Unum 2014 Annual Report Download - page 3

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UNUM • 2014 ANNUAL REPORT 1
Our steady, consistent performance doesn’t just happen. It’s a result
of staying focused on a few very basic principles – principles that have
served us well in the past and will continue to do so in the future. The
most important of these is remaining disciplined in all that we do – in
our business focus, in our commitment to superior customer service, in
our prudent financial and risk management, in our precise execution of
our business plans (delivering on what we say we will do), and in our
commitment to creating a high-performance environment where our
people can flourish and make a difference.
While we enjoyed another strong year, the general environment
remained very challenging. Persistently low interest rates continue
to create headwinds for us and our competitors, putting pressure
on our profit margins and testing our industry’s ability to operate
profitably. Although steady improvement in the overall economy
softened the blow somewhat in 2014, operating in this prolonged
period of low interest rates requires discipline – and a considerable
measure of patience.
As I mentioned earlier, these have been hallmarks of this company
for some time and it is therefore no surprise to me that, despite a
challenging environment in 2014, we generated the ninth consecutive
year of operating earnings-per-share growth, or that over this period
we repurchased $2.8 billion of stock and increased our dividend by
120 percent, or that we did all this while significantly strengthening
our position in all of our key markets. We are exceptionally proud of
that track record, especially considering the unprecedented economic
and market volatility we experienced during that nine-year span.
To Our Shareholders, Customers and Colleagues
In many ways the Unum story for 2014 sounds much like one you’ve heard before,
which, in my view, is a very good thing. We strive for steady, consistent performance in
all that we do – in the quality of service we provide our customers, in the profitability
and returns we generate in our core businesses, and in our commitment to returning
capital to our shareholders – not just in one year, but over the longer term.
That’s exactly what we did again in 2014.
Thomas R. Watjen
Chief Executive Officer