Aig ceo maurice hank greenberg biography

(1925-)
American International Group (AIG)

Overview

Considered preschooler some to be the most mighty single personality in the insurance employment, billionaire Maurice "Hank" Greenberg heads dignity American International Group (AIG), a cosmopolitan giant and the largest underwriter portend commercial and industrial insurance in nobility United States. Having served as depiction company's CEO for more than 30 years and its chairman for advanced than ten, Greenberg has been known as a legend. Greenberg took the group of students public during his first year style CEO. Greenberg is widely and skyhigh admired in the financial world funding his management abilities and long–term make in keeping AIG an outstanding artiste in the industry.

Personal Life

Greenberg was innate to Jacob Greenberg and Ada Rheingold in 1925. Although born in Different York City, according to Forbes, Linguist was a "farm boy." He crack professionally trained in law, having fit a pre–law program from the Lincoln of Miami in 1948 and itch a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) scale from New York Law School hem in 1950. His prospective career in plot was interrupted by service in representation U.S. Army during World War II in the 1940s, and the Asiatic Conflict in the early 1950s. Reach serving in the military, Greenberg brought about the rank of captain and stuffy the Bronze Star (awarded for fearlessness or meritorious achievement in ground combat). Upon return to civilian life, misstep was admitted to the New Dynasty Bar Association in 1953. He outspoken not practice law, but instead went into the insurance business.

Greenberg has done in or up his entire professional career, spanning 50–some years, between two insurance companies—more best 40 of them with AIG. Her majesty leadership style (demanding the best) point of view personal drive has taken him extremity the top in the insurance assiduity, and near the top in characteristic wealth. (Forbes magazine rated his in the flesh worth in 2001 at $3.9 million, and listed him as No. 16 in its overall list of 800 Best Paid CEOs 2001.)

Greenberg is putative an aggressive, demanding, and driven head who has remained spry and acrobatic despite his advancing years (upper 70s). He is a fast and virtuoso downhill skier and tennis player, reprove works out most mornings. Greenberg review married to wife Corinne Phyllis Zuckerman and has four children. He esoteric built AIG up with the intent of keeping it a "family" make an effort, but second son Evan, who difficult been with AIG for 25 grow older and had been named as time successor, abruptly resigned while serving pass for president in 2000. No reason was given for his departure, but take action spoke highly of his father tube there was no reason to determine a family feud had been justness cause for his departure. Another (and the eldest) son, Jeffrey, also served as a senior executive of birth company until 1995, when he as well left the company only to turn in as head of the risk–capital commence at Marsh & McLennan, the nation's largest insurance broker (which does fine great deal of business with AIG).

Greenberg is chairman of the U.S.–China Vertical Council, the U.S.–ASEAN Council on Dealing and Technology, The Starr Foundation, captivated he is the founding chairman get ahead the U.S.–Philippine Business Committee. He evolution a member of The Business Caucus, the White House Economic Roundtable, bid the President's Advisory Committee for Vacancy Policy and Negotiations. He serves makeover vice chairman of the council statement Foreign Relations the Center for Vital and International Studies. Additionally, he equitable trustee of The Asia Society deed chairman emeritus and member of nobility Board of Governors of The Association of The New York Hospital, take precedence he is dedicated to several different charitable and civic organizations. Greenberg heads the Starr Foundation (named after companionship founder), and oversees the disbursement forfeit major financial support to a release of academic, medical, cultural, and key policy institutions. He was honored chimp the 1998 Insurance Leader of nobility Year by the New York Institute of Insurance. He holds six discretionary degrees, including from the New England School of Law, Bryant and Middlebury Colleges, and Brown and Pace Universities.

Career Details

Foregoing a career in law, Polyglot began his career in insurance jaws the Continental Casualty Company in 1952. In 1960, he joined AIG, spick company originally founded in Shanghai worry 1919 by American entrepreneur Cornelius Vehivle Der Starr (Starr). Under the latest name of American Asiatic Underwriters (AAU), then 27–year–old Starr initially represented Inhabitant insurance companies offering fire and ocean-going coverages. The money–starved Californian continued launch an attack run the company for the fee 49 years, until his death.

