After a stellar 23 year career with National Life, Al Foice, Vice President of Audit and Enterprise Services, has decided to retire. We asked Al to tell us a little bit about his time here and about what’s next.
What was your first role when you joined National Life? I’ve been the Chief Auditor my entire 23 years with National Life.
Did your career path change? Why or why not? The role of Chief Auditor is unique in that I report directly to the board of directors. If done well, it is a position of influence and can provide tremendous value to the board, senior leaders, and the organization as a whole. I found immense satisfaction and pride in the role that I played and never seriously contemplated a change. While my primary role never changed, my responsibilities have consistently increased and changed over time. The added responsibilities provided diversity and challenges outside of the role of auditor.
Was it a tough decision to retire? Of course. There is the typical emotional response you have about the finality of your career, but frankly, the plan to retire started with conversations with Mehran and Bob five years ago. My financial planning strategy was to retire at 62 years of age, and I just turned 62 on April 1st. The Chief Auditor must earn and maintain the trust of the board of directors, as well as senior leadership. Mehran tasked me to build a succession plan in advance of my retirement. Kaj Samsom was hired almost 4 years ago and has done a great job preparing for the role and earning the trust of the board and leadership.
What was your happiest experience here? I’m proud of what National Life has accomplished over the past 13 plus years with responsible growth and record results. If you think about it, our growth in the last 13 years was more than the first 160 years combined. We should all be proud of those accomplishments. . . .it takes commitment and a strong belief in each other. I’m happy to have played some small part in our success.
What was your National Life epic moment? I’d have to say our enterprise response to COVID. After years of planning, our ability to go fully remote with little disruption validated the confidence the Corporate Emergency Response Team had in our plan.
Is there a colleague from work who has inspired you in your personal or professional life? Professionally, Mehran and board member David Coates. Mehran was both supportive and challenging. David is a long-time board member who always supported me and the audit team. I’ve learned a lot from both. With that said, before National Life there were a lot of leaders that I learned “what not do” which was important in my development.
What’s your best advice to someone just starting out? If possible, take every opportunity you are offered. As noted, while my title never changed, my responsibilities did. Those added responsibilities provided me with stretch opportunities to learn and grow professionally and personally. Also, never be complacent with where you are in your learning journey. National Life emphasizes continuous learning, and it is critically important to try and learn something new every day, as none of us are finished products.
After a successful 40 year career, 23 years at National Life, what would you say was key to success as a leader? In addition to continuous learning, I would say surrounding yourself with a team that is smarter than you and allowing them the autonomy to perform. I was blessed to have a great team of people around me that I enjoyed working with and who drove our success. As a baby boomer schooled in a traditional, “do as we tell you environment”, I had to adapt my style to encourage and support people. Once I was able to change my style, leadership became more rewarding and team success was more rapid and evident. I’m proud that our Gallup results reflected the highest scores in the company.
What’s next for you? For those who know me well, I value time with family and friends. Cheryl and I plan to travel, spend time at our camp, boating, golfing, and stay active and focusing on fitness and health. We have a strong connection with our son Nathan and daughter Nicole and we look forward to whatever their future brings.
Tell us one thing you’ll do in retirement that may inspire or shock others? There are no surprises with me, what you see is what you get. But one thing I will NOT do is become a politician. I have no patience for bureaucracy.