Ep 08 – Evan Tanotogono – The Challenge of Incorporating a Digital Work Style Into Corporate Culture

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Michael Waitze worked in Global Finance for more than 20 years, employed by firms like Citigroup, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, primarily in Tokyo.  Michael lived and worked in Tokyo from February 1990 until December 2011.  Michael always maintained a particular focus on how technology could be used to make businesses more efficient and to drive P/L growth. Michael is a leader in the digital media space, building one of the biggest and fastest-growing podcast listener bases in the region.  His AsiaTechPodcast.com show has listeners in more than 170 countries and his company, Michael Waitze Media produces some of Asia’s most popular podcasts.

An InsurTech enthusiast who recently entered the world of entrepreneurship. Previously the Head of Digital at Sequis Life, a leading Indonesian Insurer, having built the digital business unit from scratch to a sustainable business in 3 years. Prior to joining insurance, Evan led the marketplace business team in Tokopedia and worked with The Boston Consulting Group. Evan holds a certification in Qualified Chief Risk Officer (QCRO) and a Master Degree in Medical Instrumentation. Prior to joining Sequis, Evan led the Marketplace Category team of Tokopedia and was accountable for defining marketplace strategy roadmap and establishing business operations. Evan started his career with The Boston Consulting Group, focusing on People & Organization, Operations, and Strategy topics.

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Evan Tanotogono is the General Manager and Head of Digital Channels at Sequis Life, an Indonesian Life and Health Insurer founded in 1984. Having worked for Boston Consulting Group and Indonesian unicorn Tokopedia, Evan brings new perspectives and fresh ideas to the insurance industry in Indonesia.

Evan gives insights into the insurance market in Indonesia and details how insurers can reach new customer groups with digital products. He shares his views on why building digital products has been challenging for insurers and stresses how important culture and mindset is to drive digital transformation. Currently, the mindset of most insurers is to accept restrictions instead of blazing new trails. He notes that ‘digital first’ companies will commonly ask, “What do we want to do?” Incumbent insurers tend to ask, “What can we do?”  This is a completely different mindset and it is up to digital transformers like Evan to try to change this.

In Evan’s opinion, the biggest threat for insurers is internal. It includes the corporate culture, a lack of digitally native skills and legacy processes. He shares his experience on how to attack those issues and debunks myths around hiring digital talents as a silver bullet. People strategy should be one of the core topics when shaping corporate digital strategy and Change Management is an important part to infuse digital culture into incumbents.

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