Suncorp Group is a leading banking, insurance, and wealth management services provider in Australia.
With roots going way back to 1902 when the Queensland Agricultural Bank opened its first branch, Suncorp has gone from being a state-owned firm to a deregulated privatized firm expanding operations in Australia and New Zealand.
All this while the company has stayed true to its purpose of building futures and protecting what matters.
How? Through a sustainable business, capable and diverse group of people, and delivery of desirable outcomes to customers, delighting them.
Performance of Suncorp Group in 2021 Depicted Through Key Statistics
- Revenue of 13.7 billion
- Profit of $1.0 billion
- Total assets worth $96.9 billion
- Share price of AUD 11.1 as of Dec 2021
- 13,000 employees
- Pool of digital users amounting to 4.04 million
- 52% of women in leadership
- Market cap of $10.7 billion
Suncorp Group offers insurance, banking, and wealth management services through a wide range of recognizable brands.
Let’s now get right to the growth journey of Suncorp Group, which is a saga of continuous progression, relentlessness, perseverance, and never-ending transformation.
{{cta('eed3a6a3-0c12-4c96-9964-ac5329a94a27')}}
Suncorp’s Beginnings In Early Twentieth Century
The Suncorp Group was formed in 1996 with a merger of Suncorp, Metway Bank, and the Queensland Industry Development Corporation (QIDC).
The group we see today is a combination of:
- The Queensland Agricultural Bank that was set up in 1902 and later became Queensland Industry Development Corporation (QIDC) in 1986
- State Accident Insurance Office (SAIO) that was formed in 1916 and became State Government Insurance Office (SGIO) soon after. SGIO, eventually, was rebranded to Suncorp in the 1985
- Metropolitan Permanent Building Society that was set up in 1959 and later went on to become Metway Bank in 1988
The Dawn of A New Era
In 1916, the Australian government established the first State Accident Insurance Office (SAIO) to provide compensation to workers mainly.
The very next year, in 1917, the Queensland government set up SGIO, and SAIO was made a sub-department named Workers' Compensation Department.
SGIO was an insurance house that was formed in compliance with the “Insurance Act of 1916.”
The act came into formal effect on 1st February 1917; it made way for people to get insurance plans covering fire, general, life, and later motor as well - something that was not possible before.
The Responsibility Of Managing SGIO
The responsibility of running the state-owned insurance house was initially made the domain of the “Chief Secretary and Attorney General.”
In 1919, the administration of the insurance house was passed on to the “Minister of Justice & Secretary for Railways.”
Initial Growth Of SGIO
In the year 1920, Mr. John A. Watson was appointed as the insurance commissioner for SGIO.
Post his appointment, the growth of the firm was rapid as evident from the increase in staff to handle the affairs of the insurance business in the region - the salaried employees of the firm increased from 170, in June 1917, to 460, in June 1922.
By 1930, the firm had to be moved to a new headquarters, a larger building, to keep up with the increase in employee force.
The firm, again, switched headquarters in 1933 to accommodate the rapidly growing need for more space and people. This time it relocated to a seven-stories high building.
SGIO Was Faced With A Management Crisis
The success of the SGIO can be measured using statistics claiming that the income from premiums increased by 174 percent between the years 1939 and 1951.
Although this was a win for the state-owned firm, the problem posed by the increase in business was the effective management of the affairs, resulting from a shortage of skilled labor. This created an incentive to initiate the process of mechanization in SGIO.
With the increase in business and premium income, SGIO was facing a shortage of labor, and this led to the use of overtime hours within the existing labor force to complete pending affairs.
Even with new appointments, the need for overtime didn’t subside as the new recruits were all junior appointments, and there weren’t enough experienced candidates in the applicant pool.
The total workforce in SGIO was 688 in 1955, and this number increased to 717 in the year 1956. As a result, the workload couldn’t be evenly distributed, and the need for overtime persisted.
Overtime came with high costs for the state firm: as identified by the insurance commissioner Cec. Grimley.
