NorwichUnionhas confirmed it will change its Australian branding to Aviva, as well as announcing a shake-up in senior staff and the release of the first modules of the PlanIt planning software.
Under the name change, which is part of a global rebranding exercise, the group’s platform will still be known as Navigator, while the rest of the company will adopt the new name after having operated in Australia for over a century under the Norwich brand.
Aviva chief executive officer Alan Griffiths says the move aligns Australia with operations in 30 other countries.
“There has been a lot of acquisition globally in recent years and it made sense to operate all these under one brand. It was also good timing for us with Navigator rolling out parts of the PlanIt software,” he says.
The first module of the revised software covers the research operations, with another five modules due to be rolled out.
The local legal parent, Norwich Union Life Australia, will remain for some time and will appear in small print on documents such as prospectuses, Griffith says.
The company has also streamlined its distribution management structure.
Shaun Williams becomes general manager, group business development and Paul Northey general manager, group marketing and distribution development.
