The Principal Financial Group Announces Principal International Chairman Norman Sorensen to Retire

Published on Thursday, 19 January 2012 16:15 Written by TradersHuddle Staff

DES MOINES, Iowa-( Business Wire )-

The Principal Financial Group^® announced today that Norman R. Sorensen, chairman of Principal International, will retire at the end of February 2012 as part of a planned succession after serving nearly 14 years with the company.

“Norman has had a remarkable impact on The Principal,” said Larry D. Zimpleman, chairman, president and CEO of The Principal^®. "He led The Principal’s efforts to focus our international businesses, which has allowed us to grow from break-even to more than 15 percent of company operating earnings¹. Even more importantly, our international businesses are positioned to continue this growth for many years to come due to Norman’s leadership. I look forward to Norman’s contributions as a senior advisor to me in 2012.”

Sorensen will continue to chair The Principal’s International Advisory Council for the remainder of the year. “Our International Advisory Council is an important source of input on global business developments to our management team and to our Board,” Zimpleman said. “Norman also will assist me with key initiatives and important relationships throughout 2012.”

Prior to joining The Principal, Sorensen was a senior executive at American International Group, American Express Company and Citigroup. He will continue to serve as chairman of the International Insurance Society, board member for the Encore Capital Group, and a director of Sara Lee Corporation.

In March 2011, Luis Valdes was named president and CEO of Principal International and will continue to lead Principal International. “As the successful head of our Latin American operations for the past decade, I am excited to see additional global growth under Luis’ leadership,” Zimpleman said.

For more news and insights from The Principal, connect with us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ThePrincipal.

About the Principal Financial Group

The Principal Financial Group^® (The Principal ^®)² is a global investment management leader including retirement services, insurance solutions and asset management. The Principal offers businesses, individuals and institutional clients a wide range of financial products and services, including retirement, asset management and insurance through its diverse family of financial services companies. Founded in 1879 and a member of the FORTUNE 500^®, the Principal Financial Group has $320.8 billion in assets under management³ and serves some 17.8 million customers worldwide from offices in Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America and the United States. Principal Financial Group, Inc. is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PFG. For more information, visit www.principal.com.

¹ Principal International operating earnings were more than 15% of total Principal Financial Group operating earnings as of Sept. 30, 2011.

² “The Principal Financial Group” and “The Principal” are registered service marks of Principal Financial Services, Inc., a member of the Principal Financial Group.

³ As of Sept. 30, 2011.

The PrincipalMedia Contact:Susan Houser, 515-248-2268houser.susan@principal.comorInvestor Contact:John Egan, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.