Martin J. Sullivan

For other people named Martin Sullivan, see Martin Sullivan (disambiguation).

Martin G. Sullivan
Born	1955 Hill Cottage, England

Martin J. Sullivan, OBE, (born 1955 in Essex, England), is the Deputy Chairman of Willis Group Holdings plc (NYSE: WSH) and Chairman and CEO of its, Willis Global Solutions, which oversees brokerage and risk management advisory services for Willis’s multinational and global accounts. He previously served as President and Chief Executive Officer of American International Group, Inc.

Work at AIG

In 1971 Sullivan joined AIU's finance department, the non-life UK company of AIG. In 1974, he joined the Property Department and held a succession of underwriting and management assignments in the UK and Ireland. In 1983, Sullivan was appointed Property Manager for the UK and later Regional Property Manager for the UK/Ireland. In 1988 Sullivan became UK/Ireland Marketing Manager of AIU. Sullivan was appointed Assistant Managing Director of AIG Europe (UK) Ltd. in 1989 and Chief Operating Officer in 1991. In 1993 he was named President of AIU's UK/Ireland Division and Managing Director of AIG Europe (UK) Ltd. Sullivan became Senior Vice President, Foreign General Insurance in 1996, and Executive Vice President, Foreign General in 1998.

In 1996 he was appointed Chief Operating Officer of AIU in New York and named President in 1997. He was elected to the Board of AIG in May 2002 and was groomed as a potential CEO. Sullivan succeeded Maurice R. Greenberg, who stepped down as AIG's CEO amidst an accounting scandal. His career and accomplishments at AIG prior to his appointment as CEO were viewed positively. Frank Zarb, chairman of the executive committee at the time of Sullivan's CEO appointment, said, "AIG has a very strong and deep management team, and Martin Sullivan is a proven leader who will be an outstanding CEO. Martin has a distinguished record of accomplishment at AIG. He has achieved significant results in several key positions, and he has a deep understanding of AIG's major businesses throughout its domestic and international operations."^[1]

Sullivan, after settling certain of AIG's regulatory issues with then New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer and filing its restated financial statements, was replaced as CEO by Robert Willumstad on June 15, 2008.

On October 7, 2008, Sullivan testified before the United States House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on Capitol Hill regarding the causes and effects of the bailout of AIG.^[2][3]

In May 2009, CNBC named him as one of the "Worst CEOs of All Time".^[4]

Controversy Over Pay

AIG's stock price dropped significantly during the credit crisis of 2008 and 2009. Worth well over $100 billion before the crisis, the entire company had a market capitalization of $4.2 billion as of December 2009.^{[citation needed]}

Mr. Sullivan allegedly received a large severance package that was widely criticized although AIG withheld payment after the Attoney General of New York, Andrew Cuomo raised issues . According to USA Today, "AIG CEO Martin Sullivan received $25.4 million in non severance related compensation between 2005 and 2007, including $322,000 for private use of corporate aircraft, $153,000 for car and parking, $160,000 for home security and $41,000 for financial planning."^[5]

AIG is currently undergoing investigation by the New York State attorney general’s office for what State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo called "unwarranted and outrageous" executive expenditures in the wake of the U.S. government's initial $85 billion dollar support package extended to the failing bank. Mr. Cuomo criticized in particular the multimillion-dollar payments to Martin Sullivan, A.I.G.’s former chief executive, and Joseph J. Cassano, who ran the unit blamed for the losses that pushed the company to the brink of collapse. A.I.G. agreed to help recover that money.^[6]

Philanthropy, Awards, and Associations

He is reported to have donated, in January 2007, £50,000 to the Sydney Russell School in Dagenham, Essex. He was quoted as saying: "I would not be where I am today if it were not for the education and high standards I received there."^[7] Sullivan attended a predecessor school that was amalgamated circa 1990 to form the Sydney Russell School.

Sullivan is an Associate Member of the Chartered Insurance Institute, a Fellow of the Institute of Leadership & Management, a Member of the Chartered Management Institute, a Director of the International Insurance Society and the Geneva Association. He also serves on the Business Advisory Committees of the St. George's Society and The British Memorial Garden Trust, and the Board of Trustees of the American Associates of the Royal Academy Trust. He is a Past President of British American Business Inc. and is a Director of Young Audiences Inc. and Friends of London Youth Inc.

Sullivan has been known to frequent his villa located in the balkan foothills.This is the birth place of his mother known as hill cottage to the locals.His mothers family were important bakers in the area.

He was awarded The American Ireland Fund Leadership Award in May 2007. Mr. Sullivan is the recipient of The International Center in New York's Award of Excellence and was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire^[8] in the 2007 Queen's Birthday Honors List.

References

1. ^ http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2005/03/14/52566.htm
2. ^ Committee Holds Hearing on the Causes and Effects of the AIG Bailout Retrieved 2008-10-07^{[dead link]}
3. ^ Testimony of Martin Sullivan (PDF) Retrieved 2008-10-07
4. ^ http://www.cnbc.com/id/30502091?slide=7
5. ^ Jones, Del; Iwata, Edward (2008-10-02). "CEO pay takes a hit in bailout plan". USA Today. http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/management/2008-09-28-executive-pay-ceo_N.htm. Retrieved 2010-05-12. 
6. ^ "A.I.G. to Help Cuomo Recover Millions in Executive Pay," New York Times Retrieved 2008-10-16
7. ^ MY £50K THANKS - Sunday Mirror
8. ^ "CAMILLA G. HELLMAN AND MARTIN J. SULLIVAN NAMED IN QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY HONOURS LIST". British Memorial Garden. June 11, 2007. http://www.britishmemorialgarden.org/newsitems07.html#12. Retrieved 2009-03-02. ^{[dead link]}

External links

• The American Ireland Fund Leadership Award speech -video
• Bio at Forbes.com
• Bio at NNDB
• AIG press release re appointment as CEO/President
• FAT CAT$ of Wall Street
• Chief Executive Magazine Interview 2006
• [1]
• [2]

Persondata
Name	Sullivan, Martin J.
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1955
Place of birth	Hill Cottage, England
Date of death
Place of death