internal
Deanna D. Strable-Soethout
Chair, President and Chief Executive Officer
Executive
1 yr
5 reports
Leadership change Deanna D. Strable-Soethout was promoted to CEO (from President and COO) · DEF 14A filed 2026-04-06
Principal Financial Group, Inc. ·PFG
Three operating presidents report directly to the CEO
Financials · Fortune #263 · Hybrid structure · 20K employees · Des Moines, Iowa
View as of:
5
CEO span
↓ tighter than peers (avg 10)
5
Avg span
wide
2
Max depth
2 levels
3 yr
Avg tenure
↓ 4.0yr from FY2024
60%
Internal hires
↑ above industry avg
Consolidated financials FY2025 · period end 2025-12-31 · 10-K
Revenue
$15.6B
Net income
$1.2B
Total assets
$341.4B
Shares out
217M
Sourced from Principal Financial Group, Inc. DEF 14A · filed 2026-04-06 ↗ View on SEC
Interactive org chart
Principal Financial Group, Inc. organizational chart
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Three operating presidents report directly to the CEO. This page maps Principal Financial Group’s enterprise leadership structure, highlights its unusually wide CEO span, summarizes recent leadership changes, and compares the model with insurance peers.
What to model
Use the chart to test org decisions, not just view reporting lines
Start with the public baseline, then use the scenario views and source-backed changes to ask what happens when leadership, span, or team ownership shifts.
Latest signal Deanna D. Strable-Soethout moved into Chair of the Board
Elected Chair effective September 2, 2025
Source · See change logScenario views in the chart
- Add a Chief Operating Officer Introduce a COO to consolidate oversight of the three operating presidents and reduce CEO span.
- Consolidate operating presidents under CFO Move operating presidents to report to the CFO, tightening financial control but increasing CFO span.
Atlas work this supports
- Connect Workday or UKG Get these analytics for YOUR org — tenure, span of control, headcount, automatically from your HRIS.
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- Plan a Reorg Use this as a starting point. Model scenarios, compare structures, present options to your board.
The people
Who's running this
6 executives identified as Named Executive Officers in the most recent SEC proxy. Bar length scales with tenure.
internal
Joel M. Pitz
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Finance
1 yr
0 reports
Kamal Bhatia
President and CEO, Principal Asset Management
Asset Management
4 yr
0 reports
internal
Amy C. Friedrich
President, Benefits and Protection
Benefits & Protection
6 yr
0 reports
internal
Christopher J. Littlefield
President, Retirement Income Solutions
Retirement & Income
5 yr
0 reports
Unknown
Chief Risk Officer
Risk
1 yr
0 reports
The pay
Executive compensation
From the most recent DEF 14A Summary Compensation Table. 1 named executive officers disclosed. Bar length scales with total compensation.
Deanna D. Strable-Soethout $13.8M
- Base salary
- $991K
- Stock awards
- $8.87M
- Non-equity incentive
- $3.09M
- Pension change
- $691K
- Other
- $184K
- Fiscal year
- FY2025
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
The businesses
How Principal Financial Group, Inc. divides the work
3 divisions report into the group CEO. Tile size scales with estimated headcount.
Principal Asset Management
4K employees
President & CEO (Kamal Bhatia)
Global asset management business serving institutional and retail clients.
Benefits and Protection
6K employees
President (Amy C. Friedrich)
Provides group benefits, specialty insurance, and protection products.
Retirement Income Solutions
4K employees
President (Christopher J. Littlefield)
Focuses on retirement, income, and pension risk transfer solutions.
The thesis
Why this org is unusual
Three business-line presidents report directly to the CEO, rather than being grouped under a COO or regional structure.
Principal’s enterprise model centers profit-and-loss accountability in Asset Management, Benefits & Protection, and Retirement Income Solutions, all at the same level as core corporate functions like Finance. This creates a wide CEO span but keeps strategic control centralized.
The absence of a separate COO role reinforces the CEO’s direct oversight of operating units. Finance, risk, and governance functions operate as enterprise-wide controls, while the presidents run largely autonomous businesses with distinct regulatory and capital profiles.
