1. News 2014
ISSUE 3
WHAT MAKES
GREAT LEADERS?
Philip Cavan made
a few million-dollar
sales for NYL Direct
and then realized his
true abilities lie in
helping others reach
their potential.
Christopher Elson believes
one’s guiding principles
come from within, and
what guides him in
his compliance work
is treating everyone
with the same
level of
respect.
Serene Zegarelli
keeps team
members focused
and committed
during annuity
marketing
projects.
Maambo Mujala
strives for
collaboration
and leading by
example as part
of her work as
an actuarial
associate.
1
3 4
2
2. In a few weeks we will close the books on 2014 and be able to assess the company’s
annual performance. Familiar metrics such as sales, operating earnings, and surplus
will tell us how we measure up compared to last year, how well we did in achieving our
financial objectives, and how we stack up against other companies within our industry.
And I am confident that, once again, our performance will make us proud.
When we look to compare ourselves with others in our industry, we’re reminded
that there’s so much more to being a leader than just “leading” in operating results. These
traditional and important business metrics will never give us the complete story. As I
discussed in my last News column, we’re increasingly competing against life insurance
companies who are—without question—irresponsibly pricing, capitalizing, and marketing
(illustrating) their products. A small number of these companies may report operating
results this year that look as good as ours. But that is where the similarity ends.
The results a company achieves—the “what”—will always be critically important.
However, from my perspective, “how” a company achieves its results is equally, if not more,
important. At New York Life, we choose not to skirt rules, we choose not to misrepresent
the benefits of our products, and we choose not to compromise fundamental values that
ensure our financial strength and policyholder trust will be enduring. Yes, we choose this
path—with our daily actions and inactions—because it is the right way to behave, and
because we have proven that it delivers superior results for our policyholders.
The Board of Directors’ decision in November to increase the dividend scale and
payout to policyholders for the third consecutive year is a great validation of our kind of
leadership and exactly how different we are from so many other companies. As you know,
interest rates (the primary factor affecting policyholder dividends at any life insurance
company) have remained at extremely low levels. So, how is New York Life the only life
insurer among our peers that has been able to raise the dividend scale for the past three
years? The reason has little to do with good luck and nothing to do with any imprudent
change in our risk management philosophy. On the contrary, it has everything to do with
our singular focus on what is in the best interests of our policyholders and the collective
efforts of so many New York Life employees and agents.
Our mutuality provides us with the structure that has always uniquely aligned
us with our policyholders’ primary interest, which is our long-term ability to meet all
of our promises to them. But our mutuality also allows us to directly share with our
policyholders the good results we have in other business across the company. In many
ways, this dividend decision represents the essence of mutuality—a “sharing” of good
fortune. Because we have no obligations to shareholders, we are able to direct some
profits from areas such as NYLIM to support dividends in our core life business. This is
something that public companies cannot do and most other mutual companies have
proven incapable of doing.
For some companies, the final numbers will always be the bottom line and will
always define their perception of leadership. That’s not the case at New York Life. And
this dividend decision coming near the end of 2014 is also a terrific reminder that while
we remain singularly focused on our noble mission, there is tremendous strength in our
diversity of businesses, skills, ideas, and backgrounds. It is this combination of singular
purpose, shared beliefs, and diverse contributions that gives me great confidence in our
ability to navigate the challenges ahead and remain a real leader in our industry.
The
bottom
lineof
areal
leader
• • • • •
EDITOR’S NOTE
To share your thoughts on this month’s topic with Ted, send an e-mail to tedscolumn@newyorklife.com.
3. The accelerated pace
of change that is universally
affecting businesses, and raising
consumer expectations to previously
unknown heights, can be attributed
to advances in technology that make
transactions, communication, and
collaboration at every level easier
and faster than ever before.
Leading effectively through that
change, so it can happen in the best
interest of both the business and its
customers, is essential. For example,
today’s strong leaders create more
integrated environments that bring
people with diverse perspectives and
wide-ranging skills together, promote
learning, and encourage adaptation over
maintaining the status quo. Fortunately,
while the pace and motivation
underlying change may have evolved
throughout history, the leadership
skills needed to implement it have not.
We’re highlighting four
leadership skills: team building,
self-awareness, relationship building,
and establishing trust, which could
allow anyone from a senior executive
to an individual contributor to play
a leadership role across the divide
of cultures and generations, and
during calm or turbulent times.
Teambuilding.
Teamworkistheabilitytoworktogether
towardacommonvision.Itisthefuel
thatallowscommonpeopletoattain
uncommonresults. —Andrew Carnegie
To succeed in today’s turbocharged
world, leaders need to be able to
build effective teams, promote
collaboration across business units and
functions, and create an environment
where team members can express
ideas and learn from mistakes.
