ANNUAL REPORT 2011 - AXA Assistance
ANNUAL REPORT 2011 - AXA Assistance
ANNUAL REPORT 2011 - AXA Assistance
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<strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong> <strong>2011</strong><br />
KAO
p.08<br />
CONT-<br />
Our challenges<br />
The viewpoint of Chairman<br />
& CEO Serge Morelli<br />
ENTS<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE<br />
AT A GLANCE_P2<br />
HIGHLIGHTS_P4<br />
where<br />
we stand<br />
THE CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE_P8<br />
OUR GOVERNANCE<br />
STRUCTURE_P10<br />
STRATEGIC VISION_P12<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE VALUES_P14<br />
AN INTERNATIONAL<br />
PRESENCE_P16<br />
THE <strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE<br />
GLOBAL NETWORK_P18<br />
what we do<br />
VEHICLE_P20<br />
TRAVEL_P28<br />
HEALTH_P34<br />
HOME_P40<br />
p.12<br />
Our Strategy<br />
Our ambition at the<br />
heart of a changing world<br />
p.16<br />
Locations<br />
Our network:<br />
a global presence<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> SA<br />
French limited liability company<br />
capitalised at €42,090,000<br />
410011209 RCS NANTERRE<br />
Le Carat – 6, rue André Gide<br />
92320 Châtillon – France<br />
www.axa-assistance.com<br />
p.20<br />
What we do<br />
<strong>2011</strong> in each<br />
of our Business Lines
AS A DEPENDABLE PARTNER IN EMERGENCIES AND EVERYDAY<br />
SITUATIONS, <strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE FOCUSES ALL ITS ENERGIES<br />
ON SERVING ITS CUSTOMERS. ITS ULTIMATE AIM IS ALWAYS<br />
TO HELP, ASSIST AND, SOMETIMES, RESCUE. BECAUSE EVERYONE<br />
NEEDS ASSISTANCE FROM TIME<br />
TO TIME, WHETHER AT THE ENDS<br />
Our mission:<br />
OF THE EARTH OR IN THEIR OWN to deliver the<br />
HOME, <strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE OFFERS<br />
right solutions<br />
A RANGE OF SERVICES THAT<br />
DELIVER INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS in emergencies<br />
STRUCTURED AROUND ITS 4 BUSINESS and in everyday<br />
LINES OF VEHICLE, TRAVEL, HEALTH<br />
life.<br />
AND HOME. WITH REVENUE OF<br />
911 MILLION IN <strong>2011</strong> AND MORE THAN 6,300 EMPLOYEES,<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE IS NOW A WORLD LEADER IN ITS INDUSTRY.<br />
33<br />
COUNTRIES<br />
MORE THAN<br />
6,300<br />
EMPLOYEES<br />
WORLDWIDE<br />
911<br />
MILLION<br />
IN <strong>ANNUAL</strong><br />
REVENUE<br />
MORE THAN<br />
7MILLION<br />
CLAIMS<br />
HANDLED
axa<br />
assistance<br />
As a global emergency response specialist and a whollyowned<br />
subsidiary of the <strong>AXA</strong> Group, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> operates<br />
through 4 Business Lines spanning the full range of skills offered<br />
by the company: Vehicle, Travel, Health and Home. Combined<br />
with its international presence and strong regional roots, this<br />
agile, responsive structure allows <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> to develop<br />
and grow in tune with the expectations of its customers.<br />
OUR 4 BUSINESS LINES<br />
MORE<br />
THAN<br />
7<br />
MILLION CUSTOMER<br />
CLAIMS HANDLED<br />
IN <strong>2011</strong><br />
MEDICAL SERVICE PROVIDERS<br />
RECOMMENDED BY<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE WORLDWIDE:<br />
INCREASING STAFF NUMBERS<br />
in full-time equivalent (FTE)<br />
4,239<br />
5,084<br />
6,000 6,140<br />
6,300 6,357<br />
35,000<br />
2006<br />
2007 2008 2009 2010 <strong>2011</strong><br />
2_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
REVENUES BY REGION<br />
(million euros)<br />
REVENUE CONTRIBUTION<br />
by Business Line (%)<br />
The Americas<br />
154.5<br />
Northern, Central<br />
and Eastern Europe<br />
267<br />
Health<br />
13%<br />
Other<br />
5%<br />
Home and<br />
Personal Services<br />
24%<br />
France<br />
238<br />
Holding<br />
company 0.5<br />
Asia-Pacific 12<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> Travel<br />
Insurance (ATI)<br />
88<br />
Mediterranean<br />
151<br />
Travel<br />
21%<br />
Vehicle<br />
37%<br />
REVENUES<br />
IN <strong>2011</strong><br />
(million euros)<br />
911<br />
INCREASING <strong>ANNUAL</strong> REVENUES<br />
(million euros)<br />
702<br />
809.2<br />
870.4 883 929 911<br />
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010<br />
<strong>2011</strong><br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_3
From the extraordinary to the everyday,<br />
and the most local to the most distant,<br />
we look back over a year of challenges<br />
successfully met by <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong>.<br />
HIGHLIGHTS<br />
MARCH <strong>2011</strong><br />
EARTHQUAKE AND<br />
TSUNAMI IN JAPAN<br />
Earthquake, tsunami and nuclear incident: confronted<br />
with this ultra-stressful triple disaster, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> staff<br />
in Japan and around the world demonstrated just how<br />
responsive and supportive they could be.<br />
Activation of an international crisis group, repatriation of those wishing<br />
to leave the country, implementation of a toll-free phone line manned<br />
by Japanese assistance staff based in Singapore, Paris and Chicago,<br />
and the establishment of a forward control centre in Osaka in<br />
anticipation of a possible evacuation… All these actions and more were<br />
taken as soon as news of the disaster broke in order to support not only<br />
customers, but also the 6,000 <strong>AXA</strong> Group employees based on the<br />
islands of Japan. More than 100 staff on every continent were involved<br />
in a two-week effort to find and ship 52,000 iodine pills, 4,000 survival kits<br />
and thousands of litres of mineral water to Japan.<br />
D r Bery<br />
CEO,<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
India<br />
The commitment shown in setting up the forward<br />
control centre in Osaka was incredible:<br />
5 days after the tsunami hit, we had to cope with closing<br />
the Tokyo office temporarily and setting up a forward<br />
control centre in Osaka. In less than 24 hours, the crisis team<br />
had succeeded in finding an office and hotel rooms, as well<br />
as negotiating a hotline and fax line. It was a race against<br />
the clock to be ready in case the situation got worse.<br />
4_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
JANUARY <strong>2011</strong><br />
THE RENAULT-NISSAN<br />
ALLIANCE CHOOSES<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE<br />
The Renault-Nissan Alliance has chosen<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> to provide its new package<br />
of mobility and support services for its future<br />
electric vehicle customers. This forms the first<br />
building block in the overall structure this<br />
manufacturer intends to put in place to support<br />
the large-scale marketing of these vehicles.<br />
In addressing these new challenges,<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> has acquired new skills and<br />
developed specific new training programmes.<br />
The training is delivered in assistance centres<br />
for the service providers concerned, and is tailored<br />
to the precise technical needs of electric vehicles.<br />
Over and above all the words and<br />
procedures, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> also put<br />
in place an effective and practical<br />
chain of solidarity to support its people<br />
in Japan. The sole aim was to supply<br />
them with whatever they needed to<br />
protect themselves. The key to doing<br />
that was shipping 4,000 emergency<br />
kits prepared centrally<br />
in record time by teams<br />
of volunteers. These kits<br />
contained masks, protection<br />
suits, boots and<br />
goggles for use in the<br />
event of contamination<br />
risk.<br />
Showing<br />
solidarity:<br />
OCTOBer <strong>2011</strong><br />
american EXPRESS<br />
PARTNER AWARD<br />
MORE<br />
7<br />
THAN<br />
MILLION CUSTOMER<br />
CLAIMS HANDLED<br />
IN <strong>2011</strong><br />
The partnership with American Express will soon celebrate<br />
its 20th birthday! These two decades of collaboration<br />
have given the company the opportunity of proving its<br />
professionalism to this longstanding customer. In presenting<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> with a Partner Customer Experience<br />
Award, Thomas Alder, Vice-President, International<br />
Insurance Services Europe, American Express, highlighted<br />
“the essential role played by our partners in providing<br />
a high-quality global service to our customers”.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_5
HIGHLIGHTS<br />
September <strong>2011</strong><br />
A 2nd CENTRE<br />
FOR POLAND<br />
In the same way as Germany,<br />
where network management<br />
is shared between Munich and<br />
Frankfurt an der Oder, Poland<br />
now has a second centre in<br />
Bialystok, which will eventually<br />
take over half the management<br />
processes previously taken care<br />
of by Warsaw. The goal of this<br />
development is to introduce<br />
greater process industrialisation<br />
by using dedicated teams to<br />
deliver an even higher quality<br />
of service to customers.<br />
JANUARY TO MARCH <strong>2011</strong><br />
ARAB SPRING<br />
The tumultuous events seen in the Arab world in<br />
spring <strong>2011</strong> demonstrated not only the relevance of<br />
the <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> “security” offer, but also its effectiveness.<br />
Anticipating possible future events, it was at the end of 2010 that <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
began to offer a service to support companies operating in high-risk countries,<br />
with the assurance that their employees would be secure and/or repatriated<br />
if the socio-political situation deteriorated. This offer, which involves support from<br />
expert security consultants, also includes procedures for evacuation at very<br />
short notice to avoid any unnecessary risk. The theory found itself put<br />
to the practical test in January in Tunisia, followed by Egypt, Libya and Bahrain,<br />
where <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> was able to extract 40 people in less than 24 hours.<br />
Mounaïm Toumi<br />
<strong>Assistance</strong><br />
Coordinator<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
France<br />
At 5:30 in the afternoon of 15 March,<br />
a customer asked us to evacuate its employees<br />
and their families from Bahrain as local<br />
tensions tensions flared into violence. By the following morning,<br />
our action plan was finalised. In the knowledge that<br />
the access roads to the airport were partly barricaded,<br />
our teams identified a potentially successful route.<br />
The convoy set off at 2 o’clock that afternoon, despite<br />
open hostility from the crowd, and successfully negotiated<br />
three barricades before finally arriving at the airport,<br />
where the families boarded the flight to Dubai<br />
at 6 o’clock. Mission accomplished!<br />
MORE THAN<br />
6_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong><br />
17MILLION<br />
INCOMING<br />
CALLS HANDLED<br />
IN <strong>2011</strong>
October/november <strong>2011</strong><br />
STORMS IN THE SOUTH<br />
OF FRANCE<br />
Fast-rising river levels in the South of France, 10 departments<br />
on orange-level standby and very high levels of demand<br />
for response, especially in vehicle assistance… and all with<br />
a potentially serious twist: even some <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> service<br />
providers were known to be directly affected! So on 4 November,<br />
a crisis group was brought together to centralise requests for<br />
