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Swiss Life Network NewsletterJune 2013

Dear ReaderOur business ambition is to make life easier – and as convenient as possible – for our clients and business partners in relation to global employee benefits.

Easy can mean many different things to different people in different situations. This issue includes various illustrations of how our Network Partners make smart use of technology to provide ease and convenience to their clients.

At the Swiss Life Network level, we support and make things easier for our multinational clients through our strict focus, high levels of transparency and fast and efficient decision-making. While these are supported by technology, people are the key success factor when it comes to delivering convenience. It is our people with their experience, know-how, commitment and passion who ultimately make life easier for our business partners – from clients to consultants to Network Partners. We will always be a people business: people creating solutions that benefit people. In other words: employee benefit solutions.

I wish you an excellent summer break – while Swiss Life ensures that your employees around the globe continue to benefit from optimal solutions.

Yours sincerely Margrit Schmid

Feature StoryTechnology and employee benefits: where does it bring real value to clients? 4

Client interviewInstitut de Soudure: Why comprehensive coverage and assistance are vital for multinationals 6

Partner NewsDenmark: A single figure that says a lot 9Canada: Great-West Life raises bar on convenience through group benefits technology 10Switzerland: When we say fully online, we mean fully online 12France: People and technology ensure superior pension products 14Chile: Cruz del Sur uses technology to improve operational execution 16

Do you knowEmployee Benefits Reference Manual 2013 ready for order 17Swiss Life Network Partner training 18Singapore: Swiss Life celebrates its fifth anniversary 18

List of Swiss Life Network PartnersNetwork Partners 19

ImpressumPublisher Swiss Life Network, General-Guisan-Quai 40, P.O. Box, 8022 Zurich, Switzerland, T +41 43 284 37 97, F +41 43 284 39 97, [email protected] • Editor Swiss Life Network in cooperation with network partners, clients and Open-line • Photos Swiss Life Network in cooperation with network partners and clients • Photo Front SL-CC-Scientists • Design and Print Swiss Life Marketing Support • Copyright Swiss Life Network • Reprint authorisation on agreement with the Publisher • The quarterly Swiss Life Network newsletter is available online: www.swisslife-network.com/newsletter

Swiss Life Network Newsletter | June 2013

Technology and employee benefits: where does it bring real value to clients?

• As a way of working: to increase efficiency and reduce costs, and to facilitate different working preferences, such as remote working and collaborating.

No businesses are immune from today’s rapid and relent-less shifts in technology. This applies equally to classical retail businesses and to sophisticated service providers. Even in academia, top-end universities are using techno-logy to facilitate recruitment, teaching and research.

Various industries are also incorporating technology into their businesses, in most cases with their own characteris-tics. However, we can identify two broad areas where tech-nology is used, although using one does not rule out the other: • In customer interactions: using technology to facilitate or increase sales, to stay (or at least try to stay) at the top of customers’ minds, to inform and provide custo-mers with product or service overviews or choices, or to provide customers with greater convenience or create unique experiences

Technology is present in so many ways in our daily lives that we some-times lose sight of it. All of us are touched by technology in some form or another: in our personal lives, at work, in dealing with the authorities, etc. Its use is everywhere. Most visibly, phones are becom-ing increasingly “smart” and social networks such as Facebook are fun-damentally changing the ways that people stay connected.

5Feature Story


However, although different businesses target different groups of people, the needs within these sub-groups re-main substantially different. The “one size fits all” model is never the answer: there are simply too many differences between industries and within customer segments. Even within one industry and customer segment, there are on-going changes that require constant adaptation to fit the current situation.

What does this mean for the employee benefits sector?The insurance industry, and in particular the employee benefits sector, is naturally included in this phenomenon.

First of all, for employee benefit businesses, there are two key areas that need to be looked at when reflecting how best to incorporate new technology to assist our clients. These areas focus on the needs of the employer or compa-ny, and also on those of the employees or plan members.

Technology can support both in various ways, as well as having a particularly valuable role to play in the exchange between the two:

Simplifying work for employersMany tasks consume time and resources for employers when setting up and maintaining an employee benefit scheme. More and more companies are looking to tools and platforms that allow them to “self serve”. Technology has played and will continue to play a crucial role in mak-ing this a reality and simplifying administrative tasks, such as the enrolment of plan members, keeping data up to date, employee communications, etc.

Providing convenience for employeesEmployees have different needs. What is important to them is timely access to their plan information, and the ease of making changes to their investments when neces-sary, for example. Such expectations have been fuelled by their experiences in the retail sector.