To accomplish this, a new paradigm
of leadership is evolving: companies are
developing more horizontal and agile
organizations that reflect the diversity
of their employees and customers.
According to Harvard scholar
Barbara Kellerman, “The old leader-
centric model, with the leader at
the helm controlling the action, no
longer holds—it’s passé, obsolete.”
Leadership is increasingly spread across
teams, with those traditionally in
follower roles often taking the lead.
Several years ago, we embraced
a set of leadership competencies—
lead yourself, lead others, and
lead the company—to ensure that
all employees were honing their
leadership skills and seizing new
opportunities for career development.
“It is up to every individual to put
distributed leadership into practice,”
CEO Ted Mathas says. “Remember,
distributed leadership is not a tangible
initiative; it’s not an assignment; it’s
not a project that will come to an end.
It is an ongoing mind-set. It’s about
taking ownership of your work, being
accountable for your decisions and
actions, being curious and asking
questions, and seeing yourself as
one of the current caretakers of
this company and its future.”
Self-awareness.
Knowingyourselfisthebeginning
ofallwisdom.—Aristotle
To lead others, you have to first fully
understand your own strengths,
weaknesses, and potential. “When
you can lead yourself through the
challenges and difficulties, you will
find that leading others becomes
relatively straightforward,” teaches
Harvard professor and leadership guru
Bill George. “The hardest person you
will ever have to lead is yourself.”
If you can stay grounded through
difficulties, strike a balance between
intangible values and worldly desires,
and understand your passions as
well as your purpose, then you are
ready to help others do the same.
To apply self-awareness as a leader,
George advocates the practice of
mindfulness. Mindfulness allows you
to step outside of yourself and see the
ways you impact other people, to both
observe and participate in each moment,
and to recognize the implications of
your actions for the longer term. This
skill becomes particularly valuable in
an environment that requires constant
change because being self-aware
gives you the in-depth knowledge
to quickly adapt and innovate.
Relationshipbuilding.
Youcanmakemorefriendsintwomonths
bybecominginterestedinotherpeoplethan
youcanintwoyearsbytryingtogetother
peopleinterestedinyou.—Dale Carnegie
To build better relationships, leaders
need to be present. What that means,
simply, is to focus on the task at
hand and learn from each person
you encounter. Doing this helps
leaders build empathy, understand
their followers, and exceed the
needs of their constituents.
It’s also about inspiring, motivating,
and supporting others to stretch
beyond their comfort zones and
exceed their own expectations. If you
can demonstrate a visible presence
that connects with and energizes
others, you’re on the right path.
Buildingtrust.
Ittakesyearstobuildtrustandonly
secondstodestroyit.—Unknown
One of the most critical traits of a
leader has always been the ability to
gain the trust of others—trust you can
make the right decisions for the right
reasons. Trust has always been the
basis of any meaningful relationship.
To build trust, it is crucial for a
leader to maintain integrity. This can
be accomplished by maintaining good
relationships and demonstrating that
you listen and act with others’ concerns
in mind. Likewise, maintaining your
integrity requires that you keep your
promises, treat everyone with respect,
and make your actions transparent and
consistent with your long-term mission.
Fosteringleadersfor
thenext170years.
With over 22 employee leadership
programs, and the coaching our
general office management teams do to
transform agents into leaders in their
communities, our company has long
been at the forefront of developing
leadership skills among its agents
and employees. The opportunities to
practice and learn leadership skills at
the company continue to grow and
evolve along with the world around us.
We have been a leader in
the industry for nearly 170 years
because of our effort to continually
foster leaders who can adapt to
changing circumstances and remain
grounded and true to our purpose:
our customers and our values.
Theworldhaschanged,butthekeystoleadinghaven’t.
2014 issue 3 | 03
“Early in my career, when I was just a novice attorney, I was asked to cover
a meeting for my manager. My plan was to sit at the end of the table and
mutely take notes while hoping no one noticed me. Yet there came a time
when I needed to find my voice, speak up, and take control before we
moved in a direction I knew was wrong. In that moment,
I took my first step into leadership,
and I’ve continued along that
path ever since. I learned that
leadership requires courage,
and once I found mine,
my whole career changed
for the better.”
WHENDIDYOUBECOME
ALEADER?
Judy E. Hopkins, Office of
Governmental Affairs
What is
a leader?
4. 04 | New York Life News
THE MENTOR
Philip Cavan, Corporate
Vice President, NYL Direct
When you start your career as an NYL
Direct phone salesperson and progress
to team lead, supervisor, department
manager, and, ultimately, corporate vice
president—all in eight years—you must
be doing something right. And Philip
Cavan certainly is.
A trained financial planner who had
been in leadership positions prior to
joining the annuity team, Cavan now
is also accountable for NYL Direct’s
Annuity and Broad Market contact
center operations. He believes “real
leaders don’t say ‘Follow me’—they
simply communicate clearly and go.