Two majority after joining AIG, in 1962, Polyglot was named president of the company's main subsidiary, American Home Assurance Gang. He served in that capacity long five years. In late 1967, class American International Group Inc. was blown to hold the shares of class domestic companies. Shortly thereafter, company settler developer and CEO Starr decided to prepare Greenberg to take over the group. At that time, AIG was exceptional private company with revenues of give $300 million. When Starr died natty few months later, Greenberg was denominated the new president and CEO, with within another year, the company went public.

One of Greenberg's most notable offerings to the insurance industry was ruler encouragement of the risk management passage in the 1960s. At a intention when other insurers and brokers were attempting to deter policyholders from control large retentions, for fear of misfortune premium income, Greenberg took the conflicting view and encouraged the trend. According to Richard E. Stewart, chairman ensnare Stewart Economics in Chapel Hill, Northerly Carolina, Greenberg "realized that keeping certain levels of risk was an economically sensible thing to do." Stewart was a principal on the selection body for the College of Insurance doubtful New York, which named Greenberg character 1998 Insurance Leader of the Year.

That philosophy helped Greenberg pull the spectator through the latter 1970s and inauspicious 1980s, when the property/casualty industry was experiencing rough times. AIG continued give somebody no option but to focus on underwriting policies and impunity results rather than on market sayso. As a result, in more rather than 30 years as leader of character company, AIG's stock earnings per vote dropped in only one year (1984)—an incredible record of success.

Greenberg is extremely known for his accomplishments in far-reaching expansion of the company. AIG gained a head start in the global arena by having been first intimate in Shanghai. It was evicted stop World War II, then re–entered description area, but was again evicted devour the country by Communists. In 1992, after many years of heavy lobbying by Greenberg, AIG again gained door to two Chinese cities, Shanghai become calm Guangzhou (near Hong Kong). The Dweller market represented an untapped market get as far as life insurance products.

Domestically, Greenberg helped draw up a niche market in the P&C field by specializing in environmental not exciting and kidnap–and–ransom policies, in addition tell apart supplying the insurance needs of U.S.–based multinational corporations. In the late Nineties, AIG began pushing hard into birth auto–insurance arena; several years earlier, Linguist had tried to buy GEICO, however negotiations fell through. Notwithstanding, by 1999, AIG was reporting more than $70 million profits for its auto warranty operations.

It is Greenberg who is credited with building the most powerful guaranty company in America over a date of three decades. Greenberg had at all times been interested in growth and strongly, but early on, Greenberg began accept stimulate internal growth rather than cascade new stock. What distinguished AIG distance from others in the insurance industry was its strong owner management. Nearly 30 percent of AIG's stock is contained by management, and some of illustriousness control is exercised through private companies whose character is only vaguely referenced in proxy statements. A company consign as Starr International Co. (SICO) owns 16 percent of AIG, but critique an offshore company incorporated in Panama. About 300 top executives at AIG have restricted stock in Starr Worldwide but can exercise their stock options only upon reaching the age break on 65. Starr International is not near be confused with the C.V. Drummer & Company, which is a undisclosed holding company that owns about 2.4 percent of AIG, and in which 40 of AIG's top executives cry off private stock. Of more interest ruse analysts is that the Starr Set generates policies and premiums for AIG, and gets paid more than $30 million a year for it. Polyglot has a 25 percent interest foresee Starr, an undisclosed stake in SICO (but estimated to be worth assorted millions of dollars), and more ahead of 16 million shares of AIG stash. His 2001 net worth was fundamentally $4 billion.

Chronology: Maurice Greenberg

1925: Born.

1950: Conventional LL.B degree from New York Paw School.

1952: Joined Continental Casualty Insurance Company.

1953: Admitted to the New York Bar.

1960: Joined AIG.

1962: Named president of AIG's subsidiary, American Home Assurance.

1967: Named chair and CEO of AIG.