assistance from the flooded areas, manage assistance providers<br />
and organise deliveries to repair garages. This sudden, steep<br />
increase in emergency callouts (up 24% over the period) demanded<br />
the involvement not only of assistance teams, but also of<br />
reinforcements from our administrative staff in the areas affected.<br />
November <strong>2011</strong><br />
SUPPORTING CARE IN THE HOME<br />
By exploiting the new technologies that now make it possible<br />
to learn the day-to-day tasks involved in caring for a dependent<br />
person in their own home, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> France has created<br />
15 e-learning modules available via the www.entreaidants.fr<br />
public website. Developed around 3 themes focusing on situations<br />
frequently encountered by family carers, these modules offer<br />
easy-to-adopt solutions designed to enhance the day-to-day<br />
skills and confidence of carers, and ultimately, feelings of security<br />
and reassurance for those cared for in their own homes.<br />
OCTOBer <strong>2011</strong><br />
FLOODS<br />
IN THAILAND<br />
Bangkok paralysed beneath the water…<br />
In such conditions, it is certainly difficult to maintain<br />
a national and international service, but it is possible,<br />
thanks to the BCP (Business Continuity Plan) introduced<br />
following the political events of 2010. Under this plan,<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> now operates two “mirrored” sites.<br />
The benefit for customers is that even when the country<br />
was gripped by flooding, there was no interruption<br />
to service: the supply of appropriate clothing and food,<br />
the renting of hotel rooms and a donation to the Thai<br />
Red Cross to help those affected by the floods.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_7
Serge Morelli<br />
<strong>2011</strong> REFLECTED<br />
OUR ABILITY TO ADAPT<br />
TO ALL CHALLENGES,<br />
REGARDLESS<br />
OF THEIR NATURE<br />
Natural disasters, geopolitical conflict and striking social change:<br />
in <strong>2011</strong>, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> was faced with a series of new challenges.<br />
All were resolved successfully by teams who are as professional<br />
as they are supportive.<br />
How do you see <strong>2011</strong>?<br />
Serge Morelli It was a year of many new<br />
challenges, and once again we were<br />
called upon to push back the limits of the<br />
possible in all our Business Lines. In the<br />
practical sense, the geopolitical situation<br />
in the Arab world and the Japanese<br />
tsunami were both major events, added<br />
to which we faced all the challenges that<br />
I’ve now come to look upon as “normal”,<br />
like the storms and cold snap of last<br />
autumn. We are an emergency<br />
assistance provider, but we’re also here to<br />
assist with everyday events, which is why<br />
our organisation is structured to cope<br />
with all eventualities, at the same time<br />
as restructuring our business to prepare<br />
for the future.<br />
I take my hat off to the teams whose<br />
commitment has, once again, been<br />
absolutely exemplary, particularly when<br />
coping with the disaster in Japan.<br />
At key moments like these, every minute<br />
counts, and that’s where the solidarity<br />
really kicks in and everyone gives a level of<br />
commitment well beyond their theoretical role,<br />
which makes me very proud indeed to be<br />
part of what we do.<br />
What is the current state of your market?<br />
Serge Morelli We’re seeing increasing<br />
internationalisation to the point of globalisation<br />
in all our Business Lines. Although the mature<br />
markets for Vehicle and Travel assistance are<br />
relatively stable, growth remains spectacular in<br />
the emerging countries of the world. In Health<br />
and Home, the dramatic changes are more<br />
social in nature: as states gradually withdraw<br />
from provision, personal assistance services<br />
are offering excellent prospects for growth.<br />
New needs are also emerging at the periphery<br />
of our Business Lines, like the “corporate mobility”<br />
offer launched during the year, which combines<br />
travel, health and security cover for expatriates.<br />
All these considerations enhance the worthwhile<br />
contribution made by an assistance provider<br />
as a reliable partner, not only in exceptional<br />
circumstances, but also in everyday life.<br />
8_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
What will 2012 hold for you?<br />
Serge Morelli I look forward to the year with real<br />
confidence. The first reason for that is because<br />
we have successfully demonstrated our creativity<br />
and our ability to anticipate events. This ability<br />
to innovate will continue to be key in 2012,<br />
especially in those areas of the business that fall<br />
outside our historic roots, like the Vehicle and<br />
Travel Business Lines, and also those where we<br />
work proactively, like personal assistance.<br />
The second reason is that we have succeeded<br />
in organising ourselves to respond effectively<br />
to increasingly-frequent major events. Lastly,<br />
because I know that we can also rely on some<br />
very solid foundations:<br />
our international<br />
coverage, our Business<br />
Line organisational<br />
structure, our regional<br />
presence, our amazing<br />
network of suppliers and<br />
our market leadership<br />
amongst financial<br />
institutions and insurers.<br />
Other reasons for<br />
confidence include the<br />
way we have successfully<br />
You don’t become<br />
an assistance provider<br />
by chance: this job<br />
is a vocation, because<br />
it is intrinsically<br />
meaningful.<br />
integrated new technologies into our Business Lines,<br />
and our very strong growth in emerging countries,<br />
which already contribute 18% of our revenue.<br />
You referred to being “proud to be part<br />
of what we do”. What makes it unique?<br />
Serge Morelli I’d like to end on a personal note:<br />
something I think must be shared by many<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> people if the energy they put into<br />
the work they do every day is anything to go by!<br />
When I get up in the morning, I know why, and when<br />
I go to bed at night, I feel that I’ve made myself<br />
useful. Helping people, making sure people are safe,<br />
and sometimes even saving lives: what could be<br />
more worthwhile? It’s that which drives us to adapt,<br />
surpass ourselves and push back the limits of what is<br />
possible, because we always want to do the best for<br />
our customers. Being an assistance provider has<br />
real meaning, and that’s why those involved in<br />
providing assistance do it as well as they do.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_9
As the company’s collective policymaking body, the Executive<br />
Committee has responsibility for implementing its strategy.<br />
Made up of central services function representatives and the<br />
5 regional directors, it supports the Chairman & CEO in managing<br />
the company by defining, guiding and supervising strategy, validating<br />
budgets and ensuring correct implementation of strategic decisions.<br />
OUR<br />
STRUCTURE<br />
Annie<br />
Assouline<br />
qChief Operating<br />
Officer<br />
Jean-Marie<br />
Bouteville<br />
qDirector,<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
Development<br />
Jesus<br />
Carmona<br />
qDirector of the Travel<br />
Business Line, CEO of<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> Travel Insurance<br />
Lionel<br />
Jullien<br />
qDirector of Human<br />
Resources and Internal<br />
Communication<br />
FranÇois<br />
Klitting<br />
qChairman & Regional<br />
CEO <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
France, Regional CEO<br />
of France<br />
Sophie<br />
Latil<br />
qDeputy Director,<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
Development<br />
Marc<br />
Lo Bono<br />
qDirector,<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
Solutions<br />
10_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
Florence<br />
CarrÈre<br />
qDirector of Communication<br />
and Corporate Responsibility<br />
Gabriel<br />
Comes<br />
qRegional CEO<br />
of Asia-Pacific<br />
Bernard<br />
Ferrand<br />
qRegional CEO<br />
of Americas<br />
Bruno<br />
Jantet<br />
qRegional CEO of<br />
Mediterranean, ME,<br />
CEE Indian Ocean<br />
Serge<br />
Morelli<br />
qChairman & CEO,<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
Franz<br />
Régimbeau<br />
qCorporate<br />
Secretary<br />
Jean-Luc<br />
Renson<br />
qRegional CEO<br />
of Northern, Central<br />
and Eastern Europe<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_11
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> continued to implement<br />
its corporate transformation programme<br />
throughout <strong>2011</strong>. Its goal is to establish<br />
the company as the global benchmark<br />
for the assistance market in all its business lines<br />
and to guarantee maximum quality of service.<br />
VISION<br />
s customers become increasingly mobile,<br />
the assistance provider must be ready to<br />
follow its customers wherever they go,<br />
guaranteeing them a single point of contact<br />
and seamless services regardless of geography. Another<br />
challenge is the increasing importance of new<br />
technologies, which can make a decisive contribution<br />
in those business lines where emergencies can, and do,<br />
happen.<br />
Lastly, consumers are becoming increasingly demanding.<br />
These underlying long-term trends are what encouraged<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> to restructure its organisation on the basis<br />
of 3 priority action areas.<br />
aDELIVERING REAL ADDED VALUE<br />
In <strong>2011</strong>, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> refocused on its 4 core<br />
Business Lines of Vehicle, Travel, Health, Home &<br />
Personal Services. “We wanted to identify those<br />
market niches where we deliver real added value to<br />
our customers, in order to ensure profitability and<br />
become more competitive. It’s a strategic choice<br />
that also allows us to concentrate our energies<br />
on developing new offers that are more relevant<br />
to our strategy,” explains Corporate Secretary<br />
Franz Régimbeau. Having conducted a lengthy<br />
programme of analysis… “The company decided to<br />
accelerate growth in those key activities that lie at<br />
the core of the business, like our dependency-<br />
12_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
Our ambition is to constantly improve<br />
our competitiveness so that we can<br />
provide our customers with the<br />
best service at the fairest price.<br />
Serge Morelli<br />
Chairman & CEO,<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
focused Personal Services offers,” adds<br />
Director <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> Development<br />
Jean-Marie Bouteville.<br />
aOPTIMISING THE OPERATIONAL MODEL<br />
The corporate transformation of<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> that began in 2010<br />
affects every part of the business,<br />
whether directly or indirectly, and every<br />
one of the company’s operating<br />
countries. “Its goal is to make our model<br />
more competitive, from front-office to<br />
back-office, via operations, technical<br />
management and the support<br />
functions. Succeeding in this new<br />
approach should allow us to make a<br />
real difference,” adds Regional CEO of<br />
France François Klitting. It’s a project<br />
that also involves the redeployment of<br />
some parts of the business. “We’ve<br />
taken the decision to bring our Business<br />
Lines together into centres of expertise.<br />
