Hitting the accelerator on annuities — With Jackson National’s Alison Reed

“I was finishing my last two quarters of graduate school, and I needed an internship. I applied and got an internship at Jackson.” That opportunity began a 23-year trajectory that eventually led to Alison Reed’s becoming chief operating officer of Jackson National Life Distributors — Jackson’s marketing and distribution business — and then, in December 2024, chief product development and strategy execution officer.

In her new position, Reed is leading the way for one of the industry’s top annuity sellers to develop new products, product strategy and cutting-edge technology. “At Jackson, we fully believe in freedom of choice,” Reed said, adding, “and the product solutions are not one size fits all ... so the consumer is getting exactly what they need at that right level of cost.”

In this interview with InsuranceNewsNet Publisher Paul Feldman, Reed discusses her unique path at Jackson and what she hopes to accomplish in the future.

Paul Feldman: Congratulations on the new position as chief product development and strategy execution officer. Can you tell me a little bit more about what you plan to do in that position and what you want to accomplish?

Alison Reed: I can start by giving maybe a little background on my career progression at Jackson into this position, and then also take a little deeper dive into the position and my responsibilities. I have a unique background at Jackson, where I started in 2002 as an intern. That was 23 years ago.

I’ve grown through multiple roles into senior-level management positions and now as chief product development and strategy execution officer. Throughout my career at Jackson, I’ve generally had some level of participation in Jackson’s product portfolio. But as Jackson became an independent company in 2021, the focus on strategy has become more important and critical to the organization.

Within this role, I oversee Jackson’s product solutions group. That includes our product strategy team. The product strategy team also covers competitive insights and intelligence of the industry and other carriers. That team also oversees the product management team, which is handling our existing product portfolio.

Within that team, they manage our existing portfolio as well as enhancements and changes to any of our existing products on the platform, both currently marketed and nonmarketed products. That team also is responsible for all product illustrations.

The other team I oversee is called distribution technology and execution. That team is responsible for all our product launches, bringing the products to market once they have been approved by Jackson’s product development working group. This team also is in charge of our distribution technology portfolio. They ensure that all the technological needs are met for our wholesalers, internal and external, and make sure we’re most efficient and effective in the field through use of technology.

Feldman: Tell me how you got into the business in the first place. This started as an internship. At the time, did you think this would become your long-term career?

Reed: Definitely not — I didn’t foresee it. Jackson is a company of growth and innovation, which excited me. I have been touching product throughout my term at Jackson. I started in more of a due diligence role for the company and their broker-dealer network, reviewing and approving products for sale by their financial advisors. And that eventually expanded into becoming the manager of the variable annuity product portfolio.

That was in 2008, which was a very interesting time in the market, going into 2009 with the financial crisis. But from there, I realized Jackson had priced the products the right way. They had a disciplined approach, and we came out on the other side of the financial crisis as a leader in the industry and the annuity industry.

Jackson has just been a great company to work for in terms of their support, the stretch opportunities that they’ve provided me, not only in product and strategy areas but also other areas of the company, as well as support through any life changes that have occurred for me in my 23 years with the company.

I serve and participate in a Jackson mentorship program for associates. I also am a leader of the Empower Business Resource Associate group, which is a group focused on women in business and women specifically at Jackson in the growth stage of their careers. I participate in career pathing and career workshops for our associates as well. So I certainly try to give back to all the associates at Jackson based on my unique career and progression that I’ve been fortunate to have in the firm.

Feldman: It sounds like an amazing journey. What do you hope to accomplish going forward? 

Reed: There are a few things that we want to focus on in the future for Jackson. One is to speed up our work with our current products and channels. We have a diversified product portfolio, and we continue to want to grow in those products. We also want to do more in our current partnerships.

Jackson primarily distributes through their traditional broker-dealer channel. However, we are expanding into the registered investment advisor channel as well. And in December 2024, we announced a partnership with Chase in which we will distribute our RILA product going forward.

