Benedict Sison once said: “Optimism is about giving people a bright horizon to look forward to, helping our clients to dream big and giving them the solutions to get there. Relevance is about walking with our clients on their journey towards financial security and providing them with financial solutions that help them achieve their goals.”

He was describing the emotional stamp of Sun Life of Canada (Philippines) where in its everyday interactions with its clients, the company would always design every moment with care, optimism and relevance.  Sison is Sun Life’s CEO and Country Head.  

Longest Standing Life Insurer

Founded in 1895, Sun Life is the pioneer and the longest-standing life insurer in the Philippines. Yet, after 128 years in the market, the company remains to be the largest and one of the most stable insurance companies in the country. Up till 2023, Sun Life continues to retain its position as the number one life insurer in the Philippines for 12 consecutive years. 

“Longevity is a badge of honour especially in the life insurance industry where obligations to clients are usually fulfilled in the long term,” says Sison, regarding the significance of being the longest-standing life insurer in the Philippines.

“What also serves as a testament to Sun Life’s longevity is its financial stability, operational resilience and business sustainability, where it has withstood two World Wars, countless economic crises, and recently, a pandemic,” he adds. 

A Trusted Brand

Added to that is the fact that the company has been receiving numerous awards and accolades from many award-giving bodies such as the Trusted Brand Awards, Campaign Asia Top 100 Brands, and the Asia Pacific Enterprise Awards, affirming the company’s strength as a brand – one that Filipinos know of, and consider as the most trustworthy in the industry. 

Sison leads a nation-wide team of 22,000 advisors and 1,400 employees. Not only that, he says that through their many internal talent development programmes, Sun Life advisors are recognised to be among the best in the field, with over 500 of them belonging to the prestigious Million Dollar Round Table, a trade association for insurance brokers and financial advisors. Meanwhile, Sun Life employees are highly engaged, earning the company a Great Place to Work certification.  

Rising Above

Having led the company to further growth and success, Sison remembers a time when he was confronted by a hurdle.  

“Without a doubt, the most significant struggle during my term thus far would be the pandemic,” he recalls.

“While we had a business continuity plan that allowed us to weather the lockdowns, and were financially stable enough to withstand the disruptions, there was still much uncertainty as the world dealt with an unfamiliar virus where cases and fatalities were quickly rising. 

“I had some sleepless nights as I tried to ruminate how we could rise above the situation and minimise the impact. At the same time, I was also concerned about how Sun Life could help the greater community, knowing that many were reeling from the effects of the pandemic.”    

He says they stretched their creativity to find ways to continue serving their clients without compromising their standards while standing strong to their promise that they would be there for them in their time of need. 

“We accelerated our digitalisation which saw us launching our Digitally Enabled Selling Process and Remote Online Medical Examination, upskilling our advisors and employees, and launching more initiatives to better serve and connect with clients in the digital world.” 

Sun Life also extended help through the Sun Life Foundation which holds programmes that support financial literacy, healthcare, education, scholarship grants and disaster relief.