What follows are statements about Northwestern Mutual.
Five best internships for real work -- Fortune, 7/28/06
Northwestern Mutual again named “America’s Most Admired” by FORTUNE magazine
“Northwestern Mutual’s core advertising message is also more than just a slogan; it amplifies the company’s values with clarity: ‘Integrity, financial strength, and building enduring relationships is what The Quiet Company is all about.’”
...“During a period when the public’s faith in business ethics has been rocked repeatedly by tales of greed, corruption, and outright thievery at the highest corporate levels, Northwestern Mutual has maintained the highest ratings from all four major rating agencies: Standard & Poor’s, A.M. Best, Fitch Ratings, and Moody’s. No wonder CEO Zore is pleased to point out, ‘Everybody here is trying to do the right thing. We’ve got our moral compass in the right direction.’”
“The most challenging scorekeeping issues for most businesses are not related to investor value, but to the measurement of value creation for customers.
Northwestern...understands how its superiority in delivering customer value translates into a customer retention advantage, which drives the company’s growth, lowers its costs and fuels its compensation opportunities.”
“Northwestern Mutual’s standards for issuing an insurance policy are among the most rigorous in the industry. Once you have a policy, however, employees treat you differentially, as the company strives to live up to is 100-plus-year commitment to be the policyowner’s company.”
“Northwestern Mutual has a longstanding history of close alignment with its chosen market. To Northwestern, providing high-quality service to customers has always been more important than becoming a big company.”
“The Northwestern Mutual Financial Network was named as having one of America’s ‘Top 10 Internships’ ten consecutive times since 1997 according to Mark Oldman and Samer Hamadeh, Internship Informants™ and authors of the Internship Bible (1994-present), America’s Best 109 Internships, 1993-2004) and the Vault Guide to Top Internships (2005-present).”
“Northwestern Mutual has a tradition of taking extra steps to ensure that customers receive all benefits to which they are entitled.”
“Northwestern, the master of loyalty, is also famous for its careful cost management. Where other insurance companies throw fancy conventions at famous resorts and foot the travel bill, Northwestern Mutual holds all its conventions in Milwaukee and makes agents pay their own way.”
“When managers make strategic decisions that decrease debt relative to the amount of equity in the company, they reduce the company’s riskiness to investors and so invite an upgrade by rating agencies. Take Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance. Its financial position is so strong that it has never earned less than the top rating from all the rating agencies.”