Michael Cameron, chief executive officer of Suncorp Group Limited, in his address to the company's 2017 annual general meeting, yesterday noted net profit was up by 3.6 per cent on the previous year, while expenses had been flattened."Net profit after tax was $1,075m, representing a 3.6 per cent increase on last year. The result reflected good top line growth, disciplined management of margin, and a sensible balance between reducing overheads and investing in the future," he said.He asserted that it's been a year of change for Suncorp, with a new strategy and operating model in the process of being bedded down."Our customers' expectations have dramatically increased and we are being measured against companies outside of our industry on aspects such as speed and functionality."Cameron said the core of the strategy is a Marketplace for Suncorp's customers, to provide customers with access to Suncorp's products, services and brands via any channel. The aim is to provide integrated offers, "and helping with life journeys such as buying a car, and buying or renting a home," he said, adding that "gaps in offerings will be filled by adding products and services from third parties."It represents a post-tax investment of $100 million over as Suncorp rushes to lift its game ahead its rivals.The other big ticket item is what Cameron called the Business Improvement Program, with five main streams of work. The focus is on: digitising the customer experience; optimising our sales and service; end-to-end process improvement; claims redesign and smarter procurement. He estimated this process will deliver net benefits of $10 million, $195 million and $329 million over the next three years, respectively. "This will ensure we maintain our expense base at $2.7 billion in FY19 and beyond, absorbing the impact of inflation and expected growth in business volumes. $2.7 billion is equal to our expense rate over the last few years," Cameron said.Suncorp has also developed, and is now implementing, a Responsible Investment Policy, which ensures the long-term sustainability of investment returns. "This will also guide our management of environmental, social and governance risk and opportunity across our investment portfolios," Cameron said.ENDS