- No COO role
- Three operating presidents at level 2
The comparison
How Principal Financial Group, Inc. stacks up
Compared with peers such as MetLife and Prudential Financial, Principal places more operational responsibility directly under the CEO via multiple segment presidents. Many peers interpose a COO or regional CEOs. Principal’s structure is flatter at the top but demands stronger coordination at the enterprise level.
C-suite size
Reporting depth
Principal Financial Group, Inc.
2 levels
4 levels
5 levels
4 levels
Lincoln Financial
4 levels
Avg C-suite tenure
Principal Financial Group, Inc.
3 yr
6 yr
8 yr
Lincoln Financial
6 yr
Has COO / Has CAIO
Principal Financial Group, Inc. — no COO — no CAIO
Lincoln Financial ✓ COO — no CAIO
Current signals
What changed recently
The most significant change was Deanna Strable-Soethout assuming the Chair role in September 2025, consolidating CEO and Chair positions.
- promoted
- newJoel M. Pitz Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Appointed CFO effective May 19, 2025
Source
Leadership Timeline
Year-over-year executive structure based on SEC proxy and annual filings.
FY2025
DEF 14A filed 2026-04-06
- CEO
- Deanna D. Strable-Soethout
- CEO span
- 5
- C-suite
- 6
- Avg tenure
- 3 yr
CEO and Chair roles recombined following Daniel Houston’s retirement.
Named executive officers (5)
- Deanna D. Strable-Soethout - CEO since 2025
- Joel M. Pitz - CFO since 2025
- Kamal Bhatia - President, Asset Management
- Amy C. Friedrich - President, Benefits and Protection
- Christopher J. Littlefield - President, Retirement Income Solutions
FY2024
DEF 14A filed 2025-04-01
- CEO
- Daniel J. Houston
- CEO span
- 5
- C-suite
- 6
- Avg tenure
- 7 yr
CEO transition announced with Strable-Soethout designated successor.
FY2023
DEF 14A filed 2024-04-02
- CEO
- Daniel J. Houston
- CEO span
- 5
- C-suite
- 6
- Avg tenure
- 8 yr
Stable leadership under long-tenured CEO.
Year-over-year changes
2025 marked a CEO transition with continuity in overall structure but reduced average tenure.
- CEO span: 5 → 5
- C-suite size: 6 → 6
- Avg tenure: 7 → 3 yr
- promoted Deanna D. Strable-Soethout - CEO (was President and COO) (DEF 14A filed 2026-04-06)
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the CEO of Principal Financial Group?
Deanna D. Strable-Soethout has served as CEO since January 7, 2025.
What type of organizational structure does Principal Financial Group use?
Principal uses a hybrid enterprise structure combining centralized functions with autonomous business presidents.
How many direct reports does Principal Financial Group's CEO have?
The CEO has five direct reports.
How has Principal Financial Group's leadership changed recently?
In 2025, Deanna Strable-Soethout became Chair and CEO, and Joel Pitz was appointed CFO.
Does Principal Financial Group have a COO?
No. Principal does not currently have a Chief Operating Officer.
Sources
- 8-K Filing, Aug 19 2025
- 8-K Filing, May 20 2025
- SEC EDGAR: Principal Financial Group, Inc. DEF 14A Proxy Statement
- SEC EDGAR: Principal Financial Group, Inc. 10-K Annual Report
Reference
Cite this page
If you reference this page in research, analysis, or news writing, use one of the formats below. Citation includes the SEC filing source where applicable.
APA 7th
Creately. (2026). Principal Financial Group, Inc. organizational structure. Creately. Retrieved , from https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/principal-financial-group/MLA 9th
"Principal Financial Group, Inc. Organizational Structure." Creately, April 1, 2026, https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/principal-financial-group/. Accessed .Chicago 17
Creately. "Principal Financial Group, Inc. Organizational Structure." Last modified April 1, 2026. https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/principal-financial-group/.Original SEC source View on SEC ↗
Principal Financial Group, Inc.. DEF 14A. Filed 2026-04-06. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1126328/000110465926039920/tm2529976-1_def14a.htmPermanent URL: https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/principal-financial-group/ · last updated 2026-04-01