“To get people to follow, you need to
be clear on where you’re going,” Cavan
says. That’s why “personal development
is important to me.”
Through our tuition reimbursement
program, he returned to school to earn
an MBA. “I’ve always been personally
engaged in my work, which translates
into striving every day to achieve
business outcomes such as financial,
revenue, and expense goals,” he says.
“I believe hard work always pays off.
The institutional knowledge I gained
working on the phone, and then
up through frontline management,
has allowed me to collaborate with
partners in our marketing, systems, and
actuarial areas, building relationships
that help grow our business.”
Being a leader is about making
things happen. Cavan’s role as a
catalyst crystallized for him “when I
closed my first million-dollar sale—
and then a couple more—about five
years ago.” Capturing a sale of this
magnitude is challenging enough,
let alone making it happen over the
phone. After his third million-dollar
deal, Cavan was handed a challenge:
teach others to close like that. “It
was a turning point, and I was able
to make a difference,” he says. Today,
many others on the team have made
seven-figure sales.
Cavan’s sales chops made him
the top-ranked contact center sales
professional at the 2010 world
finals of the industry association
ContactCenterWorld.
“The award was a great honor, but
it’s not about me. I only realized my
true abilities when I was able to help
others realize their sales potential,”
he says. “Just as I've had some great
mentors here who’ve helped shape
my direction, I was fortunate to help
others. Knowledge is power. The ability
to spread it is priceless.”
Facesofleadership
aroundNewYorkLife
These four employees have their own styles,
but all exemplify qualities of a leader.
THE RELATIONSHIP BUILDER
Maambo Mujala,
Actuarial Associate, Finance
Actuarial associate Maambo Mujala is
working to help her team—and finance
as a whole—work better together. She
is a member of the cross-departmental
team-building committee of the finance
engagement team, which was formed
to foster teamwork among the various
groups within the department.
“If we understand each other’s roles,
we’re more likely to see opportunities
for working together instead of in silos,”
Mujala says. “Collaboration is about
creating an environment that encourages
individuals to share information or
perspectives with others,” she adds.
The result is that “decisions are better
informed and more widely supported.”
Mujala attended a recent luncheon
for the annuities product and pricing
teams, aimed at enhancing collaboration
between the two groups. “When
each team understands the other’s
responsibilities, the expertise they
bring to the table, and how what each
does impacts the other’s work, they
both improve what they do,” she says.
“Work styles can vary from person to
person and group to group, so building
relationships through interdepartmental
activities like the luncheon can help us
better integrate on projects.”
Communication is also key
for Mujala. “I try to tailor my
communication to the person or
department I’m in a conversation with,”
she says. For example, “I often need
visual aids and discussion to reach an
understanding, whereas another person
may be more numbers-oriented or
conceptual, so I try to meet their needs.”
An inclination to lead by example is
one reason Mujala joined the committee.
“The opportunity to volunteer for
projects that aren’t a part of your
standard job description is what makes
the company special,” she explains.
Mujala also helps with recruiting and
planning events. “Spearheading projects
provides a good example to others and
can teach you things you might use on
other initiatives in the future,” she says.
How one goes about his or her
work also matters. “Taking ownership
of your work, striving for continuous
improvement, and being easy to work
with motivates others to work with
you, so you can establish relationships
and contribute to the company in new
ways,” Mujala says.
Maambo Mujala
collaborates with
actuarial colleague
Kevin Libby.
Philip Cavan believes
the key to leadership
is to communicate
clearly and go.
5. THE COMMUNICATOR
Christopher Elson,
Corporate Vice President,
Insurance and Agency Group
Christopher Elson puts it simply:
“While compliance makes the rules,
my job is to enforce them.”
But Elson comes across as anything
but an enforcer type. He sees himself
as a provider of customer service. “I
try to do everything to work with all
individuals—whether they’re relatively
new agents, established agents, product
consultants, partners, or managing
partners—to provide the same high-
quality level of guidance and attention
they need on any given sale,” says Elson.
Sales of annuities and life insurance
must meet rigorous compliance
standards in order to close. Elson
balances two critical but sometimes
conflicting responsibilities—upholding
the rules and providing the best-
possible customer service—by “offering
the type of individual attention that I’d
expect if I were in their shoes.”
Elson says he firmly believes
“everyone must be treated with the
same level of respect,” and has an
approach to put this philosophy
into action. “If someone calls with a
question, I want to make sure we give
the client a clear, informative answer.”
Drawing on his up-to-date knowledge
of compliance requirements, he
ensures all interactions are diplomatic
regardless of whether or not a sale is
approved.