For example, during the year, our<br />
companies in Barcelona and Mauritius<br />
took over responsibility for part of the<br />
Travel Business Line previously managed<br />
in England and France,” explains Chief<br />
Operating Officer Annie Assouline.<br />
Another vector for change has been the information<br />
systems on which the company has focused so<br />
decisively in recent years. “Technology erases<br />
distances, which gives us much greater latitude in<br />
building the framework for a new operational model.<br />
We already have some very sophisticated resources,<br />
like virtual call centres, and we’re also using the<br />
mobile technologies to develop new channels of<br />
communication with our service providers and<br />
customers,” adds Director <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> Solutions<br />
Marc Lo Bono.<br />
aSETTING MILESTONES FOR THE EMERGING MARKET<br />
Although the opportunities for growth in mature<br />
countries are now limited, many geographic markets<br />
have yet to be built. “In <strong>2011</strong>, we were able to<br />
accelerate our new business operation in emerging<br />
markets in general, and China in particular, in order<br />
to set out the milestones for our growth strategy going<br />
forward, with particular emphasis on Vehicle and Travel,”<br />
explains Sophie Latil, Deputy Director <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
Development. In these new markets, whether in Asia or<br />
South America… “The rise of a middle class opens up a<br />
significant market for us in terms of vehicle assistance,<br />
travel assistance and concierge services, as well as many<br />
opportunities in the health and home markets,”<br />
underlines Isabelle Cerf, the Group Program Director.<br />
Expect to hear more about these trends in 2012.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_13
The very nature of <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> and what it does demands<br />
great attention to detail, reliability and accessibility from the<br />
company’s employees. A powerful corporate culture has grown<br />
up around the concept of responsiveness and efficiency so that<br />
every customer can be offered the highest quality solution.<br />
VALUES<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
employees have<br />
a heightened sense<br />
of customer satisfaction<br />
and put all their energies<br />
into finding the right<br />
solutions every day.<br />
Lionel Jullien<br />
Director of Human Resources<br />
and Internal Communication<br />
esponsiveness may have become<br />
essential in today’s business environment,<br />
but this concept has even more meaning<br />
in a business like <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong>, where<br />
the ability to respond accurately and quickly is part<br />
of company DNA. “Many of our people say that they<br />
actually choose the job because they enjoy the<br />
extra fulfilment that comes from responding to the<br />
daily challenges of customer service,” says Director<br />
of Human Resources Lionel Jullien.<br />
aPUSHING BACK THE LIMITS<br />
OF THE POSSIBLE<br />
The company retains a pioneering spirit that is<br />
rooted in the very essence of providing assistance.<br />
“A large number of <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> employees<br />
have worked with the company for many years,<br />
and have therefore contributed to its dramatic<br />
success. Their enthusiasm and force of character<br />
have helped to make the company what it is<br />
today, but I don’t see any hint of complacency<br />
amongst our people. Quite the contrary, in fact,<br />
because they act like entrepreneurs and continue<br />
to put all their energies into finding the right<br />
solutions every day,” adds Lionel Jullien.<br />
Availability, attentiveness and reliability: the<br />
founding values of <strong>AXA</strong> therefore find full expression<br />
at <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong>, bolstered by an unshakeable<br />
team spirit and great energy in pushing back the<br />
limits of the possible in terms of customer service.<br />
14_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
At the end of <strong>2011</strong>, we introduced an<br />
e-magazine in 12 languages to unite our people<br />
around our shared corporate purpose.<br />
Florence Carrère<br />
Director of Communication<br />
and Corporate Responsibility<br />
aA JOINT MISSION AND SHARED VALUES<br />
As part of further strengthening employees’<br />
feelings of belonging to the company and<br />
being proud to do so, employee communication<br />
was restructured at the end of <strong>2011</strong> to introduce<br />
a new interactive channel. Translated into<br />
12 languages and produced in collaboration<br />
with local communication managers, this new<br />
online resource highlights the latest news from<br />
around the company, as well as local good<br />
practices, with particular emphasis on corporate<br />
responsibility. “<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> employees are<br />
involved on a very regular basis in charitable<br />
and socially-supportive initiatives that go way<br />
beyond their contractual obligations, and<br />
they do so quite simply because it’s part of<br />
their DNA as assistance providers,” explains<br />
Florence Carrère, Director of Communication<br />
and Corporate Responsibility. It’s a mindset<br />
that translates directly into the company’s<br />
offer of services, like the publicly-accessible<br />
www.entreaidants.fr website developed to support<br />
carers. Employee commitment can also express<br />
itself in the form of volunteer work, which was clear<br />
from the extraordinary level of commitment shown<br />
by the way in which the company’s teams<br />
responded to the disastrous events in Japan and<br />
Thailand in <strong>2011</strong>. “This e-magazine provides the<br />
opportunity to recognise and share experiences<br />
like these, all the way from Panama to Poland<br />
and India,” she adds.<br />
RETAINING AND<br />
SUPPORTING<br />
TALENTED PEOPLE<br />
As a responsible employer, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
understands that successful corporate transformation<br />
can only be achieved by effective management<br />
of the talented people who make up the company.<br />
“That’s why we decided to build a monitoring<br />
mechanism to protect the employability of our<br />
people by introducing an assistance careers<br />
observatory designed to identify where the key<br />
trends are leading between now and 2015,” says<br />
Anne Marion-Delpont, Head of International HR<br />
Development. “Carried out in cooperation with<br />
our European HR managers, this work will also lead<br />
to the development of other employee support<br />
measures, as well as the promotion of mobility<br />
between <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> entities around the world,”<br />
adds Amanda Vaughan, Regional HR Director for<br />
Asia. “This initiative has been developed on the basis<br />
of two European agreements signed at the end<br />
of <strong>2011</strong> – one by the <strong>AXA</strong> Group and the other<br />
subsequently by <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> – under which<br />
the Group and its subsidiary company give their<br />
commitment to put in place the resources required<br />
to protect the employability of their people,”<br />
adds Thibaut Millour, HR Director for Spain.<br />
We have put in place a<br />
3-level – central, regional<br />
and local – organisational<br />
structure that reflects the<br />
needs of our people and<br />
the Group.<br />
Anne Marion-Delpont<br />
Head of International HR Development<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_15
AN<br />
THE AMERICAS<br />
1,679<br />
employees<br />
l Argentina (Buenos Aires)<br />
l Brazil (São Paulo)<br />
l Canada (Montréal)<br />
l Chile (Santiago)<br />
l Colombia (Bogotá)<br />
l USA (Chicago/Miami)<br />
l Mexico (Mexico)<br />
l Panamá (Panamá)<br />
PRESENCE<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> employs more than 6,300 people in 33 countries<br />
worldwide. This 5-region organisational structure enables the company<br />
to manage the international problems of its customers on a global scale,<br />
whilst retaining an essential local presence.<br />
ALGERIA<br />
ARGENTINA<br />
AUSTRALIA<br />
AUSTRIA<br />
BENELUX<br />
BRAZIL<br />
CANADA<br />
CHILE<br />
CHINA<br />
COLOMBIA<br />
CZECH REPUBLIC<br />
FRANCE<br />
GERMANY<br />
GREAT BRITAIN<br />
GREECE<br />
HONG KONG<br />
16_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
FRANCE<br />
1,474<br />
employees<br />
l France excl. subsidiaries<br />
l Cours Legendre<br />
l Domiserve<br />
l Maroc Service<br />
l Pluridis<br />
l Truck<br />
<strong>Assistance</strong> International (TAI)<br />
l Holding company<br />
NORTHERN,<br />
CENTRAL AND<br />
EASTERN EUROPE<br />
1,400<br />
employees<br />
l Germany<br />
(Munich/Frankfurt an der Oder)<br />
lAustria (Vienna)<br />
lBenelux (Brussels)<br />
lGreat Britain (Redhill)<br />
lIreland (Dublin)<br />
lPoland (Warsaw)<br />
lCzech Republic (Prague)<br />
lSwitzerland (Geneva)<br />
lTravel<br />
MEDITERRA-<br />
NEAN, ME, CEE*,<br />
INDIAN OCEAN<br />
1,482<br />
employees<br />
l Algeria (Algiers)<br />
l Spain (Barcelona/Madrid)<br />
l Greece (Athens)<br />
l Mauritius (Coromandel)<br />
l Italy (Rome)<br />
l Morocco (Casablanca)<br />
l Portugal (Lisbon)<br />
l Turkey (Istanbul)<br />
* Middle East, Central and Eastern<br />
Europe.<br />
ASIA-PACIFIC<br />
322<br />
employees<br />
l Australia (Sydney)<br />
l China (Beijing/Shanghai)<br />
l Hong Kong<br />
l India (New Delhi)<br />
l Japan (Tokyo)<br />
l Singapore<br />
l Taiwan (Taipei)<br />
l Thailand (Bangkok)<br />
INDIA<br />
IRELAND<br />
ITALY<br />
JAPAN<br />
MAURITIUS<br />
MEXICO<br />
MOROCCO<br />
PANAMA<br />
POLAND<br />
PORTUGAL<br />
SINGAPORE<br />
SPAIN<br />
SWITZERLAND<br />
TAIWAN<br />
THAILAND<br />
TURKEY<br />
USA<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_17
THE<br />
GLOBAL NETWORK<br />
Jérôme Bedouk<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE FRANCE<br />
PERSONAL SERVICES<br />
AFFILIATES<br />
Marylu Forttes<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE CHILE<br />
Lena Bonilla<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE PANAMÁ<br />
Bertrand du Réau<br />
TRUCK ASISTANCE<br />
INTERNATIONAL<br />
FRANCE<br />
François<br />
Klitting<br />
FRANCE<br />
Nicolas Sinz<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
FRANCE<br />
Olivier Van Poperinghe<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE USA. INC.<br />
Bernard Ferrand<br />
THE AMERICAS<br />
Sven Loison<br />
INTER PARTNER<br />
ASSISTANCE BRAZIL<br />
Rogelio Alvarez<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE<br />
MÉXICO S.A. DE C.V.<br />
Serge<br />
Morelli<br />
Patricio Lanus<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE<br />
ARGENTINA<br />
Fabien Navet<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE<br />
CANADA INC.<br />
Carlos Eduardo Espinosa<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE<br />
COLOMBIA<br />
18_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
Bob Ewers<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> UK<br />
REDHILL<br />
Markus Wendler<br />
Inter Partner <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
SWITZERLAND<br />
Marta Kalenska<br />
Inter Partner <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
Polska S.A.<br />
Christophe Marius<br />
Inter Partner<br />
<strong>Assistance</strong> BELGIUM<br />
Markus Lichtinghagen<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> GERMANY<br />
