Sammons: Uncovering the Secret Sauce of an Industry High-Flier
August 22, 2017 by Warren S. Hersch
It’s not every annuity provider that sees its legal structure as a competitive differentiator. But for Robert TeKolste, president of the Independent Annuity Group at Sammons Financial Group, the company’s non-public status ranks high among several factors that have underpinned the annuity group’s extraordinary performance in recent years — outside financial results that show few signs of abating and that are causing the industry to take notice.
“Our private ownership is a big component of our growth,” says TeKolste. “The ability to take a long-term perspective can’t be underestimated. If we do the right things for the long term, the short term will take care of itself.”
That long-term perspective, he adds, is also taking good care of the 1,500-plus staffers who participate in Sammons’ employee stock ownership plan or ESOP, a qualified defined contribution employee benefits plan that invests primarily in the company’s shares. The ESOP, says TeKolste, has also nurtured Sammons’ “high-performance culture.”
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