First-ever: GIC, India’s largest reinsurance firm gets a female boss

Alice G. Vidyan is the first woman to ever become the Chairperson and Managing Director of GIC Re. GIC is the national reinsurer company and the only reinsurance company in the country. It is numbered 14^th in the global ranks of reinsurance companies. Vidyan is supposed to join office as the CMD from today and her tenure will go on till July 2019.

As CMD of GIC Re, Vaidyan would be the chairperson of GIC South Africa Re, Kenindia Insurance Company, Kenya, and GIC Housing Finance Company, reports the DNA.

Banking sector has many women in the executive sector from public sector banks like SBI with Arundhati Bhattacharya as its head to private sector banks like ICICI Bank headed by Chanda Kochhar. Even Life Insurance companies have also been abuzz be female presence at the top level like ex-chief of ICICI Prudential, Shikha Sharma, Usha Sangwan, MD at Life Insurance Company etc. However, the non-life insurance company has never had a female chief in the history.

Also Read: DRDO appoints J Manjula as its first woman Director General

The position of CMD had been left vacant since July 2015 till Vidyan was appointed for it. The previous head of GIC was A K Roy, who had to quit following his retirement. Vidyan, who is from 1983 batch of direct recruit officers of the general insurance industry, joined GIC in 2008 and since then has been spearheading the corporation in international business for marine, aviation and oil & energy reinsurance, according to TOI. Before, joining GIC Re, Vidyan was with New India Assurance Corporation.

This is not the first time Vidyan is joining an executive level position, she is also a director on the board of GIC Bhutan. It is a joint venture Reinsurance Company established by GIC Re Bhutan. An English Literature Postgraduate, Vaidyan has been very dedicated towards her work. To corroborate that, she has won many awards in recognition of her work like the Lloyd's List Marine Insurance Award in 2007 for New India for best marine insurer and GIC Re won the Marine Insurance Award in the Seatrade Middle East & Indian Subcontinent Awards for 2011 and 2012.

Picture Credit: Hindu