Another big aspect of my role is continuing to diversify our product portfolio, as well as new relationships and other channels. With new product opportunities, we want to continue to expand into the defined contribution space and codevelop with different plan sponsors or asset managers and bring protected retirement solutions to market, whether they are in-plan solutions or out-of-plan solutions.

We’re also researching the contingent deferred annuity area, which is essentially a stand-alone benefit guarantee. It’s unbundling traditional VA with living benefits and focusing on that income solution as a wrapper for more traditional investment options.

And then the final area with my role is in technology — digital transformation and making the overall experience for advisors and consumers more seamless and integrated.

Feldman: Let’s go back to the defined benefits area because we’re hearing a lot about that. Can you talk about why it’s such an important area to expand into at this point?

Reed: A couple of reasons. I think what’s really opened the door is SECURE 2.0. That certainly opened the door for broader conversations.

Jackson has a lot of great partnerships through our variable annuity products with a lot of asset managers that are interested in expanding into this space. So with their expertise and our expertise and protected retirement solutions, it makes for a natural partnership.

At the same time, we’ve also seen the number of people with pension plans — defined benefit plans — decrease significantly. There’s also uncertainty about Social Security and having that as an income stream in retirement. So being able to partner to provide some sort of guaranteed income stream in retirement for plan participants is so critical for the industry going forward. And we feel there’s a lot of opportunity, both in plan and out of plan for different rollover solutions too.

Feldman: Jackson has made a big pivot into registered index-linked annuities, which is another hot area. Could you tell me about where you hope to take that product line?

Reed: Jackson launched its first RILA product in 2021. Since then, we’ve had two successful product launches in RILA and now are offering Market Link Pro II, which is our product in the industry.

As of third quarter of 2024, we were a top 5 player in the industry, and RILA is approaching about a third of our product portfolio. So, it’s been very successful, and I attribute that to a few things. One, the uniqueness of our product offering. We have several unique features when compared to other products in the industry, including a unique crediting methodology. We also provide choice for the consumer in offering three different terms, five different index options and different crediting methods as well.

We’ve also come to market with an award-winning digital marketing tool that allows advisors to easily illustrate some of the outcomes with our RILA product solution. When you combine that with our large distribution force and relationships in the industry, the combination of all of that has resulted in a lot of great success for Jackson and the RILA product.

In addition, we launched a living benefit guarantee on our RILA product in the fall of 2024. This is an optional benefit. It can be elected after issue, which is unique to the industry. We also were able to expand our RILA offering in the state of New York. New York had some regulations that prevented many carriers from entering that state. We were able to expand, and we have seen a lot of success with our product offering in the state of New York. 

Feldman: Customization and offering all these options and riders are very important now for consumers. Why are these gaining such importance?

Reed: At Jackson, we fully believe in freedom of choice. And the product solutions are not one size fits all. We offer choice — whether it’s in living benefit features, index options, fund options on our VA — and then offer that at a corresponding charge. So the consumer is getting exactly what they need at that right level of cost.

Feldman: Let’s talk about annuities and their importance in the current landscape. We have about 10,000 Americans hitting age 65 every day. People are living longer and worried about having their assets last. Add to that fluctuating interest rates and the inflation threat.  Where do you see the annuity market going, and how is Jackson adapting?

Reed: The trend in the industry has been growth. It has been record growth. 

That’s being driven by spread product offerings with fixed indexed annuity and fixed annuity as well as RILA growth. But we also saw trends last year with month-over-month growth in traditional variable annuities as well, which I think is a positive sign given the market environment. At Jackson, we feel fortunate and excited to be a player in this growing industry environment with a lot of new and innovative solutions coming out across the marketplace.

It’s really diversity and choice for the advisor and the consumer. We offer traditional variable annuities. We’ve been a large player in that space. Our flagship product is called Perspective II. That product offers a very robust investment platform that isn’t restricted when a consumer elects a living benefit guarantee.

