TAL’s Clark to depart group CEO role
TAL group chief executive Brett Clark is to step down from the role after almost a decade with a new replacement appointed.
Clark has worked at TAL for 15 years, joining from AIG Life in 2008, including almost 10 years as group chief executive and managing director.
He will now take up the senior role of CEO and managing director of Asia Pacific for TAL’s parent company Dai-ichi Life Group from 1 July 2024.
Clark is also co-chair of the Council of Australian Life Insurers (CALI) and a former board member of the Financial Services Council (FSC).
He said: “It’s been a privilege to lead TAL through a significant period of growth and industry change. TAL is a company with a long and proud history in Australia, and I’ve seen every day the difference that we make to the lives of our customers and their families.
“I’m excited by my new opportunity with Dai-ichi Life Group, and to be able to continue to support Fiona and TAL as part of my CEO role in Asia Pacific.”
In his place, the firm has looked internally and appointed Fiona Macgregor to the role.
Macgregor is currently the chief executive for individual life and will continue in that role while she works with Clark over a three-month transition period.
She joined TAL in 2014 and took on the CEO role in October 2023 with responsibility for TAL’s retail and direct to consumer businesses, including its alliance with Suncorp and Westpac. Previously, she was the chief information and innovation officer from 2018 to 2023.
In the new role, she will be responsible for leading TAL through its ongoing strategy in the life insurance and retirement markets, with a focus on digitally enabled market-leading customer and partner experience.
Chair of the TAL board, Mark Joiner, said Macgregor’s appointment followed a period of succession planning.
“Fiona Macgregor is an impressive leader with more than 10 years in senior leadership roles at TAL. She has a strong track record of leadership in the business and has helped to grow and shape TAL.
“Fiona knows our business well and has a deep appreciation for the needs and expectations of our customers and partners in the evolving life insurance and retirement income markets. The board has been carefully preparing for CEO succession and we are confident Fiona is the right person to lead TAL into the future.
“I would like to sincerely thank Brett for his leadership of TAL over the last nine years. He has built a strong executive team and provided the vision and leadership enabling TAL to grow and go from strength to strength to become one of Australia’s leading life insurers during a significant period of change for the life insurance industry.”
AUTHOR
Laura Dew
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