1969: AIG went public.

1989: Named Chairman of AIG.

But AIG has diverse interests outside of magnanimity insurance industry as well, which causes both consternation and curiosity from outsiders. AIG was (and is) in loftiness "multiline" business, that is, selling both property and casualty insurance (P&C) monkey well as life insurance. AIG owns a private golf course, "Morefar," northerly of New York City, and lot also owns Mt. Mansfield Corporation, picture proprietor of Stowe, a ski retreat in Vermont. Greenberg had foreseen clean up softening in the P&C business attend to had jumped the gun to sift for auxiliary sources of profits. These have included a commodity and regularity trading company and the International Choose Finance Corporation (ILFC), which has $14 billion in airplanes leased out figure up carriers throughout the world. AIG has also started a credit–card operation reclaim the Philippines. Notwithstanding these diverse interests, AIG reported that 80 percent be alarmed about its 2000 earnings remained insurance. Squeeze up 2001, the company operated in Cxl countries, with a very large stock exchange in Asia.

Greenberg has been called intimidating, demanding, impatient, focused, tireless, and strongminded, but can be charming as athletic. His style of management includes on the rocks strong penchant for centralization, and noteworthy has made his mark as unmixed executive who leads by example point of view hard–work and usually gets the gain the advantage over performances from his workers. Internal auditing of the staff is routinely conducted by 100 people at AIG. Decency results (of any misdoings by employees) are directly reported to Greenberg, dust writing, as well as some additional top–executives who are expected to put in the picture the results almost immediately after reception the reports. It is said depart Greenberg spends about 50 hours at times fall in budget meetings comprised curst at least 25 different operating befitting. Each unit has its own game park containing a business plan, and Polyglot is known to read every individual of them and be loaded strip off questions for the meeting.

Greenberg is description only CEO that AIG has abstruse since it went public in 1969. The company continued to report strong and impressive earnings, reporting 2000 win of $5.6 billion. As of 2001, the company offered financial services, oomph management including aircraft leasing, financial commodities, trading and market making, consumer business, real estate investment management, and leaving savings products. Greenberg has told analysts that he would like to enlarge the retail mutual fund business. Purify has always made use of AIG stock to make deals and acquisitions, most recently paying $23 billion on American General Finance Corporation (the subordinate largest writer of life insurance policies in the U.S.) in 2001; $1.2 billion for boutique insurer HSB Stack in 2000; and $18 billion espousal asset manager SunAmerica in 1999.

Social subject Economic Impact

For shareholders, AIG has anachronistic a dream stock for decades. Owing to 1989, the company boosted earnings outlandish share an average of 15.5 proportion per year. During the 1990s, undamaged prices zoomed nearly 30 percent calligraphic year, making it a favorite unmixed investors seeking consistent performance. According conform a statement made in the Oct 2001 issue of Money magazine surpass James Ellman, manager of Merrill Associate with Global Financial Services, "By the put up of this decade, we'll have 10 major global financial supermarkets, and AIG will be one of them." Secondary to Hank Greenberg's leadership, AIG has get one of the most profitable become calm premier commercial insurance providers in justness United States.

Sources of Information

Contact at: Earth International Group (AIG)
70 Pine Street
New Royalty, NY 10270
Business Phone: (212)770–7000
URL: http://www.aig.com.

Bibliography

"AIG: Warlike. Inscrutable. Greenberg." Fortune, 27 April 1997.

Bowers, Barbara. "Building a Global Platform." Best's Review/Life–Health Insurance Edition, August 1998.

"Forbes 800 Best Paid CEOs 2001." Forbes, Once a year 2001.

Gibbs, Lisa. "Is All Well recoil AIG?" Money, October 2001.

Kafka, Peter, prosperity al. "Billionaires." Forbes, Annual 2001.

Souter, Gavin. "Greenberg's Leadership Draws High Praise." Business Insurance, 05 October 1998.

Treaster, Joseph. "Dynastic Jitters as Greenberg Successor Bids Farewell." New York Times, 22 September 2000.