Unum names new CEO in transition plan
Photo / Courtesy of Unum Group
Richard McKenney
Unum Group, the parent company of Portland-based insurance company Unum US, has named a Maine native as the company’s next president and CEO.
The Chattanooga, Tenn.-based company announced Tuesday that Chief Financial Officer Richard McKenney will take over as president in April and as CEO in May, succeeding the company’s longtime leader, Thomas Watjen. Watjen, who joined Unum in 1994 and will remain with the company as a director through 2017, is retiring after 12 years as CEO.
McKenney, who joined Unum in 2009 and previously worked for Toronto-based Sun Life Financial, grew up in Eliot, according to the Portland Press Herald.
The newspaper reported Tuesday that the leadership announcement comes right as Unum said it had a net loss of $279.1 million in last year’s fourth quarter.
William Ryan, whose position as Unum’s non-executive chairman will be replaced by Watjen at the company’s 2015 annual meeting, will serve as Unum’s lead independent director until he retires in 2016. He said of McKenney in a prepared statement: “Since joining Unum over five years ago, [McKenney] has demonstrated strong leadership and been a big part of the company’s success.”
“[McKenney] has the right skills and experience to build on Tom’s accomplishments and leverage Unum’s unique market position,” he continued. “The board has planned carefully for this leadership succession and we are confident that [McKenney’s] deep understanding of the company, and his excellent leadership ability, will position Unum to continue producing strong returns for shareholders.”
McKenney said in a prepared statement that he is “honored to have the opportunity to serve as Unum’s next CEO, and excited to lead our efforts to build on the foundation [Watjen] and the entire executive team have put in place.” He added: “Unum is well positioned to capitalize on positive trends in our markets, including strong sales momentum, accelerating premium growth and solid operating margins across the company.”
Most Recent
Most Recent
Comments