Profiles in Business: Luther "Fred" Hackett

Vermont Business Magazine, Aug 01, 2003 by Marcel, Joyce

If he were on basketball team, and he played for Vermont, he'd be the captain and the "go-to guy" when the game was on the line. Not a flashy player, but the player in whom all his teammates had confidence, who had confidence in himself and his abilities, to make the big shot. To lead the team to victory.

But Vermont is a state, not a basketball team. And Luther Frederick Hackett, 70 and universally known as Fred, is a conservative, pro-business Republican insurance man and sixth-generation Vermonter who has been the ultimate inside player in Vermont's political and business establishments - often the same thing for more than 30 years.

Hackett's resume reads like a history of Vermont, and his influence shows no signs of waning. He is currently serving on Governor James Douglas's Governor's Council of Economic Advisors, which makes Douglas the fourth governor Hackett has served in that capacity.

And when Douglas recently picked a panel of what he called "the best minds from outside state government" for a new Vermont Commission on Government Efficiency, it came as no surprise that he put Hackett on the panel.

"I organized this commission to give the taxpayers a bigger bang for their buck," Douglas said. "Fred's long experience in business and government service will be helpful there."

When Douglas was Vermont State Treasurer, he often sought out Hackett's services.

"I called upon Fred to meet with representatives of Wall Street rating firms a number of times," Douglas said. "He's a very articulate spokesperson for the state and gives a very credible presentation of our economic fiscal situation. He's been successful in business and government. He's been tireless in his commitment to the community. He cares deeply about Vermont and its future. I feel lucky he's willing to sign on to several assignments that I've offered him. He's completely dedicated to our state. He's a great guy."

Chairing the new efficiency board will be Hackett's long-time friend David Coats, a former partner in KPMG, a lead director of National Life, and currently the executive vice president and acting CEO of the New England Culinary Institute.

Coats, a Democrat who served on the Governor's Council with Hackett during the administration of former governor and current Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean, calls Hackett "a brilliant man."

"Fred is one of these guys that likes to plant acorns," Coats said. "Good things take time, and he knows that. The Vermont Technology Council, which is up and going right now? This was Fred's idea many, many years ago. It's all about technology transfer and using that in a positive economic way for the state. Fred can recruit me for anything just because I admire him so much."

Hackett had a more public career in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He was first elected to the Vermont House of Representatives in 1965. By 1967 he was on the powerful Appropriations Committee, and by 1969 he was its chairman. By then he was also serving as Republican Majority Leader. But in 1972 he ran unsuccessfully for governor, splitting his party in a bitter primary fight, beating now-US Senator James Jeffords (I-VT) and then losing, along with a young Bernie Sanders, to Democrat Thomas Salmon. After that Hackett retired behind the scenes, where he has remained ever since.

He began serving on the powerful Governor's Council of Economic Advisors with Deane C Davis (1969-1973). After Salmon's tenure, he came back to the council at the request of Richard Snelling (1977-1985; Hackett was chairman of the council from 1977 to 1984). He skipped over Madeline Kunin's Democratic administration (1985-1991), joined again as chairman with Snelling in 1991, and, after the governor's untimely death, served under Dean (1991-2000) and now Douglas.

Hackett was chairman of Banknorth Group, Inc from 1989 to 1998 and only retired from the board last April. He was chairman of the Vermont Technology Council from 1992 to 1997. He has been on a host of other boards and won many awards, including, in 1979, an honorary law degree from his alma mater, the University of Vermont. He graduated from there in 1955, served it as trustee

from 1986 to 1994, and was chairman of its board from 1991 to 1993.

He remains chairman of the Vermont Electric Power Company, Inc, the Vermont Electric Transmission Company, Inc, and has been on the board of Central Vermont Public Service since 1979. He is also a director of the Catamount Energy Corp, a CVPS subsidiary dealing with wind power. Hackett's business, however, is not electricity or government. It's insurance.

Until June 30, when he experienced what he calls "a change of status," he was chairman and president of the extremely successful Burlington risk management and insurance company known as Hackett Valine & MacDonald, Inc. He was also chairman and CEO of Hackett & Co, an employee benefits and retirement planning firm, chairman and CEO of Yankee Captive Management, Inc, which specializes in the formation and management of Vermont-based captive insurance companies, and chairman and CEO of HVM Corp, the family holding company.