Securian is 10 for 10 with Computerworld's ''Best IT Employers'' List

For the tenth time in ten years, Securian Financial Group is on Computerworld's list of the "100 Best Places to Work in IT." The St. Paul-based financial services company, which celebrates its 125th anniversary this year, ranked seventh overall.

"We are pleased to receive this honor," said Jean Delaney Nelson, vice president and chief information officer, "but what's most important to us is that every member of our IT staff is engaged, challenged and excited about working here."

Securian, formerly known as Minnesota Life Insurance Company, first appeared on the Computerworld list in 1996. Computerworld ranked Securian ninth on its first "Historical Best" list in 2002, and CIO Jean Delaney Nelson was selected from 600 nominees for the publication's list of Premier 100 IT Leaders in 2004.

"We aren't into technology for technology's sake," said Delaney Nelson. "We strive for the cutting edge only in markets where it gives us a clear business advantage."

Securian has established a reputation as a technology leader in its retirement plan market, where it premiered the first web-based retirement plans in 1997. In the large group life insurance industry, where the company is still known as Minnesota Life, ongoing innovation in web-based services to group life enrollees helped the company grow from sixteenth largest to seventh largest in only seven years.

Securian received the fourth highest ranking among the 29 financial services companies on this year's "100 Best" list, and the highest of the four Minnesota companies—General Mills, 28; Thomson West, 58; and Carlson Companies, 70. Securian was one of the smaller companies listed this year, ranking only 64th in the number of IT employees (382) and 84th in total employees (2,318). It ranked first in the percentage of IT managers who are women and 12th in the percentage of IT staff who are women.

Businesses served by the Securian IT department include Advantus Capital Management, Securian Financial Services, Securian Trust Company, Securian Retirement Services, and Minnesota Life Insurance Company.