How Did SGIO Evolve?
The real revolution of the insurance industry began in the 1950s when modern technology was included to be used in the SGIO branches.
Cec Grimley has been touted as a very successful insurance commissioner for SGIO. He believed that cost-cutting in the firm can only be a result of the use of modern technology.
His memorandums to the Under Secretary outline his proposal for the adoption of technology like punched-card accounting, which would reduce overtime hours, promote efficiency in various departments, and increase the capacity of existing labor to deal with the increasing span of the business.
In compliance with commissioner Grimley’s recommendations, the Hollerith machine was procured at hire and installed. The machine was used in the departments of SGIO statistics, accounts, and policy. The new equipment performed basic tasks such as printing expiry notices, renewal notices, writing cheques, and maintaining cash books and ledgers.
However, the desired outcome was still not reached, and upon technical survey, the need for more electronic machinery was highlighted.
The survey firm recommended the employment of ICT555, which was a minicomputer and an electronic calculator. Recommendations by the accountant called for more equipment to be bought and installed in the firm.
New Policies For The Insurance Industry
The “Insurance Act of 1960” brought with it state regulatory oversight and a change in the hierarchy of SGIO, as it was now supposed to be run by a general manager and a deputy general manager.
The role of the insurance commissioner was separated from the SGIO. Cec Grimley was no longer in charge of the SGIO, but he was still the insurance commissioner.
McGrath was hired as the manager, and Jack Demaine was hired as the deputy manager.
The act was introduced while keeping in consideration the scale of the SGIO, which by the end of 1959 had assets worth GBP 36 million. The act brought more revisions in the insurance industry.
Post the act, minimum qualifications were prescribed for insurers, agents, and brokers, which solved the problem of shortage of experienced senior staff.
Minimum paid-up capital requirement was made necessary, and an appeal could be filed in case of a license refusal. Lastly, maximum premium rates were introduced to protect the people.
The Deadlock Was Crushed
The bureaucracy and senior management within the firm resisted the complete implementation of computer systems in the SGIO.
The resistance was natural because there weren’t enough trained personnel in the firm to realize the true potential of computer processes in the work environment.
This resistance turned into progression when Ken Pope became the office planning officer in October 1961. With his induction, the movement to employ computers in the firm gained speed: training programs were arranged for employees to become familiar with systems programming.
In 1964, officer Pope requested the general manager Riding to roll out the call for quotations for computer installations from firms like IBM and ICT.
Growing Change In The Public Institutions
On the other hand, the divorce of ownership between the government and SGIO became more evident when SGIO formed its own board of directors in 1971.
All along, major changes were happening in the Australian financial services industry.
In 1959, the Metropolitan Permanent Building Society was established. It later went on to become the Metway Bank in the 1980’s. This was a time when all the major building societies transformed into full-fledged banks. Metway Bank, became the largest Queensland-based bank down the line.
Also, SGIO stopped its building society operations in 1976. Meanwhile, the Queensland Agricultural Bank - a successful bank in the region - was rebranded as the Queensland Industry Development Corporation (QIDC) in 1986.
Key Takeaway 1: Keep Moving Forward Come What May
Established by the Queensland government, SGIO underwent a number of twists and turns.
From management crisis and resistance to change to policy upheavals and dynamism in the business landscape, it saw it all.
However, come what may, it continued to not only survive but also thrive. As a result, SGIO grew, both in size and stature.
Journey From SGIO To Suncorp-Metway
In 1985, a new bill was presented in the assembly of Queensland called the “Suncorp Insurance and Finance Bill.”
It led to a number of changes in the years to follow.
SGIO Rebranding To Suncorp
The Bill began by emphasizing the benefits achieved by firms as a result of deregulation, which promotes healthy competition for the entire industry.
With the act’s approval, no firm enjoyed the benefit of state-backing, and all were to be equal in terms of competitiveness.
The Bill called for autonomy given to the SGIO, the organization to be given complete management of the affairs, and termination of the “public servant” status of the employees of SGIO.
