Hartford Business Journal

10 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | APRIL 3, 2023 On The Record | Q&A Sun Life U.S. President Dan Fishbein (right) welcomes employees to the company's new Hartford office. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED Following downtown Hartford relocation, Sun Life U.S. embraces city, flexible work model By Greg Bordonaro gbordonaro@hartfordbusiness.com D an Fishbein is a believer in a flexible work model. He's also a backer of downtown Hartford. Both factors were major drivers of Sun Life U.S.' recent relocation from Windsor to the Capital City. Fishbein is the president of Sun Life U.S., a major insurer in Canada that recently debuted its new Connecticut office in downtown's Gold Building. It's one of seven U.S. locations for the company, which provides group life, disability, absence management, dental, vision and voluntary benefits, and medical stop-loss coverage. Sun Life, with $1.3 trillion in assets under management, has shifted more of its U.S. focus in recent years to providing health benefits. It employs 50,000 people globally, including about 5,500 in the U.S. More than 400 employees report to the Hartford office. Sun Life represents both the oppor- tunities and challenges facing the city. The company's downtown move reinforces Hartford's attraction to insurance and financial services companies. Sun Life is one of three insurers that recently announced Hartford moves or expansions. Inter- national life insurer Talcott Financial Group announced in January plans to relocate from Windsor to downtown's iconic Boat Building, while Global Atlantic is expanding its presence in the Gold Building to support 100 new employees. However, insurers have also embraced hybrid and remote work models, which means some employees report to a physical office far less than they did pre-pandemic. For example, Sun Life doesn't require employees to come to its new Hartford office, Fishbein said. In most of the company's U.S. locations, in-person attendance is between 10% to 15% weekly, meaning the vast majority of employees are working virtually. Fishbein said he's hoping to change that, but the company also has no plans for an office mandate. He views offering a flexible work envi- ronment as a competitive advantage in recruiting talent. "Our flexible approach has been really incredible in helping to retain and recruit employees," Fishbein said. "We are hiring people from companies that are forcing their employees back to the office. We are hiring some really amazing people in Connecticut and around the country who are leaving companies that are making them come into the office against their will four or five days a week." That flexibility also allowed the insurer to significantly reduce its office footprint from about 101,000 square feet in Windsor to 47,000 square feet in the Gold Building. Fishbein was the keynote speaker at Hartford Business Journal's recent "Future of Downtown Hart- ford" event, which took place March 14 at the Society Room. The event, sponsored by Shipman & Goodwin, was sold out and had a waiting list of more than 50 people. Despite the threat of a Nor'easter, more than 120 people attended. Before becoming president of Sun Life U.S., Fishbein spent more than 16 years at Hartford health insurer Aetna. Here's what else Fishbein had to say. The Q&A was edited for length and clarity. Q. Why did Sun Life relocate from Windsor to Hartford? What was the attraction? A. Sun Life in the U.S. now has seven offices. One had been in Windsor for more than 15 years, with just over 400 employees. Even before the pandemic, we were going through a transition for all of our offices to make them hubs and magnets. We already had people working remotely and we wanted to reduce the office footprint while making the office much more appealing to our employees. We cut the square footage down to 47,000 square feet with the same number of employees. It was natural for us to leave a very dated facility in Windsor for the draw of office space in downtown Hartford. We did it for a few reasons. One, it's easier to get to. Hartford has all the major highways and is centrally located. Hartford also continues to be a DAN FISHBEIN President Sun Life U.S. Education: Bachelor's degree and Doctor of Medicine, Boston University

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