Getting to Know: Russell Hutchinson

Who are you and what do you do?

I am Russell Hutchinson and I run Chatswood Consulting Limited. My kids used to describe what I do as, ‘Dad has coffee’, but I prefer ‘management consultant.’ I am mainly focused on finding answers to sales, marketing, channel and product design questions for the life insurance industry. Also, Chatswood owns half of Quality Product Research Limited, which runs Quotemonster.

How did you get into the industry?

I’m a ‘lifer.’ At 16, I started to work for a life insurer called Royal Heritage in the UK. After moving to New Zealand, I joined AEtna Life and Casualty, which was bought by Prudential. In August 1989, I joined a tiny start-up insurer on the North Shore called Sovereign. I left there after ten years to run an early FinTech company: Quicken.co.nz. That didn’t work out, so a year later I started Chatswood Consulting, which has been my home for the last 17 years. So, I have worked in life insurance my whole working career, usually in a start-up, focused on new product and new technology.