Secondly, the technology used by solution providers can also meet new expectations when it comes to services that offer additional value to customers. These can include: • Easy claims processes, such as paperless claims submission

• Connection across the world (between employers and employees)

• Anytime access to information • Education on benefits and its impact on employees • Automated processes

In addition, technology also “forces” solution provid-ers to become more efficient and to examine their busi-nesses more carefully, from product design to process-es to services, so as to stay ahead of competition. Due to

customers’ increased expectations, such competition will eventually lead to enhanced product and service offerings as well as to more attractive pricing. The beneficiary is al-ways the customer.

Technology adoption in the Swiss Life NetworkIn the Swiss Life Network, we see the adoption of new technology as crucial to the satisfaction of our custom-ers. There are two key elements that we are focusing on: • Networking on all levels, with clients as well as between Network Partners. Interconnectivity is what binds the Network closely together. We connect employers with their employees, employers and employees with solu-tion providers, and our various Network Partners with one another.

• Services that bring additional value to clients. This is an important element of our value proposition, and inclu-des services such as online and on-the-go services for employees, and comprehensive database access for em-ployers and partners.

Some of our Network Partners are at the technology fore-front in their respective countries. This issue of the News-letter will share just a few illustrations of what they are doing: • In Canada, Great-West Life enables plan members to submit healthcare claims directly from their smartpho-nes;

• In Chile, Cruz del Sur shortens the reimbursement pro-cess through using a variety of technology platforms;

• In Denmark, PFA Pension has created a fun and inter-active platform for people to easily relate to pension matters;

• In Switzerland, Swiss Life has launched a platform for small businesses to do everything benefits-related online.

No matter how powerful technology is today, or how much more powerful it becomes in future, we believe that its adoption will only be meaningful and successful when we use it to support our customers and match their needs. This is our guiding principle, not only in techno-logy adoption and implementation, but also in all other business areas. We are in a people business. It is the people behind the sophisticated systems that make them work, and no matter how advanced technology becomes, people will always be the most important element in our world.

6 Client interview

Institut de Soudure provides inspection, testing, design, research, training and certification for industrial companies. Its 8,000 custom-ers include major corporations in sectors such as oil and gas, manufac-turing, transport, chemicals, energy, and construction. The company says: “The strength of Institut de Soudure lies in the men and women who commit themselves every day alongside our clients, at every stage of their project.” We asked Benoît Serreau, Director of Human Resources, to describe how the company supports and nurtures its most vital re-source: employees.

Why comprehensive coverage and assistance are vital for multinationals

Client interview: Institut de Soudure

Institut de Soudure: Being a responsible company is all about appreciating and supporting every one of our 1100 employees. The men and women who work for the Insti-tut de Soudure Group are at the heart of our business and we make sure that it is a great place to work. To this end our approach is very focused on human resources, featur-ing efficient management, individual accountability, and the sharing of objectives as well as common values.

We have worked particularly hard to set up effective sup-port for our mobile employees, paying specific attention to the relocation conditions for both employees and their families. We also ensure that our employees benefit from complete and comprehensive solution, covering their re-tirement, risk, and health needs.

In addition, faced with the gradual deterioration of the state pension system, the Institut de Soudure Group de-cided in 2013 to set up a supplementary defined contri-bution pension plan (Article 83) for its entire workforce, financed exclusively by the company. Our primary motiva-tion with this is to enable our employees to benefit from ex-tra income during their retirement. We also want to make our employees, particularly the younger ones, more aware of the need to plan for retirement as early as possible.

Swiss Life: What elements of employee benefits are particularly important to you when it comes to supporting your company’s success and growth? Why?

7Client interview


Institut de Soudure: Founded in 1905, with 25 locations in France today, we are now an international group oper-ating in over 40 countries. Being able to offer effective em-ployee benefits coverage is therefore of huge importance; every new employee should feel protected, whatever their function or location. We regard comprehensive insurance coverage and assistance services as indispensable.

Institut de Soudure: As a service company, the integra-tion of new employees is very important to us. Every year 100 new employees decide to join us. Each one embarks on an integration programme to help them better under-stand their new work environment and our company cul-ture, and how to build their technical expertise. The re-sults of the various internal surveys conducted with our employees regularly highlight the importance of our em-ployee benefits programme. And the arrangements we have in place definitely set us apart and help us to attract and retain employees.

Swiss Life: Institut de Soudure works in Europe, Africa, North America, the Middle East, Asia and Oceania. With employees in such diverse environ-ments, what is most important to you when setting up employee benefits?

Swiss Life: We know that you give high priority to employee integration and satisfaction. What makes Institut de Soudure uniquely attractive for new employees? Do you think that well-designed employee benefit packages help to attract and retain good employees?

