RSA announces membership of GAIN

RSA Insurance is pleased to announce it has joined the Group for Autism, Insurance, Investment and Neurodiversity (GAIN) as an ‘Industry Transformer’ member. GAIN is a Community Interest Company, established by a growing alliance of people and organisations who are committed to seeing the opportunities of neuro-inclusivity realised, both for neurodiverse individuals and the Insurance, Investment and related Financial Services Industry.

Membership signals RSA’s recognition that neurodiverse individuals represent a significantly untapped pool of talent with potential to bring value to customers, colleagues and businesses across the Financial Services Industry. The multidisciplinary nature of insurance also offers a fertile ground in which to unleash neurodiverse skillsets. For RSA, maximising talents such as problem-solving and pattern recognition, presents real commercial opportunity. RSA is also keen to celebrate the existing neurodiversity amongst its workforce, and to take further steps to ensure these valued colleagues flourish.

In becoming an ‘Industry Transformer’ member, RSA makes a 3-year commitment to improving the employment prospects of the neurodiverse and to removing barriers to neuro-inclusivity. Working closely with GAIN, RSA will complete a detailed review of the current environment to be able to build interventions, investments, training, office adjustments and enablers across the end-to-end ecosystem to ensure neurodiversity can thrive. This process extends to the RSA customer experience including reviewing customer journeys to ensure accessibility and support vulnerable customers.

RSA's Emily Fraser, Chief Technical Underwriting Officer, has been appointed as the group’s first Neurodiversity Ambassador. Emily, who has ADHD and Dyslexia, is well suited to the role: she’s progressed rapidly during 11 years in RSA’s Underwriting and Pricing department, sits on the RSA DEI Council, is a mentor on RSA’s female talent program Step Forward and is the Executive Sponsor of the Employee Resource Group RSA “Ability” which supports people with seen and unseen disabilities. Emily will take a central role in helping RSA and the wider IFC Group companies support neurodiverse employees’ experience and capitalise on its opportunities. 

Emily Fraser, Neurodiversity Ambassador, Underwriting Excellence & Strategy Director, commented:

“I’ve experienced and seen first-hand the many challenges neurodiverse people face including the stigmas and outdated beliefs that people hold. But I’ve learnt that with the right strategies and positive curiosity, being neurodiverse can be a huge advantage. I see this role as the perfect time to start to reframe what it means to be neurodiverse, recognise the huge strengths neurodivergent people have, including the resiliency of growing up in an environment not designed for you. I’m really excited because this role gives us a fantastic platform to be an employer of choice for neurodiversity.”

Johnny Timpson OBE, Supervisory Board Member of GAIN said “I welcome RSA joining the GAIN community and their commitment to leading the transformation of the insurance industry by recognising and championing cognitive diversity and the strengths of neurodivergent colleagues, providing flexible work arrangements and reasonable adjustments, and developing a supportive ecosystem and culture that creates and enables a more neuroinclusive workplace and profession where everyone can belong, be empowered, and thrive.”

Authored by RSA