Unum 2009 Annual Report Download - page 4

To Our Shareholders, Customers, and Colleagues:
Thomas R. Watjen
President and Chief Executive Officer
“ We also took steps to better position
our operations to be responsive
and
responsible in our chosen markets, which
included instilling greater discipline in the
pricing and underwriting of our business.”
2
I am very pleased with the results that we delivered in 2009 in
what remained a challenging business and economic environment.
The foundational principles that we laid out more than six years
ago, as we began our own restructuring efforts, have served us well
and also provide a roadmap for continued success in the future.
We had four overarching goals for the year — goals that haven’t
changed significantly over the last few years: consistently execute
on our operating plans; remain focused on disciplined, profitable
growth; work diligently to better leverage our leadership positions;
and continue to invest in our business and our people. I’m pleased
to say that we made solid progress on each of these goals in 2009,
and, as a result, our market leadership remains intact, our financial
position remains strong, and our company continues to be held in
high regard by key stakeholders.
Our plan has been, and remains, a back-to-basics approach to
business. First and foremost, we intensified our focus on our customers
in everything we did, which also forced us to better define the
businesses to which we could add the most value. Those in which
we couldn‘t perform as well or add value, we either repositioned
or exited.
We also took steps to better position our operations to be
responsive and responsible in our chosen markets, which included
instilling greater discipline in the pricing and underwriting of our
business. This has significantly reduced the risk in our business plan.
We have also worked to build a “fortress” balance sheet with a
well-positioned investment portfolio and a flexible capital position
that supports the business and creates shareholder value, not
dilutes it.
Last, and perhaps most importantly, we wanted to be sure that
through our values, culture, and business practices, we are known as a
company that does the right thing. This is always important, but never
more so than in an environment like today’s, where consumers,
regulators and often shareholders have lost confidence in business.
This back-to-basics approach has served us very well, and I’m
sure as others rebuild their businesses in response to the economic
and financial crisis, they may find that elements of our simple plan
have application to them also.
The improvements we’ve made haven’t come easily, and they would
not have been possible without the hard work and support of our
10,000 dedicated employees. I am extremely thankful for what they
have done — and continue to do — to position us for a bright future.
STRONG CONNECTIONS IN THE MARKET
While it may seem obvious, a key tenet of our back-to-basics
approach was to reaffirm our focus on serving employers and their
employees through employer-sponsored benefits. By focusing on
the workplace we are not only helping employers manage their