Benoît Serreau, Director of Human Resources of Institut de Soudure

8 Client interview

Benoît SerreauDirector of Human Resources of Institut de Soudure36 years old and a business school (Ecole de Commerce) graduate specialising in market finance. He joined the Institut De Soudure Group in 2002 as a strategic analyst, and subse-quently assumed responsibility for management control, as Deputy Head of Operations in France then Regional Director of the Ile de France/Centre region. Since 2011 he has been Director of Human Resources and a member of the Group Executive Committee.

Institut de Soudure: We have been working with Swiss Life France for several months, in particular on setting up a supplementary defined contribution pension plan (Art.83) for all our employees. Following a selection stage involving several possible partners, we chose Swiss Life France. There were several factors behind this decision. First: the quality and competitiveness of the business of-fer. Second: the innovative nature of the offer, due in par-ticular to partnership with Oddo Pinatton for asset man-agement. Finally: the availability and quality of the people who took part in the negotiations.

We have been very pleased to find that the attention paid to our group did not end when the supplementary pen-sion plan was signed. The teams at Swiss Life France have provided us with the same high level of support during implementation. So we have been entirely satisfied with the customised offer and step-by-step implementation support provided by the Swiss Life France teams.

Our sincere thanks to Mr.Benoît Serreau, Director of Human Re-sources of the Institut de Soudure, for participating in this inter-view.

Swiss Life: Swiss Life France has been offering pension solutions for your employees since 2012. What are your impressions of the solutions and ser-vices we provide? How satisfied are you with the team managing your port-folio? Could you share some experiences with us?

For more informationPlease contact Swiss Life NetworkEmail: [email protected]


9Partner news

Denmark: A single figure that says a lot

PFA Pension is determined to make it easier for custom-ers to relate to pension matters. The Network Partner has introduced a single figure that shows the strength of an individual’s savings. This figure is called the Pension Estimate, and it is now available directly on line.

Using PFA’s Pension Estimator, individuals can calculate their Pension Estimate, which shows what percentage of their current income they can expect to have available on retirement. A Pension Estimate of 80, for example, indi-cates 80 percent of their current net income. PFA recom-mends, as a starting point, a Pension Estimate of between 70 and 80. For most people this will be enough to ensure a financially secure and comfortable retirement.

Why the Pension Estimator?As Denmark’s largest pension company, PFA feels an obli-gation to develop solutions that encourage people to think about their pension plans, and create better harmo-ny between pension payments and retirement expecta-tions. The Pension Estimator makes this easier, and sets new standards for the industry, while helping to provide customers with the best possible advice.

Recognition for successBetween its launch in mid-November 2012, and mid-April 2013, the Pension Estimator at pensionstallet.dk attract-ed almost 177,000 unique visitors. Over 130,000 Pension Estimates had been calculated on the site up to early May. In recognition of this success, PFA Pension was awarded a DIA (Danish Internet Award) for the Pension Estimator in the “Financial Services” category.

The jury stated: “Analyses from Millward Brown show that the level of involvement in the area of finance is very low. This is why the jury is full of admiration for this par-ticular winner. The digital feature itself is perhaps not ground-breaking, but the workmanship is very good and it is brilliantly executed. Furthermore, the digital effort has been the driving force in terms of getting more than 100,000 people in Denmark to spend almost 15 minutes on average on something that is usually almost impossi-ble to engage them in.”

Embedded in the advisory processThe Pension Estimator is also built-in to PFA's personal pension consultations, regardless of the advice channel. This means that customers only need to relate to a single figure, which gives them a picture of their income during retirement. This figure follows the customer over time and clearly shows the effect of additional savings. In this way, the Pension Estimator can also help to highlight pensions as a valuable part of the pay package.

The Pension Estimator illustrates PFA Pension’s ambi-tion to convert knowledge into value for customers by transforming complex decisions into clear and relevant choices.

For more informationPlease contact Lis HaslingPFA PensionTel: +45 391 75 00 0Email: [email protected]

10 Partner news

Canada: Great-West Life raises bar on convenience through group benefits technology

The Great-West Life Assurance Company is making submission and payment of group benefits claims faster, greener and more convenient than ever for its customers. We asked Brad Fedorchuk, Vice-President, Group Marketing at Great-West Life, how technology is changing the group insurance marketplace in Canada.

Swiss Life: What is Great-West Life’s approach to tech-nology?Brad Fedorchuk: Our company views technology through the lens of our organizational strategies, which are: cus-tomer service leadership, innovation and process excel-lence. Great-West invests heavily in technology to sup-port these strategies and ensure that our legacy systems are maintained and enhanced.

