Ramani Ayer

Ramani Ayer (born 27 May 1947 in Kerala, India) is an Indian-American business executive, and the CEO and chairman of The Hartford from 1997 to 2009.[1]

Ramani Ayer
Born27 May 1947
Kerala, India
EducationIndian Institute of Technology
Drexel University
EmployerThe Hartford
TitleCEO
Term1991–2009
PredecessorDonald R. Frahm
SuccessorLiam McGee
Board member ofAmerican Insurance Association
WebsiteThe Hartford

Education

Ayer earned his bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay in 1969 and his Masters and Ph.D. from Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1973.[2][3] Ayer has practiced Transcendental Meditation since the 1970s.[4]

Career

Ramani Ayer began working for The Hartford after receiving his Ph.D. in 1973.[5]

Ramani Ayer became vice president of HartRe, The Hartford's reinsurance subsidiary in 1983, president of Hartford Specialty Company in 1986, and senior vice president of The Hartford in 1989. He then became executive vice president of The Hartford in 1990, and president and COO of the company's property-casualty operations in 1991.[5] After being elected CEO in 1996, he took the office of chairman and CEO of The Hartford on 1 February 1997.[5][6]

In 2007, Ayer was one of three foreign-born Indian-origin executives to run a Fortune 100 company.[7]

In June 2009, after facing pressure from the company shareholders,[8] Ramani Ayer announced his retirement from The Hartford by the end of the year.[9] He stepped down as CEO on 1 October 2009.[10] He received a $39.9 million lump sum pension in 2010, a particular pension plan provided by Hartford.[11]

While CEO, Ayer served as a member of the Business Roundtable representing The Hartford. Ayer sit on the board of directors for the American Insurance Association and the Hartford Hospital while also serving as a trustee of the Connecticut Center for Science and Exploration.[5]

In 2011, Ramani Ayer was appointed to the board of directors of XL Group, a financial services company.[12]

Transcendental meditation

At the age 24, Ramani Ayer learned to meditate and completed the basic Transcendental Meditation program while studying at Drexel. He believes transcendental meditation has enabled him to manage professional and personal success. He also took part to the Global Peace Initiative. He serves on the board of Maharishi University of Management (MUM) where his son studied.[13]

Ramani Ayer is a trustee of the David Lynch Foundation.[1]

Personal life

Ramani Ayer is married to Louise. They have two children.[1]

References
  1. Ramani Ayer, Nndb.com
  2. Duttagupta, Ishani (3 January 2008). "Indian CEO thriving in US". The Economic Times. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  3. Rajghatta, Chidanand (12 December 2007). "Indian honchos splash US Inc, climb Fortune mountain". The Economic Times. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  4. Ayer, Ramani (12 April 2008). "Equanimity". In Hagelin, John (ed.). 8 Great Reasons to Meditate (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 July 2011.
  5. "Company Overview : Management Team". The Hartford. Retrieved 8 October 2009.
  6. "Executive Changes". New York Times. 18 September 1996. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  7. Ramachandran, Sudha (21 December 2007). "Hand over the keys, the Indians are here". Asia Times. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
  8. The Hartford’s CEO Ayer, Facing Pressure, to Retire, Insurancejournal.com, 4 June 2009
  9. "Chief of Hartford Financial Will Retire". The New York Times. Reuters. 4 June 2009. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  10. Bansal, Paritosh (13 October 2009). "FACTBOX-CEO departures during financial crisis". Reuters. Retrieved 7 November 2009.
  11. Judy Greenwald, Hartford to pay Ramani Ayer $39.9M lump-sum pension, Businessinsurance.com, 4 September 2010
  12. "XL Group plc Announces Appointment of Ramani Ayer to its Board of Directors" (Press release). New York: PR Newswire. 24 February 2011.
  13. Ramani Ayer, a man of business and peace, Tmhome.com, 11 August 2014


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