Reid joins the company from Versant Health, bringing 30+ years of industry experience
Lincoln also names internal leader Ralph Ferraro to head its Retirement business, reporting to Reid.
Lincoln Financial Group announced that James Reid will be joining the company in August as Executive Vice President, Head of Workplace Solutions, to lead the organization’s Group Benefits and Retirement Plan Services businesses. Reid will report to President and CEO Ellen Cooper, and will be a member of the company’s Senior Management Committee.
As the Head of Workplace Solutions, Reid will be responsible for the strategy and executive leadership of these two core business lines for Lincoln, which offer a variety of products and services to employers and their employees — including financial protection solutions such as life, disability and supplemental health products, retirement savings solutions such as employer-sponsored retirement plans, in-plan guaranteed income and stable value solutions, and holistic financial wellness offerings. Continuing to align these two employer-focused businesses under one leader will enable Lincoln’s Workplace Solutions team to collaborate, leverage best practices, and further build its robust portfolio of employee benefit solutions.
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Reid comes to Lincoln from Versant Health, a subsidiary of MetLife, where he served as President and Chief Executive Officer. Prior to leading Versant, he held several senior leadership roles at MetLife for the past decade, most recently as Executive Vice President and Head of Global Employee Benefits. He has been in the industry for 30+ years and has broad and deep leadership experience in worksite-focused businesses, across many functions including product strategy and development, underwriting, distribution, customer service, claims and operations.
“James is incredibly seasoned with deep industry knowledge – he is an ideal leader to guide these businesses to foster growth and innovation for our employer clients and their employees, as we continue to build a superior and unique customer experience,” said Cooper. “Continuing to align these two employer-focused businesses will enable strong collaboration and will position us well to further build our portfolio of group benefits and retirement solutions and our robust suite of financial wellness offerings.”
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Additionally, Ralph Ferraro will be stepping into an expanded role at Lincoln Financial as Senior Vice President and Head of Retirement Plan Services, reporting to Reid. This new role enables one leader to focus holistically, end-to-end, on the company’s Retirement business. Ferraro joined Lincoln Financial in 2016 as Head of Retirement Product Solutions, and in 2021, he took on a combined leadership role in the Workplace Solutions organization with additional leadership of the company’s Group Benefits Product and Underwriting functions. Ferraro has more than 25 years of industry experience, and prior to Lincoln Financial, he held leadership positions at Voya Financial and CitiStreet.
“Ralph’s knowledge and experience in the retirement space is unmatched, and he is a proven leader,” said Cooper. “I’m confident that under Ralph’s leadership, our Retirement business will continue to build upon our differentiating high-tech, high-touch model and deliver innovative solutions and outstanding service experiences to our employer clients and their employees.”
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