Swiss Life: We understand that Great-West recently de-cided to focus on smartphone applications and text mes-saging. Why is this?Brad Fedorchuk: Mobile is rapidly becoming the way that Canadian consumers choose to interact. Smartphone apps and text messaging are well-established channels. A good example is our free DrugHub app, which lets people use their iPhone to search a database of medications for ingredients, interactions and possible side-effects; set re-minders to take medications on schedule; and, if they are running low, remind them to order refills.

Over the past year we’ve expanded our popular GroupNet Mobile app to include the Android, BlackBerry and iPhone formats. GroupNet Mobile is a free app that al-lows plan members to: • use their smartphone to submit healthcare claims online • access personal coverage information • view card information, including member ID, drug card and Global Medical Assistance, and

• quickly locate the nearest providers with access to Great-West Life’s Provider eClaims service, through a built-in global positioning system mapping tool.DrugHub medicine cabinet screenshots

11Partner news


Swiss Life: How has mobile technology changed the group benefits landscape in Canada?Brad Fedorchuk: Mobile technology has increased our opportunities to deliver a superior consumer experience through access to a broader scope of information, faster claims submission and payments, and better understand-ing of benefit plans. Our Health SolutionsPlus Visa® pay-ment card is a good example of this.

With Health SolutionsPlus, plan members enjoy the con-venience of paperless healthcare spending account claims, while plan sponsors benefit from enhanced plan custom-ization, increased flexibility, and options to control risk. Patients simply swipe their Health SolutionsPlus Visa payment card at any approved provider location to pay for products and services on the spot. We are proud to say this is a first for group benefit plans in Canada! Obvi-ously, this helps reduce the number of paper claim forms submitted.

Great-West’s Provider eClaims service offers similar con-venience, with on-the-spot claims submission at approved providers, such as chiropractors, physiotherapists and vi-sioncare providers. We currently have more than 15,000 healthcare providers signed up for Provider eClaims across Canada. Meanwhile, Member eClaims saves time and paper for plan members, who can submit many of their claims online through GroupNet for Plan Members, Great-West’s secure online services website for registered users.

Yet more examples of this are Great-West’s free GroupNet Text messaging services. Plan members can get instant access to benefit details, such as their coverage levels, through two-way text messaging. They can also receive texts from Great-West that let them know when their claims have been processed. To Great-West, technology represents a dramatic change to the group benefits landscape, as it enhances convenience and efficiency for both plan members and sponsors.

For more informationplease visit www.greatwestlife.com, or contact Marlene Klassen, Associate Vice President, Communications ServicesThe Great-West Life Assurance CompanyTel: +1 204 946 7705Email: [email protected]

About Great-West LifeFounded in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada in 1891, Great-West Life has long been a lead-er in the Canadian group benefits marketplace. The company has established this position over many decades through its commitment to superior customer service, and its compre-hensive selection of cost-effective benefits plans. Great-West Life offers effective benefit so-lutions for employee groups of any size. The company serves the needs of more than 32,000 plan sponsors and their plan members, and handles approximately 50 million group health and dental claims transactions for its plan members and their dependants each year.

Brad Fedorchuk

GroupNet Mobile sign-in screen on iPhone

12 Partner news

According to Martin Naegeli, Head of Product Design Corporate Clients at Swiss Life Business Direct, the com-pany’s offering is unparalleled on the market. “When we say we are fully online, we mean fully online – in fact in every respect. Since mid-May 2013, companies have been able to conclude a contract in an online process lasting just a few minutes. They also communicate online and do their administration online.”

Unique approachSwiss Life Business Direct clients do not have to fill in a single questionnaire: registration is entirely online. No signature is required, but a legally binding contract is, of course, still created, a feature no other provider offers. The registration process is also short and intuitive. Start-up entrepreneurs can "tinker with" the different benefit definitions and immediately see the impact on the price.

For the first time ever, Swiss start-ups can conclude their occupation-al benefit plans using a fully on-line process. This saves time while enabling entrepreneurs to benefit from the comprehensive, all-round protection of full insurance at an extremely attractive price.

Switzerland: “When we say fully online, we mean fully online”

13Partner news


Using this they can find the right solution at the right price – in just a few minutes. They can also compare their selected solution with the industry average, and get useful tips on savings and pensions. Target: young entrepreneursThe new product is aimed at start-up entrepreneurs who have no previous insurer and who have an affinity for on-line operations. Contracts can be concluded from a mini-mum annual contribution of CHF 1,000, for companies with a maximum of nine employees. Another plus point is that Swiss Life Business Direct is a full insurance. All risks (death, disability, longevity and investment) are al-ways 100% covered, allowing start-ups to focus fully on their new business. Yet Swiss Life Business Direct costs less than traditional full insurance.

