Downtown Hartford, which has been negatively impacted by the pandemic as many companies continue to operate with a remote workforce, will soon add a major new employer, the Hartford Business Journal has learned.
Global financial services firm Sun Life Financial, which has $1.36 trillion in assets under management, will relocate its Connecticut office in Windsor to downtown Hartford, the company confirmed to HBJ.
It will occupy 47,000 square feet in the iconic Gold Building, moving 300 of its Connecticut employees to the new office, including a mixture of underwriting, actuarial, technology, operations, clinical, sales and product professionals in its stop-loss and health and group benefits businesses, as well as legal, HR and finance team members.
At full capacity, the new office will accommodate up to 450 Sun Life employees, the company said.
“Hartford is one of the strongest markets in the world for insurance and related technology professionals, and bringing our Connecticut team to Hartford is an important step in making us an even stronger home for top talent in the area,” said Dr. Dan Fishbein, president of Sun Life U.S. “We look forward to developing a strong presence in and relationship with the city of Hartford.”
Fishbein added that Sun Life’s office-work dynamic has shifted to a more flexible model and “we intend to design our new space with advanced concepts for the future of work, including features that support how employees choose to work, leading technology, and amenities such as complimentary parking.”
A Sun Life spokesman said that employees will not be required to come into the office each day – it’s meant to serve as “a magnet, not a mandate.” Employees will be able to decide whether or not they want to be in the office on any given day.
The company said it will begin office design work in early 2022 and take occupancy in Sept. 2022.
The iconic 26-story, Class-A Gold Building, also known as One Financial Plaza, is one of the most visible buildings on Hartford’s skyline and co-owned by LAZ Investments LLC and Shelbourne Global Solutions. Other tenants include KPMG, Travelers, LAZ Parking, People’s United Bank, Virtus Investments, Global Atlantic, Accenture, Conning and General Reinsurance.
“We are pleased to welcome Sun Life to the Gold Building and to be adding yet another well-respected company to our list of corporate tenants,” said Alan Lazowski, chairman and CEO of LAZ Parking. “Sun Life’s decision to relocate its workforce downtown is an indicator of our rebounding economy and of the growing interest in Hartford as a place to do business and attract amazing talent.”
The addition of Sun Life is a major win for downtown Hartford, whose office market continues to face uncertainty amid the pandemic.
Many of the city’s largest employers continue to operate most of their workforce remotely and have recently pushed back plans to return workers to the office.
Travelers, The Hartford and even smaller companies like investment manager Conning Inc. have all recently announced plans to delay office reopening plans originally set for shortly after Labor Day.
