Assurant 2015 Annual Report Download - page 15

ASSURANT, INC. – 2015 Form 10-K 3
PART I
ITEM 1 Business
PART I
Unless the context otherwise requires, references to the terms “Assurant,” the “Company,” “we,” “us” and “our” refer to
our consolidated operations�
ITEM 1 Business
Assurant, Inc. was incorporated as a Delaware corporation
in 2004�
Assurant safeguards clients and consumers when the unexpected
occurs. A global provider of specialty protection products and
related services, Assurant operates in North America, Latin
America, Europe and other select worldwide markets through
four operating segments� Assurant Solutions, Assurant Specialty
Property, Assurant Health and Assurant Employee Benets
partner with clients who are leaders in their industries to
provide consumers peace of mind and nancial security. Our
diverse range of products and services include mobile device
protection products and services; extended service products
and related services for consumer electronics, appliances
and vehicles; pre-funded funeral insurance; lender-placed
homeowners insurance; property preservation and valuation
services; ood insurance; renters insurance and related products;
debt protection administration; credit insurance; manufactured
housing homeowners insurance; group dental insurance; group
disability insurance; and group life insurance.
As previously announced, the Company will substantially
exit the health insurance market in 2016 and has signed a
denitive agreement to sell its Assurant Employee Benets
segment to Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (“Sun
Life”), a subsidiary of Sun Life Financial Inc. This transaction
is expected to close by the end of the rst quarter of 2016.
See Note 3 and Note 4, respectively, contained elsewhere in
the report for more information�
Assurant’s vision is to be the premier provider of specialty
protection products and related services in North America,
Latin America, Europe and other select worldwide markets.
To achieve this vision, we focus on the following areas:
Building and managing a portfolio of specialty
insurance businesses and related services
Our operating segments are focused on serving specic
sectors of the housing and lifestyle protection market. We
continue to develop and add specialty market capabilities
where we can meet unserved consumers’ needs, achieve
superior returns, and leverage enterprise resources.
Leveraging a set of core capabilities for
competitive advantage
We apply our core capabilities to create competitive advantages
– managing risk; managing relationships with large distribution
partners; and integrating complex administrative systems.
These core capabilities represent areas of expertise that
are advantages within each of our businesses. We seek to
generate attractive returns by building on specialized market
knowledge, well-established distribution relationships and, in
some businesses, economies of scale�
Identifying and adapting to evolving market
needs
Assurant’s businesses strive to adapt to changing market
conditions by tailoring product and service offerings to specic
client and customer needs� By understanding consumer
dynamics in our core markets, we seek to design innovative
products and services that will enable us to sustain long-term
protable growth and market leading positions.
Strategic capital deployment
We deploy capital to invest in our businesses, repurchase shares
and pay dividends. Our approach to mergers, acquisitions
and other growth opportunities reects our prudent and
disciplined approach to managing our capital� Our mergers,
acquisitions and business development process targets new
business and capabilities that complements or supports our
business model