John – We started, we started, sorry I started this blog with a little group of friends about a year ago and to start off the New Year 2010 we thought we’d do a little video blog as a one off, see how it goes and if its popular I think we’ll run it again, but this is the first sort of video blog we have done and we hope you like it.

What were your highlights of 2009?

Janice – One was being asked to dress as a mermaid, one of John’s wonderful ideas, which was Janice should dress as a mermaid for the key partner conference.

John interrupts – sorry Janice we are doing highlights

*Janice laughs and slaps John’s hand*

*Clip of Janice as a mermaid*

Janice – so yeah, one of them was being asked to be a mermaid.

John interrupts – that was – it was very funny

Janice – the highlight…Key Partner Conference and 110 Conference were great highlights for me, I just think they, in the toughest of years with our brokers they highlighted the strengths of the relationships are still there and that those relationships are still working for us and that we have come through some really tough times together and those relationships are stronger than ever.

John – Highlight has to be the re-brand obviously we re-branded and if anybody, if anybody watching this blog doesn’t know…we’re Aviva and we changed our name from Norwich Union, well shame on you really! Shame on the audience, if you’re watching audience, shame on you!  And actually I think, you can sense that the whole of the UK population knows we’re Aviva and Norwich Union is packed into the history of insurance companies.

What was the funniest moment of 2009?

Janice – Mine was the ‘Gingergate episode’ at the 110 conference that was my funniest moment of all the things and all the videos.

John – I do remember that actually…gingergate!

Janice – and that actually…(laughs) Gingergate!

*Clip of Gingergate episode from 110 Conference*

What are your biggest hopes for 2010?

John – My biggest hope for 2010 is that Aviva recovers from my departure

*Janice laughs*

John – and can carry on being the thrusting successful organisation that it has become in the last year since it was re-branded. That’s definitely my hope for 2010.

Janice – My biggest hope for 2010 is that the optimism I feel now, the first week in January, sort of comes to fruition, not just for Aviva but actually for generally in the world outside and the economy and that we start to see some real traction and improvement, because that effects lots of peoples lives and I love this time of year its actually a time of optimism, part of the year where you can be optimistic around the rest of the year so that’s what I’m hoping for and obviously that we recover from Johns departure.

*Janice laughs*

John – because yours was a really serious hope wasn’t it – really quite deep and profound about optimism and world recovery! Mine was a little glib comment about…

Janice interrupts – that’s because I’m staying and you’re going!

John – true true true true.

What can brokers expect from Aviva in 2010?

Janice – it won’t be quite so colourful with John not around but I think pretty much brokers can expect that the most important thing is our relationship and that will just continue, there’s no doubt that 2009 was a tough year, 2010 might be tough as well, but we are in it together and that’s what they will see in 2010. I don’t see that changing I see, more of you know, the same working together to get through the tough times and hopefully that’s what they’ll say they have seen this year.

Janice, what will you miss the most and least about John?

Janice – What I’ll miss most is that fact that he makes me laugh so much when bad days are bad can always have 5 minutes therapy and always make me laugh.

John interrupts – and you have had lots of bad days!

Janice – what I’ll miss least. What will I miss least?

John Interrupts – there isn’t anything can we cut this out!? There won’t be anything to say!

*Janice laughs*

John – I do annoy her when I chase her up on stuff – she hates being chased up..so whoevers..Yeah..She hates being chased up on stuff..”so how you doing with that”?  ”ill tell you when I tell you!!!”..

Janice – mmm I do yeah..its email traffic generation aswell – you generate a lot of traffic…laughs….thanks I don’t sound like that!?

John – no no – a bit deeper!

*Janice Laughs*

John, What will you miss the most about Janice?

John – About Janice? …..*Long pause*

3 hours later

*longer pause…Janice laughs*

John – I think I’ll definitely miss the friendship actually because whilst we work together, I don’t think, we don’t work together as, I tend to be like that anyway but I can be like that more with Janice than anybody else, we tend not to work, although she’s effectively in my team or whatever or as I was the Sales and Marketing… its not like that – it is just as the blog says – its Janice and John

…and what will you miss about the broker world?

John – I’ll miss the gossip and in the insurance world in the broker world I love (as I was new to it in 2006) love the little bits of gossip and you get Insurance Times ringing me up or Post Mag ringing me up for some off the record gossip or I ring them and give them off the record gossip or the press office and individual brokers ring me up and say “have you heard about this?. What about that? What do you think?” I like that stuff…

Janice interrupts – yeah probably more in the broker world than any other world.

John – I do like to. Oh its fantastic in the broker world – its all about personality and individuals so there is always some little tittle tattle thing going on (Janice laughs and agrees) either at me or Janice or Igal or David or Towergate or small broker, big broker or all those things – I’ll miss that..I’ll miss that definitely.

Any New Year’s resolutions?

Janice – No I never make new years resolutions

John interrupts– really don’t you? Why not, need to give you some!

Janice – No never I just find them so repetitive…

John – Hello..I mean look at your appraisal – you have loads of things to be doing!

*Janice laughs*

John – I would always make one or two and they I would always..if I make one I do it otherwise what’s the point? And my central resolution this year is simply make the most of the opportunity in front of me because, I’ve never not worked and I’m not going to work I’m going to write and fish and ‘stuff’ yeah..so just make the most of it – don’t sit in front of the telly watching the Jeremy Kyle show because that is such a waste of a life and I’ll be really angry with myself if that’s what I do…

Anything else you would like to add?

John – yes I think that this is the last time that I’m going to be doing a blog anymore, I wont be doing the next video blog and I think it’s the apt time to handover the legacy…laughs..the apt time to say the baton has changed from me to Janice

*John hands Janice a notebook…*

Janice – Thank you *laughs*

John – There’s nothing in it!

Janice – I know! I’m used to that

John – There’s no wise words of wisdom

Janice – I wasn’t expecting any!

John – It just says in there its bloody hard work! So good luck

Janice – Thanks – So that’s it for now – this is the last time that John and I will be doing the first and last video blog together and if you have got any questions/comments – you liked it/hated it – then you know drop us a line or give us a call.

John – I liked it actually, I liked it..

Janice – you liked what?

John – I liked it, thought it was very good

Janice – right. *laughs*

John – that’s my comment! *laughs*

Janice – thanks…forever he has to get the last word!

John – Cheerio…bye bye *laughs*

Janice – Bye *laughs*