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Alexander Grenz: The future of Allianz in Indonesia’s life insurance industry
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ounded in 1890 in Munich, Germany, Allianz is one of the world’s leading integrated financial service provider. In Indonesia, its presence began in 1981 with a representative office, followed by the establishment of Allianz Utama Indonesia in 1989 for general insurance and Allianz Life Indonesia in 1996 for life and health insurance. In 2023, Allianz further expanded with the launch of Allianz Life Syariah, which is dedicated to sharia-based life and health protection.
In 2023, Alexander Grenz assumed role of Country Manager and President Director of Allianz Life Indonesia, and The Jakarta Post had an opportunity to sit down with him in January 2024 to discuss the current situation of Indonesia’s life insurance industry and what the insurer planned to further contribute.
Originally from Germany, Grenz has accumulated over 20 years of experience across the globe through his career in Allianz. For the past decade he has been working in Southeast Asia, and today he is overseeing Allianz in Indonesia.
We started by asking about his experience so far in Indonesia.
“I’m still very new to this country, but I realize that there is a very strong sense of community where people always try to lend a helping hand to accomplish things.” Grenz answered
Then we inquired on his leadership style at Allianz, to which Grenz emphasized his strong belief in collaboration and dislike towards thick layers of bureaucratic hierarchy.
“Internally, I think we can call it collaborative leadership, because I believe that Allianz has to empower its people. We need to trust our people in taking bold actions and aspirations independently,” Grenz explained.
When asked what plans he has in store in regards to leading Allianz in Indonesia, where the company has more than 10 million insured, Grenz outlined a four-pillar strategy for Allianz in Indonesia, the first pillar being growth.
“Internally, we call our strategy ‘double in five’, which means doubling our customer base in five years. This will be equivalent to an average of 15 percent growth per year. Over the last [few] years, our customer base grew by around 4 percent, with last year hovering at 8 percent, so it is a bold ambition.”
Grenz’s second pillar focused on the company’s products and technical excellence, particularly on fine-tuning Allianz products so that they are affordable and offers the right values for customers.
Their third pillar revolves around services and IT, particularly on improving the accessibility and ease of use of Allianz products through technology.
Lastly, their 4th pillar focuses on the people and culture of Allianz itself. Through this Grenz wishes to imbue a mindset of customer centricity for his team so that they can offer the best service.
Considering Indonesia’s majority Muslim population, the Post inquired about the prospects of Allianz Life Syariah.
“Since we started our sharia business in 2006, we have seen a good trend and also very, very good growth rates in that particular business area,” said Grenz.
Syariah products have a low penetration rate of 0.2 percent compared to 2.3 percent of conventional products. Growth rates however, are significantly higher, hovering at around 10 percent, suggesting a rising trend for demand.
Grenz also noted that the entity received a full endorsement from the Indonesian Vice President, Prof. Dr. (H.C) K.H Ma’ruf Amin, who attended the inauguration event of Allianz Syariah.
Asked about his outlook for Indonesia’s life insurance industry in 2024, Grenz told the Post that this year could shape up to be a very positive one with a myriad of opportunities for growth.
“Last year we just started to come out of the pandemic, and awareness for health insurance increased significantly. It’s on us to make sure that we provide adequate solutions to all segments in this industry. So there is room for improvement, and we can offer more holistic solutions for a wider audience, to achieve good growth in 2024 and beyond. ” he said.
To help improve financial literacy in the country, Allianz has also initiated educational programs that cover a wide range of segments.
“In 2023, we have already done more than 400 seminars for all types of customers. We are focusing on schoolchildren, young adults, families and different types of communities in different areas, rural areas [and] even metropolitan areas,” said Grenz.
To conclude the discussion, Grenz reiterated that life insurance must become easier to understand and access for all Indonesians. Through this, he hopes that Allianz can ultimately help the government realize its ambition of raising the financial inclusion rate above the current 16 percent.
“I think Indonesia is a country full of opportunities, I like the vision of the government for 2045 to become one of the top developed markets in the world, and I strongly believe it can [be] from the little time I [have] spent here. We, as Allianz, want to support that.”
“Our purpose is to secure your future, and I’m optimistic that we will.” Grenz closed.
This article was published in collaboration with Allianz Indonesia