With growing customer demand for more flexible em-ployee benefits solutions and comprehensive expert ad-vice, Swiss Life offers a broad range of products. Chang-ing to a suitable new benefits solution is a simple process.

For more informationPlease visit https://businessdirect.swisslife.ch or contact Mr. Martin NaegeliSwiss LifeTel: +41 43 284 65 25Email: [email protected]

What sets Swiss Life Business Direct apart:

• BVG occupational benefits coverage for start-ups with no previous insurer• Full insurance: all risks (death, disability, longevity and investment) are always 100% covered• Contract concluded online in a few minutes, with no prior knowledge • Costs are far lower than for traditional full insurance• Choice between the statutory minimum and more far-reaching solutions• Administration via the simple, customer-friendly online portal Swiss Life myLife: 24-hour access and self-

administration of transactions.

Occupational benefits too complex?Asked whether occupational benefits are not too complex and expensive for companies to conclude a contract with-out first getting advice, Martin Naegeli replies firmly: “At Swiss Life the customer decides whether to seek advice and, if so, how much. Occupational benefits (BVG) are an extremely complex subject, but at Business Direct we have reduced complexity to a minimum and created a solution that makes occupational pensions simple to understand and contracts easy to conclude. Interested parties also have the option to ask questions about the product by calling or writing to Swiss Life. A specialist team at Swiss Life responds to every question.”

Future plansAccording to Martin Naegeli, Swiss Life is far from fin-ished in this area, and envisages expanding the product to cover short-term disability benefits and accident insur-ance. Watch this space for more news.

14 Partner news

Swiss Life France offers a complete range of savings and pension plans for corporations, with a customizable prod-uct shelf that includes defined contribution (DC) and de-fined benefit (DB) plans, combined DC/DB plans, termi-nation indemnities, employee savings schemes, as well as early retirement plans.

Made to measure solutions for every companyBased on this comprehensive range of offerings, Swiss Life France tailors its solutions to meet each client’s specific needs, and provides a range of open-architecture financial management options, as well as a wide choice of annuity options.

For example, while Swiss Life France promotes the retire-ment fund management services of Swiss Life Asset Man-agers based on a long track record of performance, if cli-ents prefer to use a totally different provider, this can also be gladly arranged.

In France, the value of general assets for retirement is guaranteed by law (with 0 % interest). With the Swiss Life General Assets option, which most employees select, there is even an extra level of interest guarantee for savings (the annual interests are definitively acquired). But Swiss Life France provides also open-ended investments for a total flexibility, or targeted financial management (with differ-ent kind of profiles), based on an innovative management style and focused on controlled volatility.

The French pensions landscape and legislation is complex, fast-changing, and often very difficult to navigate. To help its clients deal with this, Swiss Life France has developed a dedicated team of specialists with in-depth knowledge of the pension system and solid industry experience, backed up, naturally, by expert technical systems.

France: People and technology ensure superior pension products

15Partner news


Expert team focused on client needsAccording to Swiss Life France, it is their people who make the ultimate difference. The corporate pension team is both expert and experienced, with a customer-ori-ented mindset that ensures that they always listen to their customers. Having understood the client’s issues and re-quirements, they advise on the most suitable solution, taking care to design this to be as simple and straightfor-ward as possible in order to simplify day-to-day adminis-tration.

When a client has more sophisticated needs, the insurer adapts its solutions and services to match. This is a pro-cess that runs throughout the relationship: from the ini-tial stages, through the design phase, to implementation and beyond. Clients can also rely on on-going advice and services even after their pension plans are up and running.

Sophisticated online features Swiss Life France provides a website with dedicated 24/7 access for companies and their employees, enabling them to manage their retirement accounts on line in a simple manner. This web interface is designed to benefit plan members by providing access to information that is cru-cial to their financial security in retirement. The addition-al service is a result of Swiss Life France's dedication to transparency and client focus.

Technology plays a more prominent role, however, as a way to simplify and speed up processes for corporate cli-ents and reduce the time needed for plan implementation and administration. For example, when a company im-plements a pension plan, its HR department faces a huge challenge: there is an enormous amount of work involved, extending from negotiations with employees, to budget-ing, to ensuring seamless and reliable implementation.