The said Bill was passed and brought into effect immediately with little discussion in the parliament. This was a major turning point for the firm, which now became Suncorp from SGIO.
The employees working in SGIO, who lost their public service status, were allowed to choose between working for Suncorp without the “civil servant” status or moving to another department of civil service to retain the status.
The move of deregulation of SGIO wasn’t viewed as a very liberating move by the critics of the new Bill because they believed that SGIO’s rebranding to Suncorp gives off an impression of a private firm but the government of Queensland still holds the statutory authority.
The statutory authority of the government gave it the power to make appointments to the board of directors for Suncorp. The appointments were to be made by the governor in council.
Hence, the steering of the newly branded Suncorp was still indirectly with the government, and this wasn’t considered privatization by the critics.
However, the progression of the bank in terms of assets, revenue, and market-cap proved that the Bill was a success.
Suncorp-Metway Merger
During the 1990s, Suncorp became a huge brand in Queensland.
However, its branding did not fill its void of being outdated in terms of modern banking solutions.
At the same time, the sweeping changes in the financial industry, deregulation, and increased convergence of banking and insurance companies, it was decided to merge State Financial Institutions (SFI) with an established bank.
The SFIs that required restructuring were as follows:
- Queensland Industry Development Corporation (QIDC)
- SUNCORP Building Society (SBS)
- SUNCORP Finance Limited (SFL)
- SUNCORP Insurance and Finance (SIF)
Another objective behind the merger move was to provide SFIs the unprotected exposure to the uncertainty and complexity of the money market.
The objective stemmed from the problem that SFIs needed to be equipped enough to provide a market-competitive rate of return for them to stay in business.
Alliance with private firms provides SFIs both exposure to the money market and injection of skills to provide credible financial products.
Suncorp, along with QIDC, SBS, SFL, and SIF, experienced a progressive merger with Metway bank in 1996. The merger was formalized with “State Financial Institutions and Metway Merger Act 1996.” And so, the merger of QIDC and Suncorp with Metway bank - the largest Queensland-based bank - led to the formation of Suncorp-Metway.
Around the time of the merger, Suncorp offered a suite of financial, insurance, and banking services and has assets worth $10 billion. On the other hand, QIDC had assets worth $3 billion and Metway Bank had more than $7 billion in assets.
Government Gives Up Shares In Suncorp-Metway
Now was the time for the Queensland government to prove that it has indeed embarked on a real privatization journey in the banking and finance sector.
In 1997, the Queensland government, in a bid to prevail over pure privatization of Suncorp-Metway, sold off its stake in the merger to the public.
The preference in sales of these notes was given to the customers of Suncorp, QIDC, Metway, and to the existing shareholders of Suncorp-Metway.
By the end of the issue and the successful conversion of notes to shares, the government’s stake in Suncorp-Metway reduced to 4%
Suncorp-Metway: An Attractive Investment
In the first half of 1997, Suncorp-Metway’s banking business received a rating of “A” for the long-term and “A1” for the short term by IBCA, an international rating agency. The insurance business of the firm received a rating of “A+.”
Similarly, Standard and Poor (S&P) gave the firm’s banking business a short-term rating of “A2” and a long-term rating of “A-.”
Safe to say, Suncorp-Metway was all set to continue to grow.
Key Takeaway 2: Always Pounce On Opportunities
Changing times call for improvisation. That’s exactly what SGIO did to rebrand itself to Suncorp.
Rather than being reactive to the external environment, SGIO took the lead and understood how rebranding can breathe new life into the company. Hence, it didnt wait long to make the bold move.
Similarly, when the opportunity arose for amalgamation with Metway, and QIDC, Suncorp was game for it.
The Becoming Of Suncorp From Suncorp-Metaway
The year 2000 became a milestone year for Suncorp-Metway: the firm's total assets surpassed $26 billion, and the consolidated revenues went as high as $3.5 billion.
