Northwestern Mutual’s next CEO gets it: Schlifske’s mandate: Keep doing the right thing, don’t mess with success [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel]

May 30--With the company he's poised to run already financially sound and top-rated in its industry, John E. Schlifske knows there's no need to come in and shake things up.

"I view my emergence as the new CEO as just another chapter in the same book," said Schlifske, who officially was elected last week to succeed Edward J. Zore as chief executive of Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. on July 1.

Schlifske said there are some things you just don't tinker with at a firm like Northwestern Mutual, such as the company's collaborative "do the right thing" culture and its goal of staying at the pinnacle of the insurance industry. As chief executive, he said, his job will be to make sure important philosophies like that always remain priorities.

But at the same time, he said, you never stop investing in the company's future.

That means spending more on developing the field force -- the front-line agents and representatives who sell Northwestern Mutual insurance policies and products. It means always finding better ways to communicate with and provide service to customers. It means telling the company's story more widely through new marketing efforts.

The challenge, in the end, is to capitalize on what the 153-year-old company has been doing right for so long, said Schlifske, who also will assume the role of chairman from Zore on Aug. 1.

"The single biggest thing I worry about is this notion that we're the best company in the industry -- we're a world-class company -- and how do we stay there year after year after year after year," he said.

As top boss, Schlifske said, people can expect him to reflect some of the management style of Zore, with whom he has worked directly or indirectly since joining Northwestern Mutual as an investment specialist in 1987.

Zore, whose retirement at age 65 this summer is required by company rules for CEOs, has been a plain-speaking top executive who's not afraid to answer questions and offer honest analysis. Schlifske calls it "transparency."

"Ed has taught not just me, but all of us, the power of being transparent," Schlifske said.

The power, he explained, is that when people or agencies -- whether they are the media, rating agencies, employees -- see an executive who is vulnerable enough to admit a mistake or just speak truthfully "in this world where nobody wants to admit they ever did anything wrong," a good relationship develops.

Schlifske said he also will practice another Zore managerial trait, which Schlifske terms "immediate forgiveness." If someone makes a mistake or doesn't handle a situation well, Zore will straightforwardly point it out. But as soon as the talk is finished, it's forgotten and you move on, Schlifske said.

"As long as you listen to his criticism, which is always constructive, and act on it, he never holds it against you," Schlifske said. "I really view that as an incredible leadership opportunity for me because you really want to coach people. You don't want to punish people."

Homegrown talent

Schlifske, 51, who grew up in Shorewood and worked for a New York-based insurer with offices in Chicago before coming home to Northwestern Mutual, has been in the firm's succession plan for years. Grooming homegrown talent is another Zore priority that Schlifske said he'll continue.

In 2008, Schlifske was made president and CEO of Russell Investments, a Tacoma, Wash., subsidiary of Northwestern Mutual. He served in that role during a tough period for financial markets, learning what it was like to be chief executive. He said it helped reinforce the value of having a "high-functioning team" of managers to run a company.

"While I was there I felt really proud of the way we put in place a high-functioning team at Russell, which has since evolved even further and is executing quite well since I left," Schlifske said.

Northwestern Mutual is considered by many to be the flagship firm on Milwaukee's civic and charitable scene, and that won't change with him in charge, he said. While the firm will continue to support many causes -- Northwestern Mutual's senior managers all are involved in volunteer work, he said -- it probably will become evident that he and his wife, Kim, have a particular interest in literacy and health care for youths in metro Milwaukee.

"I think we've got a big issue here around education, especially within the city limits," Schlifske said.

While chairman of the Milwaukee Public Museum Board from 2005 to 2007, he helped the museum recover from a severe financial crisis. Schlifske took on a leadership role at the museum's "darkest hour," said Milwaukee County Supervisor James "Luigi" Schmitt, who is a member of the museum board.

"He was steady as a rock and very focused. He put in a tremendous amount of hours at a very difficult time," Schmitt said.

Richard Meeusen, president and CEO of Badger Meter Inc. and current chairman of the museum board, said Schlifske "is involved in a lot of things in the community and he's done a great job on all of them."

"Clearly, John is emerging as one of the major leaders, the major players in the Milwaukee business community, and he's also stepping up in a lot of the nonprofit roles that are so important to the community," Meeusen said.

A fan of Milwaukee

Schlifske, who was a college intern at Northwestern Mutual, always has had an affinity for Milwaukee.

"At the end of the day, Milwaukee is an incredibly cool community to live in," he said. "Sometimes we have trouble attracting people to Milwaukee who haven't lived here before, but once they're here, they love it. I think that's a huge endorsement of the quality of the community."

Schlifske doesn't have a lot of free time at the moment, but when he gets the chance, he said he likes to golf. However, he and his wife have six children ages 4 to 21, so most of their recreational time is spent together as a family at their vacation home on a lake in northern Wisconsin, he said.

Asked what he would hope to be remembered for when his time to retire comes, Schlifske said: leaving the company in better shape than when he started; maintaining its level of excellence; continuing to nurture leadership from within; and preserving the culture.

"If somebody wrote when I'm gone that I did those four things, I would really be happy," Schlifske said.

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