Profile
"West Oak’s success has come from always putting our clients’ best interests first and always finding ways to improve and add more value to them"
Andrew mcquiston,
west oak family office, wellington-altus private wealth
Sarah Lyons followed her father into the insurance business and was immediately hooked. After her
first job in the claims department of Provincial Insurance in Kendal, a market town in the north of England, she was involved in building a claims department for sister company, Prospero, and worked within the Insurance division of a bank before moving into insurer and broking roles in Ireland and the UK.
In 2014, she was headhunted by OAMPS to run its Australian branch network. Being a natural daredevil, moving across the world to take on a brand-new role in a new country sight unseen was a huge opportunity that Sarah couldn’t turn down! With over 30 locations to visit across every state and territory, it gave her a very welcome opportunity to explore her new country.
Just months after Sarah joined, Gallagher bought OAMPS and, three years later, she was offered the role of Gallagher Australia chief executive. She is the first woman to lead a tier-one, international insurance broker in Australia. Gallagher has a strong focus on inclusion and diversity. Regardless of one’s background or gender, there are successful career opportunities for all. Bringing one’s entrepreneurial spirit to the art of broking is a key differentiator for Gallagher employees, and understanding the local market whilst having the backing of a global firm ensures that clients are able to face their future with confidence. More than 50% of the Gallagher workforce is female and the number of leadership positions makes the company particularly attractive to women who aspire to senior roles.
As chief executive since July 2017, Sarah has brought decades of insurance industry experience to her role. She has set Gallagher Australia on course to achieve scale, growth, enhanced capability and presence in the domestic market. With more than 1,000 team members across over 30 locations serving 130,000+ clients, Gallagher Australia has achieved year-on-year growth under Sarah’s leadership and now places more than $1.71bn gross written premium annually.
Sarah relishes the opportunity to make a positive difference to people’s careers and considers this to be her greatest achievement. She has never forgotten the practical help she received from her own mentors and happily gives up her time to sit on panels, speak at conferences (large and small) and provide personal mentoring sessions for many in various stages of their career journey. Sarah openly shares her own working experiences – good and not so good – so that others can learn from them.
Insurance touches every sector, and one of the things Sarah loves best about her job is the variety of the work she’s able to do. She’s also a big believer in learning from other industries so that she can bring fresh thinking to her own organisation.
Whilst acknowledging that there are challenges ahead for the industry, she is confident that insurers and brokers will find a way through, as they always have. People need insurance in their lives, both personally and professionally, and new and exciting solutions will continue to emerge to ensure that peace of mind continues to deliver when needed most.
Throughout her career in Australia, the UK and Ireland, Sarah has built broad corporate operational experience across a mix of executive and C-suite roles. Alongside her focus on broking, her skillset includes sales, marketing, risk, mergers and acquisitions, and claims expertise. She has been recognised on multiple occasions by the industry, receiving accolades from Insurance Business magazine’s Hot List and Elite Women in Insurance. She has also been included multiple times in the Global 100 of influential insurance professionals.
In her free time, Sarah loves challenging herself by lifting weights, working out with a personal trainer three times a week and constantly seeking heart-racing activities to complete. As recently as last November, Sarah spent time in a snake bath, all in the name of raising money for childhood cancer whilst also conquering one of her biggest fears.
Level 12, 80 Pacific Hwy, North Sydney, NSW 2060, Australia
1800 240 432
communications@ajg.com.au
https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlyons1/
ajg.com.au
Sarah Lyons
Chief Executive
Gallagher Australia
Read on
Special Report
Home
Bio
Milestones
Profile
Sarah Lyons followed her father into the insurance business and was immediately hooked. After her first job in the claims department of Provincial Insurance in Kendal, a market town in the north of England, she was involved in building a claims department for sister company, Prospero, and worked within the Insurance division of a bank before moving into insurer and broking roles in Ireland and the UK.
In 2014, she was headhunted by OAMPS to run its Australian branch network. Being a natural daredevil, moving across the world to take on a brand-new role in a new country sight unseen was a huge opportunity that Sarah couldn’t turn down! With over 30 locations to visit across every state and territory, it gave her a very welcome opportunity to explore her new country.
Just months after Sarah joined, Gallagher bought OAMPS and, three years later, she was offered the role of Gallagher Australia chief executive. She is the first woman to lead a tier-one, international insurance broker in Australia. Gallagher has a strong focus on inclusion and diversity. Regardless of one’s background or gender, there are successful career opportunities for all. Bringing one’s entrepreneurial spirit to the art of broking is a key differentiator for Gallagher employees, and understanding the local market whilst having the backing of a global firm ensures that clients are able to face their future with confidence. More than 50% of the Gallagher workforce is female and the number of leadership positions makes the company particularly attractive to women who aspire to senior roles.