The firm was raking in higher profits than ever. To put into perspective, the profits grew by 36% compared to the previous year (1999).
Suncorp Metway Diamond Plus - A Customer-Oriented Scheme:
For long-term customer retention, the firm came up with a scheme called “Suncorp Metway Diamond Plus,” a four-step process to provide significant value to the existing and prospective customers.
The four steps were as follows: needs assessment, cross-sell, cost to serve, and value-added linkages.
In the first step, needs assessment, the customers’ needs were assessed to get a clearer understanding of how to manage their finances effectively.
The second step, cross-sell, required the sales team to recommend and sell the most-suited products to the customers whose needs were assessed.
The third step, cost to sell, required the branch employees to raise awareness among customers, who come to the bank in person, about the convenience ATMs, internet, and phone banking offers.
The last step, value-added linkages, ensured that the firm was providing ample benefits to the customer, for example, automatic mortgage deduction from their bank account.
This really streamlined the business processes and enabled Suncorp to delight its customers.
Suncorp’s New Alliances And Acquisitions Throughout Australia
In order to scale operations massively outside of Queensland, Suncorp-Metway was on the lookout to form alliances that enabled it to connect with customers, whether directly or indirectly.
To achieve this objective, the firm established an alliance with Pivot Limited, an agribusiness group in the state of Victoria, to provide financial and insurance products in that state.
This alliance materialized in the year 2000 because the sales were very high for Pivot Ltd., which, in turn, led to the rise in the sales of Suncorp-Metway’s products as well.
Similarly, the firm was leveraging its subsidiary, LJ Hooker real estate group’s vast network of around 500 offices throughout the country to expand mobile loan services.
In 2001, Suncorp-Metway made a new acquisition; the Australian Mutual Provident Society (AMP Limited) - another large insurer in the country, mainly outside Queensland.
The firm acquired AMP’s GIO and its fire as well as general insurance business.
This was a highly beneficial acquisition for Suncorp-Metway because it had an objective of expanding and diversifying its customer base, and AMP/GIO’s 90% of customers were outside Queensland, which helped them do just that.
Conversion From Suncorp-Metway To Suncorp
On 1st July 2002, as part of a rebranding strategy, the firm was renamed “Suncorp.”
The change dropped “Metway” from the name. Outside of Queensland, the insurance business of the firm was operating under the name “GIO, ”which was an acquisition.
And in Queensland, the insurance business was now being conducted by the name “Suncorp.
Suncorp’s Expansion Continues Unabated
To become a dominant force in Australia’s insurance industry, Suncorp made a new acquisition in 2004. The firm acquired the insurance business of the Royal Automobile Club of Tasmania (RACT).
The acquisition did wonders for the firms in terms of the total increase in the premium income in the state of Tasmania, where the total income from premiums in the region rose to $40 million, after the acquisition.
Key Takeaway 3: Mergers And Acquisitions Drive Growth
Alone you can only go so far. Together, there's no limit to what can be achieved. Suncorp knows this better than any other business, given the array of mergers it has been involved in.
The merger of Suncorp, Metway, and QIDC led to the formation of Suncorp-Metway. Soon after, the company went on an acquisition spree.
It made the most of alliances with Pivot Limited, AMP Limited, and RACT, among others, to scale the business, increase the customer base, boost efficiency, and gain market share.
{{cta('eed3a6a3-0c12-4c96-9964-ac5329a94a27')}}
The Expansion of Suncorp Empire
John Mulcahy was appointed as the CEO of Suncorp from 2003 to 2009 and during his time at the helm, the company grew remarkably well.
Mulcahy along with his team worked on a streamlining strategy for Suncorp, restructuring the organization, and improving operations - all of which paid off.
What Were Suncorp’s Strategies For Profitable Growth In the Early 2000s?
In 2005, the profits of the banking, insurance, and wealth management divisions increased by 24, 40, and 38 percent, respectively, from the preceding year, courtesy of the Mulchay administration.
