Benmosche Draws Praise As Right Choice To Help AIG Regain Preeminent Position

Robert H. Benmosche, who last week came out of retirement to take over as American International Group's fourth chief executive officer in just over a year, drew high praise from many industry observers, who nonetheless warn that he has a major salvage job ahead of him.

Mr. Benmosche, who last served as chair, president and CEO of MetLife, took the reins from Ed Liddy, the former Allstate chair and CEO. Mr. Liddy came aboard last fall to steer the troubled AIG through some rough waters after credit default swaps on securitizations of subprime mortgages in the company's Financial Products unit nearly bankrupted the iconic firm, prompting a massive federal bailout.

Mr. Benmosche credited Mr. Liddy with stabilizing the company and implementing a strategy to repay its debt to the government. (See the story about Mr. Liddy's farewell address to AIG on page 10.)

“Now he has passed the baton to me, and I look forward to continuing the race,” he said in a statement. “With my AIG colleagues, we will focus on this mission–maximizing the value of the company's assets and meeting all of our stakeholder obligations.”

No one expects a cakewalk for the new CEO, who has maintained direct contact with the business world by serving as a member of the board of directors at Credit Suisse Group–a post he has held since 2002. AIG still faces significant hurdles to pay back tens of billions in federal loans, while selling more units and maintaining the viability of its remaining subsidiaries in the midst of a deep recession and uncertain investment market.

But the 65-year-old Mr. Benmosche appears to possess the experience and toughness required to manage AIG's ongoing recovery, analysts, agents and brokers told National Underwriter.

An executive who worked with Mr. Benmosche, and requested anonymity, said AIG has gotten a tough boss who will be well informed and not take a lot of abuse.

“Don't expect Mr. Benmosche to be a punching bag when he talks to Congress,” the executive said. “He will speak his piece and will not take the abuse Mr. Liddy did when explaining his position [to members of Congress].”

Mr. Benmosche is a hands-on executive who “operates by the numbers,” he noted.

“Managers at AIG ought to be stepping up their efforts because he will demand results,” said the source. “He will take home reams of reports and he will come back the next day ready to ask the tough questions.”

Julie Burke, managing director for Fitch Ratings, observed that AIG has gotten an executive with a “pretty expansive resume,” which should serve his new company well.

Still, he has an enormous task ahead of him, she noted, adding that the job is no less formidable than what he faced when handling the MetLife demutualization in 2000.

The major issue Mr. Benmosche will confront will be restoring the reputation of AIG–whatever names its insurance subsidiaries go by–as a premier carrier in the eyes of its customers, according to Tom Adderhold, president of Preferred Insurance Group, a brokerage in Duluth, Ga.

“AIG, on paper, is as solid as you can get,” he said, but the major challenge for the new chief executive will be instilling “confidence again” in the company, its agency force and customers, he added.

Mr. Adderhold said the word on the street is that Mr. Benmosche is a good listener who “talks to those in the trenches before making a decision,” noting that a recent telephone conference with AIG company executives in regional offices left them upbeat and impressed.

“If he can stabilize AIG and return it to its leading position in the industry, it will be a win-win for everybody,” Mr. Adderhold concluded.

One word of caution came via C. Brett Nilsson, senior vice president of The Buckner Company in Ogden, Utah, and chair of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America. While wishing the new chief executive well, he expressed his personal opinion that Mr. Benmosche is an unknown quantity in the property and casualty insurance marketplace.

“He certainly has been successful in past endeavors throughout his life with MetLife, as well as both securities and banking ventures,” he noted, but whether that will translate into the p&c realm remains to be determined.

“AIG has also gone through a number of changes over the most recent past, and if they are able to secure some stability it could do nothing less than calm the marketplace,” according to Mr. Nilsson.

“Most of what I have heard regarding AIG revolves around the newer entity of AIU Holdings, the property and casualty division of AIG,” he noted, referring to p&c units that will now be branded as Chartis.

“This division appears to have calmed down and offered some reassurance that the insurance arm of AIG is alive and well, as it historically has been–unlike many of the other services offered outside of insurance to various customers,” he said.

Mr. Nilsson added that “it is the government involvement as well as the ancillary interests that have affected the poor public image of AIG in the past year, as the company concentrates more on paying back its government-backed loans instead of running the business.”

Thomas Minkler, president of the Clark-Mortenson Agency in Keene, N.H., said Mr. Benmosche “faces a huge task to get [the company] back to a place of normalcy and focused on the insurance side of the aisle.”

Reacting to the appointment, the world's three biggest brokers issued statements praising Mr. Liddy and congratulating Mr. Benmosche on his appointment.

“We all owe Ed Liddy a debt of gratitude for all of his work and effort on behalf of AIG and the insurance industry,” said Greg Case, president and CEO of Aon Corp. “[Mr.] Benmosche is an excellent choice to succeed Ed in taking up the mantle of leadership to guide AIG.”

“Ed Liddy is to be commended for stepping into the breach and leading AIG under very trying conditions,” said Joe Plumeri, CEO and chairman of Willis. “I congratulate Bob Benmosche on his appointment. He's got a strong track record of leadership and decisiveness that will serve the company well, and I look forward to working with him.”

“Ed Liddy did a terrific job under very difficult circumstances, and we wish him well,” said Brian Duperreault, president and CEO of Marsh & McLennan, the parent company of insurance broker Marsh. “At Marsh, we very much look forward to doing business with Mr. Benmosche and wish him great success in his new role.”

BACKGROUND

Mr. Benmosche comes out of a four-year retirement after a successful career where he moved up the ranks in finance and marketing before joining life insurer MetLife as an executive vice president in 1995. There, he is credited with stabilizing the company's sales force and increasing sales productivity.

Beginning his career in financial services in 1976, he joined Chase Manhattan Bank, where he worked until 1982. From there he moved to Paine Webber, where he was an executive vice president and directed the merger with Kidder Peabody.

Despite not having an insurance background, he joined MetLife in 1995 as executive vice president, responsible for business integration and product development, marketing and sales efforts, focusing on the company's individual customers. A few years after joining MetLife, Mr. Benmosche was named to head the company.

National Underwriter reported that Mr. Benmosche said his appointment at the time reflected a “changing playing field” in the financial industry because customers were looking for a wider range of services. He saw the need for MetLife to demutualize, stating that “the concept of a mutual company no longer allows companies to be competitive.”

In 2000, MetLife went through a massive demutualization, and after going public acquired Travelers Life & Annuity form Citigroup Inc. for $11.5 billion.

“The spring of 2006 is the time I want to commence an active and fulfilling retirement, leaving MetLife in the strongest possible position to go forward as a leader in our industry,” he said when he left the business. Three years later, he has put his retirement plans on hold to write the next chapter in his career story, aiming to restore AIG to a sound financial footing, while repairing its damaged reputation as well.

(With additional reporting by Arthur D. Postal.)