Staying in close contact with the
Compliance Department helps Elson
ensure sales are examined in light of
the latest guidance. He works with
Technology to ensure every rule change
is addressed and implemented. He
works with the Products Group on
new releases and communicates with
various areas—from management to
annuity consultants and agents—either
to vet sales within his group or seek out
compliance and executive input.
Elson also applies his guiding
principles to his suitability team and is
quick to credit them with his successes.
This is yet another example of his
philosophy of leading by example. It
also speaks to his modesty.
The behind-the-scenes nature of his
role belies its importance in upholding
the company’s values and leading
by example. But he believes one’s
guiding principles come from within.
“Leadership is about remaining yourself,
being genuine, treating individuals
fairly, and making sure your message is
clear and direct—that way you will gain
credibility and earn others’ trust.”
| 052014 issue 3
THE TEAM BUILDER
Serene W. Zegarelli,
DirectorofMarketing,Annuities
“A project team brings a variety of skill
sets and knowledge to the table," says
Serene Zegarelli, a marketing director
of retail annuities. “You want to
encourage and support the individual
team members to operate both
independently and collectively, like a
well-oiled machine.”
Having this ability is critical
to executing any big, multifaceted
initiative, according to Zegarelli. Every
May significant enhancements are
made to our variable annuities—a
massive undertaking that produces
up to 70 different marketing pieces.
Collaboration among various
departments—including Corporate
Compliance, the Office of the General
Counsel, the Retail Annuities Group,
and Agency Group Communications—is
required for a smooth product launch.
“Making a large-scale project come off
successfully comes down to motivating
people, employing good communication
and organizational skills, and recognizing
individuals for jobs well done,” she says.
“What I do is provide the team members
with the tools and information they need
to succeed.”
Zegarelli kicks off projects by
meeting with all the stakeholders and
providing a rationale and objectives for
the initiative. She lays out milestones
and timing to give a clear picture of
what the completed project will look
like. “That meeting addresses everyone’s
questions and takes into account their
suggestions so all team members feel
like a part of the project, before it even
starts,” she says.
She keeps team members focused
and committed throughout projects by
providing weekly updates and feedback
to all participants, calling particular
attention to praiseworthy efforts. “I
take a high-touch approach, exchanging
information by keeping in constant
contact, asking and answering questions
via email or on the phone, and being
available at any time,” Zegarelli says.
Her method sounds deceptively
simple—being a calm, prepared
project steward in the storm of a
large-scale product launch. It’s the
essence of leading through actions
rather than just words. And yet
Zegarelli concludes projects by
using words themselves: she sends
thank-you notes to team members to
maintain the collaborative spirit and
motivation for the next big launch.
Christopher Elson and Compliance
colleagues Sue Ellen Bromberg and
Michele Peters-Fisher often confer to
offer the best service to their clients.
Serene Zegarelli keeps detailed
project notes to help the entire
team stay focused and in touch.
6. There was a time when the prevailing theory was
that only extroverts could be leaders. You had to like
being the center of attention, talk more than listen,
and give quick responses. If you were an introvert,
you either needed to hide it or to give up on being
a leader. More research has revealed that introverts
also make great leaders. In fact, 40% of CEOs have
introvert tendencies or are introverts.
According to Carl Jung, the originator of the
theory of personalities, “There is no such thing
as a pure introvert or a pure extrovert.” The terms
simply refer to where we get our energy—introverts
recharge through solitude, extroverts through social
experiences. While most of us show a preference for
one style or the other, we’re also a mix of the two.
Reconsidering the role of
personality in leadership.
06 | New York Life News
Introvert vs.
Extrovert
“From beginning my career at New York
Life in a sales role and later moving into a
marketing role, I found I was able to provide
many insights into why a certain marketing
strategy or approach would be more effective
than others. Over the years, I was looked to
more and more often for advice and input on
key initiatives of the annuity business. This, to
me, is part of being a leader. When you are
trusted to provide valuable information
that will help to develop new ideas as well
as influence decisions and outcomes, you
are leading in a way that is very obvious
and effective.”
Stephanie Padalino, Retail Annuities
A Harvard University research team
interviewed 125 leaders from diverse racial,
religious, and socioeconomic backgrounds and from
different nationalities to learn how they developed
their leadership abilities. Analyzing 3,000 pages
of transcripts, they discovered that their subjects
didn’t identify any universal characteristics, traits,
skills, or styles that led to their success. Rather,
their leadership emerged from their life stories.
They were constantly testing themselves through
real-world experiences and reframing their life
stories to understand who they were at their core.
In doing so, they discovered the purpose of their
leadership and learned that being authentic made
them more effective.
The findings, published in a book in 2007,
reveal there is no secret ingredient. You do not
have to be born with specific characteristics or
traits to be a leader. You do not have to wait for
a tap on the shoulder. You do not have to be at
the top of your organization. Instead, you can
discover your potential right now.
