Ameriprise 2015 Annual Report Download - page 39

Our insurance subsidiaries’ ratings are important to maintain public confidence in our protection and annuity products. We
list our ratings on our website at ir.ameriprise.com. For the most current ratings information, please see the individual
rating agency’s website.
Our Segments — Corporate & Other
Our Corporate & Other segment consists of net investment income or loss on corporate level assets, including excess
capital held in our subsidiaries and other unallocated equity and other revenues as well as unallocated corporate expenses.
Competition
We operate in a highly competitive global industry. As a diversified financial services firm, we compete directly with a variety
of financial institutions, including registered investment advisors, securities brokers, asset managers, banks and insurance
companies. Our competitors may have greater financial resources, broader and deeper distribution capabilities and
products and services than we do. We compete directly with these for the provision of products and services to clients, as
well as for our financial advisors and investment management personnel. Certain of our competitors offer web-based
financial services and discount brokerage services, usually with lower levels of service, to individual clients.
Our Advice & Wealth Management segment competes with securities broker-dealers, independent broker-dealers, financial
planning firms, registered investment advisors, insurance companies and other financial institutions to attract and retain
financial advisors and their clients. Competitive factors influencing our ability to attract and retain financial advisors include
compensation structures, brand recognition and reputation, product offerings and technology and service capabilities and
support. Further, our financial advisors compete for clients with a range of other advisors, broker-dealers and direct
channels, including wirehouses, regional broker-dealers, independent broker-dealers, insurers, banks, asset managers,
registered investment advisers and direct distributors. Competitive factors influencing our ability to attract and retain clients
include quality of advice provided, price, reputation, advertising and brand recognition, product offerings and technology
and service quality.
Our Asset Management segment competes on a global basis to acquire and retain managed and administered assets
against a substantial number of firms, including those in the categories listed above. Such competitors may have achieved
greater economies of scale, offer a broader array of products and services, offer products with a stronger performance
record and have greater distribution capabilities. Competitive factors influencing our performance in this industry include
investment performance, product offerings and innovation, product ratings, fee structures, advertising, service quality, brand
recognition and reputation and the ability to attract and retain investment personnel. The ability to create and maintain and
deepen relationships with distributors and clients also plays a significant role in our ability to acquire and retain managed
and administered assets. The impact of these factors on our business may vary from country to country and certain
competitors may have certain competitive advantage in certain jurisdictions.
Competitors of our Annuities and Protection segments consist of both stock and mutual insurance companies. Competitive
factors affecting the sale of annuity and insurance products (including property casualty insurance products) include
distribution capabilities, price, product features, hedging capability, investment performance, commission structure,
perceived financial strength, claims-paying ratings, service, advertising, brand recognition and financial strength ratings
from rating agencies such as A.M. Best.
Technology
We have an integrated customer management system that serves as the hub of our technology platform. In addition, we
have specialized product engines that manage various accounts and over the years, we have updated our platform to
include new product lines. We also use a proprietary suite of processes, methods and tools for our financial planning
services. We update our technological capabilities regularly to help maintain an adaptive platform design that aims to
enhance the productivity of our advisors to allow for faster, lower-cost responses to emerging business opportunities,
compliance requirements and marketplace trends.
We have developed and maintain a comprehensive business continuity plan that covers different business disruptions of
varying severity and scope and addresses, among other things, the loss of a geographic area, building, staff, data systems
and/or telecommunications capabilities. We review and test our business continuity plan periodically and update it as
necessary. We require our key technology vendors and service providers to do the same.
Geographic Presence
For years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, approximately 89%, 89% and 89%, respectively, of our long-lived
assets were located in the United States and approximately 91%, 89% and 92%, respectively, of our net revenues were
generated in the United States. The majority of our foreign operations are conducted through Threadneedle, as described
in this Annual Report on Form 10-K under ‘‘Business — Our Segments — Asset Management.’’
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