AIA New Zealand has appointed Michele Embling as an independent non-executive Director and she will chair the board audit and risk committee.

She is an experienced chair and board member for multiple private, not-for-profit, and public sector entities. Currently she chairs the External Reporting Board (XRB), and holds other governance roles at Transpower New Zealand, Toitū Tahua – The Centre for Sustainable Finance, the Australian Financial Reporting Council, and the University of Auckland’s Business School Advisory Board.

Embling has served as chair of PwC in New Zealand from 2016 to 2020, was a partner for 15 years and held numerous leadership, executive and governance roles within PwC in New Zealand and Asia.

She served as co-chair of Champions for Change from 2018 to 2020 and from 2011 to 2018 was a board member and deputy chair of Global Women.

"Throughout her career Michele has been motivated to serve in the public interest – including overseeing the establishment and monitoring of New Zealand's external reporting framework, advocating for diverse and inclusive leadership and more recently rising to the challenges and opportunities arising from climate change and sustainability concerns," AIA says in a statement.

"With her extensive leadership and governance experience across Asia-Pacific, Michele brings great insight, perspective, and strategic leadership to AIA NZ,” AIA chair Theresa Gattung says.