The secret ingredient of leadership
Both introverts and extroverts bring something
to the leadership table, and companies are best
served when they have both types of leaders.
“On one hand, extroverts can succeed as leaders
because leadership is social—leaders need to spend
time with people and be able to get others excited
about working to achieve the organization’s mis-
sion,” says Michael Molinaro, vice president of talent
management. “On the other hand, introverts are
often good mentors and thought leaders and have
their own ways of inspiring others.”
Varying personalities and work styles comple-
ment one another. For instance, introverts’ listen-
ing skills make them better at leading proactive
employees, while extroverts are great at motivating
people. According to Susan Cain, author of the
New York Times best seller, Quiet: The Power of
Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking,
extroverts and introverts are yin and yang:
we enjoy and need each other.
People need diverse abilities to lead. Neither
facet of personality has a monopoly on the key
leadership traits, and both can be successful.
Molinaro believes today’s leaders not only need peo-
ple skills, but also the ability to “think critically, make
values-based decisions, and lead through ambiguity.”
Leadership can take many different forms. There
isn’t one recipe for the ideal leader, but one key in-
gredient is being true to yourself. You can learn from
others’ experiences, but you can’t be successful by
trying to be someone you aren’t. So, whether you’re
an introvert or an extrovert, embrace it.
WHENDID
YOUBECOME
ALEADER?
LISTENINGSKILLS
HANDS-OFFMANAGEMENTSTYLE
CRITICALTHINKING
BEINGTRUETOYOURSELF
7. 2014 issue 3 | 07
SteveErickson, who is on the Human Resources’
Learning and Organization Development team, helps
our leaders at all levels build capabilities to lead
our organization forward. The News sat down with
Erickson to get his views on how this team helps our
leaders, as well as the challenges we all see as leaders.
Whatthecoachsays
What’s leadership like at New York Life? We went to the expert to find out.
PSST…Here’s an easy way to translate
your experience into leadership
Fill out your talent profile on HR Central to
learn more about yourself, your leadership
skills, and where you might need some
help. Let your manager know about them
too. The profile includes a section where
you can list your leadership experience,
major responsibilities at previous jobs, and
special assignments and projects that had a
considerable impact on your development.
You can fill out your profile all at once or
keep adding to it as you get the time or think
of something new to highlight. Get going
today by visiting HR Central!
Whataresomeexamplesofwhatyou
aredoing?
Some of our work involves training people, whether
they are new managers or senior executives. For
example, in our new manager orientation, a program
developed with others from across HR and the
businesses, we are seeking to ensure managers get
started with what they need to be successful—not
just the skills they need, but also who to talk with
and where to find resources on the intranet. In
Foundations of Executive Leadership, executive
officers are challenged to raise their game to a higher
level. Several have indicated the program is a life-
changing experience as they examine and challenge
themselves, and accept coaching and feedback from
their colleagues. They strategize the steps they
will take, beginning the moment they return from
training, to better coach and lead their teams.
Besides training programs, much of our effort
involves other kinds of developmental experiences:
coaching, business projects, and providing tools and
resources for employees to use on the job. The future of
leadership development is getting people to constantly
apply new learning immediately in the workplace.
What are some of the different approaches
to leadership?
While there are many ways to think about this,
consider these four ways to lead in the moment.
Directing:The leader provides specific instructions
on what to do and how to do it. This could be
useful when leading someone new to the job or just
developing a skill or in a very risky situation.
Advising: The leader shares their experience and
insight, and then allows the individual to select their
course of action, while reviewing how it’s proceeding.
Teaching: The leader helps equip the individual
by sharing knowledge or showing the person how
something works.
Coaching:The leader uses powerful questions to
help the individual gain insight or solve their own
problems. The decisions and way forward are all owned
by the individual, not the leader, though the leader
remains accountable.
Leaders need to be skilled in all the approaches.
The key is to know which one to use when.
HowhasleadingchangedatNewYorkLife?
Across functions, we are becoming more
collaborative, not just collegial. Now we seek to
build multifunctional teams working together to
implement change, looking beyond their respective
areas to bring a broader perspective to bear on
problems and solutions. Employees are now bringing
their experiences from previous jobs, often from
financial services and technology, to the table, which is
producing more diversity of thought in our leadership.
Wherecanwe,asleaders,strengthen
ourskills?
• Broadening company knowledge. Many of our
leaders have limited exposure to the broader
business and lack connections to business areas
outside their own. We all need to answer the
question, Can you speak knowledgeably about
more than just your area of the company?
• Building an innovation mind set. Learning how to
take appropriately understood risks and mobilize
effectively to get things done.