Konrad Legat<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> AUSTRIA<br />
Eoin Lyons<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE<br />
IRELAND<br />
Jan Cupa<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
CZECH REPUBLIC<br />
Jean-luc Renson<br />
NORTHERN, CENTRAL<br />
AND EASTERN EUROPE<br />
Dominic Ang<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
SINGAPORE<br />
Hiromitsu Matsumoto<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> JAPAN Ltd.<br />
Olivier Van Poperinghe<br />
Axa <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
australiA PTY LTD.<br />
Marc Veisen<br />
Inter Partner<br />
<strong>Assistance</strong><br />
CHINA<br />
Olivier Eap<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
THAILAND Co. Ltd.<br />
Gabriel Comes<br />
ASIA-PACIFIC<br />
Joseph Lee<br />
Inter Partner <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
HONG KONG Ltd./ TAIWAN<br />
Eduardo Picarra<br />
Inter Partner <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
PORTUGAL<br />
Enrique Lamarca<br />
Inter Partner<br />
<strong>Assistance</strong> ESPAñA S.A.<br />
Pradeep Bery<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> INDIA<br />
PRIVATE Ltd.<br />
Martin Weintz<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> Customer Services<br />
MAURITIUS<br />
Mehmet Tanel<br />
INTER PARTNER<br />
ASSISTANCE TURKEY<br />
Lamine Benaissa<br />
Inter Partner<br />
<strong>Assistance</strong> ALGERIA SPA<br />
Paolo Hubaux<br />
Inter Partner<br />
Assistenza Servizi SpA<br />
ITALIA<br />
Alain Ducamp<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
AFRICA<br />
Bruno Jantet<br />
MEDITERRANEAN,<br />
ME, CEE,<br />
INDIAN OCEAN<br />
Dimitri Constantinou<br />
Inter Partner <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
GREECE<br />
Nadia Chraïbi<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
MOROCCO<br />
Jean-Marc Beauvieux<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> RUSSIA<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_19
SATURDAY 19 MARCH, 11:30 A.M. ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF BRASILIA<br />
Joachim’s weekend with friends had got off to a<br />
bad start. It was true that his dad had lent him<br />
his old Beetle, but breaking down in the middle<br />
of nowhere wasn’t part of the plan.<br />
He used his smartphone to call <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong>: his dad<br />
had insisted that he stored the number, and dad was<br />
right – again… An hour later, the recovery truck was<br />
there, and Joachim and his friends were back on the<br />
road in a car provided by <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong>… “And<br />
if we’d had the on-board b-call system, it would have<br />
been even quicker”, pondered Joachim, thinking<br />
of his own future car. But that’s another story!<br />
20_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
Saturday 19 March,<br />
1:30 p.m.<br />
on the road<br />
to Lago Sul…<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_21
MOVING BEYOND<br />
TRADITIONAL ASSISTANCE<br />
WITH A RANGE OF HIGH<br />
ADDED-VALUE SERVICES<br />
Social change and economic factors<br />
in the Vehicle market are encouraging<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> to offer new services and<br />
to structure its international deployment<br />
as part of ensuring that it can serve its customers<br />
wherever they may be in the world.<br />
Jean-Pierre Lerin Director of the Automotive Business Line<br />
he world is changing, and the world of<br />
assistance provision is no exception! The<br />
attitude to private cars is gradually moving<br />
away from one of treating vehicles as assets<br />
towards treating them as services. The fact is that<br />
drivers now want more from mobility than simply the<br />
status of owning a vehicle. “We’re ready for new<br />
models that are clean, safe and connected. That’s<br />
why we’re seeing the emergence of innovative<br />
vehicle engines, especially hybrid and electrical<br />
solutions, the development of driver assistance<br />
systems, and many applications of new technology<br />
in the automotive industry. It is also important to<br />
bear in mind that the market for mobility – which will<br />
be a huge growth market in the future – saw the<br />
emergence of potentially important new players in<br />
<strong>2011</strong>,” explains Jean-Pierre Lerin, Director of the<br />
Automotive Business Line.<br />
aNEW DEVELOPMENTS IN THE EAST<br />
The other major step change is a geographical<br />
one, as growth becomes more international, with<br />
prospects for exponential growth in China, India<br />
and Brazil. “Our customers expect us<br />
to be able to follow them wherever<br />
they locate, and to guarantee them<br />
a consistent service wherever they<br />
operate geographically. In addition<br />
to our traditional assistance services,<br />
we must also be able to offer them<br />
additional high added-value services<br />
to set ourselves apart from<br />
competitors in today’s market,” adds<br />
Jean-Pierre Lerin. <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
must respond effectively to all these<br />
challenges, whilst remaining in step<br />
with market trends to act as a<br />
facilitator of change, rather than<br />
become a victim of it.<br />
Although establishing a presence in<br />
new parts of the world is essential, it<br />
can’t be achieved overnight.<br />
Creating a network of reliable service<br />
providers is an essential precondition<br />
for <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong>, as is establishing<br />
contacts in new economic markets<br />
22_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
TAI develops unique<br />
assistance services for the road<br />
transport industry.<br />
Bertrand du Réau<br />
Director of Truck <strong>Assistance</strong> International (TAI)<br />
where regulations and practices are<br />
inevitably different. “<strong>2011</strong> was a year<br />
in which we analysed the Chinese<br />
market, initiated our commercial<br />
presence and signed our first<br />
contract (see inset). 2012 will be the<br />
year in which we expand our<br />
operational structures and win new<br />
customers,” explains Jean- Pierre<br />
Lerin. An equally methodical<br />
approach was adopted in India,<br />
where <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> now operates<br />
the country’s most “accessible”<br />
network, with 14,000 suppliers, which<br />
means a rescue operator every<br />
20 kilometres, a great achievement<br />
given the size of the country.<br />
aA MORE CONCENTRATED<br />
LOCAL PRESENCE<br />
It’s an approach that clearly<br />
appealed to tyre manufacturer<br />
Goodyear, which signed a major<br />
contract with <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> in <strong>2011</strong>.<br />
“These markets are doubly important:<br />
firstly because of their size and<br />
growth, which offer us extraordinary<br />
potential, and secondly because the<br />
ability to follow our longstanding<br />
customers into these markets allows<br />
TAI is a business Line in its own right, dedicated<br />
to the road transport of passengers and goods.<br />
A well-known operator in Europe, this company<br />
serves many high-profile customers, including<br />
Total, DKV and <strong>AXA</strong>. Based in Lyon, its call centre<br />
is manned by multilingual advisers who manage<br />
calls in real-time and coordinate with a network<br />
of specialist service providers. It’s a value chain<br />
that demonstrates its effectiveness every day,<br />
with a roadside breakdown resolution rate of 80%!<br />
We judge assistance providers<br />
on the basis of their expertise,<br />
adaptability and international<br />
presence.<br />
Michel Abergel<br />
Head of Insurance at RCI Banque/Renault<br />
RCI Banque is wholly owned by Renault SAS,<br />
operates in 37 countries, currently finances<br />
more than a million vehicles every year,<br />
and offers a portfolio of insurance and<br />
assistance services provided under nearly<br />
3 million contracts. <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong>, which designs<br />
and manages services on behalf of RCI Banque,<br />
is distinctive at three different levels: its expertise,<br />
its ability to innovate and anticipate, and its<br />
international presence, which allow us to deliver<br />
the consistency of response we promise<br />
our customers.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_23
us to protect our existing business in mature<br />
countries. That’s important, because an increasing<br />
number of contracts and tender invitations are now<br />
insisting on worldwide service provision. So it’s clear<br />
that we have to be where the growth is,” continues<br />
Jean- Pierre Lerin.<br />
aSERVING CUSTOMER SALES STRATEGIES<br />
In the world’s mature national markets, nothing<br />
can be taken for granted, and customers – whether<br />
manufacturers, rental operators or insurers –<br />
demand offers that will help them retain their<br />
existing customers, at the same time as developing<br />
new business. The result is that new services are<br />
emerging on the periphery of traditional assistance<br />
benefits, like the new “tyres” offer developed in <strong>2011</strong><br />
335.4<br />
MILLION IN REVENUE<br />
GENERATED BY<br />
THE VEHICLE<br />
BUSINESS LINE<br />
IN <strong>2011</strong><br />
for a prestigious German carmaker.<br />
The concept of this new service is to<br />
encourage customers to buy their<br />
tyres from the manufacturer’s<br />
dealers (see inset) by offering them<br />
a range of attractive additional<br />
covers. The same type of thinking<br />
was behind another contract signed<br />
during the year by <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong>,<br />
aSIA<br />
A SUPERB FIRST<br />
MILESTONE IN CHINA<br />
<strong>2011</strong> will be seen as the year in which the company really got down<br />
to business in China, with the first structured marketing initiatives<br />
leading to the signature of a contract with a major Chinese insurer.<br />
From 10,000 vehicles covered in<br />
2009, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> exceeded<br />
the 300,000 vehicle milestone<br />
during the year, and is on course<br />
to break the 1 million barrier<br />
by the end of 2012. “The<br />
telemarketing distribution<br />
method used by this major<br />
Chinese insurer is highly innovative<br />
in this market, and is working<br />
extremely well. This partnership in<br />
the Chinese market gives us a<br />
credibility that will prove decisive<br />
with the other financial institutions,<br />
banks and insurers we would like<br />
to do business with,” explains<br />
Gabriel Comes.<br />
Growing interest<br />
in assistance<br />
Another benefit of this first<br />
contract is that it enables <strong>AXA</strong><br />
<strong>Assistance</strong> to refine its suppliers’<br />
policy and begin to build its own<br />
network to ensure that its<br />
trademark service quality<br />
standards are maintained. The<br />
company is already able to rely<br />
on a substantial panel of 4,000<br />
“major suppliers”, each of which<br />
has an operating presence in<br />
several areas of the country,<br />
bringing the total number of<br />
suppliers to nearly 10,000. “We’re<br />
seeing growing interest amongst<br />
Chinese customers for assistance<br />
services, and we’re now in a<br />
position to respond to that trend,”<br />
concludes Gabriel Comes.<br />
24_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
this time with the Opel dealership<br />
network in Spain to provide used-car<br />
buyers with an optional extended<br />
warranty that includes assistance<br />
services. Products like these help<br />
