Hastings Direct Networking event in collaboration with Women in Data®

Angela is Director of Underwriting Delivery & Change for Hastings Direct and is responsible for deploying into live the regular pricing updates that are the output of extensive data analytics. 

Having worked with data throughout her career, Angela has led data analytics teams focused on unlocking the potential of data to enhance credit decisioning and affordability assessments using vast sets of transactional and customer-level data.  She has also led teams that enable the use of data in live customer journeys, and teams that have been responsible for creating easy access to data on analytics platforms. 

Angela has seen first-hand the benefit of data in transforming customer experience and optimising business decisions, and she is passionate about finding ways to speed up the route to live of data opportunities. 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-ambler-00a10a/

Recognising that there are many roles in the end-to-end lifecycle of data, evidenced by her own squiggle career in data, Angela is a keen promoter of the different avenues a career in data can take.

Hebe started her journey in data when she opted to study Mathematics at university. Graduating with a First-Class Honours degree from the University of Sussex, she then found herself a short placement at a not-for-profit enterprise in Hastings as a business analyst. This experience along with her analytic modules at university prepared her for her initial position at Hastings Direct – Pricing Analyst within the Commercial team. Here she learnt the majority of her technical skills, including coding in R and SQL, as well as how best to present data and make pricing changes. Unfortunately, after approximately two years in this role, Hebe’s career was interrupted as she fell ill with the condition Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome). After a year of attempted recovery, Hebe managed to recommence work (part-time) and also switched her role to Data Engineer after realising where her passions lie. She is now gradually increasing her hours, enjoying work, and is optimistic about progressing her future career in data.

Katie Tozer joined Hastings Direct at the beginning of 2021 as the Data Operations Team Leader for the Telematics Team.

Katie studied Mathematics with Business at the University of Brighton and went on to gain a PGCE in Secondary Mathematics, which she utilised as Head of Mathematics at an Autistic Special Needs Secondary School.

Whilst studying, Katie worked as a rock-climbing instructor, event harpist and private tutor. Following her time in teaching, she took the step to work in Switzerland at the International Scout Centre as a Seasonal Staff member. After returning to the UK, she picked up a role at West Sussex County Council Children’s Services as an Information Assistant, working her way up to Data Analyst.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/katie-tozer-046093176/

Laura is a data scientist at Hastings Direct, applying various machine learning techniques to develop

models relevant to the insurance industry.   Before joining Hastings Direct, Laura was a data scientist on a project sponsored by the Scottish Government and UNICEF, with the goal to find data sources pertaining to the socio-economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on children.

Most of Laura’s career has been in an academic environment, including a postdoctoral fellow at DISCUS, the Data Intensive Centre of the University of Sussex. Prior to Laura’s transition to data science, she was a Postdoctoral Fellow in Theoretical Astrophysics at the University of Sussex and the University of Bonn. Laura received her doctoral degree in Astrophysics from the University of Pennsylvania, and bachelor’s degree in Physics from the University of Bucharest.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-marian-aa8b445a/

Shelley Greenan joined Hastings Direct at the end of 2019 as Senior Operations Manager for Telematics.

Having studied a BTEC in Business and Finance at Brighton College Shelley then went on to study a BSc in Computer studies at the University of Brighton.

A 25+ year career spanning both the telecommunications and now Insurance sectors has ensured Shelley’s experience in the use of data in business is broad and varied.

Shelley is passionate about supporting and helping individuals to develop their potential, her current role also enables the review and use of data in leading the operation to improved customer outcomes and support business improvements whilst ensuring commercial viability and benefits.

Shelley is a mother of three and more recently a grandmother.

LinkedIn profile is found at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shelley-greenan-72a88470

Tom has worked at Hastings Direct for 24 years and currently leads our Pricing and Underwriting teams.

He started his career in the call centre at Hastings and through a series of internal promotions, joined the executive committee 3 years ago.

Tom is passionate about using data to achieve better outcomes for customers and is on a quest to ensure that safe drivers are rewarded with low insurance premiums.

Tom is a mentor on the 30% club mentoring programme, supporting diversity in senior leadership and is also the Hastings executive committee sponsor for social mobility.

Tom has a spreadsheet for everything, including how to cook the Christmas dinner (ingredients, timings, oven temperatures etc.)

Yiru is an experienced Data Scientist at Hastings Direct. Yiru has demonstrable experience of working in the insurance industry. Highly skilled in Pricing and Data Analytics, Advanced Analytical Modelling, and Machine Learning, Yiru is a maths and engineering professional with a Master of Science (MSc) focused on Business Analytics from University of Warwick and a Bachelor degree of Computer Science from University of Nottingham.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/yiru-x-2775b996/