Jacque Crawford will retire from National Life later this month after 39 years with the company.
She has held many different roles with the company, including from the time before National Life acquired Life Insurance Company of the Southwest.
She agreed to answer a few questions before she takes her well-earned retirement.
Q. You must have seen a lot of changes in the 39 years you’ve been with us. Can you tell us the three that most stand out in your mind?
A. 1. The change in direction of LSW’s business when we dropped out of the group benefit market of employer provided medical, dental, and life insurance. We went from about 900 employees to under 200. We began to reinvent ourselves focusing on other products and soon went into the 403b market.
2. Of course, the purchase of LSW by National Life stands out. There were companies looking at LSW that would have most likely absorbed the business and laid off all of the employees. National Life’s purchase kept the company intact and we became part of a strong insurance company instead of closing the doors or just being an investment for an unrelated business.
3. Combining common departments across the campuses under the same management team has been very interesting to see how impactful it can be to further the one company culture.
Q. You’ve most recently been the site manager for the Texas campus, overseeing the expansion and renovation of National Life’s offices there. How would you sum up the difference between our old site on Mockingbird Lane and our current offices at Millennium Tower?
A. That’s a great question and believe it or not one of the most difficult to just sum up. I remember watching the building on Mockingbird being built from our lease space just down the street and moving in when it was fresh and new. The location known then as “Stemmons Corridor” was the hot business location in Dallas. 30 years really changed the building and area, both in appearance and in safety. I’ve learned so much more in recent years about how much our space can say about who we are. It would be difficult to convince anyone that we are a company that can keep up with the times if we can’t even do that with our physical space and location. Millennium Tower and Addison gave us the location to achieve that.
Q. What are the other roles you’ve played during your time with the company? Do you have a favorite?
A. I think I have had roles or helped out in almost every department but the first half of my career was primarily in Financial. I managed all of the general accounting functions such as Accounts Payable, Bank Reconciliation, Payroll, Employee Benefits and some internal auditing. I eventually took on areas in Operations such as commissions, billing, and agent debt management. The last few years I have been the TX Site Manager and Facilities Director.
It’s hard to say that any one was my favorite. I have always made a point of making any job something I really like and we desire different things as we progress through life. My accounting experience has been useful in every role I’ve had, and I love solving those puzzles or finding an easy way to analyze or track numbers. The years as the Site Manager have been extremely gratifying. Mostly, I love being able to work with so many people across the organization. This has been a fantastic way to spend the last few years of my career.
Q. Your job requires you to be available a lot after hours. Still, you’ve got to relax after a day’s work. How do you relax?
A. Family time is the best! I also love to read a good book and do some writing.
Q. What are you most looking forward to after you retire?
A. Turning the 4:00 a.m. alarm off! Other than that of course is having more flexibility and time with my family.
Q. What will you miss the most after you don’t need to come into the office every day?
A. I know this isn’t a new answer but it truly is the people. In the long run, I’m going to hate missing the big celebration when the company reaches those 2020 goals!
Q. Tell us a couple of interesting facts about yourself that most of us wouldn’t know.
A. It doesn’t show much at work because I’ve been here so long, but I’m a very shy person.
I’m kind of a closet writer. I began years ago as personal therapy to get through a really tough time in my life. Some of those writings and stories have been shared by others as far away as Germany.
Q. Do you have a nickname? Why and how was it given to you?
A. I don’t know if it’s really a nickname but the long time soccer coach of one of the grandkids called me “Super Nana” one day and it kind of stuck with many of the friends of my kids and grandkids.
Q. If you didn’t have to sleep, what would you do with your extra time?
A. Perhaps I would continue working a few more years. I love my sleep time though so I don’t think I would ever even wish for that to go away.
Q. What advice would you give to young colleagues who are just starting their career?
A. It’s something one of my early bosses used to tell all new employees. After working 20 years, will you be able to say that you have 20 years of experience or will you have to say that you have one year of experience 20 times. Meaning of course that we should all learn and grow even if you stay in the same job. This company is great about providing that opportunity and it should be grasped.