• Managing complexity. With so much change
taking place and leaders having to work with and
influence an increasing number of stakeholders,
it is a challenge to get things done.
• Cultivating a positive presence. Leaders who are
truly present and in the moment are much better
able to tap into their insight, to see the obvious, and
to notice what’s happening to those around them.
It also entails being authentic and having excellent
communication skills.
Canyougiveusafewtipsforanyone
wantingtobecomeagreatleader?
Know yourself. Know your strengths and develop
them. Know your passions, what you like about your
work, and what’s most important in your life. This
helps create a deeper sense of who you truly are and
connects you to a purpose.
Beaccountableforyouractions.
Speakup.
Takeownershipofsomething.
Suggestimprovements.
Domorethanyouarerequiredtodo.
Steve Erickson and his
team help our leaders
develop their skills and
lead our company now
and into the future.
8. 08 | New York Life News
Leaderstakeafreshapproachtoworkandlife.Theirtacticscouldworkforyoutoo.
you can do today to be a leader for tomorrow9EASYTHINGS
Routinelysetgoals
Most people make resolutions only once a
year; successful leaders maintain a daily list
of what they want to accomplish—and do it.
Seekchallenges
Take on new challenges and gain experience
across many different areas. And don’t give up or
be afraid to fail—perseverance is key when dealing
with something complex or untried.
Learnfromyourmistakes
Everyone makes them. It’s how you pick yourself
up and move forward that matters. Learn from
both successes and failures, admit your mistakes,
and adapt to new challenges by letting go of
behaviors that are no longer effective.
Disconnectandengagein
self-improvement
The average American watches five hours
of TV a day, and they’re online four hours
a day. Be different and unplug: practice the
piano, read a book, or talk to someone.
Makeanefforttobuildrelationships
We can connect with more people than ever via
social media, but you should also step out of the
virtual world to deepen your relationships with
face-to-face contact at professional organizations,
conferences, and volunteer events.
Buildyourempathyskills
Listen more, talk less,
ask questions.
Thinkpositive
You can accentuate the positive and eliminate
the negative by paying someone a compliment
or letting someone know that you appreciate
something they’ve done for you.
Aspiretogreatness
To remain competitive, dreaming,
imagining, and innovating are essential,
and can help you change good to great.
Beaninspiration
Everyone has bad days or needs a shot of
confidence every so often. Be that person
who motivates and supports others and
helps them become their very best.
9. Being a leader
means teaching,
developing, supporting,
motivatingandempowering
othersinyourorganization.
Leadership requires
approaching work with
thepassiontodothevery
bestjobpossible,through
teamwork, collaboration
and accountability.
Leadership is sharing
victoryandowningdefeat.
2014 issue 3 | 09
Weaskedafewofourseniorexecutivesfortheirthoughtsonleadership.
Advice from the top
“I found at an early age that being a leader is not about a title or a
position—instead, it’s an opportunity to help guide others. This became
apparent to me as a child in the youth organization 4-H, working on projects
with others. I always tried to lead by example, doing my part and working hard
to accomplish the task. By the age of 12, I was elected president of the
local club in Conway Springs, Kansas, and learned
a lot of valuable lessons. The lessons I
learned as a child I have tried to use in
the professional setting, leading by
example and helping guide a team.
Being conscious about that
opportunity to guide others
has helped with my transition
as a leader in New York Life.”
Nick Steffen, Greater Pasadena GO
WHENDIDYOUBECOME
ALEADER?
JoinourCelebratingGoodTwitterinitiative
fortheholidaysandhelpfeedhungry
familiesacrossAmerica.We’reinvitingyou
totweetsomethingyou’rethankfulforthis
holidayseason.Foreverytweetthat’screated—andspecificallyusesthehashtags
#KeepGoodGoingand#FeedingAMillion—wewilldonate25mealstofamiliesin
needthroughFeedingAmerica,theleadinghungerreliefcharityintheUnitedStates.
The campaign will run through the beginning of 2015.
In addition to tweets including the hashtags, participants are encouraged to
include photographs of what’s good about their lives, which we will share at
www.newyorklife.com/celebratinggood.
We’re the leading life insurance company on Twitter. For more than two
years, we’ve held the #1 position in terms of followers and currently have over
172,000 followers. Help us grow even more and spread the word about how we
keep good going.
Celebrate
Goodandhelp
feedfamilies
You can’t get
much done if
you don’t inspire others
to bring their best to the
table. Being a leader is
about setting strategic
direction and having
a vision, but it also
requires you to show
others how to lead and
how to achieve results.
As a leader,
it’s important
to recognize individual
team members and to
communicate openly
and authentically. When
people see that you’re
truly interested, they feel
free to open up and share
their ideas with you.
