A.J. Ijaz

Experience

• 

  Allstate Life & Retirement Agency Operations

  Jan 1999 - Jan 2017

  Appointed by the President to develop the most aggressive financial services accredited education program in company history, and to improve financial specialist producer turnover ► Revamped financial specialist (FS) recruiting, selection and onboarding processes resulting in 2.5X improvement in first-year productivity► Improved retention of new and existing FSs by 30% year-over-year, with annualized turnover trending to be the lowest in 10 years for program► Developed and implemented first-ever accredited and customized life insurance education program for agents and licensed sales professionals in conjunction with The American College. Educated 5,000+ producers in past 15 months► Created detailed skills assessment and customized onboarding program for sales leaders increasing their effectiveness and retention ► Sponsored creation of consistent sales process and needs analysis to improve customer needs identification and promote Allstate’s transformation to Trusted Advisor model Show less Managed all aspects of sales channel operations including relationship with all 14 regional office senior leadership teams and market operating committees. Responsible for annual sales planning process, channel communications, field sales leadership role definition, performance metrics and goals, PMO technology deliverables, and expense management► Led channel activities and communications associated with the divestiture of LBL brand ► Developed and integrated new agency technology, including offering a life quote and auto/life discount with every auto/home quote ► Restructured Allstate’s voluntary benefits sales organization, resulting in 12% increase in sales► Successfully closed Allstate Life Direct sales channel while retaining all high potential impacted employees and saving over $5M annually Show less Charged by COO to transform operating model from a fixed all onshore approach to a variablized onshore/offshore operating model with many back office and call center functions moving to India and the Philippines, respectively ► Led largest BPO initiative in Allstate Financial’s history, reducing service center operating costs by $20M► Won DALBAR industry award in top quartile of participating companies in 2010 for superior call handling in all skills for both onshore and offshore call centers► Received Best in Company CEO Leadership Award in 2011 for exceptional customer service performance during significant operations transformation ► Created new PMO processes to improve project delivery timelines and budgets, resulting in 30% improvement in throughput and projects completing at or below budget Show less Appointed by CEO to lead deployment of Six Sigma process improvement across the entire corporation ► Created center of expertise, developed Master Black Belts and customized Six Sigma training in consultation with Motorola and Oriel Consulting Group► Leveraged a wide range of process improvement methodologies including DMAIC, DMADV, LEAN, and GE’s Change Acceleration Process to improve process outputs, reduce variation, and improve cost structure ► Exceeded goals for savings, projects completed, and areas leveraging Six Sigma► Ensured corporate officers were trained in Six Sigma and became champions for strategic projects► Retained Six Sigma expertise via in-house management consulting group 15+ years after program inception Show less

  • Vice President

    Jan 2014 - Jan 2017

  • Chief Operating Officer/Vice President

    Jan 2011 - Jan 2014

  • Assistant Vice President

    Jan 2007 - Jan 2011

  • Director

    Jan 2002 - Jan 2007

  • Director

    Jan 2001 - Jan 2002

  • Senior Manager/Controller

    Jan 1999 - Jan 2001
• 

  The Standard

  Apr 2017 - now

  • Vice President Asset Management Group and Senior Leadership Team Member

    Jan 2022 - now

  • Vice President Retirement Plans

    Jan 2020 - Dec 2021

  • President - StanCorp Investment Advisors & StanCorp Equities Incorporated

    Apr 2017 - Dec 2021

  • Vice President of Retirement Plan Services

    Apr 2017 - Dec 2019