Head - Bancassurance

The Head of Bancassurance will provide strategic and operational leadership for the organization’s Bancassurance business. The incumbent will build and scale strategic banking partnerships, drive profitable growth, expand market reach, and enhance channel productivity across retail, rural, agricultural, SME, corporate, and specialty general insurance products.

The role requires a seasoned leader with extensive banking and insurance networks, a strong record of acquiring and developing significant Bancassurance relationships, and the ability to build a sustainable, scalable, and technology-enabled distribution business across India.

Key Responsibilities

1. Strategy and Business Growth

• Develop and execute the Bancassurance strategy in line with the organization’s growth and profitability objectives.
  
• Define the long-term vision, operating model, business plan, revenue forecast, and expansion roadmap for the channel.
  
• Identify opportunities to acquire, expand, and deepen relationships with public sector, private sector, foreign, regional rural, cooperative, and small finance banks.
  
• Build enterprise-level capabilities across technology, structure, people, processes, analytics, and governance to support scalable growth.
  
• Provide market intelligence and strategic recommendations to the executive leadership team.
  

2. Strategic Partnerships

• Leverage industry relationships and professional networks to acquire new banking partnerships and strengthen existing alliances.
  
• Identify, evaluate, negotiate, and close large and strategically important Bancassurance partnerships.
  
• Lead commercial negotiations, partnership agreements, joint business plans, service models, and performance commitments.
  
• Develop customized propositions aligned with each partner’s customer segments, business priorities, and distribution strengths.
  
• Ensure effective onboarding, governance, development, and retention of banking relationships.
  
• Maintain a strong pipeline of prospective partners to support sustained channel growth.
  

3. Revenue and Profitability

• Own the Bancassurance channel’s Gross Written Premium, revenue, market share, and profitability targets.
  
• Drive profitable growth across crop, motor, health, travel, personal accident, home, SME, commercial, corporate, and specialty insurance products.
  
• Develop annual operating plans and ensure disciplined execution against agreed targets.
  
• Increase customer acquisition, product penetration, cross-selling, and wallet share across partner banks.
  
• Monitor channel performance, portfolio quality, productivity, conversion ratios, renewals, and profitability, and implement corrective actions where required.
  

4. Executive Relationship Management

• Build strong relationships with CXOs, business heads, distribution leaders, product teams, and senior stakeholders within partner institutions.
  
• Act as the executive sponsor for strategic Bancassurance relationships.
  
• Lead periodic governance reviews, joint business planning sessions, and performance discussions with banking partners.
  
• Establish effective engagement and escalation mechanisms to resolve strategic and operational issues.
  
• Drive partner satisfaction, engagement, and long-term retention.
  
• Represent the organization at relevant banking, insurance, and financial services forums.
  

5. Distribution and Channel Excellence

• Design effective sales structures, coverage models, incentive programs, partner engagement initiatives, and productivity frameworks.
  
• Drive branch activation, relationship manager productivity, lead generation, conversion improvement, and customer penetration.
  
• Ensure the effective deployment of sales resources across partners, regions, and business segments.
  
• Develop differentiated distribution strategies based on partner type, customer profile, geography, and product potential.
  
• Provide strategic direction and performance support to zonal and regional teams.
  
• Establish consistent channel standards, operating rhythms, and review mechanisms across India.
  

6. Product, Technology, and Process Development

• Collaborate with underwriting, actuarial, product, operations, marketing, technology, claims, and customer service teams to develop customized insurance solutions.
  
• Introduce customer-centric propositions for retail, rural, agricultural, SME, commercial, and corporate banking customers.
  
• Lead digital integration with partner banks across lead management, onboarding, underwriting, policy issuance, servicing, and reporting.
  
• Drive automation, data integration, and process simplification to improve scalability, customer experience, and operating efficiency.
  
• Ensure that product and process innovations deliver customer value and sustainable profitability.
  

7. Team Leadership and Capability Building

• Build, mentor, and lead a high-performing national Bancassurance team comprising zonal, regional, relationship, sales, and support functions.
  
• Establish clear performance expectations, accountability, and leadership governance across the channel.
  
• Foster a culture of collaboration, customer-centricity, execution excellence, ethical conduct, and high performance.
  
• Develop succession plans and leadership pipelines for critical roles.
  
• Implement training and capability-building programs for internal teams, bank employees, relationship managers, and partner personnel.
  
• Strengthen product knowledge, consultative selling, regulatory awareness, and sales effectiveness across the distribution network.
  

8. Compliance, Risk, and Governance

• Ensure compliance with IRDAI regulations, applicable banking and insurance guidelines, internal policies, and partner-bank requirements.
  
• Establish controls to monitor sales conduct, customer suitability, operational risk, portfolio quality, and service standards.
  
• Address audit observations, compliance gaps, and regulatory requirements within defined timelines.
  
• Promote transparency, customer protection, ethical conduct, and strong corporate governance.
  
• Identify emerging risks and implement appropriate preventive and corrective measures.
  

9. Analytics and Executive Reporting

• Establish a robust management information and analytics framework for monitoring channel performance.
  
• Track premium growth, profitability, branch activation, relationship manager productivity, conversion ratios, product penetration, renewals, and partner-wise contribution.
  
• Conduct regular performance reviews across national, zonal, regional, and partner levels.
  
• Present business performance, risks, opportunities, and recommendations to the executive leadership team.
  
• Use data, competitor insights, and market intelligence to identify opportunities and improve decision-making.
  

Key Deliverables

The incumbent will be accountable for:

• Acquisition, onboarding, and development of strategic banking partnerships.
  
• Growth in Gross Written Premium, revenue, market share, and profitability.
  
• Increased product penetration, customer acquisition, cross-selling, and partner wallet share.
  
• Improved branch activation, relationship manager productivity, conversion ratios, and channel efficiency.
  
• Enhanced partner engagement, satisfaction, and retention.
  
• Development of customized, customer-centric, and digitally enabled insurance solutions.
  
• Creation of a strong national team and sustainable leadership pipeline.
  
• Effective compliance, risk management, governance, and closure of audit observations.
  

Candidate Profile

Educational Qualifications

• MBA or PGDM in Marketing, Sales, Finance, Strategy, or Business Management from a reputed institution.
  
• IRDAI certification, as applicable.
  
• Additional qualifications in insurance, banking, sales, strategy, or leadership will be preferred.
  

Experience

• Minimum 25 years of overall experience in insurance, banking, financial services, distribution, or Bancassurance.
  
• At least 15 years of leadership experience in Bancassurance partnerships or large institutional distribution businesses.
  
• Proven experience in acquiring, developing, and scaling strategic banking relationships.
  
• Strong exposure to general insurance products, distribution models, and partner-led sales ecosystems.
  
• Demonstrated success in delivering revenue growth, profitability, market expansion, and partner development.
  
• Experience managing large banking alliances and geographically dispersed sales teams.
  
• Ability to build multifunctional capabilities across technology, products, people, processes, analytics, and governance.