CAREERS
FIONA
O’GORMAN,
HEAD OF
OPERATIONS
GETTING
TO KNOW
We recently caught up with Fiona
O’Gorman from Allianz to chat
about her career path to date and
what she is aiming for in the future.
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HOW DID YOU GET STARTED IN THE
INSURANCE INDUSTRY?
I joined straight from college. Having
graduated from DCU in 2000 I was accepted
by Allianz to part-take in their graduate
development programme and never looked
back! Allianz offered variety, opportunities
at home and abroad and great support for
professional development along the journey.
I hadn’t expected to stay as long as I have
but to be honest the company is constantly
evolving, so it feels and looks very different
today to what it was in 2000. can be a challenge to both understand and
to communicate why we need to evolve to a
new way of working and thinking about our
customers. Taking an outside-in perspective
is crucial to our future success and despite
the fact that we are experts in our end
product & service we are not yet experts
in understanding and meeting changing
customer perspectives. We are working really
hard to change that and it’s exciting to think
about where that will lead us into the future.
I’m really glad to have the opportunity to play
my part in that change.
WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT YOUR JOB?
I would have to say what I like most is first
and foremost the people with whom I’m
lucky enough to work. It’s a very supportive
environment and importantly it is fun. In
terms of the work, I would never have
thought back in 2000 that I would say this,
but it is never boring! Whilst there are
certain aspects of our industry which at times
can frustrate & challenge, there is a lot of
scope for innovation and with the onset of
new technologies that will only expand. I
enjoy balancing the must do with what it is
we want to do. WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE YOUR
YOUNGER SELF?
I would encourage my younger self to be
more curious in general and to ask more
questions. It is crucial to have faith in your
own intuition, abilities and capabilities. And
on a more practical note, a piece of advice I
came across recently - when preparing a piece
of work, writing an internal email or writing
a report - assume you’re writing it for the
level above your own manager - it focuses the
mind!
WHAT’S THE MOST CHALLENGING PART
OF YOUR ROLE?
I would have to say the most challenging part
is delivering real change in an established
& successful business. When a company is
successful, as ours has been over the years, it
Issue 5 • March 2018 • The Insider
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO SOMEONE
STARTING OUT IN THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY?
Bring your own perspective to bear; the
industry has to change to meet the emerging
needs of the next generation, who knows
these needs better than you? Respectfully
challenge the status quo, be innovative in
your thinking and seek out opportunities
to offer your point of view. A degree of
patience is required too. There is such value
in learning about an organisation or industry
from the ground up. Have faith that you
will progress and make sure you gain insight
from each role you perform along the journey
– be it customer facing or back office. An
organisation is the sum of the parts and
success for any organisation requires its
leaders to understand how functions can best
collaborate to bring about great results.
WHAT’S BEEN YOUR MOST REWARDING
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE?
It’s always very rewarding to feel you‘ve
enabled a colleague to develop & grow. At
Allianz we place huge importance on frequent
and meaningful coaching conversations. That
really does make a big difference to individual
and overall team performance and to morale
in general. By taking some quality time out
you can create the space for a colleague to
really think about their own working style
and their circle of influence. Great insight can
result and the most rewarding times I recall
are when I’ve enabled a colleague to come
up with their own answers to the challenges
they face.
WHAT ARE YOUR FUTURE CAREER GOALS?
I want to be a true agent of change and to
look back at some solid achievements as a
result. I see my future with Allianz, it’s been
an exciting journey so far and I expect it will
continue to be that way for some time yet!
KNOWLEDGE
WORTH
SHARING
For full details,
download your
schedule today
at iii.ie/cpd
38 hours of face-to-face lectures across 5 locations nationwide
CPD e-learning available on Connect, with new modules added regularly
Spring/
Summer
2018
Schedule
To book online go to iii.ie/cpd or contact our events team on 01 645 6666 or [email protected]
Issue 5 • March 2018 • The Insider
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