Head of Data and AI

The Head of Data & AI is a senior manager responsible for defining and executing the company’s end‑to‑end Data and AI strategy, with a clear mandate to embed AI across the organization, drive material automation and efficiency gains, and future‑proof the business for an AI‑native insurance landscape. This role balances strategic leadership, execution rigor, and change leadership, ensuring AI delivers tangible business outcomes while remaining compliant, trustworthy, and scalable in a highly regulated insurance environment.

Your role

As Head of Data & AI your main responsibilities will involve:

1. AI for Everyone – Enterprise AI Enablement

Make AI accessible, safe, and impactful for all employees

Define and lead an enterprise-wide AI enablement strategy , ensuring AI tools are embedded into day‑to‑day workflows across functions (Distribution, Operations, Claims, Underwriting, Finance, HR, Marketing)

Establish AI literacy, governance, and engagement frameworks so business teams can ideate, own, and scale AI use cases responsibly

Build a federated AI operating model with clear roles (AI Product Owners, Data Stewards, Business Owners)

Drive adoption through training programs, internal communities, and measurable engagement KPIs

Ensure strong responsible AI, compliance, and risk management aligned with insurance regulations and internal controls

Train our staff to use our Microsoft 365 copilot stack to deploy AI applications

1. AI for Automation – Efficiency, Scale & Cost Impact

Use AI to materially improve productivity, speed, and cost efficiency

Identify, prioritize, and deliver high‑impact AI automation use cases across different functions

Own the AI delivery lifecycle : use case pipeline, business casing, experimentation, production rollout, and benefit realization

Partner closely with IT and Operations to ensure production‑grade architectures, scalability, security, and observability

Track and report hard business benefits (cost savings, cycle time reduction, accuracy improvements)

1. AI for the Future – AI‑Native Insurance & Growth

Position the company to win in an AI‑led insurance distribution and servicing model

Define the long‑term AI vision for insurance , including:

AI‑native customer journeys

Conversational and agent‑based insurance experiences

AI‑ready products, data, and APIs

Lead experimentation and partnerships in emerging areas such as:

Agentic AI and autonomous workflows

AI search, discovery, and “AI‑to‑AI” commerce

Knowledge graphs, RAG, and reasoning systems

Ensure the company’s data and AI capabilities remain future‑proof, modular, and ecosystem‑ready

Represent the organization externally with partners, vendors, and industry forums on AI innovation

1. Data & Platform Accountability

Own enterprise data strategy , including data architecture, governance, quality, lineage, and accessibility

Ensure strong foundations across cloud, analytics platforms, AI tooling, and security

Balance innovation speed with regulatory and risk requirements typical of the insurance industry

Your Skills and Experience

As Head of Data & AI, your skills and qualifications will ideally include:

Master degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Statistics, or a related field. or degree in actuarial science with a data proven records

Minimum 15 years of professional experience, with a significant portion in insurance or financial services

Proven track record leading enterprise data and AI transformation at scale

Deep understanding of:

the insurance industry, including underwriting, claims management, actuarial science, risk assessment, distribution, policy administration and pricing.

Applied AI/ML, automation, and analytics, AI agents, agentic AI

Data platforms, cloud ecosystems, and AI architectures

Demonstrated ability to move beyond pilots and deliver production AI with measurable business impact

Strong executive presence with the ability to influence senior stakeholders and boards

Experience operating in highly regulated environments with strong governance expectations

Proven experience (10+ years) in data strategy, data management, or a related field, in the insurance industry

Strong leadership and team management skills, with the ability to inspire and guide a team of AI data engineers

A strategic thinker with problem-solving skills and results oriented with a proven ability to analyse situations, diagnose problems, identify the key issues, establish and weigh up alternative courses of action and produce a logical, practical and acceptable solution

Excellent communication and presentation skills; ability to convey complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders and collaborate effectively across teams

Excellent command of both written and spoken English and Chinese (Cantonese and/or Mandarin)

Why Zurich

At Zurich, we like to think outside the box and challenge the status quo. We take an optimistic approach by focusing on the positives and constantly asking What can go right?

We are an equal opportunity employer who knows that each employee is unique - that’s what makes our team so great! Join us as we constantly explore new ways to protect our customers and the planet .

Location(s): HK - Hong Kong, CN - Shen Zhen, Futian

Remote working: Hybrid