This is where Swiss Life France comes in, taking over all the technical implementation details. The employer sim-ply hands over a spread-sheet with the necessary infor-mation, and Swiss Life handles every aspect of setting up the plan, producing and sending out certificates, and sug-gesting investment options to employees directly. This is a huge benefit for the HR department, which is relieved of all these tasks. Naturally, these services are supported by a powerful IT system at the backend – although here again, Swiss Life France emphasizes that ultimately, it is the people behind the system who really make the system run smoothly.

For more information please contactMr. Olivier GuillouetSwiss Life France – Sales Manager (pension business unit)Tel: +33 6 01 20 22 57Email: [email protected]

Mr. Alain DuquesnoySwiss Life France – Responsible for development (pension business unit)Tel: +33 6 10 32 72 25 Email: [email protected]

www.swisslife.fr

16 Partner news

Chile: Cruz del Sur uses technology to improve operational execution

In response to the increased popu-larity of new technologies and com-munication channels used by plan members, Cruz del Sur is investing in technologies, information service points and new mechanisms that al-low it to receive and process reim-bursement requests faster, more con-veniently, and more efficiently.

Santiago-based Cruz del Sur has set up three mechanisms for settling health claims for plan members easily and efficiently. These allow the Net-work Partner to bring a positive ex-perience of insurance closer to insur-ance plan members, making it more tangible and appreciated by reducing reimbursement waiting times.

Speed up reimbursement time This new mechanism allows members to receive cash reimbursements for their health expenses directly at their nearest Cruz del Sul branch, avoid-ing the need to go to a bank to fill in forms (the traditional process takes about five days). This service is made possible through the provision of benefits settlement software at Cruz del Sul branches, enabling users to access information on the policies covering these services, control their cash flow, and receive printed receipts along with their reimbursements.

An example of the express reimburse-ment: Client BHP Billiton has several mining operations located in various parts of the Atacama Desert, howev-er the plan members who are the ac-tual consumers of the health servic-es insured live in different towns far from the operations. With this ser-vice, plan members can receive the re-imbursement in a much shorter time with less effort.

As much cashless as possibleCruz del Sur has also entered into agreements with major pharma-cy groups that allow plan members to receive discounts when they pur-chase prescription medicines. These discounts are equivalent to the reim-bursement the members would have received if they had applied in the tra-ditional way. The agreements incor-porate controls to prevent misuse, for example, online lists of products au-thorised for reimbursement, and max-imum reimbursements per purchase.

The insurer provides the informa-tion on the policies associated with this service, and the percentage and amount limits, which are used at the points of sale in the pharmacies.

Direct deduction of reimbursementCruz del Sur has also set up an online

discount service called Imed that al-lows plan members to deduct from the amount due for a private clin-ic medical consultation or examina-tion the reimbursement payable for the service.

This has led to an increase in the use of institutions working with the Imed agreement, and up to 50% low-er operating expenses for the insur-er. The mechanism works by consult-ing the settlement databases at Cruz del Sur using digital fingerprint rec-ognition.

The success of these technology-based mechanisms indicates that their use will increase, and Cruz del Sur is planning further innovations in the services it offers in order to continue delivering more satisfying experiences for plan members.

For more informationPlease contact Carlos Bussinger NúñezCompañía de Seguros de Vida Cruz del Sur S.A.Tel: +56 2 24618122Email: [email protected]

17Do you know


17

Employee Benefits Reference Manual 2013 ready for order

The Swiss Life Employee Benefits Reference Manual (EBRM) 2013 provides information about social security, private employee benefit plans and taxa-tion from 49 countries around the globe.

Starting June, you can access the EBRM 2013 free of charge through various ways:

• download the EBRM as an on-the-go iPad application from the app store

• download the country profiles through the Swiss Life website

• order the EBRM on an USB drive

For details about EBRM download and ordering, please visit www.swisslife-network.com/ebrm.

18 Do you know

Swiss Life Network Partner training

May 22, 2013 marked five years since Swiss Life Singapore opened its doors for business.

Following its establishment in 2008, Swiss Life Singapore has built up a strong presence in Asia and is now an essen-tial part of Swiss Life’s international business setup. The youngest Swiss Life subsidiary outside Europe, Swiss Life Singapore is a leading provider of bespoke structured life insurance solutions (Private Placement Life Insurance) for international high net worth individuals.

Since April 2012, Swiss Life Singapore has also offered comprehensive expatriate solutions for multinational com-panies headquartered in Singapore.

Margrit Schmid with the Corporate Clients team,Swiss Life Singapore

To ensure that the Swiss Life Network can offer the best possible services to our multinational clients and their ad-visors, and to ensure that Swiss Life Network has the same level of quality and customer-oriented approach around the globe, Swiss Life holds regular Network Part-ner training sessions at our headquarter in Zurich.

