History of Principal Financial Group

1882

Bankers Life Association hires John A. Tibbs as its first paid employee; he takes over day-to-day management from officers and board members. The company moves from a small, shared office in the back of the Des Moines Bank Building to its own space in 211 Fourth Street.

1885

Bankers Life Association begins making farm loans, eventually expanding business to 21 states.

1888

Temple receives his first annual salary of $3,500, plus travel expenses.

1911

The board of directors votes to convert The Bankers Life Association into Bankers Life Company, a mutual legal reserve company. Company assets total $17 million.

1912

For the first time, women can obtain life insurance from Bankers Life, as can men as young as 15 years old.

1915

The company holds its first annual convention for agents and their families, who travel to San Francisco on a chartered train.

1916

George Kuhns, who joined as an agent in 1896, is named company president. His era is known as the golden age of the field agent, with a weekly publication that focused on skill development, agent schools, home office communications, and a generous awards program. Company assets reach $30 million.

1919

Along with others in the industry, Bankers Life suspends dividends for one year in the wake of the influenza epidemic. Company charitable contributions begin with support of groups including the YMCA.

1920s

Bankers Life starts a two-year program providing temporary employment to men right out of school who are unsure of their future plans. Its ranks include a future president, Bob Houser.

1924

The top five floors of the new Liberty Building become Bankers Life headquarters.

1925

Bankers Life purchases the 5,000-watt radio station WHO in Des Moines, Iowa, for $57,000, transforming the Liberty Building’s top floor into a studio. It sells WHO in 1930.

1927

Bankers Life mails its first sales piece. It is the first company in the industry to use this method to attract new customers, to the tune of $3 million in new sales in just one year.

1929

Bankers Life celebrates its 50th anniversary with a banquet for agents and spouses; each attendee receives a $10 gold piece from President Nollen. The company begins offering free dental care for employees and adopts the official colors of scarlet and black.

1930s

During the Great Depression, farmers with Bankers Life farm loans benefit from a Grant of Possession program, allowing them to lease their farms to Bankers Life while living on and working the farms rent-free.

1934

The first company national advertisement appears in The Saturday Evening Post.

1936

Bankers Life begins offering home loans.

1940

Bankers Life and its 500+ employees move into 711 High Street, named by Architectural Record as Building of the Decade. It was the first structure in Des Moines to be centrally air conditioned, and included a gymnasium, lockers, and employee showers. Company assets reach $251.5 million.

1941

Bankers Life sells its first pension plan in response to the needs of both employers and employees as a result of World War II price and wage freezes. To help with the employee shortage caused by enlistments, it ends the policy of only hiring women who were not married.

1942

Employees receive hospital and surgical benefits, as well as free chest X-rays to screen for tuberculosis.

1945

The company formalizes its corporate giving program, which began with employee fundraising and charitable contributions in 1919. Active life insurance policies reach $1 billion.

1946

Edmund McConney becomes president.

1950

An east wing is added onto the 711 High building.

1956

Dennis Warters becomes president. He champions group insurance and an increasing focus on small and midsize businesses, especially companies with a minimum of 25 employees. Bankers Life also begins converting manual records for individual life policies into punch cards to be fed into its first IBM 650 computer.

1961

Earl Bucknell becomes the company’s seventh president. He invests heavily in people development and was instrumental in the eventual formation of two subsidiaries that focused on mutual funds and investing.

1966

Mother’s hours—9 a.m. to 3 p.m.—are offered to women during the school year. Bankers Life also implements a partial tuition reimbursement for employees and a higher education matching gift program.

1968

Harold Allen becomes the company’s eighth president; he introduces flexible hours and implements an affirmative action program. Bankers Life forms Bankers Life Equity Services Corporation to enter into the mutual funds business. Company colors change to green, black, and white. The company begins sponsoring The Today Show, and officially changes its name to The Bankers Life.

1971

Virginia Renier becomes the first female officer.

1970

Active insurance reaches the $10 billion mark.

1972

To coordinate community impact efforts, It’s Up To Me is created. It is the first corporate volunteer program in Iowa.

1973

Bob Houser begins his time as president; he becomes known for his business community commitment, open door policy, and corporate campus growth.

1974

Congress passes ERISA, requiring every employer to redesign and rewrite its pension plan and adhere to new reporting standards. The Bankers Life begins offering property/casualty insurance.

