with approximately 33 million customers in 16 countries.
Staff stats: More than 100 employees.
The good bits: Aviva Singapore has four recruitment programmes for students and graduates (ie internship, Insurance Management Associate Programme, NexGen Technology Programme and Global Graduate Leadership Programme).
The not so good bits: Work pressure can be overwhelming because the company relies heavily on insurance sales to keep their business afloat. Fresh graduates may struggle to embrace the customer-centric vibe at Aviva Singapore.
Aviva Singapore has catered to individual and corporate clients in Singapore since 1983. The company has insured members of the Singapore Armed Forces, the Ministry of Home Affairs, eligible public officials and their families. The insurance provider divides its business into four categories comprising protection and health, general insurance, savings and investment, and group insurance.
As of December 2018, the company has managed almost S$11 billion in assets for around 1.3 million customers in Singapore. Aviva Singapore markets its products through insurance brokers, corporate partners, direct and online transactions, and financial advisers. The company has won several awards including Asia’s Best Employer Brands, and The Fair and Progressive Employment Practices and The Work-Life Excellence awards under the Tripartite Alliance Award.
Aviva Singapore has a straightforward recruitment style. You can apply online, wait for a scheduled interview, and possibly be hired after a few days to four weeks on average. The company also accepts applications through employee referrals and staffing agencies. The interview questions can focus on different topics:
The company also doesn’t discriminate against people with disabilities. Aviva Singapore accommodates disabled applicants and encourages them to apply if they meet the minimum job requirements.
Aviva Singapore’s four programmes for joining the company comprise of internships, the Insurance Management Associate Programme (iMAP), NexGen Technology Programme (NTP) and the Global Graduate Leadership Programme (GGLP). The company requires aspiring interns to be available for 10 weeks from May to July. Aviva Singapore prefers to hire those who are in their last year of college or university. The iMAP programme involves an intensive overview of Aviva Singapore through three eight-month rotations in different projects and teams.
Tech graduates under the NTP programme work either as cloud operations engineers or cloud engineers. They must be experts in cloud computing, master DevOps or Agile best practices. The company prefers individuals who don’t have more than three years of experience in a tech role. You can choose from eight different functions when you join Aviva Singapore: actuarial, customer service, finance, group business, intermediary distribution, people function, product and marketing, and risk and compliance.
Do you want to work in an overseas Aviva office? Competent and qualified graduates can work in Canada, France or the U.K. from 6 to 12 months. You should take an online quiz to determine if you are a good match for a foreign assignment.
Aviva Singapore values work-life balance with paid vacation leave, sick leave, flexible work arrangements, group insurance coverage, and 16 weeks of paid maternity or paternity leave. Dependants of employees are also eligible for free medical insurance.
Interns earn S$1,000 per month on average. Entry-level roles such as applications and business analysts and IT specialists earn from S$3,000 to S$5,000 on average per month. The monthly average salary of managers ranges from S$6,000 to $11,000.
Most employees acknowledge the good work-life balance and friendly environment at Aviva Singapore, but they also believe that there should be more opportunities for career progression. Several corporate levels seem to make it difficult for young people to advance in their careers. Some individuals reportedly have to work during weekends as well.
Female employees with talent in tech have gained recognition through the company’s ‘Women in Insur-Tech’ initiative. This and other initiatives have led Aviva Singapore to win different HR awards such as HRD Employer of Choice in 2018.
Aviva Singapore’s peers in the insurance industry include AXA Life Insurance Singapore Pte Ltd, Chubb Group of Insurance Companies and Tokio Marine Life Insurance Singapore Ltd.
Aviva Singapore’s corporate social responsibility projects focus on senior citizens. The company has helped more than 50 elderly homes in Singapore by installing the HoME+ monitoring technology, which alerts authorities when residents encounter accidents or medical emergencies. Employees also volunteer and spend time with elderly people (eg cooking for them.
Aviva plc announced a restructuring plan in 2019 that may cause 1,800 layoffs over a three year period. The company, however, assured that their Singapore business will remain unaffected with the plan.
In-depth knowledge about insurance products and services will be helpful for graduates who join Aviva Singapore. The multicultural work environment at the company will also require them to interact with different people. You should be ready to work under pressure, especially if you choose to work in the company’s customer service or product and marketing departments.
Friendly employees and a generally healthy work-life balance can offset a heavy and stressful workload. An opportunity to work in Canada, France or the U.K. is another good reason for graduates to join Aviva Singapore.