Case Studies

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Met Life

One of the leading life insurance companies in the United States used TeamBuilders WorldWide to help in their growth and shift to becoming a publicly held company. The cultural shift for their employees is huge with MetLife’s' strong history.

Profile

Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (MetLife) and its affiliates offer life, non-medical health, and property and casualty insurance as well as savings, retirement and other financial products and services for individuals and institutions. It is one of the oldest and largest insurance companies in the U.S. MetLife has approximately 45,000 associates and 37 million, count them, 37 million customers WorldWide.

Initiative

MetLife, Inc. (Metropolitan Life Insurance Company) has approximately $1.7 trillion of life insurance in force with international insurance operations in ten counties. MetLife has been a mutual company since its inception in 1863, but since April 7, 2000 it has de-mutualized and became the seventh largest IPO ever held in the United States. These changes require the CCD to adapt to new systems and technology. Traditionally the CCD has been a “ready…aim, aim, aim, fire” risk-averse culture. The CCD has identified seven Critical Success Factors that are crucial and mandatory to its success:

Learning
Problem Solving
Communication
Leadership
Change Capacity
Culture
Performance Management

Obviously there is a lot of change needed internally to make this transition, but none more so than for the Corporate Controller Department known as CCD. Among other things these changes require the CCD to adopt new systems and new technology. The culture within this area tended to be one of "Ready, Aim, Aim, Aim, Fire." The tradition of this risk adverse culture created some challenges between the two-year and the 20-year employees. If each group could trust and effectively communicate with the other, they could realize, capitalize and benefit from each other's strengths and talents.

Seven Critical Success Factors were identified for this six-unit team, which included 225 participants including Senior Management, Budget and Expense Management, Accounting, Financial Reporting, Treasury and Investments. Originally TeamBuilders WorldWide designed a series of three action based team development sessions, which included ground level, mid-level activities and high-level challenges at one of our Outdoor Learning Centers in Florida. The Corporate Controller Department of MetLife has partnered with TeamBuilders WorldWide for three years now and we are very proud to be assisting them with our third Team Jump-Start session. The CCD consists of six units:

Senior Management, administration and leadership
Budget & Expense Management, budget reporting
Accounting, cash reconciliation, corporate ledger, billing
Financial Reporting, consolidated financial statements, regularity
Treasury, check writing
Investment, real-estate, securities

Objectives

Build on a sense of community and cohesive membership.
Break down walls that may impede communication, seeking and sharing information.
Surface and build on issues of collaboration and cohesiveness.
Experience and practice opportunities for leadership skills and attributes.
Create awareness, understanding and applications for the insights from the day as a jumpstart for their new careers at Met.
Positively deal with issues of trust and respect.
Enhance abilities to react to change
Promote risk taking.
Have fun, lots of it!

Results

The Corporate Controller Department of MetLife has partnered with TeamBuilders WorldWide for the past three years now and we are very proud to be discussing further performance development programs. Employee appreciation has been outstanding as new members of the MetLife team are integrated immediately into the culture, goals and expectations that await them.