To further build its employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) team, the Principal Financial Group® hired Kim Blaugher as a vice president of consulting and Amy Hartnett as a director of business development. Blaugher and Hartnett round out the 30-person team dedicated to the firm’s ESOP business.

“The addition of both Kim and Amy further strengthens our ESOP consulting practice to better serve existing clients and help grow our number of plans,” said Jerry Ripperger, vice president of consulting at The Principal®. “Recent expansions to our team, including hiring Mike Parrett as national vice president of consulting last August, reinforces our commitment to providing comprehensive ESOP consulting and administrations services.”

Blaugher rejoins The Principal after serving as a vice president of consulting on the ESOP team for nearly 20 years. He most recently was a senior director for BDO USA, LLP, within its ESOP consulting group. Blaugher has a master’s degree in taxation from the University of Denver and a bachelor’s degree in economics from Earlham College. He is a member of the Employee-Owned S Corporations of America, the National Center for Employee Ownership, The ESOP Association and the Pacific Coast TE/GE Council.

Prior to joining The Principal, Hartnett was a vice president in the ESOP Finance Group at Fifth Third Bank in Chicago, focusing on business development nationwide. She is a graduate of the University of Iowa in Iowa City, with bachelor’s degrees in finance and marketing. Hartnett is on the board of the Illinois ESOP Association and a member of the National Center for Employee Ownership.

About the Principal Financial Group
The Principal Financial Group® (The Principal®)1 is a global investment management leader offering retirement services, insurance solutions and asset management. The Principal offers businesses, individuals and institutional clients a wide range of financial products and services, including retirement, asset management and insurance through its diverse family of financial services companies. Founded in 1879 and a member of the FORTUNE 500®, the Principal Financial Group has $519.3 billion in assets under management2 and serves some 19.7 million customers worldwide from offices in Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America and the United States. Principal Financial Group, Inc. is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PFG. For more information, visit www.principal.com.

1 “The Principal Financial Group” and “The Principal” are registered service marks of Principal Financial Services, Inc., a member of the Principal Financial Group.
2 As of Dec. 31, 2014.