Sean Woodroffe
The U.S. division of Sun Life Financial Inc., headquartered in Wellesley Hills, Mass., this week announced that Sean Woodroffe has been appointed head of human resources for the financial services firm’s U.S. business.
“Sean has a keen understanding of the intricate balance that exists between achieving business goals [and] providing for employee needs, and we are pleased to have him lead our U.S. human resources team,” said Wes Thompson, president of Sun Life Financial U.S., in a statement announcing Woodroffe’s hire. “As Sun Life continues to focus on building our brand and U.S. businesses, maintaining a strong, engaged employee base will be vital to achieving our goals. Sean’s proven success and expertise in HR strategy development and talent recruitment will greatly enhance these efforts.”
Prior to joining Sun Life, Woodroffe served as division head for the United Bank for Africa’s Human Capital Management Business Partnership. In that position, he oversaw the delivery of all human resources services to business heads and more than 17,000 employees globally.
He has also held posts as senior vice president of human resources and administration for Financial Guaranty Insurance Company, and worked in numerous HR roles during an 18-year tenure at Merrill Lynch, where he rose to the rank of first vice president and head of international human resources in the company’s London offices.
Woodroffe earned a bachelor’s degree in international relations from historically black Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C., and has completed the Strategic Leadership Program at Harvard Business School.
Chartered in 1865, Sun Life Financial provides a range of wealth protection and accumulation services to individuals and corporate customers, and has operations in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Japan, India and China, among other locations. Locally, the company has offices in Boston and in Wellesley Hills, just west of the city.
