With more than ten years of advising NIBA on regulatory and legal matters, Sarah Kimber is ideally placed to help the industry meet any challenge head on.
As both Legal Compliance Manager for Marsh and an adviser to NIBA, it is vital that Sarah Kimber is across all of the issues facing the insurance industry.While an extensive knowledge of the sector is a must, Melbourne- based Kimber, 39, can draw upon her diverse background to offer a unique perspective on the biggest challenges and their possible ramifications.“I’ve had the opportunity to work with
some fantastic people in insurance and appreciate the diversity that the industry has to offer,” she says.
Business ambition
Like many in the industry, Kimber has taken an indirect route into insurance. She first entered the banking sectorin 1991 after completing a degree in commerce, majoring in accounting and business law.
At the time, she had ambitions to complete further law studies. She worked for ANZ for seven years, spending time in the business banking, credit risk management and corporate banking departments.
“This gave me a fantastic insight to the major players in Australia’s corporate market and first-hand experience of the internal compliance and risk management infrastructure of a global banking organisation,” she says.
This early involvement in risk management left a lasting impression. Upon leaving the banking sector in 1998, Kimber took up a position with HIH as an underwriter. She found her experiences in banking were ‘readily transportable’ to the financial and risk assessment areas of underwriting.
“I was underwriting in the builders warranty area and was able to readilyadapt my credit experience and skills to fulfil an underwriting role assessing the risk of builders,” she says.
“The real drawcard for me is that insurance remains the primary purchase that assists people in times of need and helps rebuild lives after often tragic events.”
In 2001, the career path took another twist. Kimber accepted a newly created role as the Insurance Industry Consultant for ASIC.
“The role was designed to open the door between the insurance industry and ASIC in the lead-up to the implementation of the new Financial Services Regulations (FSR),” she says. “I worked closely with both ASIC, NIBA and the ICA to help them navigate through the FSR requirements.
“My role was to help them find compliance solutions that were practical for insurance industry participants to implement but also maintained the ASIC objective of fostering consumer protection. Working at ASIC was invaluable, especially at a time when Australia was leading the way in reforms for FSR. It gave me an opportunity to build relationships in the insurance industry.”
Long-term goals
Despite ending up in insurance, Kimber never relinquished her goal to attain her legal qualifications. Last year, she completed the Diploma of Law. “I have been brought up with the philosophy of trying to help others whenever possible and to do things to the best of my ability,” she says. This was the reason I ultimately pursued a career in legal and compliance.“That work ethic sits well with Marsh because we all continually strive to improve the services we provide.”
Kimber’s legal studies led to her taking up a position with AIG as a Compliance Manager, and then her current role with Marsh, where she provides legal and compliance support to the company’s personnel.“No day is ever the same,” she says. “I could be preparing contractual agreements one day, appointing authorised representatives and maintaining AFSL requirements the next.”
WE ALL CONTINUE TO STRIVE TO IMPROVE THE SERVICES WE PROVIDE.
In good company
Following on from her time with ASIC, Kimber has continued her association with NIBA, working alongside Mark Radford to provide legal advice. “I have been fortunate to have worked with Mark, Noel Pettersen and formerly John Hanks for more than 10 years and they’ve all been great mentors.
“Working with NIBA to coordinate industry responses to government enquiries or proposed reforms is challenging, but it is important to make our voice heard. Collectively we are making a real difference to the outcome of proposed reforms.
"NIBA submissions are held in high regard in government circles. The extent to which NIBA consultation is sought by these bodies is testament to the hard work the team has put in over the years.”
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