We feel that it’s very important to allow that growth. And to the point that consumers are feeling they’ve undersaved and are worried about retirement, we feel this variable annuity that offers access to investments that participate in the market and allows for growth is so important for that type of investor because it allows for step-ups and growth and guaranteed retirement income.

Within that product, too, we were the first to offer a living benefit guarantee, called FLEX DB, which offers both a guaranteed income solution as well as legacy protection. That’s been one of Jackson’s most popular living benefit guarantees. We believe that’s important for consumers who desire both income and legacy protection. And we also offer a unique flex net benefit that offers enhanced income and periods of market growth.

The product that we offer is an investment-only variable annuity called Elite Access. This product offers an even more robust investment platform of traditional and nontraditional investments, some of which are exclusive to Jackson. We have expanded this product into some protection options as well with an optional return of premium death benefit.

In the fall, we added a guaranteed minimum accumulation benefit, or a GMAB, called Principal Guard. That guarantees full principal protection over specified terms. With assets and volatility in the market, we believe this is a great solution for those consumers as well.

And then, of course, our RILA product too. It’s a great product for some upside potential but also offers partial downside protection through buffers and floors. It allows the consumer to participate in market upsides but also have some downside protection. And we believe it’s another good solution for advisors to discuss with their clients, based on their needs.

Feldman: I know that Jackson won some awards for its digital ecosystem. Could you talk about how important that type of functionality is and how important it is to your growth? 

Reed: Providing an end-to-end advisor and consumer experience has been an important strategic initiative for Jackson. We’ve invested a lot into that advisor experience and in adding digital tools for the advisors to access. It’s been important for our existing advisors, but it’s also been an important solution for attracting new advisors to Jackson.

The tools enable them to show some quick outcomes and they can quickly follow through with an introduction to a wholesaler, et cetera. So the full complete digital ecosystem has been such an important aspect of Jackson’s strategic growth, and it will continue to be an important focus for Jackson going forward.

Feldman: Is that your major focus for increasing distribution? What are the other areas for a distribution growth?

Reed: Certainly the digital ecosystem is a focus. I would also say our initiatives to diversify into new products and new channels are also areas of focus. We believe the advisory and the RIA channel are an opportunity for growth at Jackson. At Jackson, we offer advisory versions of our variable annuity product, our investment-only product, our RILA product and our FIA product.

We also offer a specific advisory solution for the RIA channel. So that is a big area of focus of growth, as we have seen more advisors transitioning from the traditional broker-dealer channel into the dually registered and then into the RIA channel. Supporting that advisor through that transition and journey through different product options is important for Jackson.

We also want to support advisors through better integration of annuity products into wealth management platforms. Part of the digital transformation strategic initiative for Jackson has been to enable us to better integrate annuity solutions into wealth management platforms — not only the product solutions, but also how we better integrate annuities as an option into financial planning and wealth planning tools so that an advisor can illustrate to consumers easily that a portfolio with an annuity can have a better end outcome than a portfolio without an annuity. So Jackson has taken a big leadership role in working with different fintech companies on helping to achieve those goals.

Feldman: Let’s talk about what you’re doing with mentoring women in the company. There aren’t a whole lot of women in this industry. It sounds like Jackson’s really focused on this. 

Reed: Jackson offers a lot of different career opportunities based on your career paths and objectives. For me personally, my journey has been more home office focused, as it allows me to stay closer to home, have a family and have a good work-life balance.

We have many female external wholesalers who have had very successful careers within Jackson, and we try to mentor newer female associates in the organization on different career path opportunities that they may want to explore based on their goals and objectives.

I am the executive sponsor of the Empower Network, which is what we call a BRAG, which is a Business Resource Associate Group within Jackson. We have many of these based on different desires of our associates. But it’s probably one of the largest organizations at Jackson that really focuses on women and bringing women together to talk about career opportunities. 