The group enhanced its distribution channels, improved cross-sell opportunities, strived for marketing effectiveness, and refuelled the training programs for sales.
Suncorp effectively utilized the knowledge it had of its customers and offered them products that were tailored to their needs, be it banking, insurance, or wealth management product needs.
The call center consultants played a key role in the needs assessments of customers in order to run this tailor-made program for customers.
Another Suncorp strategy was ‘bundling.’ Since Suncorp is a provider of multiple financial services, banking, insurance, wealth management, it is able to provide multiple services at the same time in attractive bundles, for example, car loan with car insurance. Bundling enabled Suncorp to win in the volume game and set itself up for success.
Suncorp Takes Over Promina
In 2006, Suncorp-Metway took over one of the largest insurers in Australia, Promina Group.
With the acquisition of Promina, Mulcahy’s success streak continued. Suncorp bought all of Promina’s ordinary shares for $7.9 billion.
The acquisition was done to increase the insurance footprint of Suncorp in Australia and New Zealand. Suncorp’s growth was massive with this acquisition, as the combined worth of the company rose to $20 billion with an asset base of $63 billion.
Updating and Upgrading Branch Networks
Suncorp employed the most relevant strategies of that era to ensure that its customer acquisition rate remains high in the retail banking sector.
One of the strategies that gave Suncorp the edge against its competitors was improving its branches and branch network.
The group increased, steadily, the number of its retail banking branches across Australia. In 2007, the group reworked 16% of the branches by amending their ambiance and aesthetics. Some branches were relocated to more prominent locations. Also, at some branches, internet-banking kiosks were installed to provide a modern-day banking experience to the customers. Focusing on the customer experience really helped the company put its foot on the gas and scale up.
Suncorp’s Business First Program Launched To Boost Growth
To boost growth in the corporate and business banking area, Suncorp launched a new program called “Business First Program.”
The motive behind launching this program was to increase the visibility of the business in existing markets, penetrate new markets, and diversify the revenue streams.
Under the Business First Program, the group created new jobs in frontline sales positions, developed new products, indulged in a battle to acquire the top talent from the market, and expanded its representation in the market. As a result, in 2007, the workforce increased by 10% from the previous year.
The results of this program were rich as the business experienced a growth in the receivables coming from the property finance and agribusiness departments. The agribusiness’ receivables increased by 11.1 %, and the property finance’s receivables increased by 21.5%.
Focus On Core Business
Over the years, Suncorp’s board realized that the group could only remain fiercely competitive in the industry if it focuses on specializing in its core businesses.
Hence, the group began selling off its subsidiaries whose businesses were different from the core businesses of the group.
The group sold its stake in Hooker Corporation Limited, RACQ Insurance Limited, and RAA – GIO Holdings.
Since then the group has changed its priorities to only focus on the core businesses and compete to become the best at it. This bet has continued to paid off, not only in terms of profitability but also in gaining reputation.
Key Takeaway 4: Review & Reform
Mulcahy elevated Suncorp to the next level.
How? By streamlining business operations, tailoring the strategy, launching the Business First Program, acquiring Promina, and restructuring to focus on core businesses were some of the key steps taken.
During this time period, the business expanded, gained a competitive advantage, and become the go-to choice of consumers looking for quality insurance and banking services.
Climbing The Growth Ladder To Become The Suncorp Of Today
Suncorp always ensured that its strategies were well-planned and executed to achieve its goals.
The group came up with multiple programs from 2011 to 2021 to carry out and support all of its businesses and subsidiaries simultaneously.
Building Blocks Program Brings About The Digital Transformation of Suncorp
In 2011, the group, under the leadership of CEO Patrick Snowball, devised a multi-year program called the “Building Blocks Program.”
Under this program, the IT team of the group implemented fierce digitization of businesses that led to the simplification of business processes. The IT team removed duplicate systems that enabled simplification of the processes, and, secondly, the staff carried out a complete up-gradation of the management information systems.
