This year’s # 8 comes in two places higher than his 2008 tenth place debut. That’s nothing to look down on. After all, Byles only oversees a company that is known largely as one of the largest insurance companies in region. Though the largest, insurance is but one slice of the Sagicor pie.  Sagior manages and is involved in Employee Benefits, investments, individual insurance, banking and property management.

The Employee Benefits Division provides group health, life and personal accident insurance to institutional clients for their employees. The Division also provides pension funds administration services and annuity products to corporate clients. The Division focuses on building financial security programmes that balance the needs of both employer and employees. Sagicor Life Jamaica is the largest provider of these services in Jamaica.

Sagicor Investments exists to assist individual investors in attaining their personal goals by allowing them to follow their own investment philosophy by tailoring products to meet their goals and match their appetite for risk. Sagicor manages the investments portfolios for all Group Companies with the exception of the Pan Caribbean Financial Services.

The Individual Insurance Division provides individual clients with life and health insurance policies, individual pensions, investment opportunities, and other insurance related solutions through a wide range of products, and a large distribution network of Financial Advisors and Broker/Agency channels in Jamaica and the Cayman Islands.

On revenues of $14.5 billion, a profit contribution of $2.0 billion was generated by its employee benefits division during 2011. Revenue was up 20% on prior year, helped by a large single premium. The Division wrote $3.53 billion of new business during the year compared to $1.94 billion in 2010. By year-end 2011, the Investment Division managed total assets of $146.25 billion on behalf of individual policyholders, group insurance clients, pension clients, annuitants and shareholders. The net profit produced from individual insurance was $2.57 billion, up from $1.66 billion in 2010. These results were generated from revenues of $9.49 billion and $8.52 billion, respectively. During 2011, earned premium income was $8.32 billion, an increase of 12% over the 2010 amount of $7.40 billion.  The Pan Caribbean Financial Services Group (PCFS Group) delivered very good results in 2011. After tax profits were $1.72 billion, an increase of 13% above the prior year’s $1.52 billion. These earnings were derived from revenues of $4.1 billion, up 10% from $3.71 billion in 2010. The book value of the PCFS Group’s shareholders’ equity at December 2011 was $11.96 billion. The return on average shareholders’ equity was 15%.

Byles insisted that for 2011, his company made a strategic commitment to consistently deliver a world-class customer experience. A number of initiatives focused on lifting their service delivery and customer experience were implemented. To this end the CEO proudly reported that significant progress in this area to the tune of:

• Achieved 97% call answer rate at the new contact centre and 95% call resolution rate
• Improved health benefits processing turnaround time to 95% in 5 days
• Increased customer loyalty by 14% over prior year

Said Byles “customer service excellence will remain our key strategic priority for 2012. We will embark on initiatives to improve the convenience and efficiency with which customers can access our products and services, reduce wait times in branches, introduce new products to provide additional financial protection options, and provide competitive investment propositions and improve our ability to meet the needs of each client through a Single Customer View.”

In 2011 SJL assets grew 13% to $161 billion and the capital of SLJ improved by 12% to $28.3 billion after paying a dividend of $2.44 billion to their 8,312 shareholders. SLJ continues to exceed the risk-adjusted capital required by their regulators.

Byles also expressed faith and confidence in his team and their work under his leadership, noting that “the Board of Directors and its various Committees met regularly and executed their responsibilities with diligence. They deliberated on matters of proper governance, management performance, business strategy and risk management.”

The CEO is as proud of his company’s socially responsibly programmes as he is of its financial performance. “We are proud of our nation-building efforts during the year. Sagicor continued its sponsorship of the JTA/Sagicor National Primary, All-age and Junior High Schools’ Athletics Championships. We also embarked on a Sagicor School Tour aimed at connecting with primary schools across the island to provide reading material, health checks and to share positive messages to help motivate and encourage these young citizens.” Since the launch, Sagicor volunteers have shared with 10,000 boys and girls in 22 schools and conducted over 2,200 health screenings.

Richard Byles, has been the President and Chief Executive Officer of Sagicor Life Jamaica Ltd. (formerly, Life of Jamaica Limited (LOJ), a subsidiary of Sagicor Financial Corp., since March 2004. He served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Pan Jamaican Investment Trust Limited (Pan Jam), from 1991 to February 2004, where he chaired the trading, banking and insurance subsidiaries, pursued a strategy of mergers, acquisition and divestments. … He served as Vice President of the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica and represents them on the country’s development council. Byles also serves as the Chairman of Red Stripe, the National Water Commission and Harmonization Limited, a Resort Development Company, owned by the Government of Jamaica. He serves as the Chairman of Desnoes and Geddes Ltd., Pan-Caribbean Financial Services Limited, LOJ Property Management, Sagicor Reinsurance Limited (Cayman) and Sagicor Insurance Managers (Cayman). He has been a Director of Air Jamaica Limited since January 14, 2008, Sagicor Life Jamaica Limited since 2004, RBA Limited, Pan Jamaican Investment Trust Ltd, Life of Jamaica Limited and Pan Jamaican Investment Limited. He also served as Member of Governance Committee at First Jamaica Investments Ltd. He has been a Director at Pan Caribbean Financial Services Limited since 1996.

Byles holds a BSc. in Economics from the University of the West Indies. He holds a BSc in Economics and an MSc in National Development from the University of Bradford, England.BM