Deals & People July 28, 2010

AUL Hires Regional Sales Director in Florida

American United Life Insurance Company (AUL), a OneAmerica company, has appointed James Gilligan to the position of regional sales director in the Orlando, Florida-based regional retirement services office.
Reported by

Under the direction of Vice President of Sales Mark Glavin, Gilligan will provide sales and product support to financial professionals in Florida who sell 401(k) and 403(b) products and services to their clients.  

According to a press release, with nearly 20 years of experience in the retirement services industry, Gilligan most recently served as a managing director for MassMutual Financial Group. He began his career as an institutional sales executive for the Vanguard Group then joined CBIZ Benefits and Insurance Services in 2000 as a senior retirement plan sales consultant. In 2002, Gilligan was named a regional director with The Newport Group.  

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Deals & People July 28, 2010

Putnam New Hire to Drive New Generation of Investment Products

Putnam Investments has hired a recognized academic to help drive development of a new generation of investment products aimed at mitigating investment risk factors.
Reported by

 W. Van Harlow has been named Director, Investment Retirement Solutions, responsible for creating products and services that seek to address key investment goals while simultaneously reducing the impact of cost and risk — such as volatility, inflation and longevity — on eventual outcomes, according to a Putnam news release. Harlow, who has been serving in a consulting role with Putnam, will report to Jeffrey L. Knight, Head of Global Asset Allocation, and also work closely with the firm’s Head of Marketing, Products and Retirement, Jeffrey R. Carney.    

Harlow will also be focused on the development of asset allocation tools and planning methodologies used by financial advisers, consultants and plan sponsors in the retirement and institutional markets.   

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The news release said Harlow’s statistical analysis and research played a key role in the firm’s creation of its Lifetime Income Analysis Tool and in the methodology that led to the incorporation of absolute return investment strategies into the company’s RetirementReady lifecycle funds.     

Prior to serving as a financial consultant, Harlow held a number of senior positions with Fidelity Investments from 1991 to 2008, including serving as Managing Director of the Fidelity Research Institute, Managing Director of Strategic New Business Development and President and Chief Investment Officer of Fidelity Asset Management Services. Before joining Fidelity, Harlow was a vice president at Salomon Brothers Inc., where he was responsible for quantitative investment and trading strategies. Previously, he taught at the University of Texas and the University of Arizona from 1984 to 1989.  

Harlow received a B.A. degree in physics and mathematical science from Rice University and an MBA and a Ph.D. in financial economics from the University of Texas (Austin). 

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