In 2011, Queensland was taken aback by extreme natural events, including floods, cyclones, and earthquakes. This resulted in the general insurance department of the group being struck with 100,000 claims, and the group needed advanced efficiency to be able to cater to all these claim requests. One of the aims of the building blocks project was to increase the efficiency of the firm to respond to such devastating situations.
Under this program, the firm moved from a multiple claims system to a single claims system, conversion to a single general ledger system, a single customer database, and one payroll system.
This program continued till 2013 and the group effectively reaped the benefits of this program in terms of high customer satisfaction, increased efficiency, and mitigation of extreme losses.
One Simplified System Of Suncorp
After the success of the building blocks program, Suncorp realized the wonders simplification does to the business, in terms of efficiency, customer satisfaction, and cost reduction.
Now, the business was headed to complete simplification of business operations in all its divisions, departments, and brands.
In 2014, Suncorp invested an additional $75 million to develop the Optimized Platform. This platform was intended to deliver convenient methods that connect customers to all the products and services across the group.
Secondly, the Optimized Platform was made with another prime intention of collecting valuable business intel, from the existing data of the customers. Suncorp wanted to make more informed and customer-centric business decisions.
Thirdly, with Optimized Platform, Suncorp was integrating its data with cloud servers. The rationale behind this decision was to increase the speed of data transmission and reduce costs. The delivery of this unique platform was expected by the following year, 2015.
“One Suncorp” Approach - A New Organizational Structure!
In February 2016, Michael Cameron, the group's new CEO, introduced a new organizational structure called the “One Suncorp.”
This new structure was erected upon the groundwork laid down by the Building Blocks Program and the Optimized Platform.
One Suncorp business model enabled customers to have the autonomy to choose any product offered by the group with complete ease. The customers were assisted by user-friendly navigation and selection tools that enhanced the overall experience. Further, the group made structural amendments to ensure that customers do not face any constraints or complexities.
The implementation of the model brought large success in the following years. In 2017, it was reported that 82% of customers were satisfied with the company.
Also, after several years the group reported a record increase of 399,000 new customers joining the group. These statistics depicted the success of the Building Blocks program, Optimized Platform, and One Suncorp model.
Plus, the company changed its logo in 2017, embarking on a new journey to create a better today for all.
Introduction Of Concrete Objectives In Suncorp Strategy
In 2018, the Suncorp group declared new concrete objectives as part of the Suncorp transformation and growth strategy. The objectives were to elevate the customer, inspire people, and drive momentum and growth.
To elevate the customer, the group aimed to provide more personalized service to its customers and increase their choices and accessibility to these choices.
To inspire its people, the group aimed to empower its workforce by training and development as well as employment of the latest technology. Furthermore, to drive momentum and growth, the group invested in core business systems and promoted discipline in portfolio management.
Customer-Centric Developments
Suncorp, in adherence to its concrete objective of elevating the customer, developed new platforms in 2019. These platforms were the voice of the customer, customer guardian network, and frontline forum.
Voice Of The Customer enabled the group to better capture consumer feedback. Customer Guardian Network effectively-identified customer pain points. Frontline Forum was a tool to connect frontline teams with customers directly, to ensure that suggestions and solutions can be taken from the customers.
These reforms, along with investments in digitization of the services, paid off extremely well because in the financial year 2019-2020 the number of digital users increased by 14 percent and the Suncorp portal recorded massive user growth in June 2020.
The Outbreak Of The Pandemic Adversely Impacts Suncorp
One event that completely hampered and halted the growth and growth plans of most of the firms across the globe was the onset of the coronavirus.
Suncorp, like other banking and insurance institutions, incurred great losses during the pandemic. However, in 2021, Suncorp devised a plan to bounce back to the trajectory of growth, as the COVID restrictions were gradually loosened.
Under this plan, the group aims to invest in 12 strategic initiatives to achieve an insurance trading ratio between 10 to 12 percent and reduce the bank cost-to-income ratio to 50 percent. The forecasts run by the group tell that the business will be able to begin realizing these gains in the latter half of 2022.