1979

Bankers Life celebrates its centennial with a 2,000-person group photo and a gala. It contributes to a new downtown park, named Nollen Plaza. Construction begins an adjacent home office building to accommodate growth. Milestones include $31 billion of active insurance, $6.7 billion in assets, and 3,412 worldwide employees. The first person of color joins the board.

1980

The first woman joins the board.

1981

Satellite offices open in Mason City and Waterloo, Iowa; Grand Island, Nebraska; Colorado Springs, Colorado; and Spokane, Washington.

1982

John Taylor becomes the 10th president. He is remembered for adding an 11-story building to campus and initiating plans for 801 Grand. There are 6,744 full-time employees.

1984

The first 401(k) products and services are sold. The Bankers Life serves as the only U.S. member of the Group Assurance International Network, a global body to help establish best practices for the insurance industry.

1985

The Bankers Life officially changes its name to Principal Financial Group, with the tagline, “The more things change, the more you can depend on us.” The company adopts official colors of blue and white. It also formalizes the art collection program. Company assets reach $14.9 billion.

1986

A formal wellness program is soon followed by a smoke-free workplace, more than 20 years before Iowa implements a smoke-free act.

1987

David Hurd becomes the 11th president. He oversees a time of pension business growth, entry into international markets, and corporate wellness. 655 9th Street is opened.

Principal also opens a lobbying office in Washington, D.C., to enable a more active role in monitoring legislation and educating lawmakers. The Principal Financial Group Foundation, Inc., is created, focusing on education, health and human services, recreation and tourism, and arts and culture.

1988

The Principal Edge advertising program launches, with a focus on the customer advantage of working with Principal.

1990s

Principal formalizes its diversity commitment, which began in 1973 with an affirmative action program, by adding a diversity council, resource group, employee training, and domestic partner medical benefits.

1990

801 Grand Avenue opens; at 44 stories it’s the tallest building east to west between Denver and Chicago and north to south between Minneapolis and Tulsa. Principal International is also launched, leveraging expertise to meet the increasing retirement savings needs of a global population.

1991

Joyce Hoffman becomes the first female vice president.

1993

Dave Drury becomes the 12th company president; he continues the international expansion and takes steps toward making Principal a public company.

1994

The residential mortgage operation becomes a subsidiary, Principal Residential Mortgage, Inc.

1995

Principal.com is launched.

1996

Another home office at 750 Park Avenue, designed by Helmut Jahn, is completed, as well as a new plaza between it and 711 High Street.

1998

Principal introduces a new tagline, “Plan Ahead. Get Ahead.” The internet-based Principal Bank is launched, one of only three online banks in the U.S. On July 1, Principal converts from a mutual insurance company to a mutual insurance holding company, paving the way to issue stock. Edward Temple is inducted into the Iowa Insurance Hall of Fame. Barry Griswell is named as president of Principal.

1999

Principal Capital Management is formed to focus on investment-only services for the institutional asset management marketplace.

2000

Assets under management reach $78 billion, with 13 million customers and 17,000 employees globally.  “We understand what you’re working for” becomes the new tagline.

2002

The Principal^® Foundation pledges $10 million toward the 125th anniversary gift to the city of Des Moines, the Principal Riverwalk.

2004

Principal International and Principal Global Investors now operate in the U.S. and in 10 countries in Asia, Australia, Europe, and Latin America. The company marks its 125-year anniversary.

2005

The Edge campaign features a resourceful central character, Eddie, who uses the Principal Edge logo to solve his financial, business, and everyday life problems. He “retires” in 2015.

2006

Principal Global Services, opened in India, addresses the need for geographic diversity, efficiency, and 24-hour response capabilities. Larry Zimpleman is named president and chief operating officer. Larry guides Principal through the 2008 recession and is a driver of global growth.

2014

Dan Houston, who joined Principal in 1984, is named president.

2016

A new logo debuts, signaling modernization, renewed purpose, and transformation.

2019

The acquisition of the Wells Fargo institutional retirement and trust business solidifies the position of Principal as a U.S. retirement provider for employers of all sizes.

2020s

Global expansion, an effort that began in 1990 with Principal International, continues with retirement and investment offerings in 27 hubs across Latin America, the European Union, and Asia.

2022

Principal Global Investors, an investment subsidiary formed in 1999 to focus on investment-only institutional asset management services, is relaunched as Principal Asset Management to better reflect its expertise in optimizing results through local insights and global perspectives.