The best part of my job is working with our community partners and experiencing the positive impacts of our CSR initiatives.

I work with the sustainability workstreams in Irish Life and learn from the different leaders across our business.

Irish Life is an industry partner for P-TECH alongside IBM and Cisco (to name two others).  We have a long-standing partnership with Larkin Community College and as part of the P-TECH programme we provide mentoring and host a group of TY students each year for a 6-week placement.  The students work on real business challenges, and it is great to hear their perspectives and to see them representing Irish Life in front of their peers at the end of the programme.

Another project that is rewarding to work on is the Irish Life GAA Healthy Clubs. The initiative supports healthy communities across the country. Each year, as part of the Ireland Light’s up Campaign, GAA clubs join our steps challenge on the MyLife by Irish Life app. In January this year over 29,000 people tracked over 5.5million km through the app – increasing their physical activity and sense of community!

Irish Life takes care of over 1.5 million customers, through proactive guidance and a range of solutions, the organisation supports people across Ireland to take care of their health and finances.

For Responsible Investing, ILIM play a significant role in contributing to the overall long-term sustainability of the market by promoting responsible investment practices.

One of the most notable ways the financial services sector positively benefits people in Ireland is by driving and prioritising sustainable finance and responsible investing, organisations are positively impacting their clients, customers, and the environment, contributing to a more sustainable future.

Another example of how the financial services sector benefits society is through CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility).  It is no longer seen as a one off, CSR is on the ESG agenda in Ireland and organisations are having a positive impact in the communities where we live and work.

This year Irish Life started helping our customers to become more aware of the difference their pensions can make for the planet.  The Irish Life responsible investing campaign highlighted how rather than feeling overwhelmed, companies and individuals can have significant personal influence to help the planet, by ensuring their pension or investment in invested responsibly.

The introduction of MyClinic made it easier for customers to access healthcare services including digital doctor and professional counselling, access virtual dietician and physio appointments and more.  Customers can work medical appointments around busy schedules and get advice early.

Other examples include Smart Invest, to help make it easier for people to start investing and the MyLife app inspires customers to embrace a healthier lifestyle and understand more about their health.

I am proud to work for a company that does the right thing for customers and feel motivated by the innovations being introduced by teams across the business.

Financial Services is a growing sector, with exciting employment and career development opportunities. I’ve worked in other sectors including education and have always been drawn back to the financial services sector.

The Women in Finance Charter is driving positive change and diversity.  Irish Life is one of the early signatories to Ireland’s Women in Finance Charter and participated in the recent annual Report. 

It is a supportive culture at Irish Life.  Over the past year, 9 new HR policies were launched to support employees both in work and during difficult circumstances. The policies include Family Carers Leave, Domestic Violence and Abuse, Surrogacy and the Working Away policy, which I recently used by working remotely from Spain.

I am a member of one of our 5 DEI Employee Resource Groups, focused on driving and championing inclusion.

Career development is encouraged in Irish Life and this year I completed the PG Certificate in Sustainability Leadership in Business in TU Dublin to support my role.

I would encourage people to join the financial services sector at any stage in their life, it is a diverse sector in terms of the career paths and the career growth available.

At Irish Life, our purpose is to help people build better futures and to live a healthier life.  An Executive Sustainability Committee was established in 2021 to provide leadership on all sustainability aspects within Irish Life.

We are committed to managing our environmental impact and making decisions that build stronger, healthier communities.  Our Sustainability workstreams align to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.