I think good leaders
create the direction
and the vision for what's
possible, break the big goals
down to bite size chunks,
involvethosetheyleadinthe
solutionandtheprocess,focus
onthethingsthattheycan
controlandovercommunicate
alongtheway.Peoplewantto
beapartofsomethinggood,
successful and bigger than
them and great leaders make
that real and fun.
Ihavealwaystriedto
empoweremployeeswho
workformetomakedecisions,butI’ve
alsolearnedtoanalyzethehowbehind
theirdecision-makingprocessversus
thewhat.Feedbackonsomeone’s
approachtakesmoretimeinthe
short-termbutitpaysbigdividendsin
thelong-term.Weallfallbackintothe
badhabitofjumpinginandmakingthe
decision(particularlyduringperiods
ofstress),butweneedtoremember
thatitisnotonlyde-motivatingtoyour
team—it’snotascalableleadership
practiceinthelongrun.
TROY GLOVER MARK PFAFF CHRIS BLUNTSUE
PATERNOSTER
KATHERINE
O’BRIEN
10. 10 | New York Life News
Findingtheinspiration.
Marketplace leaders in any industry
can often boast of having an
innovative mind-set, and one area
where we are at our most innovative
is product development. When you
ask the experts across our businesses
where product ideas come from,
listening is a recurring theme: listening
to customers, to agents, to third-party
distributors, to experts in our midst,
and to experts on the economy.
Ours is a business that responds to
present and emerging consumer needs.
To know what those needs are, you need
an ear to the ground, a plan to gather
and interpret what you hear, and the
financial strength to assume some risk.
Ron Lombardi, of retail annuities
marketing, noted two tactics:
• Market research with customers and
third-party distributors tells us what
new concerns are emerging and why
some of our current products may not
be selling. Recently, one distributor’s
feedback regarding annuity
customers’ desire to have greater
liquidity and flexibility without
giving up security led us to develop
our Clear Income Fixed Annuity,
which launched in October.
• Listening to employees is a valuable
but often overlooked resource for
insights. Periodically, the business
asks employees a question such as,
“Can you think of a fixed deferred
annuity that can be successful even
in a low-interest-rate environment?”
Responses—there were 80 to this
particular question—are evaluated
by the business’s Innovation Lab,
led by Dylan Huang, and those
with potential business viability are
assigned for further investigation.
Innovatingdoesn’talwaysmean
‘buildyourown.’
Another shared concept is that
Listencarefullyandyou
mayhearitcoming
Tobealeaderinproductdevelopment,ithelpstokeepaneartothegroundandyoureyesontheprize.
innovation doesn’t have to be
completely new. It doesn’t even have to
represent a significant breakthrough.
Subtle developments, like refining
a marketing strategy or adding new
features or flexibility, can bring value.
New York Life Investments, which
offers investment products to the
retail market, has about $100 billion
in assets under management across 77
MainStay mutual funds. According to
Kirk Lehneis, of mutual fund product
development, long-term viability is a
primary consideration when we build
a fund. When we identify a critical
asset class, we first look internally to
see if we have the required expertise
to manage that new class effectively.
If not, we consider acquiring an asset
manager or purchasing a particular
product to include in our portfolio.
For example, in 2013 we formed
a subadvisory partnership with
Marketfield Asset Management,
and its Marketfield Fund became
the MainStay Marketfield Fund.
Marketfield, a flexible thematic
fund manager, provided downside
protection and performed relative to
peers in 2008, when many funds had
significant negative returns due to
the economic downturn. Marketfield
wanted a distribution partner to help
grow its asset base. We purchased its
mutual fund product and incorporated
it into MainStay to offer as an option.
Thecustomerisalwaysright.
Customer experience increasingly
drives innovation. Customers want
to buy on their own terms, and they
are not shy about shopping around to
meet that objective.
Custom Whole Life didn’t introduce
an entirely new product category,
but it has driven a considerable
amount of sales largely by replacing
the timeworn notion of paying
premiums forever with a new way
of thinking about how and when
you pay. Giving policyowners more
control over how much they pay, and
for how long, enhanced the appeal
of life insurance and positioned it as
an ideal retirement planning asset
among high-net-worth customers.
We now find it also speaks to
tomorrow’s big consumers, members
of Generation Y, who are engaging in
retirement planning earlier than their
predecessors. They’re budget conscious
and looking to pay their benefits in
advance, instead of burdening their
retirement years. So we not only got
out ahead of the pension replacement
trend with an attractive product, but
we can leverage its appeal anew.
Adopting an innovator’s mind-set.
Our business is managing risk, so
being aggressively innovative can be
challenging. That may be why there
are no broad-based innovators among
our competitors. We all use a targeting
strategy, focusing on selected markets
or product areas in which to innovate.