The most recent one took place at the end of April, when 12 participants from six different Network Partners came together for an intensive two-day course.

The training provides insights into all areas of the Swiss Life Network’s operations and processes, including our new CRM system. Network Partners also take advantage of this opportunity to network between themselves.

The sessions are designed for sales, sales administration, and actuarial employees who are newly involved in work-ing with the Swiss Life Network, as well as for any Net-work Partner staff wishing to brush up or deepen their knowledge.

The next training sessions are planned for:• September 23-24, 2013 (Monday and Tuesday) • November 14-15, 2013 (Thursday and Friday)at Swiss Life Network headquarter in Zurich.

For more informationPlease contact Fabian GeigerTel: +41 43 284 46 81Email: [email protected]

For more informationPlease contact Swiss Life NetworkEmail: [email protected]

Singapore: Swiss Life celebrates its fifth anniversary

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Swiss Life Network Partners

Country Network Partner Website Contact E-mail TelephoneArgentina Galicia Seguros S.A. www.galiciaseguros.com.ar Ms. Lucía ARMANDO [email protected] +54 11 411 48 12 9

Australia Hannover Life Re of Australasia www.hannoverlifere.com Ms. Kristine NUGENT [email protected] +61 2 925 16 91 1

Austria Wiener Städtische www.wienerstaedtische.at Ms. Monika RUDICH [email protected] +43 50 350 26 76 3

Belgium Delta Lloyd Life www.deltalloydlife.be Mr. Michel MOREAU [email protected] +32 2 238 89 11

Brazil Icatu Seguros www.icatuseguros.com.br Ms. Vanessa DONKE [email protected] +55 11 347 23 91 6

Canada Great-West Life www.greatwestlife.com Mr. David HENRY [email protected] +1 416 552 58 02

Chile Cruz del Sur www.cruzdelsur.cl Ms. Bernardita MONTT FARAGGI [email protected] +56 2 461 83 52

China China Life www.e-chinalife.com Mr. Yifei YAO [email protected] +86 10 6363 18 86

China LZ Assist www.lzassist.com Mr. Ben SONG [email protected] +86 10 5925 5188

China Ping An of China www.pingan.com.cn Ms. Mengyuan (Rita) ZHOU [email protected] +86 21 3863 4794

Colombia Seguros Bolívar www.segurosbolivar.com Ms. Lina QUIJANO [email protected] +57 1 312 2600 ext. 7031

Costa Rica Mapfre Costa Rica www.mapfrecr.com Mr. Cesar HERRERA [email protected] +507 207 84 87

Czech Republic Kooperativa www.koop.cz Mr. Michal DLHOPOLCEK [email protected] +420 956 420 31 4

Denmark Danica Pension www.danicapension.dk Mr. Michael HANSEN [email protected] +45 45 13 14 85

Denmark PFA Pension www.pfa.dk Ms. Lis HASLING [email protected] +45 391 75 00 0

El Salvador Mapfre La Centro Americana www.lacentro.com Mr. Cesar HERRERA [email protected] +507 207 84 87

Finland Ilmarinen www.ilmarinen.fi Ms. Riitta RÄSÄNEN-RUGEMALIRA [email protected] +358 10 284 26 28

Finland MandatumLife www.mandatumlife.fi Ms.RiittaJOKELAINEN [email protected] +358105167492

France Swiss Life (France) www.swisslife.fr Ms. Anne-Gaëlle COLIN [email protected] +33 1 46 17 22 47

Germany Swiss Life (Germany) www.swisslife.de Ms. Marion VINTZ [email protected] +49 89 381 09 18 72

Greece Groupama Phoenix www.groupama-phoenix.com Mr. Dimitris KALOUDIS [email protected] +30 210 937 62 44

Guatemala Mapfre Guatemala www.mapfre.com.gt Mr. Cesar HERRERA [email protected] +507 207 84 87

Guatemala Seguros de Occidente www.occidente.com.gt Mr. Wilber BARRIOS [email protected] +502 22 79 70 00 ext. 9373

Honduras Mapfre Honduras www.mapfre.com.hn Mr. Cesar HERRERA [email protected] +507 207 84 87

Hong Kong Sun Life Hong Kong Limited www.sunlife.com.hk Ms. Vivian LEUNG [email protected] +852 31 83 21 72

Hungary UNION Biztositó www.unionbiztosito.hu Mr. Tamás Barabás [email protected] +36 1 486 43 14

