DIRECT LINE INSURANCE GROUP - Key Persons
Adam Winslow became Chief Executive Officer of Direct Line Group in March 2024. He brings extensive financial services and insurance expertise gained over 20+ years in the sector. He joined Direct Line Group from Aviva, where he was CEO, UK & Ireland General Insurance. He previously held the post of CEO for Aviva's international businesses. Before working at Aviva, Adam was CEO of Global Life Insurance at AIG, having previously held several other management positions at the company across several markets including serving as CEO of AIG Life UK. Adam started his career at Allianz Asset Management in France, followed by further international experience in South Africa overseeing a large business process outsourcing contact centre. Adam has a master's degree in European Business from the ESCP Business School in Paris and a bachelor's degree in History with French from York University.
Job Titles:
- Independent Non - Executive Director
- Member of the Nomination and Governance Committee
Adrian is the former Managing Director, Group Data and Artificial Intelligence at BT Group and a former member of HM Government's AI Council. He has significant industry and consultancy experience and has held senior roles at EY and Google. He was a NED at the Home Office (2016-2020) where he sat on the Data Board advising on data science, digital transformation, and diversity and inclusion. A former Chair of the Race Equality Board, Adrian was appointed to the main Board of Business in the Community in 2014 and continues to act as an adviser to them. In 2019, Adrian was awarded an OBE for services to equality and diversity in business. In 2018, he was announced as the most influential black, Asian and minority ethnic technology leader in the UK by the Financial Times and Inclusive Boards.
Job Titles:
- Chief Information Officer
- Chief Information Officer, Is Accountable for Our Progress on the Women in Finance Charter
Ash Jokhoo, Chief Information Officer, is accountable for our progress on the Women in Finance Charter.
Ash joined the Group in 2021. He has over 20 years' experience of delivering technological transformation that underpins growth with a focus on the customer journey. He is passionate about technology and diversity.
Ash was previously CIO at Virgin Atlantic where he oversaw technology and data strategy. Prior to this he was UK & Ireland CIO at Centrica, British Gas and Bord Gáis. Additionally, he has 10 years' experience in Telecommunications, holding roles at TalkTalk, Tiscali and British Telecom.
Ash holds a degree in Engineering Product Design. He is a guest speaker and visiting lecturer at London South Bank University.
Job Titles:
- Independent Non - Executive Director
- Member of the Nomination and Governance Committee
Carol's career has spanned actuarial services and technology consultancy; brand, marketing and customer strategic development; board and executive search, in which she led Spencer Stuart's UK insurance practice; and senior executive coaching. In senior leadership roles in general insurance, she was responsible for digital transformation, direct channel development, and proposition design. She has led customer-centric culture transformation and data driven approaches to improving customer satisfaction.
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Board
- Member of the Remuneration Committee
- Chairman of the Nomination and Governance Committee
- Nomination and Governance Committee ( Chair )
Danuta was Chair of Telefónica in Ireland until 2012 having previously been its Chief Executive between 2001 and 2010. During her tenure as Chief Executive she increased the customer base from just under 1 million to 1.7 million. Earlier in her career, Danuta held a variety of senior positions within the BT Group between 1984 and 2001. Additionally, Danuta has been Senior Independent Director of the Aldermore Group, Non-Executive Chair of St Modwen Properties and a Non-Executive member of the Ministry of Defence Board, NED and Chair of the Remuneration Committee at both PageGroup plc and Old Mutual plc; and was Non-Executive Chair of Perth Topco Limited and North Tech.
Job Titles:
- Independent Non - Executive Director
- Member of the Audit Committee
- Member of the Nomination and Governance Committee
David is a former Chief Executive of General Insurance for Co-operative Insurance. Following his executive career, spanning over twenty years in senior management roles in general insurance, David has held chairmanships, non-executive directorships and advisory roles in a number of insurance, InsurTech, consultancy and legal businesses, including Slater and Gordon UK Ltd, The Solicitors Indemnity Fund, Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society and Accenture UK Ltd.
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Remuneration Committee
- Independent Non - Executive Director
- Senior Independent Director
- Member of the Nomination and Governance Committee
- Remuneration Committee ( Chair )
Richard was previously Executive Chair of Ardonagh Specialty and was Chief Executive of Lloyd's of London and the International Petroleum Exchange. He also held the role of Non-Executive Chair at Brit Syndicates Limited and Executive Chair of Cunningham Lindsey. Richard also held NED roles at the Partnership Assurance Group plc and the London Clearing House. Earlier in his career he held a range of senior positions at British Petroleum and was a research scientist for the Science and Engineering Council. Richard has also been a member of the PwC Advisory Board, the PRA Practitioner Panel and of the Geneva Association.
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Investment Committee
- Independent Non - Executive Director
- Member of the Audit Committee
- Investment Committee ( Chair )
- Member of the Nomination and Governance Committee
The audit function is overseen by a fully independent committee of the board of directors, which meets market standards.
During the year, the Committee approved fees of £1.6 million to Deloitte for services unrelated to audit work. The following is a breakdown of fees paid to Deloitte for the year ended 31 December 2023.
Job Titles:
- Audit Committee ( Chair )
- Chairman of the Audit Committee
- Independent Non - Executive Director
- Member of the Nomination and Governance Committee
Humphrey joined the Group in 2011 and has over 30 years' experience as a solicitor. He is responsible for the Group Legal function and oversees a range of areas of legal advice and services. Humphrey's experience includes advising on corporate and commercial matters, steering corporate transactions in the UK and internationally, managing legal risk and dealing with corporate governance issues. Before joining the Group, Humphrey was Group Legal Director at RSA and prior to that he was a corporate lawyer with the City law firm, Ashurst.