Dawn Behrens, of life products
strategy, sees the industry beginning
to stretch its typically risk-averse
culture. More competitors are
adopting a “test and learn” mentality,
in which new ideas are piloted to try
to minimize costs and risk, but with
an appetite for exploring, evolving,
and growing those ventures over
time. Going a step further, Behrens
cites the potential value of thinking
holistically—not limiting refinements
to what exists, but being more
futuristic and even anthropological in
our thinking. Studying generational
differences, cultural markets,
behavioral trends, and progressions
of unrelated industries can help
anticipate needs, and perhaps open
the door to that next big thing.
THE NEXT BIG THING
LEADING AS A COMPANY
“Ichallengemyteamtothinkonemoveaheadwhilealwayskeepingthe
customer’sbestinterestinmind. Ifacustomercomesinwitharequestthat
mayhaveanegativeimpactonhimorher,Iencouragemyteamtoreachoutto
thecustomertoensureheorsheunderstandstheramificationsofaparticular
transactionand/ordecision.Myteamstartedsharingsituationswheretheyhad
donejustsuchandavoidedanadversesituationforourcustomer.
Theirdesiretosharetheirpositiveresultswithmemademe
feellikealeader. Notonlydidthis
showmemyteamtrustsinme,
butmoreimportantly,they
havegainedconfidenceand
trustinthemselves.”
Laura Matyja,
Cleveland Service Center
WHENDIDYOUBECOME
ALEADER?
11. 2014 issue 3 | 11
Leading the industry in growth
Recruitinganddevelopingnew agents was a core focus for most life insurance
companies in the 1900s. But over the past two decades, the number of companies
for which this remains a core competency has dwindled.
“As a result of our continuous investment in building a robust career agency
system, we now have a distinct and sustainable competitive advantage in the
marketplace,” says Mark Pfaff, co-president of the Insurance and Agency Group.
Here’s a small sample of how we support our agents throughout their careers
and maintain our company’s leadership position as a result.
Our leadership in recruiting, training, and coaching new agents has never been a bigger advantage.
WHENDIDYOUBECOMEALEADER?
RECRUITING TRAINING COACHING COMMITMENT
Cultural markets are a key
focus for us. Last year
49%of our new recruits were dedicated
to our cultural markets. As a result,
nearly half of our new life insurance
sales in 2013 were from this rapidly
growing area.
We have recruited, on average,
more than 3,500 new agents
annually for the past six years.
The majority of our competitors
with large agency forces cut their
recruiting by an average 5% last
year. Since 2005, we have grown
our agency force by
47%.
Agents, our brand ambassadors,
receive some of thebesttraining
andcoachingintheindustry.
New agents complete
3YEARSoftrainingfocusedonproducts,
marketing,prospecting,andsalesskills.
EstablishedCouncil-levelagentscan
enrollintheGraduatePathtoMarket
Excellenceprogram,aseriesofonline
programsfocusingonstrategiesfor
variousmarkets,includingrollovers,small
business,andretirement.
Plus,thereareover
300,000pagesofonlinetrainingmaterialsinNYLIC
Universityforself-directedstudy.
Wehaveastrongmanagementteamof
650+managing partners, senior
and executive partners, plus
175development
managers at General Offices
across the country.
They participate in the
Management
Leadership and
Development
Program, a three-year
program that provides the skills and
knowledge to guide agents. Learning
to coach is emphasized as a critical way
to develop our agents’ fullest potential.
Our agents have led all U.S.
companies in the industry’s most
prestigious organization—
the Million Dollar
Round Table
(MDRT)—for
60 consecutive
years. MDRT members rank at
the top of all life insurance agents for
their achievement, ability, and service.
“Our agents prove we are not just
about paychecks and profits. They
exemplify our other values—
integrity and
humanity—by being
leaders in their communities,” says
Pfaff. “Recruiting, training, and coaching
career agents is the best thing we can
do to ensure this commitment.”
“Many times I have been approached by others—managers, department heads,
and clients—asking for guidance on communicating messages or issues to
others. I initially thought others considered me to be a good
person to bounce things off, but I’ve learned that it’s really
about my sincerity and respect for others—
qualities that are key to being a leader.
There is no greater satisfaction to
me than helping others solve a
problem, grow their skills, or
succeed while accomplishing
the organization’s goals.”
Serena Finn, NYL Direct
UPPING YOUR
LEADERSHIP SKILLS
Learning and Organization Development offers many great resources to
help hone your leadership skills, including:
➜Completing your talent profile on HR Central
➜Using My Development Blueprint to help you select and prioritize the
skills and capabilities most important to your development path.
➜Managing Personal Growth, a class to help you devise a personalized
plan of action to further develop your career and enhance
communication with your manager.
➜Online courses, videos, and articles on leadership. Visit the Learning
section on HR Central and search the word “leadership.”