We just wrapped up our national sales meeting for all the distribution companies. We had some breakout sessions for wholesaling in terms of how certain women have made wholesaling work for their long-term career and balance that work-life family aspect as well.

Feldman: We see so much of the wealth in the country falling to women as they outlive their husbands.  How are you trying to make an impact with that demographic?

Reed: We do have some female-focused marketing campaigns that we leverage with certain advisor groups that want to expand their practice into focusing more on that female consumer given some of the dynamics that you mentioned. And that’s another reason why we feel some of the products that we offer — such as the variable annuity with lifetime income guarantees and the variable annuity with lifetime income plus legacy protection — are such important products. Women are outliving their husbands, and we are providing that comfort that they will have income for life and also some legacy protection that they can then pass it on to their beneficiaries.

Feldman: Jackson has award-winning illustration software. Illustrations have been a problem for a lot of carriers and regulators. How does the industry do a better job of illustrations?  

Reed: There are two aspects to this. We’ve seen a lot of success and continuing relationships into existing advisors as well as expanding into new advisors. They can see some outcomes and what the product can do. And Jackson’s working on expanding that, not only with RILAs, but also with our whole product portfolio.

An existing advisor or a new advisor can come in and answer some questions and then determine what product path they may want to explore based on certain needs of their consumers. In terms of actual product illustrations, which Jackson offers behind our login screen, those are much more in depth and take into account much more complex scenarios, where you can illustrate withdrawals, growth, different portfolios, hypotheticals, and it’s much more robust than some of these digital tools that we’ve introduced. Because of some of the challenges we’ve seen in the industry, we’ve taken a very conservative approach to the build-out of our illustration software.

We work closely with the regulators, specifically FINRA, in obtaining approvals for all our registered and nonregistered illustrations to make sure that we’re taking a balanced approach and illustrating these products to the consumer. They are complex, and we believe the consumer must understand the different and various outcomes that could play into those illustrations.

Jackson has taken a leadership role in working with industry groups to determine how we can improve the overall illustration experience for the end consumer, because there’s a point where it gets to be too much information for that consumer to digest. And we want to make sure that we’re providing that balanced view, but also not overstating or making things too complex so that it’s too much for them. That’s why I think digital tools that are more high level in nature have been such a success story for Jackson.

Feldman: What can we do as an industry to better educate on the importance of annuities — such as what portfolio outcomes are with annuities versus without annuities? There are some advisors who don’t necessarily believe in annuities. How can the industry address that?

Reed: I completely agree that education will be the key. I think annuities have had a stigma in the past that they’re too expensive, with high commissions, that they tend to lock up your money.

And I think the industry has changed significantly for the better in terms of flexibility of the products, lower costs of the products, providing unique features to that end consumer that traditional investments, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, et cetera cannot provide. Yet some advisors still do have some issues with the products. I think it’s up to Jackson and the industry to help better educate through our distribution partnerships but also through our asset management partners.

Because of Jackson’s large variable annuity block of business, we have lots of very strong relationships with top asset managers in the industry, whether it’s BlackRock or T. Rowe Price or American Funds. They, along with many other asset managers, have been very supportive in helping us to try to get that message out to advisors.

More of those asset managers are releasing their own independent studies on this aspect. And I think the more information about annuities that can come from others in the industry — not just annuity companies — the more open advisors who have not offered annuities in the past will be to seeing these products as solutions.

Paul Feldman started the website InsuranceNewsNet in 1999, followed by InsuranceNewsNet Magazine in 2008. Paul was a third-generation insurance agent before venturing into the media business. Paul won the 2012 Integrated Marketing Award (IMA) for Lead Gen Initiative for his Truth about Agent Recruiting video and was the runner-up for IMA's Marketer of the Year, a competition that includes consumer and B2B publishing companies. Find out more about Paul at www.paulfeldman.com.