Retirement Life
4 November 2026
Dame Diana Crossan: Championing better retirement
After more than a decade guiding Lifetime Retirement Income, former Board Chair Dame Diana Crossan is enjoying a change of pace.
The 77-year-old recently returned from a month in France catching up with family, a well-earned break after being involved with Lifetime since it was little more than a glimmer in Founder and Managing Director Ralph Stewart’s eye.
Diana’s career has taken her through very different worlds, including corporates and not-for-profits across a range of sectors, giving her a range of skills and abilities she could bring to Lifetime. She was made a Dame in the 2019 New Year Honours List for her services to the state.
Born in Akaroa, the daughter of a primary school principal, she grew accustomed to moving schools and adapting quickly to new surroundings. That ability served her well when she trained as a probation officer, a role that could see her working with judges one moment and families the next.
By the time Ralph approached her about joining Lifetime in 2013, Diana had just completed 10 years as New Zealand’s Retirement Commissioner. She finished that role convinced there was still an important gap to fill.
“I realised we probably hadn’t put enough time into what happens when you’ve done your saving, and you’re now retired. How do you manage your money then?
“When Ralph talked to me, I knew New Zealand was short on products for people in retirement to manage their money.”
Looking beyond retirement saving, to retirement spending
Diana has long been a strong advocate for helping New Zealanders achieve greater financial security in retirement.
During her decade as Retirement Commissioner, she focused on encouraging New Zealanders to think more about retirement savings, fostering the Sorted website and introducing KiwiSaver.
But her views extend beyond encouraging people to save more. She doesn’t support making KiwiSaver compulsory because of the potential impact on low-income earners and those who may want to use their money for goals such as further education or starting a business.
She has also advocated for gradually lifting the age of eligibility for New Zealand Superannuation (NZ Super) to 67, phased in over 20 years.
And she wants to encourage those older people lucky enough to have retirement savings to use them to improve their retirement years, saying many hold on tightly to their hard-earned money while struggling to pay the power bill.
Dame Diana Crossan
"What happens when you’ve done your saving, and you’re now retired. How do you manage your money then? When Ralph talked to me, I knew New Zealand was short on products for people in retirement to manage their money.”
—Dame Diana Crossan
Keeping the customer at the centre
A major reason Diana stayed with Lifetime for so long was Ralph, his values and the company’s determination to develop products focused on the needs of people in retirement, she says.
“Ralph is so optimistic and enthusiastic about his ideas – and New Zealand didn’t have, and needed, products like these.
“It was the focus on the customer that kept me at Lifetime. I didn’t have to give away my values to work here.”
Her biggest high, she says, was discovering that people she knew had joined Lifetime “and were loving it”.
A hope for Lifetime’s future
As she steps away from the Board, Diana hopes Lifetime continues to build on its two core offerings: Lifetime Retirement Income Fund and Lifetime Home.
“All the other products are needed to make the business work, but my hope would be that those two continue to grow.”
John Strahl, a former partner and Board Chair at international law firm DLA Piper and a longstanding Lifetime Board member, is currently filling the Chair role.
Diana, meanwhile, isn’t stepping away from community involvement. She remains Chair of Porirua community education programme WELLfed and the New Zealand Board of So They Can, which works to educate children in Kenya and Tanzania.
As for what comes next, she plans to give herself until after Christmas before deciding. It could mean more governance work, or simply more time for tennis with friends she has played alongside since the 1980s.
“Ralph is so optimistic and enthusiastic about his ideas – and New Zealand didn’t have, and needed, products like these. It was the focus on the customer that kept me at Lifetime. I didn’t have to give away my values to work here.”
—Dame Diana Crossan on working at Lifetime
“Our conscience, our challenger, our champion”
At Diana’s farewell, Ralph Stewart said her real legacy could be seen in the thousands of retirees who now have greater choice, confidence and support because she believed Lifetime Retirement Income should exist.
“It is a business that has never been afraid to tackle difficult problems: retirement income, pension transfers, legacy schemes, insurer solvency, workplace savings and home equity.
“It is a business built not merely on growth, but on conviction.
“Diana, you have been our founding Chair, our conscience, our challenger, our champion and, when needed, the person who reminded us that good intentions are not enough – we must deliver.
“And you always brought us back to the customer.”
Written by:
Sonia Speedy
Sonia Speedy has been a journalist for over 20 years, working in newspapers, magazines and radio. She also runs an online platform for parents at familytimes.co.nz. She lives on the Kāpiti Coast with her young family and loves writing stories that help make people's lives easier.
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