customers to stand out in the<br />
marketplace, at the same time as<br />
enhancing their sales potential.<br />
aA CONSISTENT QUALITY<br />
OF SERVICE WORLDWIDE<br />
If it is to win customers with global<br />
requirements, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> must<br />
now be able to demonstrate its ability<br />
to deliver consistent services across<br />
a much broader geographical<br />
We’ve<br />
remodelled<br />
the way we work<br />
with our suppliers<br />
by putting the<br />
emphasis on<br />
interaction and<br />
ongoing training.<br />
Gabriel Comes<br />
Regional CEO of Asia-Pacific<br />
spread. “It was with this in mind that in <strong>2011</strong> we<br />
continued the process of standardising our<br />
processes, systems and quality commitments, which<br />
makes us one of the very few players in the market<br />
capable of providing a global commitment across<br />
multiple regions. In a world where customers have<br />
increasingly globalised expectations, we need our<br />
entities and representatives to provide us with a<br />
consistent quality of service wherever they may be<br />
in the world,” continues Jean-Pierre Lerin. New<br />
markets, and particularly those in Eastern Europe,<br />
are now covered on behalf of this manufacturer, to<br />
which the company has guaranteed a single<br />
contract and manager in 35 countries. So whether<br />
the driver is in Lisbon or Helsinki, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
is committed to responding to any problem within<br />
45 minutes: it’s a level of responsiveness that makes<br />
all the difference in this premium market.<br />
aA PIONEER IN ELECTRIC VEHICLES<br />
The increasing emergence of new types of vehicle<br />
engine also poses new challenges for assistance<br />
providers. <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> grasped this reality at a<br />
very early stage, and has already established itself<br />
in the high-potential market for electric vehicles. The<br />
company has adopted a policy of technological<br />
innovation alongside sustainable development.<br />
Now European assistance market leader in this<br />
specific business line, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> signed a<br />
partnership agreement with the Renault-Nissan<br />
Alliance in <strong>2011</strong> to become the European assistance<br />
provider for its range of electric vehicles. As a result,<br />
Renault and Nissan now plan to offer customers in<br />
21 countries a package of innovative services in<br />
addition to traditional roadside assistance. “We’ve<br />
re-thought the way in which vehicle assistance is<br />
provided, and introduced training programmes<br />
delivered in our own assistance centres to make<br />
sure that our service providers are completely<br />
familiar and confident in dealing with the new<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_25
37 %<br />
OF OUR BUSINESS<br />
COMES FROM<br />
VEHICLE<br />
ASSISTANCE<br />
‘Tyre’ assistance<br />
is a manufacturer<br />
demand<br />
we are<br />
responding<br />
to with<br />
tailormade<br />
covers.<br />
Jean-Luc Renson<br />
Regional CEO of Northern,<br />
Central and Eastern Europe<br />
requirements imposed by this technology. Our<br />
partner networks are also subject to certification so<br />
that we can guarantee their expertise with electric<br />
vehicles,” explains Fabrice Lock, Deputy Manager<br />
of Automotive Business Line. The IIR (Immediate<br />
Incident Report) represents another key benefit for<br />
this manufacturer, because the ability to receive an<br />
incident report from <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> within the hour<br />
represents a mine of useful information for its<br />
engineers.<br />
aEXTRACTING MAXIMUM BENEFIT<br />
FROM NEW TECHNOLOGIES<br />
Building expertise in the latest technological<br />
developments is a major challenge for the years<br />
ahead. “Our business will become increasingly<br />
reliant on receiving data from vehicle on-board<br />
systems (e-call or b-call) or via smartphones; data<br />
that we must then interpret and sort before we<br />
can feed back our conclusions in the form of<br />
service. This is a major evolution, because it<br />
requires us to develop new skills,” says Jean-Pierre<br />
Lerin. <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> has been supplying its e-call<br />
and b-call services to PSA for many<br />
years now, and is well positioned<br />
to act ahead of future legislation,<br />
such as the European directive<br />
requiring all new cars to be fitted with<br />
an emergency call system by 2015.<br />
Even more innovative, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
developed the new “Smart<strong>Assistance</strong>”<br />
smartphone app in <strong>2011</strong>, which<br />
has already been taken up by<br />
Europcar and Renault. This new<br />
service marks a first step towards<br />
what seems likely to be a major<br />
market of the future, given the<br />
increasing influence of smartphonebased<br />
services. “Voice traffic is<br />
increasingly giving way to data traffic,<br />
26_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
NORTHERN, CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE<br />
MANUFACTURERS ARE<br />
CHOOSING <strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE<br />
FOR ITS “TYRE” OFFER<br />
“Tyre” assistance broke through very effectively<br />
in the Vehicle Business Line during <strong>2011</strong>.<br />
In many ways, this offer is<br />
characteristic of the new<br />
services now being developed<br />
around the core of traditional<br />
assistance. It offers manufacturers<br />
two key benefits: the first is the<br />
ability to be distinctive in the<br />
marketplace by offering<br />
completely new types of cover,<br />
and the second is the ability to<br />
generate sales by boosting the<br />
volumes of tyres purchased from<br />
its own dealer network, rather<br />
than from other suppliers.<br />
A landmark contract with<br />
a leading German carmaker<br />
Under the contract signed<br />
in <strong>2011</strong> with this premium<br />
carmaker, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
offers customers who buy tyres<br />
from the manufacturer’s<br />
dealers roadside assistance in<br />
the event of puncture, as well<br />
as reimbursement for the<br />
damaged tyre, which in<br />
turn generates additional<br />
revenue for the manufacturer.<br />
“Demand is increasing in this<br />
new market, and offers a<br />
promising niche for the Vehicle<br />
Business Line. Our premium<br />
portfolio has grown quickly<br />
and significantly in a very short<br />
time, and we’re currently<br />
extending deployment of this<br />
contract outside Germany to<br />
other countries in Eastern<br />
Europe. The package has also<br />
been taken up by Goodyear<br />
in India under a contract<br />
signed in <strong>2011</strong>,” says Jean-Luc<br />
Renson.<br />
and smartphones will be the decisive<br />
turning point in this trend. Eventually,<br />
all of them will be fitted with an<br />
assistance button that users simply<br />
have to press to access a broad<br />
range of services extending well<br />
beyond vehicle assistance.<br />
Smartphones are also a very useful<br />
way of simplifying the relationship we<br />
have with our network of service<br />
providers, by shortening lead times<br />
and reducing the number of<br />
intermediaries. That means even<br />
greater efficiency and faster response<br />
times for the motorist waiting at the<br />
side of the road for us to arrive,”<br />
continues Jean-Pierre Lerin.<br />
aPUTTING IN PLACE THE RESOURCES<br />
TO DELIVER OPTIMUM SERVICE<br />
These major projects and new developments certainly<br />
set the company apart from its competitors, but<br />
naturally, they all require investment. That’s why it’s so<br />
important for <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> to press ahead with its<br />
policy of cost reduction, which is what makes it possible<br />
to offer customers increasingly innovative services<br />
without compromising the quality of service delivered.<br />
“In <strong>2011</strong>, we were able to accelerate the process of<br />
deploying automatic job assignment systems to our<br />
service providers. We were also able to continue to opt<br />
for dual location of some parts of the business, with the<br />
establishment of new centres in Poland and Morocco.<br />
The point of these changes is to improve service<br />
through the creation of dedicated and more specialist<br />
teams,” concludes Jean-Pierre Lerin.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_27
RUE EL MARKAZIA, CASABLANCA, THURSDAY 5 MAY<br />
Leïla, Samir and their 3 children<br />
are raring to go: mum’s swimsuits<br />
and dad’s diving equipment<br />
are all packed.<br />
Stress? What stress? They used their credit card<br />
to pay for their airline tickets, and they know<br />
that <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> is covering their trip,<br />
whatever happens. Happy holidays ahead…<br />
28_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
Rue El Markazia,<br />
Casablanca<br />
Saturday 7 May<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_29
GLOBAL EXPERTISE<br />
IN THE NEW WORLD<br />
OF TRAVEL<br />
Travel is now a fact of life, whether you’re<br />
travelling on business or for pleasure.<br />
In responding to the new needs of its customers,<br />
wherever they’re going and wherever they come<br />
from, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> innovation offers them<br />
extended worldwide coverage.<br />
Jesus Carmona Director of the Travel Business Line<br />
ravel insurance isn’t what it used to be: it now<br />
goes a great deal further! Recent natural<br />
events, like the Icelandic volcano eruption of<br />
2010 and the disruption that resulted from its<br />
ash cloud, have driven the introduction of new covers<br />
every year. Products are also being introduced<br />
to complement and strengthen the traditional offer<br />
with personal safety services and others that deliver<br />
greater convenience, such as concierge services.<br />
At the same time, technology is revolutionising just<br />
about everything, with the introduction of mobile<br />
phone apps and insurance quote comparison sites.<br />
Travel insurance must adapt to all these new trends.<br />
Another key parameter is the growth in travel to<br />
emerging countries, with the emphasis on Asia and<br />
South America. As people travel more and more for<br />
business and pleasure, financial institutions are keen<br />
to expand and enhance their offers. Lastly, globalisation<br />
is already a reality for <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> customers,<br />
especially for credit card providers, which are now<br />
keen to identify a single partner that can offer global<br />
coverage, worldwide support and the guarantee of<br />
consistent service quality. “The organisational structure<br />
of <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> is perfectly suited to responding<br />
effectively to all these changes. Our international<br />
model has proved just how effective<br />
it can be, and is being rolled out further<br />
every year. <strong>2011</strong> was a pivotal,<br />
and very positive, year which saw the<br />
practical implementation of efforts<br />
undertaken by our teams since 2010,<br />
especially in terms of securing our key<br />
partnerships and winning prestigious<br />
new contracts,” says Jesus Carmona,<br />
Director of the Travel Business Line.<br />
aCARDS: A LONGSTANDING<br />
LEADERSHIP<br />
For more than 2 decades, <strong>AXA</strong><br />
<strong>Assistance</strong> has been a major player<br />
