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Holding company Conseco buys small life insurance and annuity companies and - by cutting their costs and streamlining their operations - turns them into moneymakers. Conseco operations today include life and supplemental insurance, annuities, mortgages, and finance. Former Aetna Insurance executive Stephen Hilbert, believing that the insurance industry was plagued by rampant inefficiency, founded the company in 1979. Conseco was so successful initially that it even started a subsidiary to invest in non-insurance companies. However, Conseco suffered a well-publicized setback when it failed in its bid to purchase Kemper. It also lost a large amount of money when a restaurant in which it had invested never opened. The company briefly rebounded by acquiring Indiana racetrack and riverboat gambling operations, as well as by buying several small insurance companies. Green Tree: the bane of Conseco One can largely attribute Conseco's current struggles to its ill-fated decision to purchase Green Tree Financial Services Corp. By acquiring the company, former CEO Hilbert not only severely overpaid, but he also overreached Conseco's resources; the insurance company had neither the expertise nor the adequate resources necessary to expand into finance. After the 1998 deal, Conseco stock dropped dramatically, and the company still has not recovered. Consequently, the company has decided to sell the troublesome finance unit. Lehman Brothers Holding Inc. reportedly will offer $3 billion for the unit that Conseco had bought for $6 billion. Furthermore, Hilbert's arrogance, lavish lifestyle, and refusal to admit that he had made a mistake by acquiring Green Tree, exacerbated the company's struggles. In April 2000, after the announcement of dismal first quarter results, Hilbert resigned with a severance in excess of $72 million. Hard times at Conseco The Green Tree disaster has had dire consequences for Conseco. The company's stock has performed extremely poorly due to disappointing financial reports, to the company's reduction by $350 million of previously released earnings, and to delays in the sale of Green Tree. The company's policyholders are not expected to lose money, however, because Conseco's insurance subsidiaries remain successful. Just when it seemed that matters could get no worse for Conseco, summer 2000 saw disgruntled investors file over 20 lawsuits. The suits claimed that Hilbert and former CFO Rollin M. Dick misled shareholders by issuing false reports. An end to the suffering may be on the horizon, however; financier Irwin Jacobs has reportedly begun to form a group of investors to acquire all of Conseco except the money-pit Green Tree. Seeking new leadership, Conseco hired former General Electric Co. executive Gary C. Wendt as CEO and chairman in July.
Conseco lists its job openings by category on its web site, located at www.conseco.com. Applicants can submit their resumes via regular mail, fax, or e-mail. Most jobs are in Conseco's suburban Indianapolis or downtown Chicago offices.
Charging ahead Conseco's corporate operations offer advancement opportunities that cannot be beat as well as a robust pay scale. Employees like the aggressive, entrepreneurial climate, describing the atmosphere as "very fast paced" and claiming that Conseco is "not a company for wimpy personalities that have opinions." Many say that their supervisors have taken pains to help them improve their career prospects. One insider praised the company's free on-site MBA program. "They bring in professors from Indiana State University and over the course of three years you can earn an MBA in the evenings." The business casual dress code contributes to an open, interactive environment that fosters intra-office communication.
Dennis J. Dunlap Human Resources
Annuities;Life Insurance;Mortgage Services;Supplemental Health Insurance
MetLife;New York Life;Prudential;Allstate More Company Profiles For more career information, go to Vault.com ©2000, Vault.com Inc
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