Principal board elects new chairman

Daniel Houston, president and CEO of Principal Financial Group, has been elected chairman of the financial services and insurance provider effective May 17 following the company's annual shareholders meeting.

The board of directors of Des Moines-based Principal, with regional operations in downtown Cedar Rapids, elected Houston to his current position in 2015. He will succeed Larry Zimpleman, who will continue as non-executive chairman through the annual meeting.

Zimpleman will leave the board at that time, having completed his current term as an elected director.

'We thank Larry for his 44 years of dedicated service to Principal and the legacy he leaves,” Houston said in a news release. 'As an organization, we have a lot to look forward to and so many things to be optimistic about as we continue to strengthen our business operations and brand around the globe.”

Houston joined Principal Financial in 1984. He was promoted to senior group and pension representative in 1986 and named group and pension consultant in 1988.

Houston was named regional director of group and pension sales in 1990 and promoted to regional vice president in 1993, to vice president in 1997, and to senior vice president in 2000. He was named executive vice president in 2006 and president of retirement and investor services in 2008.

Houston was named president and chief operating officer in 2014.

Zimpleman, who retired from Principal Financial in January, joined the company in 1971 as an actuarial intern. From 1976 to 2006 he served in various management and leadership positions, mostly in the U.S. retirement business.

Zimpleman was named president and chief operating officer of Principal in 2006, president and chief executive officer in 2008, and chairman, president and CEO in 2009.