McGee Takes Top Posts At The Hartford

Longtime banking executive Liam E. McGee has assumed command of The Hartford Financial Services Group as its new chair and chief executive officer, replacing the retiring industry icon, Ramani Ayer.

Mr. McGee until recently was president of the Consumer and Small Business Bank for Bank of America Corp., operating the nation's largest retail bank.

The Hartford said he headed an operation that serves more than 50 million consumer households and small businesses with over 6,100 domestic banking centers, nearly 100,000 employees, and the nation's largest online and mobile bank.

When asked how the insurer came to choose a banker as its CEO, Mr. McGee pointed to a statement from Michael G. Morris, The Hartford's presiding director, mentioning his track record of success in leading large, complex financial services organizations, while citing his “outstanding combination of leadership skills, financial acumen, and operational and technology experience, along with a demonstrated ability to evolve and profitably grow businesses in response to changing business environments and customer needs.”

Mr. Morris said this makes Mr. McGee “the ideal person to build on The Hartford's strong foundation.”

Regarding questions voiced by Standard & Poor's analysts concerning his lack of insurance experience, Mr. McGee mentioned that as a banker, “insurance businesses have been in my organization. I do have insurance experience.”

In addition, he said he has learned about the industry in the course of doing “my own due diligence with The Hartford.”

He later remarked: “I know what I don't know. I have humility and I think I'm a reasonably quick study.”

Mr. McGee said in his first couple of months on the job he plans to “intensively review” the company, looking at components including allocation of capital, management, business strategies, priorities and direction.

He said he wants to examine the capital structure and a plan for any economic scenario. The new CEO said he plans to spend time visiting with agents and brokers, as well as with employees and analysts.

“In an environment of intense competition, technological innovation, and changing consumer and business behavior, there are clear opportunities to create competitive advantages,” he said.

Mr. Ayer, who served as chair and CEO of The Hartford since February 1997, announced his intention to retire in June. He resigned his posts upon Mr. McGee's arrival, and will retire on Nov. 1, following a brief transition period.

Mr. Ayer characterized Mr. McGee as “a proven leader in the financial services industry with an outstanding set of skills, a deep appreciation of balancing risk and return, and broad experience in a variety of financial businesses.”

He added that his successor “shares The Hartford's values, including product and customer service excellence, integrity, and a commitment to giving back to the communities in which we operate. I look forward to working with Liam to ensure a smooth transition.”

Mr. Morris thanked Mr. Ayer for his service and said that “Ramani's deep industry experience, integrity and strong leadership skills have been instrumental to the success of The Hartford over the course of his 36-year career with the company.”

Mr. Ayer leaves The Hartford after a difficult final year on the job. The insurer reported a first-quarter net loss of $1.2 billion and a second-quarter net loss of $15 million. In May, the company qualified for $3.4 billion in U.S. bailout cash from the federal government's Troubled Asset Relief Program, after its life insurance operations were hammered by investment losses and the need to deliver on guaranteed returns for variable annuities.

The company was also bolstered by a $2.5 billion investment by European insurer Allianz in October 2008.

As for why Mr. McGee left his prior post, when he left Bank of America on Aug. 3 he said he did so because he thought it was “appropriate. I did have a desire to run a public company, and it was apparent to me that Ken [Lewis] was going to be CEO for a couple of more years.”

However, Mr. McGee turned out to be wrong about his former boss's longevity. Right after he joined The Hartford, Mr. Lewis, in a surprise announcement, announced his resignation.

Mr. McGee's departure from Bank of America was disclosed in an announcement where Mr. Lewis said he had reviewed the management team and “decided to make some changes, bringing new talent into the team and adding new perspectives. These changes also position a number of senior executives to compete to succeed me at the appropriate time.”

Mr. McGee, who said he officially retired from the company, was quoted in that statement as saying: “This is an ideal time for me to begin the next chapter of my career and to pursue my goal of running a company.”

Mr. Lewis said that under Mr. McGee's leadership, “Bank of America greatly enhanced its position as the leading consumer bank in the world.”

Prior to joining Bank of America in 1990, he held senior positions at Wells Fargo. A native of County Donegal, Ireland, Mr. McGee grew up in Southern California and graduated the University of San Diego, with a master's degree in business administration from Pepperdine University and a law degree from Loyola Law School.