in the travel market, and is now the<br />
leading provider of assistance<br />
services to credit card issuers. “Our<br />
offer combines travel insurance with<br />
medical repatriation cover, as well as<br />
a series of increasingly successful<br />
additional options, such as concierge<br />
services. Our working relationship with<br />
some issuers dates back more than<br />
25 years, so it’s fair to say that we’ve<br />
30_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
got to know them pretty well, but we<br />
also understand the necessity to be<br />
proactive in forecasting their needs,<br />
adapting our rates and developing<br />
our offers in line with their expectations<br />
and those of their end-user customers,”<br />
explains Jesus Carmona. <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
works with most of the leading issuers,<br />
which together account for nearly<br />
70% of all the cards currently in<br />
circulation. These include Visa and<br />
American Express, with which the<br />
partnership celebrates its 20th<br />
anniversary in 2012, and which<br />
recently presented the company with<br />
its Partner Customer Experience<br />
Award (see inset) in recognition of its<br />
status as a preferred benchmark<br />
supplier. “These institutions want us to<br />
be able to offer them global solutions<br />
that work in every part of the world.<br />
They know that they can rely on our<br />
international network of service<br />
providers to supply the high level of<br />
service quality they demand. For all<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> Travel Insurance: offering<br />
card issuers an offer and expertise<br />
unique in the world.<br />
Richard Zann Global Commercial and<br />
Marketing Director, <strong>AXA</strong> Travel Insurance<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> Travel Insurance (ATI), the <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
subsidiary company dedicated to serving the<br />
credit card industry since 2007, works closely<br />
with all the leading players in this market. Its<br />
international structure enables it to provide<br />
worldwide management of key contracts with<br />
customers as prestigious as American Express and<br />
Visa. The long-standing collaborative partnership<br />
with these major institutions and the wealth of<br />
services offered by <strong>AXA</strong> Travel Insurance make the<br />
company a key partner, especially in the crucial<br />
area of delivering end-user customer satisfaction.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> plays<br />
a major role in our customer<br />
satisfaction policy.<br />
Thomas Alder Vice-President International Insurance<br />
Services Europe at American Express<br />
Our partner <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> plays a major role<br />
in our customer satisfaction policy, as a result<br />
of the passion and commitment shown every<br />
day by its people. Their professionalism, ability<br />
to adapt to our requirements and readiness<br />
to listen to our needs are all exemplary,<br />
but they also understand the need to be<br />
proactive in proposing new ideas that will<br />
deliver continual service improvements.<br />
That’s why they were, once again, voted<br />
top American Express supplier in the<br />
United Kingdom this year.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_31
these reasons, we were able to attract a number of<br />
major new customers in <strong>2011</strong>, including Société<br />
Générale, Cooperative Banking Group and BNP Paribas<br />
Corporate. At the same time, we continued to develop<br />
services for existing customers like American Express and<br />
Visa in new markets, such as Mexico and the countries<br />
of Eastern Europe,” adds Jesus Carmona. One of the<br />
decisive criteria in this extension to new markets has<br />
been the concierge services offer, which Visa in particular<br />
has introduced for its customers in the Middle East and<br />
Russia. The more upmarket the card, the more important<br />
these additional services are.<br />
aNEW DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS<br />
The new information technologies are gaining ground<br />
in the travel insurance market. “We’re working on apps<br />
that will allow us to extract maximum benefit from these<br />
technologies, from smartphones and tablets to other<br />
online services. Nevertheless, there’s no point in rushing<br />
things, and we’re consolidating our policy before<br />
launching these new products,” continues Jesus<br />
Carmona. <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> may have already introduced<br />
an online cover application process, but many other<br />
developments are now in the pipeline. For example,<br />
there’s an app that will allow users to buy travel insurance<br />
from a smartphone, with the option to view the full<br />
general conditions of the policy. Another scheduled<br />
innovation is an iPad face-to-face point in airports and<br />
banks that consumers can use to speak face-to-face<br />
with an adviser to buy their travel insurance or other<br />
credit card-related services. “We also have a strong<br />
presence on many of the online price comparison sites:<br />
it’s a new marketing channel for us, but one we believe<br />
has a lot of potential. And we’ve just signed an<br />
agreement with Coverwise, one of the most promising<br />
players in this sector,” says Jesus Carmona.<br />
21 %<br />
OF OUR BUSINESS<br />
COMES FROM<br />
TRAVEL<br />
ASSISTANCE<br />
Tripy<br />
has<br />
re-established<br />
us as a<br />
significant<br />
and innovative<br />
player in the<br />
Italian market.<br />
Bruno Jantet<br />
Regional CEO<br />
of Mediterranean,<br />
ME, CEE,<br />
Indian Ocean<br />
32_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
aAN ORGANISATIONAL<br />
STRUCTURE WORTHY OF<br />
CUSTOMER EXPECTATIONS<br />
Over and above these future projects<br />
and current successes, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
focuses its efforts day-to-day on 2 key<br />
parameters governing customer<br />
satisfaction: competitiveness, in order to<br />
offer the best-possible prices, and service, in order to<br />
guarantee maximum quality of benefit delivery. “With<br />
this in mind, we’ve restructured geographically around<br />
the 3 repatriation management centres. This new, more<br />
efficient, way of working will deliver improved service to<br />
our customers worldwide, as well as enhancing our<br />
strategy of differentiating ourselves from our competitors,”<br />
concludes Jesus Carmona.<br />
MEDITERRANEAN<br />
TRIPY: DEDICATED<br />
ONLINE ACCESS FOR<br />
TRAVEL AGENTS<br />
<strong>2011</strong> saw the launch of Tripy (www.tripartner.it), a gateway<br />
website dedicated exclusively to Italian travel agents.<br />
“90% of the highly competitive<br />
trans-Alpine market is held by<br />
our major competitors, but it<br />
remains open to new entrants,<br />
and especially those able to<br />
offer innovative solutions,” explains<br />
Stéphane Coulot, Business Manager<br />
at Inter Partner <strong>Assistance</strong> in<br />
Italy. And that’s exactly what Tripy<br />
is, because it allows the 800 or so<br />
agencies currently registered to<br />
issue a range of around 10 travel<br />
insurance products within a minute,<br />
providing cover that ranges<br />
from medical repatriation and<br />
expenses to airline ticket cover,<br />
special ski products and products<br />
designed specifically for groups.<br />
Simpler than its competitors<br />
In addition to the exclusive covers<br />
it offers, Tripy is also a direct sales<br />
site designed to be extremely<br />
simple to use and very responsive.<br />
Everything about it is automated,<br />
including the submission of claims,<br />
which sets it distinctively apart<br />
from other packages in the<br />
market. “The <strong>AXA</strong> brand is also<br />
enormously powerful in terms of<br />
image. All of these strengths<br />
mean that Tripy has got off to a<br />
spectacular start, and its sales<br />
performance has already<br />
exceeded our most optimistic<br />
forecasts,” says Stéphane Coulot.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_33
SUNDAY 28 AUGUST, 50 KM FROM SINGAPORE<br />
Scott meets up with Doug well off the beaten track<br />
for an energy-packed day of mountain biking.<br />
Unfortunately, nothing went as planned:<br />
it rained, the track was slippery and on the first descent,<br />
there was a nasty fall. Catastrophe: Scott couldn’t move his leg!<br />
No need to panic though, because one call to <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> meant<br />
that 5 hours later, our mountain biker was leaving hospital<br />
with a superbly plastered leg and a big smile… because, as well<br />
as being highly efficient, the emergency doctor turned out to<br />
be an old school friend Scott hadn’t seen for years.<br />
It’s a small world!<br />
34_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
Sunday 28 August<br />
Leaving hospital<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_35
FROM THE EVERYDAY TO<br />
THE EXCEPTIONAL, NEEDS ARE<br />
INCREASING DRAMATICALLY<br />
An ageing population, the withdrawal<br />
of state provision, executive hypermobility,<br />
geopolitical strife and new technologies:<br />
healthcare delivery requires an ever-growing<br />
range of services… some of which have yet<br />
to be invented.<br />
Ludovic Lambolez Director of the Health Business Line<br />
number of key trends in the health sector<br />
were confirmed during <strong>2011</strong>. The first was<br />
the ongoing dramatic increase in needs,<br />
the majority of which are driven by<br />
population ageing and the accelerating rate of<br />
chronic disease: both are global phenomena driving<br />
the structural increase in healthcare expenditure.<br />
aINCREASED PRIVATE-SECTOR<br />
INVOLVEMENT<br />
At the same time, we are seeing the gradual<br />
withdrawal from healthcare provision of heavily<br />
indebted nation states, and a resulting shift towards<br />
private-sector providers. “In order to control their<br />
costs and establish a distinctive identity, Health<br />
assistance providers are looking for additional<br />
services to add to their offer. Ranging from telephone<br />
advice to specialist networks for particular illnesses<br />
or medical specialties, chronic illness treatment,<br />
training and even mobile apps, and the list goes on.<br />
The list of needs doesn’t stop there though, and goes<br />
hand-in-hand with the absolute necessity for a return<br />
on the investment required to deliver all these<br />
services. So the new products and services we offer<br />
our customers must be not only distinctive, but must<br />
also be able to demonstrate their<br />
financial performance in the short<br />
term by generating either cost<br />
savings, higher sales or – better still –<br />
both,” explains Ludovic Lambolez,<br />
Director of the Health Business Line.<br />
aHEALTHCARE ON THE MOVE<br />
Mobility is another key trend. Some<br />
people see no alternative but to seek<br />
treatment outside their own country,<br />
whether for reasons of cost or treatment<br />
quality. These new flows of patients are<br />
often also guided by cultural factors,<br />
with the emphasis on the links between<br />
certain countries. For example, seriously<br />
ill Turkish patients often seek treatment<br />
in Germany, where they may have<br />
family to accommodate and support<br />
them. “We’ve analysed this new order,<br />
and we’re fully capable of responding<br />
to it thanks to our national networks, our<br />
joined-up international coverage, our<br />
expertise in cross-border medical<br />
