#2 at the world's largest retirement fund: TIAA-CREF President Tom Jones is poised to join corporate America's elite club of chief executives - Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association-College Retirement Equities Fund - includes biographical information

Black Enterprise, June, 1994 by Caroline V. Clarke

Fletcher "Flash" Wiley, senior partner at the Boston law firm of Goldstein & Manello P.C. and a close friend of Jones' since their days together at ABT, explains his low-key ascension this way: "Where some rise in the business world by being in the center of the social swirl and doing a lot of back slapping, Tom's TCB all the way--taking care of business."

THE ULTIMATE AMBASSADOR

Since becoming TIAA-CREF president in 1993, Jones has turned his attention to getting the same high marks for the company's products and services as he secured for its financial quality and strength. That requires empowering TIAA-CREF's rank and file to develop and deliver products and services competitive with the big guns in mutual funds and insurance. These competitors are already attracting retirement dollars from such institutions as University of Southern California and Duke.

The problem? The strength and stability of these TIAA-CREF funds are their prime weaknesses. Although CREF outperforms most mutual funds (its size keeps expenses low, and Biggs and Jones have put a lid on expenses to keep them that way), the myriad investment choices of the better-known funds are appealing. On the flip side, the inflexibility of TIAA's withdrawal policy may be great to invest in jumbo mortgages (it put up the $625 million mortgage on Minnesota's Mall of America), but individuals want more access to their money.

Such is the charge of the company's year-old Service Council, which was developed and is led by Jones. Also reporting to him are pension and annuity services, insurance services, finance and planning, operations support and incidentals, such as the office of the ombudsman.

Jones and CEO Biggs have transformed the company culture into one that is perceived as more open, progressive and democratic than before. Wharton "was a tremendous ambassador for us," explains Thom Williams, who was recently promoted to vice president and manager of a new Denver-based customer center for the western region. "Jones and Biggs have turned much of those ambassadorial impulses inward to great benefit."

Although TIAA-CREF's senior management team is committed to the development of its staffers, glass ceiling issues are becoming more of a reality. Highly-trained younger professionals are often frustrated by middle-level managers who have settled comfortably into their positions. Says one staffer, "Firing is unheard of in this ivory tower, paternalistic culture."

On the other hand, it was this team under the direction of Wharton that has pushed for an enhanced level of diversity throughout the company's ranks. TIAA-CREF also has a procurement program, started under Wharton, that identifies and develops business relationships with minority vendors, contractors and consultancies. There is a similar banking policy as well.

The way Jones sees it, TIAA-CREF's future--and his own over the next decade--lies in renewing and sustaining what's been built so far. "It's the challenge of avoiding complacency," says Gibbs, who serves on several corporate boards. "Look at the GM story, the IBM story, the Kodak story and, to some extent, the Amex story. These are all companies that were once dominant that have found themselves forced to restructure because they've been passed by. Some of the most dangerous moments are at the very pinnacle of success because you face the challenge of not taking for granted what got you there."