India Kotak Mahindra Old Mutual Life www.kotaklifeinsurance.com Mr. Sandeep SHRIKHANDE [email protected] +91 22 666 21 59 99

India Apollo Munich Health Insurance www.apollomunichinsurance.com Dr. Ali NANDINI [email protected] +91 995 981 0002

Indonesia PT Avrist Assurance www.Avrist.com Ms. Ekaningtyas ATING [email protected] +62 21 5789 8188 ext. 8529

Ireland Irish Life www.irishlife.ie Mr. Damian FADDEN [email protected] +353 1 704 12 72

Italy Apulia previdenza www.apuliaprevidenza.it Mr. Gianrosario RUBINO [email protected] +39 02 725 66 741

Japan Meiji Yasuda Life www.meijiyasuda.co.jp Mr. Masaaki NAGAO [email protected] +81 3 32 83 38 84

Korea Hanwha Life Insurance www.hanwhalife.com Ms. Ji Eun LEE [email protected] +82 2 789 88 92

Luxembourg Swiss Life (Luxembourg) www.swisslife.lu Mr. Steve GOEDERT [email protected] +352 423 95 92 33

Malaysia Hong Leong Assurance www.hla.com.my Mr. Chee Kwan FOONG [email protected] +60 3 765 01 35 8

Mexico Seguros Inbursa www.inbursa.com Mr. Jorge NAVARRO [email protected] +52 55 532 50 42 3

Netherlands Zwitserleven www.zwitserleven.nl Ms. Inge VRIEND [email protected] +31 6 238 97 226

New Zealand Hannover Life Re of Australasia www.hannoverlifere.com Ms. Kristine NUGENT [email protected] +61 2 925 16 91 1

Nicaragua Mapfre Nicaragua www.mapfre.com.ni Mr. Cesar HERRERA [email protected] +507 207 84 87

Norway Danica Pensjon www.danica.no Ms. Ann-Helene MEDLIEN [email protected] +47 93 40 72 75

Norway DNB Livsforsikring ASA www.dnb.no Mr. Alexander Gellein WESTBY [email protected] +47 90 07 48 44

Panama Mapfre Panama www.mapfre.com.pa Mr. Cesar HERRERA [email protected] +507 207 84 87

Philippines FirstLife www.firstlife.com.ph Ms.NinianCEDO [email protected] +6328933024

Poland Compensa Group www.compensa.pl Mr. Sebastian BOROWSKI [email protected] +48 22 501 63 43

Portugal Groupama Seguros www.groupama.pt Mr. Rui ROSA [email protected] +351 21 792 32 27

Russia Rosgosstrakh www.rgs.ru Ms. Tatyana OKUNEVA [email protected] +7 495 783 24 24

Singapore Prudential Assurance www.prudential.com.sg Mr. James KOH [email protected] +65 6572 25 16

Slovakia Kooperativa www.koop.sk Mr. Štefan PAL’OV [email protected] +421 2 572 995 95

South Africa Momentum www.momentum.co.za Mr. Redwaan ZOUTENBERG [email protected] +27 21 658 0286

Spain VidaCaixa www.vidacaixaprevisionsocial.com Ms. Ana DELGADO [email protected] +34 93 227 89 57

Sweden Danica Pension www.danica.se Mr. Tomas OLOFSSON [email protected] +46 752 48 04 06

Switzerland Helsana www.helsana.ch Mr. Frédéric URIO [email protected] +41 43 340 11 11

Switzerland Swiss Life (Switzerland) www.swisslife.ch Mr. René MÜLLER [email protected] +41 43 284 37 82

Switzerland Sanitas www.scpc.ch Ms. Pascale SCHAUFELBERGER [email protected] +41 44 751 8104

Switzerland Swiss Life Pension Services www.slps.ch Mr. Patricio SCOTONI [email protected] +41 800 00 2525

Taiwan TransGlobe Life www.transglobe.com.tw Mr. Mr. Sam FENG [email protected] +886 2 2176 5166 ext. 3351

Thailand Bangkok Life Assurance www.bla.co.th Mr. Taweesak DEJPRASIT [email protected] +662 777 8888 ext. 8441

UAE Dubai Insurance Company www.dubins.ae Mr. Khurram RAJA [email protected] +971 4 269 30 30

United Kingdom Unum www.unum.co.uk Mr. Glenn THOMPSON [email protected] +44 1306 873 383

USA Dearborn National www.dearbornnational.com Mr. Matthew REDDY [email protected] +1 630 824 60 96

Venezuela Seguros Comerciales Bolívar www.segurosbolivar.com Ms. Elizabeth JIMENEZ [email protected] +58 212 905 99 33

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