KEY POINTS:
Rob Flannagan says he's not the type who seeks the limelight, but he does have a habit of putting himself in situations where public attention is inevitable.
Forty years ago he scored a try for Waikato before a huge Eden Park crowd in a match that saw the
Mooloos unexpectedly wrest the Ranfurly Shield away from Auckland.
And just a month ago he became chief executive of Tower New Zealand, this country's largest locally owned financial services company.
The former state-owned firm is one of the most widely held stocks on the sharemarket, but since it split from its Australian operation last month, has been the subject of speculation that it is now a tempting mouthful for a larger overseas predator. Such a takeover would end 137 years of local ownership.
Since starting at Tower last month, Flannagan, a relatively youthful 62, has become acutely aware of how many New Zealanders have some kind of stake in the company.
"When my appointment was announced a number of policy holders and investors phoned me up and wished me all the best and a few asked to meet me and have coffee with them. It was interesting because I didn't really expect it and it puts a bit of responsibility on you when you see these people and feel their passion."
Last week Flannagan met even more, attending performances of Giselle, the ballet Tower is sponsoring and which the former rugby player says he's still enjoying - even after three viewings.
"The shows that I've been to have been pretty full of people that have followed Tower for some time."
That's not too surprising as many investors and policyholders received invitations to the show, but Flannagan says it's important for the company to maintain those relationships, especially in light of service issues that hurt its business in recent years.
"I've been around with some of our brokers and connected with the real world, the customers, to find out how the lack of service can hurt them and how good service can help them. The management team's done an excellent job building from where it is but we've still got a long way to go."
In fact, Flannagan says "reconnecting with New Zealand" in his new job has been "nice", a word he tends to use a lot.
And why not? Just a month into the job it's still the honeymoon period. Tower New Zealand this week posted a 36 per cent increase in net profit and the transition from his previous job as chief information officer across Promina's Australian and New Zealand operations has "really been quite pleasant" as he enjoys "the somewhat laid back-ness of New Zealand as opposed to the more aggressive approach in Australia".
Mind you, coming from Promina, one of the potential predators identified in takeover speculation, he has fielded some suspicious questions from Tower shareholders concerned that cornerstone shareholder Guinness Peat Group is preparing the company for sale.
"Some people have said 'This is just a scheme, you're the spy from Promina coming into the camp.'
"That's a bit Machiavellian," he laughs, "and is not the case".
Before he accepted the job he was assured the board wanted Tower to be "a robust, star New Zealand business".
"I said I'd like to retire in three years or so and there was no hesitation from GPG in saying, 'We'll give you a three-year contract because we're really committed to do whatever's necessary to turn it into something that's considerably better than what it is now.'
"There's certainly no agenda," says Flannagan.
"Quite frankly if there was, my focus would be quite different. You'd be looking at cost savings to get your returns and the share price up. You'd get rid of it quickly and let someone else have the problem of making it robust.
"My focus is very much for the long haul not for quick short-term gains and the board is very supportive of that. I'm not getting any signals of anything any different and quite frankly that's what motivates me too."
While Tower's improved September year net profit demonstrates the company's moves to tackle service issues have met with some success, a weak second half performance in the company's general insurance division was partly because of circumstances beyond its control.
One of those was the Solomon Islands riots, the other was costly South Island snow storms in June.
Like other insurers Tower is concerned violent storms are occurring more frequently and may be the result of man-made climate change.
Around the world the industry is, out of necessity, leading the business community in acknowledging and planning for the phenomenon.
"It moves us to a different world," says Flannagan.
"Before, we were relying on actuarial calculations of what's happened in the past, now we're trying to work out the probability for the future ... you have to consider that in your pricing and underwriting."
On the other hand, recent violent storms might just be an isolated phenomenon that once over, will leave consumers paying over the odds for insurance cover.
"The market will sort it," says Flannagan.
"What's more than likely to happen is policies will maybe become more sophisticated in terms of what they do and don't cover to keep the prices in affordable ranges."
But while Tower is grappling with climate change and its consequences, it stands to receive a substantial boost from the Government's plans to address the demographic change towards a higher proportion of elderly in the population, particularly through Kiwisaver.
"We support that 100 per cent. If employers come on board, which there are some incentives for them to do, then we're going to get some real savings coming into the market."
Flannagan believes that Kiwisaver is likely the precursor to compulsory superannuation such as that in Australia which is currently funding a huge wave of corporate activity on both sides of the Tasman and which is also driving Tower Australia's rapid growth. While he's unlikely to still be Tower's chief executive should that happen, Flannagan must steer the New Zealand owned company into a position where it can secure at least some of the resulting business.
Although of modest, unassuming and even mild demeanour, his career and sporting history suggests he is a tough and capable performer when the situation demands.
He turned out for Waikato against the touring British Lions in 1966, but he rates his team's Ranfurly Shield winning game against Auckland the same year above that.
"No one expected us to win. It was a huge atmosphere and a tough game. As a team we shared great camaraderie before and during the match and played almost above ourselves."
Subsequently going on to a successful career in business, Flannagan has something in common with the likes of Sir Wilson Whineray, Fairfax boss David Kirk and Independent News and Media's Tony O'Reilly.
"I don't think I was ever in their league," he laughs. "They were icons and great people.
"I got in the Waikato team, that was great, I was honoured to do so. I wish I was capable of doing more but that was as good as it got."
So what are the qualities successful sports and business people share?
"I think business is in many ways about discipline and focus and of course in any sport the discipline of training is where you've got to do the hard yards to achieve.
"When you see the great sportsmen and the average, the difference is often the degree of focus and dedication they put in and business is not a heck of a lot different."
ROB FLANNAGAN - Tower NZ chief executive
Born: Hamilton, 1944.
Married: To Suzanne, three sons.
Educated: Hamilton Boys High School. Victoria University, Wellington. Waikato Technical Institute.
Career: Promina NZ and Australia chief information officer. NZ Guardian Trust managing director. First Medical Corp chief executive.
Pastimes: Walking, blokarting.