As chief executive since July 2017, Sarah has brought decades of insurance industry experience to her role. She has set Gallagher Australia on course to achieve scale, growth, enhanced capability and presence in the domestic market. With more than 1,000 team members across over 30 locations serving 130,000+ clients, Gallagher Australia has achieved year-on-year growth under Sarah’s leadership and now places more than $1.71bn gross written premium annually.
Sarah relishes the opportunity to make a positive difference to people’s careers and considers this to be her greatest achievement. She has never forgotten the practical help she received from her own mentors and happily gives up her time to sit on panels, speak at conferences (large and small) and provide personal mentoring sessions for many in various stages of their career journey. Sarah openly shares her own working experiences – good and not so good – so that others can learn from them.
Insurance touches every sector, and one of the things Sarah loves best about her job is the variety of the work she’s able to do. She’s also a big believer in learning from other industries so that she can bring fresh thinking to her own organisation.
Whilst acknowledging that there are challenges ahead for the industry, she is confident that insurers and brokers will find a way through, as they always have. People need insurance in their lives, both personally and professionally, and new and exciting solutions will continue to emerge to ensure that peace of mind continues to deliver when needed most.
Throughout her career in Australia, the UK and Ireland, Sarah has built broad corporate operational experience across a mix of executive and C-suite roles. Alongside her focus on broking, her skillset includes sales, marketing, risk, mergers and acquisitions, and claims expertise. She has been recognised on multiple occasions by the industry, receiving accolades from Insurance Business magazine’s Hot List and Elite Women in Insurance. She has also been included multiple times in the Global 100 of influential insurance professionals.
In her free time, Sarah loves challenging herself by lifting weights, working out with a personal trainer three times a week and constantly seeking heart-racing activities to complete. As recently as last November, Sarah spent time in a snake bath, all in the name of raising money for childhood cancer whilst also conquering one of her biggest fears.
Milestones
2020
Insurance Business Magazine | Key Media
Receive an excellence award
2020
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2019
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
TeD Talk Speaker
2019
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2018
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
title of milestone
2018
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2020-2021
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
Received Lexology Client Choice Award (Labour and Employment – Canada)
2020-2021
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2014-2022
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
Received Best Lawyer in Canada Award (Employment and Labour Law)
2014-2022
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2014-2022
2020-2021
2018
2019
2020
Sarah
Lyons
Chief Executive
Gallagher Australia
Read on
Special Report
Home
Bio
Milestones
Profile
Sarah Lyons followed her father into the insurance business and was immediately hooked. After her first job in the claims department of Provincial Insurance in Kendal, a market town in the north of England, she was involved in building a claims department for sister company, Prospero, and worked within the Insurance division of a bank before moving into insurer and broking roles in Ireland and the UK.
In 2014, she was headhunted by OAMPS to run its Australian branch network. Being a natural daredevil, moving across the world to take on a brand-new role in a new country sight unseen was a huge opportunity that Sarah couldn’t turn down! With over 30 locations to visit across every state and territory, it gave her a very welcome opportunity to explore her new country.
Just months after Sarah joined, Gallagher bought OAMPS and, three years later, she was offered the role of Gallagher Australia chief executive. She is the first woman to lead a tier-one, international insurance broker in Australia. Gallagher has a strong focus on inclusion and diversity. Regardless of one’s background or gender, there are successful career opportunities for all. Bringing one’s entrepreneurial spirit to the art of broking is a key differentiator for Gallagher employees, and understanding the local market whilst having the backing of a global firm ensures that clients are able to face their future with confidence. More than 50% of the Gallagher workforce is female and the number of leadership positions makes the company particularly attractive to women who aspire to senior roles.
As chief executive since July 2017, Sarah has brought decades of insurance industry experience to her role. She has set Gallagher Australia on course to achieve scale, growth, enhanced capability and presence in the domestic market. With more than 1,000 team members across over 30 locations serving 130,000+ clients, Gallagher Australia has achieved year-on-year growth under Sarah’s leadership and now places more than $1.71bn gross written premium annually.
Sarah relishes the opportunity to make a positive difference to people’s careers and considers this to be her greatest achievement. She has never forgotten the practical help she received from her own mentors and happily gives up her time to sit on panels, speak at conferences (large and small) and provide personal mentoring sessions for many in various stages of their career journey. Sarah openly shares her own working experiences – good and not so good – so that others can learn from them.
Insurance touches every sector, and one of the things Sarah loves best about her job is the variety of the work she’s able to do. She’s also a big believer in learning from other industries so that she can bring fresh thinking to her own organisation.