Key Takeaway 5: Innovate, Innovate, & Innovate Come What May!
In the last decade, if there’s one thing that has been constant, it’s change. Market dynamics, customer needs, and preferences, and business landscape – all have continued to evolve.
As such, Suncorp, too, continuously innovated to stay a step ahead. The Group launched the Building Blocks Program, Optimized Platform, and One Suncorp model, in its quest to stay relevant and stay ahead. All along, the focus was on exceeding customers’ expectations. When push came to shove in 2020 in the form of the Covid-19 pandemic, the company incurred losses but it didn't give up. In fact, it bounced back with a new plan to continue to grow.
Growth By Numbers and Key Strategic Takeaways
From providing loans to rural communities and transitioning to insurance. From being state-owned to being privatized. From a small business to thriving finance, insurance, and banking corporation in Australia and New Zealand. Suncorp Group has seen and been through it all. And what’s more, is that the company continues to grow. One primary reason behind it Suncorp’s laser-sharp focus on the future, its goals, and how it plans to achieve them.
To put things into perspective, here are Suncorp’s mission and vision, both of which guide the company on a day-to-day basis and shape everything it does.
Suncorp’s Mission
Building futures and protecting what matters - that’s what Suncorp aims to do every single day.
Suncorp’s Vision
Become the leading Australian bank by providing responsible banking services, building a more resilient Australia, and ensuring the financial wellbeing of people.
Suncorp’s Values
Doing the right thing, caring for others, and being courageous are the three core values of Suncorp that underpin everything it does.
The Strategy of Suncorp
Suncorp’s business strategy revolves around four pillars of people, customers, digital and data, and advocacy.
By empowering its people to meet the ever-evolving needs of customers to delight them, delivering value faster via trusted digital experiences, and acting as the voice of positive and endurable change, Suncorp aims to run and grow its business successfully.
Suncorp’s Growth By Numbers
Key Strategic Takeaways From The Journey Of Suncorp
Never Lay Still. Never!
If there’s one thing that is crystal clear from Suncorp’s journey, it's that in order to survive and thrive in times good and bad, a business should continue to progress. That’s precisely what Suncorp did, right from 1902 to 2022. Laying still and inactivity was simply never an option for it. The company continued to evolve in line with the dynamic business landscape, constantly changing consumer needs, and cut-throat competition to always stay on top.
Boost Growth Through Strategic Mergers
The Suncorp Group you see today is a result of an array of mergers. From QIDC, Metway, and Suncorp merging to form Suncorp Group to acquiring Pivot Limited, AMP Limited, RACT, and Promina, among other companies, Suncorp has been involved in a plethora of mergers. These helped the company to grow exponentially, expand, diversify its customer base, and offer a versatile mix of products and services to delight customers.
Keep Your House In Order
One thing that Suncorp did exceptionally well throughout its history has been to focus internally rather than externally. Instead of being bogged down by the competition, constant changes in government policies, the evolution of technology, and changing customer preferences, Suncorp worked on outcomes that it could control. From restructuring and embracing technology to launching new business programs and embracing different business models, it did it all in its quest to grow.
Delight Customers At Every Touch-point
Everything Suncorp does is for the betterment of its customers. Period. The company goes the extra mile to serve its vast clientele. Be it ease of use, freedom of choice, desirable results, or seamless banking and insurance that its customers want, the company leaves no stone unturned in catering to their needs. All of this has made Suncorp a customer favorite so much so that people in Australia and New Zealand now trust the company to do what's best for them. Safe to say, this has been a primary reason behind its success.
Suncorp Group’s journey right from 1902 to today has been quite eventful and full of ups and downs. Amidst all the chaos, confusion, and complexities, the Suncorp Group has continued to grow by doing right by its customers, empowering its people, elevating the customer, inspiring its people, and making iterative improvements in its business operations.
{{cta('eed3a6a3-0c12-4c96-9964-ac5329a94a27')}}