Job Titles:
- Doncaster Bereavement Team Leader at Direct Line Group, Commented
Jade Burke, Doncaster Bereavement team leader at Direct Line Group, commented: "I am so proud to be part of such a caring, passionate, dedicated, fun and talented team let alone be able to lead them. I've never met a group of people so motivated on making an impact not only on the company they work for but also the industry they work in!"
Stress, depression and mental health issues are unfortunately increasingly common in the UK. Around 1 in 4 people will experience a mental health problem each year. Alongside initiatives to promote physical good health and financial wellbeing, mental health is central to the Group's Wellbeing strategy. We know that companies that prioritise employee engagement and wellbeing outperform others. Encouraging our employees to talk openly about mental health can make a real difference to maintaining a healthy workplace, providing early intervention and support where needed and retaining the talented people we need to make the business a success.
The Group's aim is for our employees to feel trusted and empowered to make adult choices. This creates a positive proactive culture which allows employees to flourish and achieve their full potential, from the moment they join us and throughout their career.
Kate joined Direct Line Group in 2000. She has over 20 years' experience of the insurance industry. As Chief Customer Officer she leads on the Group's brand and customer strategy, deepening customer relationships and optimising customer outcomes. She is also responsible for delivering the strategy and developing products for the Group's Home, Pet, Travel, Life and Private Businesses and leading the Partnerships division, alongside Pricing and Underwriting and Data.
Previously, Kate was Commercial & Marketing Director for Privilege and launched Direct Line for Business in 2007.
Before joining the Group, Kate held roles in Calvin Klein Cosmetics, Moore Stephens - Vladivostok and qualified as a Chartered Accountant with the National Audit Office. She is also an Associate of the Royal College of Science.
Job Titles:
- Investor Relations Manager
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Independent Non - Executive Director
- Member of the Audit Committee
- Member of the Investment Committee
- Member of the Remuneration Committee
- Member of the Nomination and Governance Committee
- Risk Committee ( Chair )
Job Titles:
- Independent Non - Executive Director
- Member of the Remuneration Committee
- Member of the Nomination and Governance Committee
Mark's career has spanned financial services, retail, e-commerce, management consultancy and advertising. Most recently, he was Chief Executive of the MoneySupermarket Group, overseeing a period of revenue and profit growth for the UK listed price comparison business. Mark's previous roles include the Retail and Online Director for John Lewis and the Managing Director of eBay UK.
Job Titles:
- Chief Financial Officer
- Member of the Investment Committee
Neil was appointed as CFO in May 2021. Since he joined the Group in 2011, Neil has held several roles in Finance and Strategy from Director of Investor Relations, to Managing Director of NIG and Chief Strategy Officer. Neil was instrumental in the Group's successful IPO in 2012. He brings extensive industry and capital markets experience to the Board having previously worked at Brit Insurance, Merrill Lynch and Fox-Pitt, Kelton. Neil is an Associate of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.
Job Titles:
- Director of Investor Relations
The Investment Committee reviewed a detailed analysis setting out how the Group's investment governance framework and key related controls ensure investment activities and key decisions meet the PRA's expectations under the Prudent Person Principle.
Qoseen Akhtar is a performance consultant at Direct Line Group and also a member in the social mobility strand. Here she reflects upon her experience at DLG.
Job Titles:
- Solicitor at DLG Legal Services
"We had an amazing couple of days, supporting a great cause while having lots of fun, laughter, and amazing teamwork. I would recommend volunteering for a charity as it gives you a chance to meet new people and make new friends, and helps you develop existing skills and learn new ones, and it is hugely rewarding.
"Through volunteering I was not only able to give back to my local community, but both days proved to be great team building days, where colleagues that rarely get the chance to truly interact and spend time with others based in different teams or locations were brought together in a single place to work on a shared goal."
Community Cashback Awards are available to all Direct Line Employees, supporting the cause and community groups they feel passionate about. Employees can apply once a year for an Award which is donated to a charity or organisation that is registered with the Charities Commission in the UK.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Remuneration Committee
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Independent Non - Executive Director
- Member of the Remuneration Committee
- Member of the Nomination and Governance Committee
- Our Independent Non - Executive Director
Tracy's professional background spans financial journalism, digital media and corporate strategy in the media industry. Most recently Tracy was Chief Strategy Officer for Dow Jones where she oversaw the digital transformation of the business and was responsible for global strategy, customer insight and commercial policy. Earlier in her career, Tracy was Editor in Chief of The Wall Street Journal Europe and Digital Editor of The Wall Street Journal. She also held various positions at the Financial Times, including Editor of FT.com and Editor of the Lex Column.
Our independent Non-Executive Director, Tracy Corrigan, has been appointed as our Consumer Duty Champion. Tracy is working with the Chair of the Board of Directors and our Acting CEO to ensure that the Consumer Duty is raised in all relevant discussions and is helping the Board to assess whether the Group is delivering good outcomes for customers.
Vicky joined the Group in April 2020. She has a wealth of experience in building HR functions, developing cultural frameworks and enhancing people capabilities.
Vicky joined the Group having worked previously at Santander where she was the HR Director for five years. Having operated in international organisations with global roles and projects in India, Romania, EMEA and the US, Vicky has experience in finance, retail and mobile telecommunications.
Vicky is CIPD qualified and holds a Master's degree in Organisational Leadership.