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Get to know Ching Wang, head of New York Life’s Group Membership Association Division.
New York Life | August 06, 2024
There aren’t many CPAs out there who can say they’ve literally been a bean counter, but Ching Wang, head of Group Membership Association Division (GMAD), which provides group life, disability, and supplemental health products to associations, was just that when he was an auditor for the Green Mountain Coffee Co. in Vermont. This was just one of many stops along the way on a path that eventually took Wang into the insurance industry, and he landed at New York Life last August. We caught up with Wang as he comes up on his first anniversary here. Below, he discusses his early career as an accountant and shares the best career advice he’s ever received.
What does your role entail?
My role is to help drive GMAD’s strategy in terms of where and how we compete. I work with my leadership team to remove obstacles so that they can manage and grow the business profitably. I also hold them accountable for our results.
Talk about your career path.
I grew up in the Twin Cities area in Minnesota. In high school, we were asked if we wanted to spend a day with a local professional to see what their job was like. I asked to shadow the general manager of the Minnesota Vikings for career day. That was a bit of a reach, so they paired me with a local CPA instead. Turns out he had a nice office and some interesting clients and I thought to myself that this really wasn’t that bad! I’ve always liked numbers, so majoring in accounting at Boston College and becoming a CPA was a good fit for me.
I started my career in audit and consulting roles – both before and after I went to business school. My first “real” corporate job was at Liberty Mutual. I spent much of my career there in their group insurance business on the product/analytics side. In 2019, I started at Transamerica running operations for their group benefits business. This included areas like account management, service, and claims. Both these positions helped me build a good body of knowledge and experience across several functional areas and positioned me for this general management role. I was thrilled to join New York Life and GMAD in August 2023. It was definitely an adjustment commuting from Boston three days a week. But the people and the opportunity make it worthwhile.
Describe your management style.
I want to make sure we are all clear on what we’re trying to do. This means rallying everyone around a shared mission in a way that inspires them and is good for the business. When we come together and achieve our goals as a team, it’s very rewarding.
I also know different leadership styles are required for different situations. Early in my career, I took more of a command-and-control approach to management. But as I’ve grown, I realized you have to empower leaders by giving them the freedom to make mistakes in pursuit of their goals.
It's also important to get to know people. I’m more of an introvert so I have to make a concerted effort to reach out and form relationships. As I’ve progressed in my career, I found different ways of doing this, from one-on-one meetings to town halls.
What’s the best advice you’ve received?
It’s something I like to share with my kids that I learned during my basic auditor training at PricewaterhouseCoopers — “attitude determines altitude.” It’s about making a choice on how you approach something. Different people can look at the same situation in different ways. You choose how you want to approach something and what you get out of it.
What do you like to do outside of work?
Well, now that my kids have gotten to the point where they don’t need me as much anymore (one just starting college and one just starting high school), I’ve realized that I need to find more hobbies! I like to exercise and really started exercising in earnest during the pandemic to get healthier — mainly walking, running, and biking. I’m picking up golf again and am having fun with that.
About GMAD
New York Life Insurance Company maintains a separate, dedicated division managing every aspect of Group Membership and affinity operations with more than 300 groups under contract insuring nearly 1 million people.
This ever-changing marketplace demands exceptional customer service, an attribute that has been a driving force of the Group Membership Association Division's philosophy for over 65 years. Our team is intimately familiar with every client's history, their unique product configurations, and nuances that make up our clients' member communities. What's more, each client receives a dedicated account person who is your liaison to an extensive suite of services. We welcome the opportunity to learn about your group needs and discuss how we may be able to help you serve your members. Contact one of our financial professionals.
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Media contact
Kevin Maher
New York Life Insurance Company
(212) 576-7937
Kevin_B_Maher@newyorklife.com