Nina Ong drives AI and talent upgrades at Great Eastern Life

The big boss credits their edge to diversity: over a third of senior roles are women.

PT Great Eastern Life Indonesia is speeding up artificial intelligence (AI) adoption and operational upgrades under President-Director Nina Ong, aiming to cut process times, boost efficiency, and strengthen long-term earnings.

The company has transformed traditionally slow group insurance functions—quotation, underwriting, and claims—into near real-time operations through automation, reducing turnaround from weeks to minutes.

Digital platforms now provide clients with real-time visibility, streamline workflows, and cut manual work, whilst helping the company maintain cost discipline.

Ong credits part of the firm’s operational edge to diverse leadership: more than a third of senior roles are held by women. 

This diversity improves decision-making, drives structured debate, and sharpens risk assessment, directly supporting underwriting quality, cost control, and resource allocation, she told Insurance Asia in an emailed reply to questions.

Ong’s international experience, including roles across Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, informs her approach to balancing risk, execution speed, and long-term sustainability.

In the Q&A below, she discusses how AI and digitalisation are reshaping insurance operations, how inclusive leadership strengthens organisational performance, and the practices she believes will drive measurable results in a competitive and evolving market.

Which challenging decision in your career most shaped your professional growth?
"Throughout my career, I have viewed every phase as part of a learning process that strengthens judgement and sharpens perspective. Each stage builds the foundation for making more disciplined and well-considered decisions. 

A defining moment was accepting the opportunity to work in Hong Kong. It was a strategic move that exposed me to a highly competitive and dynamic market. The pace, regulatory environment, and scale of operations required stronger risk assessment and sharper execution. 

That experience refined how I evaluate opportunity, balance risk and return, and lead with long-term sustainability in mind. It continues to shape how I make decisions today and how I prepare future leaders within the organisation."

How has your understanding of success evolved as you moved into senior leadership?
"Earlier in my career, success was primarily measured by delivering targets and driving performance within my scope of responsibility. 

Today, success is defined by institutional strength. It means building a disciplined, high-performance organisation that develops future leaders internally and executes consistently across cycles. 

It also means being recognised in the market for sustainable growth, strong governance, and reliable protection solutions. Performance must be credible, sustainably growing, and valuable to our customers. 

For me, success now is about long-term resilience, market relevance, and sustainable impact."

What measures has the company put in place to make leadership promotions fair and equitable?
"We believe equity must be embedded in structure. Promotion criteria are clearly defined, measurable, and applied consistently across departments. We actively track our internal talent pipeline because leadership development starts early. Many of our directors are leaders who grew within the organisation. That continuity strengthens both performance and culture."

How does having a diverse leadership team improve business performance?
"At Great Eastern Life Indonesia, more than one-third of our leadership roles are held by women. What matters most is how diversity strengthens decision discipline. 

Diverse leadership teams promote structured debate, challenge assumptions early, and evaluate risk rigorously before capital is deployed. This improves underwriting quality, cost management, and resource allocation, directly supporting margin resilience. 

In our group insurance business, this discipline accelerated digital transformation. We embedded AI into quotation, underwriting, and claims processes through platforms such as the Employee Benefit Quotation System, cutting turnaround time from weeks to minutes, whilst enhancing customer experience through the Great Eastern Corporate App and Corporate Client Portal. 

These tools digitise claims and healthcare access, provide members with faster service and greater convenience, and give human resources and brokers real-time visibility into policy and claims information. 

Together, they reduce manual work, improve transparency, increase advisor productivity, and deliver a smoother, more intuitive experience for corporate clients and members alike."

How do you make flexible work arrangements effective for senior women leaders?
"We focus on output clarity and accountability. High-performance culture does not mean physical presence at all times. It means clear goals, ownership, and measurable results. 

When leaders feel trusted and empowered, engagement remains strong. Retaining experienced women leaders is critical in sustaining performance and expanding our reach to more customers."