Charles P. Nelson Joins Voya Financial As CEO Of Retirement

NEW YORK, April 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA), announced today that Charles P. Nelson, 54, will join the company as chief executive officer (CEO) of Retirement on May 1, 2015.  In this role, Nelson will oversee Tax-Exempt and Corporate Markets and Retail Wealth Management, which comprise the company's workplace and individual retirement businesses, including 401(k), 403(b) and 457 plans, and IRAs.  He will report to Alain Karaoglan, Voya Financial's chief operating officer (COO), and join the company's Executive Committee.  In 2014, Voya's Retirement segment accounted for approximately 40% of the company's operating earnings.

Nelson comes to Voya Financial with more than 30 years of leadership experience in the retirement industry.  He was president of Retirement Services for Great-West through September 2014 and most recently led the legacy retirement business of Great-West in Empower Retirement, a business unit of Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company.

"We are pleased to announce that Charlie is joining Voya to lead Retirement," said Rodney O. Martin, Jr., chairman and CEO, Voya Financial, Inc. "Charlie's track record of developing and executing profitable growth strategies for retirement businesses – while optimizing return on equity – is reflected in his well-respected standing in our industry.  He will be a great addition to our executive team as we continue to focus on achieving our vision to be America's Retirement Company^TM."

During his career, Nelson has managed all aspects of defined contribution and defined benefit businesses.  He has overseen government, healthcare, nonprofit, 401(k) and FASCore institutional lines of business, while also managing recordkeeping, administration, operations, sales, products, financial results and broker-dealer services.

"The exciting transformation that's taken place at Voya was a key driver in my decision.  I'm delighted to join the Voya team," said Nelson.  "I look forward to contributing to Voya's continued success – leveraging its strong financial profile with a focus on long-term value creation by delivering unique customer experiences integrated with a set of holistic solutions designed to enhance participant retirement income."

Carolyn Johnson, president of Tax-Exempt Markets; Richard Linton, president of Large Corporate Markets and Retail Wealth Management; and Richard Mason, president of Small/Mid Corporate and Institutional Investment Markets; will report to Nelson.

In support of Voya Financial's customer-centric growth strategy – emphasizing next-generation customer experiences and solutions – the company's Investment Management and Retirement businesses will become more closely aligned, with Karaoglan serving as CEO of Retirement and Investment Solutions, in addition to his COO responsibilities.  Jeffrey Becker, CEO of Voya Investment Management will continue to report to Karaoglan.  Johnson will also report to Karaoglan in her role as president of Annuities.

"As we shared during our earnings announcement in February, we are making strategic investments in several areas, such as digital and analytics capabilities and a cross-enterprise strategy, to support our growth efforts and increase our competitiveness," said Karaoglan.  "Bringing an industry leader like Charlie onto our team, coupled with our investments in technology – and our ongoing efforts to continually enhance the experience of our customers, at every touch point – will sharpen our customer-centric focus, as we more closely align Retirement and Investment Management."