logistics and our ability to act as a link<br />
36_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
etween medical teams in different<br />
countries. To extend our service even<br />
further, we’re working on putting<br />
together ‘elite’ networks for around<br />
forty illnesses, bringing together the<br />
world’s Top 5 or 10 treatment teams for<br />
each condition,” adds Ludovic<br />
Lambolez. In addition to medical<br />
mobility, professional mobility is also on<br />
the increase, with the trend moving<br />
away from expatriation towards shortterm<br />
and medium-term international<br />
secondment for executives. As<br />
geopolitical uncertainty continues to<br />
prevail in many countries creating<br />
combined health and security risks,<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> had a duty to respond<br />
to the expectations of international<br />
companies committed to offering the<br />
best protection for their employees.<br />
a“CORPORATE MOBILITY”:<br />
CONCENTRATED EXPERTISE<br />
Restructured in <strong>2011</strong>, the “Corporate<br />
mobility” offer now provides a<br />
comprehensive response to these<br />
expectations. With 50 years of<br />
expertise in providing assistance,<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> has succeeded<br />
in building a package of benefits<br />
to cover all the needs of expatriate<br />
and travelling employees, from<br />
medical and security protection<br />
to business-focused concierge<br />
services. Launched in October<br />
<strong>2011</strong>, this product has already<br />
been taken up by many companies<br />
in many markets, with particular<br />
emphasis on North America,<br />
Europe and Asia. Included in this<br />
product is the Webcorp service,<br />
which is already available as a<br />
standard website and will be<br />
“Corporate mobility”<br />
provides a perfect response<br />
to customers seeking<br />
an integrated solution.<br />
Line Robillard Senior Consultant, Business<br />
Development <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> CANADA Inc.<br />
The “Corporate mobility” solution offers<br />
global coverage, and includes security<br />
risk cover. The programme is totally<br />
personalised, since we provide it as<br />
a “white label” product for customers<br />
to assemble their own package of benefits<br />
using the building blocks we supply.<br />
The package includes a single dedicated<br />
hotline number with multilingual services<br />
available 24/7/365: the bottom line is that<br />
this is a financially responsible, preventive<br />
and prudent offer for customers.<br />
Air France has chosen<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> to support<br />
its global crisis management<br />
structure.<br />
Yves Abbas Director of Internal Affairs, Air France<br />
In the aftermath of the Rio-Paris air accident,<br />
our assistance provider looked after the<br />
process of repatriating the bodies of victims<br />
in direct contact with their families and in<br />
close coordination with Air France. The key<br />
point here is that <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> brought<br />
together a specialist team in Paris dedicated<br />
solely to managing these very sensitive<br />
situations and ensuring that information<br />
flowed freely and efficiently, at the same time<br />
as taking great care of the extremely delicate<br />
psychological aspects of this sad task.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_37
extended to smartphones in mid-2012. Mobile<br />
company employees logging onto this service<br />
can use geolocation technology to identify the<br />
nearest approved medical practitioner or<br />
hospital, backed up by supporting information<br />
on the associated facilities, availability and, of<br />
course, contact details. “Webcorp” can also<br />
provide information about the health and security<br />
status of a particular destination, recommend<br />
how best to proceed on the basis of local<br />
practices, and provide valuable practical and<br />
administrative information.<br />
aTARGETING QUALITY THROUGH<br />
AN INCREASINGLY SELECTIVE NETWORK<br />
Although <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> already had the world’s<br />
largest international corporate assistance network,<br />
the company wanted to go even further in <strong>2011</strong>.<br />
“We’ve done a lot of work on becoming even more<br />
selective in our choice of service providers, based<br />
on identifying the most frequently visited destinations,<br />
analysing the split between tourism and business<br />
travel, and identifying preferred partners that offer<br />
the best service at the best cost. To improve network<br />
control and coordination, we’ve introduced<br />
5 regional network managers and tasked them with<br />
recruiting medical service providers in countries<br />
where we do not have a physical presence, as well<br />
as leading the team of network coordinators based<br />
in our international offices and our network of<br />
220 representatives around the world,” continues<br />
Ludovic Lambolez. As a result, the global network<br />
(excluding the USA) now contains 35,000 healthcare<br />
providers. In the USA, where the healthcare system is<br />
unique to the country, this figure rises to more than<br />
400,000 service providers. “There are many benefits<br />
for our customers, because we’re able to respond<br />
to medical needs anywhere in the world by directing<br />
the policyholder to a high-quality network. Added to<br />
that, the volume of guaranteed<br />
business we are able to provide and<br />
the synergies available within the <strong>AXA</strong><br />
Group give us a very strong position<br />
from which to negotiate medical<br />
service provision at the best-possible<br />
price,” adds Head of International<br />
Medical Network Jean Kramarz.<br />
aRESPONDING TO NEW<br />
REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS<br />
In some regions of the world, and<br />
particularly in continental Europe, we<br />
are seeing companies taking greater<br />
This<br />
programme<br />
of aid for<br />
the people of<br />
Panama illustrates<br />
our commitment<br />
to acting as a<br />
socially-responsible<br />
company.<br />
Olivier Van Poperinghe<br />
CEO of <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
USA & Australia<br />
38_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
esponsibility for psychosocial risks, with<br />
the emergence of increasingly strict<br />
regulations requiring employers to<br />
provide employees with access to<br />
prevention, diagnosis and treatment.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> is supporting this trend<br />
with the development of support<br />
systems offered either directly or via its<br />
partners. These include the EAP<br />
(Employee <strong>Assistance</strong> Programme)<br />
incorporated into the “Corporate<br />
mobility” package, which provides<br />
face-to-face and telephone-based<br />
psychological counselling.<br />
13 %<br />
OF OUR<br />
BUSINESS<br />
COMES<br />
FROM HEALTH<br />
ASSISTANCE<br />
aA PROMISING OUTLOOK<br />
Over and above this existing diversity of products<br />
and services, 2012 looks like being the year of<br />
innovations for the Health Business Line, which aims<br />
to establish its status as the recognised expert in<br />
international and domestic healthcare. It’s a<br />
challenge in which <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> intends to<br />
succeed brilliantly.<br />
AMERICAS<br />
HUMANITARIAN<br />
AID FOR PANAMA:<br />
A QUESTION OF<br />
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY<br />
On 1 January, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> was appointed by the Panamanian Health<br />
Ministry to provide assistance for population groups living in a remote and<br />
mountainous province of the country with no healthcare structure.<br />
“As part of this programme funded by the<br />
World Bank, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> provided its<br />
expertise in medical network management,<br />
as well as 50 employees to visit the villages<br />
concerned and supply help and support to<br />
their underprivileged residents: it’s a really<br />
good illustration of the social responsibility<br />
aspects of assistance provision,” explains<br />
Bernard Ferrand, Regional CEO of Americas.<br />
As a result of the work done by the teams of<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong>, nearly 25,000 people living in<br />
these particularly isolated regions now have<br />
access to basic medical care (vaccination,<br />
pregnancy care and obstetrics, paediatrics,<br />
etc.), screening and treatment for serious<br />
illnesses (malaria, tuberculosis, etc.) and<br />
education programmes (in nutrition and<br />
preventive health measures).<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_39
GOETHESTRASSE, BERLIN, WEDNESDAY 23 NOVEMBER, 10:15 a.m.<br />
Jürgen is furious: he needs to rehearse a solo for his<br />
band’s concert on Friday evening, but how can you<br />
play electric guitar when you’re up to your ankles<br />
in water?<br />
Luckily, he has home emergency cover from <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong>.<br />
The plumber arrives at four in the afternoon, so the next<br />
day he can plug his guitar back in… but in the dry<br />
this time. And all without spending a cent since the insurer<br />
pays the tradesman directly. On with the show!<br />
40_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
Goethestrasse, Berlin<br />
Thursday 24<br />
November, 8:15 p.m.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_41
MAKING DAILY LIFE EASIER:<br />
THE NEW CHALLENGE<br />
FOR PERSONAL SERVICES<br />
As daily life seems increasingly more<br />
like a race against time with pitfalls<br />
at every turn, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> is designing<br />
new services to meet the everyday needs of its<br />
end-user customers, from taking care of home<br />
emergencies to providing concierge services.<br />
Philippe Rambaud Director of the Home Business Line<br />
n recent years, longer life expectancy and the<br />
increasing complexity of how we use our time have<br />
generated new needs and expectations. The issues<br />
of personal services and home assistance are<br />
becoming crucial, and as states gradually withdraw<br />
from provision, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> has successfully<br />
established itself in this market. Customers want simple<br />
solutions to their everyday problems, from dependency<br />
in old age to disability support, the problems of finding<br />
available and reliable tradesmen, the organisation of<br />
leisure time and legal protection. Its Business Line<br />
structure means that <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> can offer a<br />
simultaneously global and local presence, which has<br />
enabled the company to become a leading provider<br />
of services in this sector with the ability to support<br />
customers with effective responses worldwide.<br />
aPERSONAL SERVICES:<br />
DELIVERING THE RIGHT OFFERS<br />
Dependency management is becoming a major social<br />
challenge. But despite the clear need, the market<br />
remains underdeveloped even in Western Europe, and<br />
although it offers considerable potential, it is struggling<br />
to take off, because people tend not to consider these<br />
issues until they are in their 60s. “The result is that the<br />
dependency insurance market is<br />
narrow and the cost of policies is<br />
relatively high. So to reach a broader<br />
market with attractive covers at lower<br />
cost, insurers are beginning to<br />
incorporate dependency cover into<br />