Whilst acknowledging that there are challenges ahead for the industry, she is confident that insurers and brokers will find a way through, as they always have. People need insurance in their lives, both personally and professionally, and new and exciting solutions will continue to emerge to ensure that peace of mind continues to deliver when needed most.
Throughout her career in Australia, the UK and Ireland, Sarah has built broad corporate operational experience across a mix of executive and C-suite roles. Alongside her focus on broking, her skillset includes sales, marketing, risk, mergers and acquisitions, and claims expertise. She has been recognised on multiple occasions by the industry, receiving accolades from Insurance Business magazine’s Hot List and Elite Women in Insurance. She has also been included multiple times in the Global 100 of influential insurance professionals.
In her free time, Sarah loves challenging herself by lifting weights, working out with a personal trainer three times a week and constantly seeking heart-racing activities to complete. As recently as last November, Sarah spent time in a snake bath, all in the name of raising money for childhood cancer whilst also conquering one of her biggest fears.
Milestones
2011-2022
Insurance Business Magazine | Key Media
Senior Executive at Telstra HR
Winner, HRD Best Technology and Innovation (2016)
Winner, Best Shared Services Team in Australasia (2018)
Finalist Best Health and Wellbeing Program (2021)
Winner (Telstra), HRD Workplace Flexibility (2021)
2011 to present
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2017-present
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
Chief Executive at Gallagher Australia
Insurance Business Hot List,
Elite Women in Insurance,
Global 100 of Influential
Insurance Professionals
2017-present
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2014-2017
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
COO and MD at Gallagher Australia
2014-2017
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2014
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
Head of Commercial Broking
2014
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2012-2014
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
Chief Finance and Central
Operations Officer, UK
Global Risk Solutions
2012-2014
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2012-2014
2014
2014-2017
2017-present
2011 to present
Sarah Lyons
Chief Executive
Gallagher Australia
Read on
Special Report
Home
Bio
Milestones
2020
2019
2018
2020-2021
2014-2022
2020
Insurance Business Magazine | Key Media
Received Best Lawyer in Canada Award (Employment and Labour Law)
2020
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2019
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
TeD Talk Speaker
2019
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2018
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
title of milestone
2018
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2020-2021
Human Resources Magazine | key media
Received Lexology Client Choice Award (Labour and Employment – Canada)
2020-2021
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2014-2022
human resources | key media
Received Best Lawyer in Canada Award (Employment and Labour Law)
2014-2022
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
Milestones
Career Accolades
2011 to present
2017-present
2014-2017
2014
2012-2014
2014-2022
Insurance Business Magazine | Key Media
Senior Executive at Telstra HR
Winner, HRD Best Technology and Innovation (2016)
Winner, Best Shared Services Team in Australasia (2018)
Finalist Best Health and Wellbeing Program (2021)
Winner (Telstra), HRD Workplace Flexibility (2021)
2011 to present
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2017-present
Human Resources Magazine | key media
Chief Executive at Gallagher Australia
Insurance Business Hot List, Elite Women in Insurance, Global 100 of Influential Insurance Professionals
2017-present
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2014-2017
Human Resources Magazine | key media
COO and MD at Gallagher Australia
2014-2017
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2014
Human Resources Magazine | key media
Head of Commercial Broking
2014
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2012-2014
human resources | key media
Chief Finance and Central Operations Officer, UK
Global Risk Solutions
2012-2014
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
Career Highlights
2011 to present
2017-present
2014-2017
2014
2012-2014
2011-2022
Insurance Business Magazine | Key Media
Received Best Lawyer in Canada Award (Employment and Labour Law)
2011 to present
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2017-present
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
Chief Executive at Gallagher Australia
Insurance Business Hot List,
Elite Women in Insurance, Global 100
of Influential Insurance Professionals
2017-present
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2014-2017
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
COO and MD at Gallagher Australia
2014-2017
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2014
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
Head of Commercial Broking
2014
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2012-2014
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
Chief Finance and Central Operations Officer, UK
Global Risk Solutions
2012-2014
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
Career Accolades
2020
2019
2018
2020-2021
2014-2022
2020
Insurance Business Magazine | Key Media
Receive an excellence award
2020
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2019
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
TeD Talk Speaker
2019
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2018
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
title of milestone
2018
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2020-2021
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
Received Lexology
Client Choice Award
(Labour and Employment – Canada)
2020-2021
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
2014-2022
Ted Talk in collaboration with key media
Received Best Lawyer in
Canada Award
(Employment and Labour Law)
2014-2022
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. A volutpat laoreet suscipit duis. Diam aliquam sed ut massa viverra a, eget libero.
Career Accolades
Milestones
Milestones
Milestones