Mahindra Manulife Life Insurance has appointed Ruchika Malhan Varma as Chief Marketing and Customer Officer (CMCO), strengthening its leadership team as the insurer looks to build a consumer-focused, digitally enabled and AI-driven life insurance business in India.
In her new role, Varma will oversee Brand and Marketing Communications, Corporate Communications, Digital and Growth Marketing, Customer Experience, Digital Experience, Partnerships, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Sustainability and AI enablement.
Her mandate will focus on strengthening the insurer's brand and customer proposition while using technology, data and artificial intelligence to improve how customers discover, purchase and interact with insurance products.
Varma brings more than 25 years of experience across financial services, media, entertainment, travel and consumer businesses in India and other Asian markets. Her career has covered brand building, customer experience, digital transformation and business-led marketing.
Before joining Mahindra Manulife, she served as Chief Marketing, Customer and Impact Officer at Generali Central Insurance. She joined the insurer as Chief Marketing Officer in 2020 and subsequently took on a broader mandate spanning marketing, customer experience and impact initiatives.
At Generali Central Insurance, her responsibilities included brand and marketing communications, digital marketing, corporate communications, product strategy and innovation, customer experience and digital acquisition. Her remit also extended to web sales, telesales, corporate social responsibility, DEI and sustainability initiatives.
Earlier, Varma spent several years at IDFC FIRST Bank, where she held leadership roles across brand and insights before becoming Chief Marketing Officer. Her earlier career also included roles at Marina Bay Sands, BBC Worldwide, Lonely Planet, Singapore Tourism Board, VIP Industries and Electrolux.
Mahindra Manulife Life Insurance is a joint venture between the Mahindra Group and Canada-based financial services company Manulife. The company is looking to combine the Mahindra Group's presence and understanding of the Indian market with Manulife's insurance expertise as it expands its life insurance operations in the country.
The insurer has identified AI, data and consumer insights as areas that can support the development of simpler and more personalised customer experiences. Varma's responsibilities across marketing, digital experience and AI enablement bring these functions under a broader customer-focused mandate.
Her appointment comes as insurers in India increasingly invest in digital distribution, customer analytics and AI-supported processes to improve engagement and simplify customer journeys. For Mahindra Manulife, the new leadership appointment places marketing, customer experience and technology-enabled engagement at the centre of its efforts to build its presence in India's life insurance market.
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