COLUMBUS, Ga., Dec. 1, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Aflac, a leading
provider of supplemental insurance in the U.S., announced today
that the company has been ranked No. 15 in the 2021 American
Innovation Index™ (Aii) and No. 1 in the life and disability
insurance category.
Aflac Lands Top-15 Spot on the 2021
American Innovation Index
The Aii is a joint project with Fordham
University's Gabelli School of Business and the Norwegian
School of Economics and is unique in that it measures innovation
from the customer's point of view rather than relying on expert
opinions that bypass what customers actually experience, according
to the Aii website. This is the fourth time Aflac has been named to
the prestigious list.
Aflac also ranked No. 11 in the Social Innovation Index™ (Sii),
once again coming in at No. 1 in the life and disability insurance
category. The Sii measures a company's ability to create positive
social and environmental change and the degree to which it embodies
responsible business.
Since 2018, Aflac has distributed more than 12,000 of its
award-winning My Special Aflac Ducks® to children in
the United States, Japan and Northern
Ireland. The innovative robotic duck is specifically
designed to address the needs of children facing cancer and
includes an interactive app that children can use to conduct
medical play. Beginning in early 2022, Aflac will expand its
successful My Special Aflac Duck program to children with
sickle cell disease. The comforting companion will be updated with
new accessories to reflect the specific needs of children suffering
the inherited blood disease that disproportionately affects the
African American community.
"As we continue to navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, it is clear
that the state of work and life has changed. It is essential that
companies like Aflac adapt and innovate in order to serve our
customers, generate revenues, provide great jobs for our employees
and make meaningful contributions to the community," said Aflac
U.S. President Teresa
White. "We've adopted new technologies and innovative
approaches that have enabled us to work more colloboratively –
driving us forward as we seek to emerge from the global pandemic
stronger than ever. This recognition from the American Innovation
Index is a testament to the hard work and innovative approach
driving how we serve to our customers, stakeholders and valued
employees."
The American Innovation Index is a multi-year research
initiative that scores and ranks U.S. companies on its "innovation"
in delivering products and services and "social innovation" in
benefiting society and the environment. Companies who invest in
customer-perceived innovation see the benefit to their bottom
line.
"The pandemic continues to challenge companies to adapt their
business models at a faster rate than in normal times," said Lerzan
Aksoy, Ph.D., professor of marketing at Fordham University's Gabelli School of Business.
"The American Innovation Index recognizes the companies with the
highest innovation index scores based on customer ratings. The
results show that customers are noticing the speed of innovation by
top companies in response to these turbulent times."
For more information about the Aii and Sii, including a full
list of company rankings, visit
www.americaninnovationindex.com
About Aflac Incorporated
Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:
AFL) is a Fortune 500 company helping provide protection to more
than 50 million people through its subsidiaries in Japan and the U.S., where it is a leading
supplemental insurer, by paying cash fast when policyholders get
sick or injured. For more than six decades, insurance policies of
Aflac Incorporated's subsidiaries have given policyholders the
opportunity to focus on recovery, not financial stress. Aflac Life
Insurance Japan is the leading provider of medical and cancer
insurance in Japan, where it
insures 1 in 4 households. For 15 consecutive years, Aflac
Incorporated has been recognized by Ethisphere as one of the
World's Most Ethical Companies. In 2021, Fortune included Aflac
Incorporated on its list of World's Most Admired Companies for the
20th time, and Bloomberg added Aflac Incorporated to its
Gender-Equality Index, which tracks the financial performance of
public companies committed to supporting gender equality through
policy development, representation and transparency, for the second
consecutive year. To find out how to get help with expenses health
insurance doesn't cover, get to know us at Aflac.com or
Aflac.com/Espanol.
About the American Innovation Index
The Aii scores and
ranks the innovativeness of U.S. companies based on their
customers' experiences. The fourth annual study was conducted in
July-August 2021 and covers 175 firms
from 20 industries, such as airlines, hotels, banks, TV and
internet service providers, wireless phone providers, manufacturers
and retailers. The study surveyed 6,279 consumers and covered over
28,000 customer-company relationships. To date, no large-scale,
scientifically vetted measure of customer-perceived innovation
exists in the United States.
About Fordham
University
Fordham
University offers exceptional education distinguished by the
Jesuit tradition across nine schools. Fordham awards baccalaureate, graduate and
professional degrees to approximately 15,000 students.
About Rockbridge Associates, Inc.
Rockbridge
Associates, Inc. is an outcome-based market research firm that has
been advising Fortune 500s, mid-sized firms, and nonprofits on
their innovation and marketing strategy for over two decades.
www.rockresearch.com
About the Norwegian School of Economics
The Norwegian
School of Economics, one of the leading business schools in
Europe, launched the Norwegian
Innovation Index in 2016 and partnered with Fordham University's Gabelli School of Business and
Rockbridge Associates to replicate the methodology in the U.S.
Media contact – Darcy Brito,
706.320.2358 or dbrito@aflac.com
Analyst and investor contact – David A.
Young, 706.596.3264 or dyoung@aflac.com
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SOURCE Aflac Incorporated