New Old Mutual CEO Gets Analyst Approval

July 22 - Anonymous insurance analysts gave new Old Mutual Chief Executive Officer, Kuseni Dlamini the thumbs up after his appointment was polled last week.

The analysts believe that Dlamini will be successful in gaining the confidence of the Old Mutual management team, while at the same time get to grips with the growing insurance industry and maintain growth in Old Mutual's life insurance division.

One area that the analysts expressed some trepidation was the fact that Dlamini had a slight lack of technical knowledge in the life insurance business. However, all agreed that one need not "be an actuary to head up a life company."

Old Mutual has ensured that Dlamini is surrounded by a sound team of people who possess exceptional actuarial and technical management skills.

"They've got to give the new guy a chance," said one analyst. "There is a good chance he'll bring in some fresh new ideas into the group. Actuaries are not known as very good people managers."

Some view the fact that Dlamini had only served a year at the head of Anglo American in a slightly negative light, although they agreed that as a young, up-and-coming professional, his opportunities of advancement at Anglo were limited, and that he had no choice but to 'job-hop'.

All the analysts believed that the life insurance field was "surprisingly resilient" in the current recession, although growth remained static.

It was expected that Old Mutual would show what one analyst termed "operational stress" after the London-based group releases its interim results in early August.