people T he worst of 2001 brought out the best in The Hartford’s people.  As the world watched the horrors of Sept. 11, some 330 of our New York employees fled their offices in 7 World Trade Center. Though many were caught in the debris and dust from the nearby Twin Towers, all escaped safely.  By the time the 47-story 7 World Trade Center building collapsed at about 5:20 p.m., The Hartford had already arranged for temporary space in several of the company’s other offices. Employees and suppliers immediately began working around the clock to get the business up and running again. Despite the destruction, back-up systems kept distributors’ and customers’ data secure.  A hundred miles from Ground Zero, home office employees in Hartford, Conn., began shuttling equip- ment and supplies to our temporary offices. Some  By Monday, Sept. 17, all of The Hartford’s business units in New York were serving customers again. Employees had new furniture, phones, servers and PCs. Distributors’ and customers’ access to company e-mail was never interrupted. Calls to old phone numbers were rerouted to cell phones or new office phones. Print and radio ads—along with The Hartford’s Web site— gave customers instructions for filing claims quickly. Customer relationships were stronger than ever. The Hartford Experience—customer solutions, ease of doing business and extraordinary service—was never better demonstrated. booked Long Island Sound ferries from Connecticut to Long Island within 48 hours of the attack. Others spent the weekend driving supplies to the new locations so employees could concentrate on customers instead of on finding pens and paper. Employees and suppliers were determined to get the company, its distributors and its customers through the crisis. 9