Axa Asia Pacific Holdings is aiming to double the enterprise value of its Australia and New Zealand business over the next five years.

Under the program Ambition 2012, Axa will focus on six strategic goals. They include doubling the value of new business and reducing its cost to income ratio by 25% in Australia and 15% in NZ.

Benchmarked against its Axa counterparts around the world, the Australian-listed financial services company is eyeing a top-three place for both customer and adviser satisfaction, and flows of net retail funds and net premiums, and a top quartile position for employee engagement.

CEO Andy Penn says achievement of the targets would be a significant stretch for Axa in Australia and New Zealand and the achievement of them will drive strong growth over the next five years.

The program complements a similar initiative by Axa’s French parent company Axa SA, which controls 51% of Axa APH.

In 2003, Axa APH unveiled a similar set of targets, due to expire at the end of this year. The company is on track to deliver five of its six earlier goals, having already reached targets to double funds under advice – to $8 billion – and double its new business value. Axa has also trimmed its cost to income ratio by one-third.

Mr Penn says the company is well positioned to make good on its aim to increase business in the region by 65% by the end of this year, to $6.5 billion.