Ryan, Arthur F. 1942–

International Directory of Business Biographies, (2005) by Ed Dinger

Arthur F. Ryan 1942–

Chief executive officer and chairman, Prudential Financial

Nationality: American.

Born: 1942, in Brooklyn, New York.

Education: Providence College, BA, 1963.

Family: Married Patricia (maiden name unknown; community activist); children: four.

Career: Control Data Corporation, 1965–1972, various positions; Chase Manhattan Bank, 1972–1975, project manager, data processing; 1975–1976, securities processing; 1976–1978, head of securities processing; 1978–1982, oversaw domestic wholesale operations; 1982–1984, head of bank's systems worldwide; 1984–1985, executive vice president, worldwide retail-banking operations; 1985–1990, vice chairman, retail banking; 1990–1994, president and chief operating officer; Prudential Insurance Company of America, 1994–2001, chief executive officer and chairman; Prudential Financial, 2001–, chief executive officer and chairman.

Awards: National Alumni Personal Achievement Award, 75th Anniversary Alumni Services Award, and the Diamond Anniversary Award, Providence College.

Address: Prudential Financial, 751 Broad Street, Newark, New Jersey 07102-3777; http://www.prudential.com.

■ As the first outsider to be named chief executive officer (CEO) and chairman of Prudential Insurance Company of America, Arthur F. Ryan took charge at a time of turmoil. He oversaw the conversion of the company from a mutual form of ownership, in which policyholders owned the insurer, to stock ownership, resulting in the publicly traded Prudential Financial, which gained a listing on the New York Stock Exchange in 2001. Although regarded as unpretentious and possessing a warm and friendly manner, Ryan was also known for his tough management style. While serving as president of Chase Manhattan Bank he earned the nickname "the gorilla." His technology background (he began in Chase's data-processing department) was also seemingly at odds with his people-oriented approach to business. Ryan devoted a good deal of time to charitable works while at Prudential, as the company donated millions of dollars to support the arts and educational activities in its home state of New Jersey. Ryan regarded many of these public works as simply good business, thereby demonstrating his ability to balance the hard-nosed and amiable sides of his personality. If he had not become a chief executive at a major corporation, Ryan claimed he would have become a teacher.

BROOKLYN BORN, LONG ISLAND RAISED

THOMAS LABRECQUE: A CAREER CATALYST

Ryan began his career at Chase as a project manager in the data-processing division and soon began ascending the ranks of the institution. In 1975 he was put in charge of securities processing, and a year later became head of the entire securities processing business. Ryan received a major career break in 1978 when a treasury department executive, Thomas G. Labrecque, recognized his potential and promoted the relatively obscure Ryan to oversee all of the bank's domestic wholesale operations, including check processing, wire transfers, and trust and securities services. More importantly, Ryan formed a close bond with Labrecque, who in 1980 became a surprise choice for president at Chase. Ryan reported directly to Labrecque for the rest of his tenure at the bank. The two men formed a good team, possessing complimentary abilities. Labrecque was described as aloof and "pedigreed," a far cry from the rolled-up-sleeves, straight-talking approach of Ryan.

In 1979 Ryan was appointed to the bank's policy and planning committee, which was composed of 17 top executives who met on a quarterly basis to determine bank policy. In 1982 Labrecque expanded Ryan's job, giving him overview responsibilities for all of the bank's systems worldwide, including those employed by retail operations. The experience he gained on the retail side would be put to good use two years later. In 1984 Chase's consumer-banking business was reorganized, and Ryan was installed as its head with the title of executive vice president, responsible for retail-banking operations around the world. A year later he became a vice chairman. For the personable and down-to-earth Ryan, the move into the consumer area was a welcome change, allowing him to put his own experience as a consumer to good use in determining new product lines. "It's always nice to be in a business where you're one of them," he told American Banker in a 1990 profile. The consumer bank performed well under his leadership, enjoying a compound growth rate of 24 percent over the next four years. Ryan gave much of the credit for the operation's success to the decision of Labrecque and chairman Willard C. Butcher in the late 1970s to aggressively pursue the retail business, at a time "when it wasn't a very popular choice to make." Ryan went on to tell American Banker , "I had the opportunity to demonstrate that if we had the resources and spent them wisely, we could really do something."