Assurant 2005 Annual Report Download - page 39

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PROPOSAL ONE
ELECTION OF DIRECTORS
We currently have ten directors. Four of our current directors are nominees for re-election as directors at the Annual Meeting to serve until
the 2008 annual meeting and until their successors are elected and have qualified. In the absence of contrary instructions, it is the intention of
the persons named in the accompanying proxy to vote for the nominees listed below. If any nominee becomes unavailable to serve for any
reason, an event the Board of Directors does not anticipate, the proxies solicited hereby will be voted for election of the person, if any,
designated by the Board of Directors to replace that nominee.
Director Nominees
The following persons have been nominated to serve as directors of Assurant in Class I:
33
John Michael Palms, PhD., D.Sc., Chairman of the Board. Dr. Palms, age 69, has been a member of our Board of Directors since
March 1990 and became Chairman in October 2003. Dr. Palms is a Distinguished University Professor and Distinguished President
Emeritus at the University of South Carolina. He was the President of the University of South Carolina from 1991 until his retirement in
2002. Earlier in his career, Dr. Palms served as President of Georgia State University and as a professor and administrator at Emory
University. Dr. Palms currently serves on the boards of the Computer Task Group and Simcom International and is the Chair of Exelon
Corporation’s audit committee. He is also Chairman of the Board of the Institute for Defense Analyses. In the past, Dr. Palms has been a
member of various additional company committees and boards including the University of South Carolina’s Educational and Development
Foundation Boards, NationsBank of the Carolinas’ audit committee, the audit committee of the Board of Directors of Carolina First Bank,
the Mynd Corporation
’
s compensation committee and Chair of PECO Energy
’
s nuclear committee.
J. Kerry Clayton, President, Chief Executive Officer and Director. Mr. Clayton, age 59, has been our President and Chief
Executive Officer since May 2000 and has been a member of our Board of Directors since March 1999. From 1993 to 1999, Mr. Clayton
served as Executive Vice President of the Company with a variety of responsibilities. From 1985 to 1993, Mr. Clayton served as President
of Fortis Benefits Insurance Company, which acquired and combined the operations of Western Life Insurance Company, St. Paul Life
Insurance Company and the Group Division of Mutual Benefit Life. He also served as Senior Vice President, Finance of the Company
from 1981 to 1985. From 1970 to 1980, Mr. Clayton held various positions with American Security Group, now Assurant Solutions, which
was acquired by the Company in 1980.
Dr. Robert J. Blendon, Sc.D., Director. Dr. Blendon, age 62, has been a member of our Board of Directors since March 1993.
Dr. Blendon has been a professor of Health Policy at Harvard University’s School of Public Health and a professor of Political Analysis at
Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government since 1987. Previously, he served as Vice President of The Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation.
Beth L. Bronner, Director. Ms. Bronner, age 53, has been a member of our Board of Directors since January 1994. Ms. Bronner is
currently Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Jim Beam Brands, a division of Fortune Brands. Prior to joining Jim Beam
in 2003, Ms. Bronner was a Partner at LERA Consulting in Chicago, Illinois. Prior to joining LERA Consulting in 2002, Ms. Bronner was
the President and Chief Operating Officer of ADVO, Inc., the nation’s largest full-service targeted direct mail marketing company. Before
joining ADVO, Inc. in 2000, Ms. Bronner was President of the Health Division at Sunbeam Corporation. She has also served as Senior
Vice President and Director of Marketing of North American Consumer Banking at Citibank, N.A. and Vice-President of Emerging
Markets for AT&T Company. Since 1993, she has been a member of the board of directors of The Hain-Celestial Group Inc., and has
chaired its compensation committee. She also served as a member of Oak Industries, Inc.’s audit committee from 1996 until its 2000
merger with Corning Incorporated. Ms. Bronner also serves on the boards of several charitable organizations; she is currently serving as a