their health insurance policies. Against<br />
this background, we’ve taken the<br />
initiative to offer some really distinctive<br />
products with particular emphasis on<br />
preventive care,” explains Philippe<br />
Rambaud, Director of the Home<br />
Business Line. Other key parameters<br />
include tax legislation and social<br />
structures, which differ from country to<br />
country and do not always allow insurers<br />
to operate in this market, regardless of<br />
whether they are private companies or<br />
mutual organizations. However, the<br />
situation is changing fast, and should<br />
enable <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> to reap the<br />
benefits of its early-stage work in coming<br />
years. Already a major player in<br />
dependency care and home care<br />
support through its ADHAP Services<br />
42_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
(care provider) network, which employs<br />
more than 3,000 people in France, the<br />
company continues to develop new<br />
innovations. One of these involves the<br />
development of a new home care<br />
support service for vulnerable people<br />
based on video monitoring technology.<br />
Developed in partnership with Link Care<br />
Services, “eDom” automatically detects<br />
hazardous situations in the home and<br />
triggers an alert displayed on the screen<br />
of a specialist operator, who can notify<br />
friends, family or the emergency services<br />
if required.<br />
aSUPPORTING THOSE<br />
DEPENDENT ON CARE<br />
The www.entreaidants.fr website has<br />
been totally redesigned and enhanced<br />
with new educational resources for<br />
carers (see inset). The “Albatros” system<br />
introduced to support serious personal<br />
injury victims in returning to daily life<br />
continues to build market share in<br />
France, and is beginning to be<br />
deployed in Belgium and Italy (see inset<br />
on next page). Lastly, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
also operates in the protection market,<br />
and has worked alongside <strong>AXA</strong> Direct<br />
Protection to create “Family Protect”, a<br />
comprehensive package of assistance<br />
solutions designed to complement<br />
traditional protection.<br />
aCOPING WITH THE<br />
UNEXPECTED: HANDHOLDING<br />
BY THE ASSISTANCE PROVIDER<br />
Time is increasingly precious and every<br />
unexpected event can take up a<br />
disproportionate amount of it.<br />
Whether your problem is a serious water<br />
leak or a reluctant washing machine,<br />
the new generation of home<br />
e-learning<br />
for carers.<br />
Dominique Barreau Marketing Director<br />
of <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> France<br />
When it comes to delivering advice on how to<br />
care for dependent people living in their own<br />
homes, nothing compares to visual imagery<br />
for getting the message across. Unique in the<br />
market, these e-learning modules form part<br />
of the new services added during <strong>2011</strong> to our<br />
www.entreaidants.fr public website. Their<br />
aim is to provide practical help to carers by<br />
explaining how to deliver day-to-day care<br />
needs, and to offer them practical solutions that<br />
are more effective and confidence-building<br />
in what are often difficult circumstances.<br />
These very well-designed modules<br />
show us the right way to go about<br />
improving the care we provide<br />
for those we look after.<br />
Yvette Riou Carer<br />
It’s impossible to explain just how hard it can<br />
be to care for a dependent relative until you’ve<br />
found yourself in that situation! In hospital, the<br />
nurses point you in the right direction, but they<br />
don’t always have the time to go into detail. The<br />
instructional modules produced by <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
have given me a much better understanding of<br />
how I can support my mother more effectively<br />
when I help her to walk, without putting too much<br />
strain on my own back. The illustrations and<br />
explanations are extremely clear and very useful.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_43
EUROPE<br />
“ALBATROS”: A NEW APPROACH<br />
TO PERSONAL INJURY RECOVERY<br />
An innovative service introduced in close synergy with the personal injury<br />
management insurance teams, “Albatros” provides entitlement to a broad<br />
range of services for victims and families.<br />
Whether completely or partially,<br />
“Albatros” takes the place of the<br />
payments normally made by the<br />
insurer: adaptations to the home,<br />
the provision of home care and<br />
services, re-entry into the world<br />
of work, etc. “This personalised<br />
service is highly appreciated by<br />
those who receive it, because it<br />
creates the long-term conditions<br />
required for people to regain<br />
their confidence and delivers real<br />
customer satisfaction,” explains<br />
François Klitting.<br />
International rollout<br />
Having been tested in France since<br />
2006, “Albatros” really took off in<br />
<strong>2011</strong>, with nearly 1,200 people<br />
receiving help and support in<br />
France, 160 in Belgium and around<br />
10 in Italy. “The way personal injury<br />
recovery is paid for and managed<br />
varies very considerably from<br />
country to country, so introducing<br />
the service into another market<br />
takes time, but that’s what<br />
we’re continuing to do, and we<br />
believe that we will be helping<br />
2,000 personal injury victims by<br />
the end of 2012,” explains<br />
Dionysos Antonopoulos,<br />
Deputy Manager of the<br />
Home, Personal Services<br />
and Personal Injury<br />
Business Line.<br />
emergency and extended warranty covers that deliver<br />
practical solutions are powering ahead. “Water and<br />
energy suppliers, like Luminus in Belgium, are keen to<br />
offer additional services to their customers, whilst<br />
traditional insurers are looking to set themselves apart<br />
from competitors by introducing more covers,” explains<br />
Philippe Rambaud.<br />
aNEW FAMILIES OF SERVICES<br />
In responding to these expectations, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
began by creating an extended warranty for household<br />
equipment (appliances, TVs, HiFi systems, computers,<br />
etc.) that is distinctive from competitors’ offers, because<br />
it covers every item of equipment in the home. Launched<br />
in <strong>2011</strong>, this package has proved enormously successful<br />
in France, and will be marketed in other countries during<br />
2012 through a very broad range of channels, including<br />
cable TV operators in South America. This was followed<br />
by home emergency cover delivered through a network<br />
of tradesmen carefully screened,<br />
selected and managed by <strong>AXA</strong><br />
<strong>Assistance</strong>. “The success of this product<br />
depends on trust: customers must be<br />
able to rely on the fact that problems will<br />
be repaired quickly by a reliable<br />
professional, and that they will have<br />
nothing further to pay because<br />
everything is covered by the policy,”<br />
adds Philippe Rambaud. Since its<br />
launch in 2010, this product has<br />
attracted a number of high-profile<br />
customers.<br />
aFAST GROWTH<br />
IN CONCIERGE SERVICES<br />
Concierge services are increasingly<br />
sought-after, and now form part of<br />
many loyalty and reward programmes.<br />
44_<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>
‘Albatros’<br />
makes it<br />
possible<br />
to put together<br />
tailored<br />
‘life plans’<br />
for serious<br />
personal injury<br />
victims.<br />
24 %<br />
OF OUR BUSINESS<br />
COMES FROM HOME<br />
ASSISTANCE AND<br />
PERSONAL SERVICES<br />
François Klitting<br />
Regional CEO of France<br />
The services are often used to add<br />
value to other offers, from credit cards<br />
to the covers provided by the other<br />
Business Lines of Travel, Vehicle and<br />
Health. “In <strong>2011</strong>, we extended our<br />
concierge service cover for Visa<br />
to include Asia, after North and South<br />
America in 2010. The extension has<br />
been so successful that our concierge<br />
service provision workforce in Asia has<br />
doubled from 30 to 60 in less than a<br />
year. In China, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong> is<br />
outperforming the 50% growth of the<br />
market with 100% new business growth.<br />
And Brazil isn’t far behind, with growth<br />
of 30%,” says a delighted Philippe<br />
Rambaud. Demand for these services<br />
is becoming global, with leading<br />
corporate customers seeking single<br />
partners that can offer worldwide coverage and<br />
deliver the best-possible quality of service regardless<br />
of geography: it’s a challenge for which <strong>AXA</strong><br />
<strong>Assistance</strong> is particularly well positioned, thanks to its<br />
international network of partnerships and service<br />
providers. In this market, technology will play an<br />
increasingly important role, from customer profiling<br />
to smartphone accessibility and push marketing.<br />
“These trends play to our strengths and give us the<br />
edge over local or regional companies, because<br />
we’re able to develop these new resources on a<br />
global scale. The goal of all these developments<br />
is to simplify and improve the customer pathway,<br />
at the same time as improving service quality by<br />
implementing individually tailored services,” continues<br />
Philippe Rambaud.<br />
aADDRESSING TOMORROW’S<br />
CHALLENGES TODAY<br />
In the home assistance market, success will necessarily<br />
depend on technological innovation.<br />
Whether you look at the growth in mobility (with the<br />
option to contact your assistance provider by<br />
smartphone), the connected smart home (that<br />
anticipates emergencies before they occur), or<br />
measuring home energy performance, <strong>AXA</strong> <strong>Assistance</strong><br />
conducts its research in close cooperation with its<br />
customers and partners as part of addressing<br />
tomorrow’s challenges today.<br />
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCEq<strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong>_45
<strong>AXA</strong> ASSISTANCE – <strong>2011</strong> <strong>ANNUAL</strong> <strong>REPORT</strong><br />
This document is printed in France on FSC-certified paper from sustainable sources.<br />
Publication manager: Florence Carrère – Coordination: Astrid David – Design<br />
and production : – 11195 – Photo credits: Henrik Sorensen/Stone/gettyimages ®<br />
(cover), Jorn Georg Tomter/Stone/gettyimages ® (p. 2), Corbis, Jacques Grison/<br />
La Company (p. 3), Jeremy Sutton-Hibbert/gettyimages ® , <strong>AXA</strong>, Renault-Nissan (pp. 4-5),<br />
Carsten Koall/gettyimages ® , Christine Piat, Paula Bronstein/gettyimages ® , efektstudio80<br />
(pp. 6-7), Léa Crespi (pp. 9-11), gettyimages ® , Corbis, Jacques Grison/La Company<br />
(pp. 12-13), <strong>AXA</strong> (p. 15), Hobby Finn/Thinckstock, Corbis, Benoit Paille, Jacques Grison/<br />
La Company (pp. 16-17), <strong>AXA</strong> (pp. 18-19), Will Sanders/photonica/gettyimages ® , Alyson<br />
Aliano/gettyimages ® (pp. 20-21), <strong>AXA</strong>, photoupdesign (pp. 22-23), RedChopsticks/<br />
gettyimages ® (p. 25), Martin Poole/Stockbyte/gettyimages ® , Steven Taylor/gettyimages ® ,<br />
ColorBlind Image/Iconica/gettyimages ® (pp.28-29), Comstock/Thinckstock, <strong>AXA</strong> (pp.30-31),<br />
Alexandre Capi/Latin Constant/gettyimages ® , Jack Louth/Stone/gettyimages ® (pp. 34-35),Tim<br />
Radley/Stone/gettyimages ® , Image Source/gettyimages ® (pp. 40-41), <strong>AXA</strong> (pp. 42-45).<br />
www.axa-assistance.com