Cincinnati Financial Corporation
Founders
John J. (Jack) Schiff, Robert C. (Bob) Schiff, Harry M. Turner, Chester T. Field · Founded 1950 · HQ today: Fairfield, Ohio
Cincinnati Financial was founded by John J. (Jack) Schiff, Robert C. (Bob) Schiff, Harry M. Turner, Chester T. Field in 1950 in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. It is now led by Stephen M. Spray.
In 1950, four Cincinnati-area independent agents, brothers John J. (Jack) and Robert C. (Bob) Schiff, Harry M. Turner and Chester T. Field, organized The Cincinnati Insurance Company. They wanted a carrier "sponsored by excellent agents" that treated agents as partners, and they raised the starting capital largely from fellow agents. The company expanded into Kentucky in 1954, formed the Cincinnati Financial Corporation holding company in 1968, and later moved its headquarters to Fairfield, Ohio.
Cincinnati independent insurance agent and co-founder in 1950.
Jack Schiff co-founded The Cincinnati Insurance Company in 1950 with his brother Bob and fellow agents Harry M. Turner and Chester T. Field. The company says he never stopped seeing himself as an agent first. He led the company for decades and was a prominent Cincinnati civic figure.
Independent insurance agent and Jack Schiff's brother.
Bob Schiff was 26 when he co-founded The Cincinnati Insurance Company in 1950. With his brother he helped build the agent-sponsored model, including working Saturdays to meet agents and policyholders, a habit associates continued for decades.
Insurance agent from Ohio.
Harry M. Turner co-founded Cincinnati Financial in 1950 alongside his brothers. He deeply understood that independent insurance agents were increasingly alienated by massive corporate carriers, leading him to base the company's entire philosophy around serving the local agent rather than the direct consumer. He served as President during the company's early expansion across the Midwest.
Independent insurance agent.
Chester T. Field partnered with the Turner brothers to establish Cincinnati Financial in 1950. As an independent agent himself, he was critical in designing the company's unique corporate structure where field representatives were given massive authority to underwrite policies locally without seeking home-office approval.
Stephen M. Spray
President and Chief Executive Officer
Appointed as President in 2024, he oversees all day-to-day operations, attempting to balance the company's historic reliance on independent agents with necessary digital modernization.
Steven J. Johnston
Chairman (CEO 2011-2024)
As CEO since 2011, he successfully navigated the company through severe natural disaster cycles, expanding commercial lines into excess and surplus (E&S) markets to drive higher margins.
Cincinnati Financial traces to The Cincinnati Insurance Company, organized in 1950 by four independent agents: John J. (Jack) Schiff, Robert C. (Bob) Schiff, Harry M. Turner and Chester T. Field.
The founders wanted a carrier sponsored by local agents that treated agents as partners and gave them a voice, rather than one run from distant offices. That agent-first idea still defines the company's distribution model.
The founders raised starting capital largely by selling shares to fellow independent agents, so the company was sponsored by the agents who sold its policies.
The company expanded into neighboring Kentucky in early 1954 and became known for package policies combining several coverages in one contract.
Cincinnati Financial Corporation was formed in 1968 as the parent holding company of The Cincinnati Insurance Company. Its shares trade on Nasdaq under CINF.
Jack Schiff led the company for decades and was a well-known Cincinnati civic figure. The company says he always saw himself as an agent first, a view reflected in its agency-only distribution.
The agent-sponsored model they created in 1950 grew into a Fortune 500 insurer with $12.631 billion of 2025 revenue that still sells only through independent agencies and has raised its annual dividend for 66 consecutive years.
It was founded by John J. Schiff, Robert C. Schiff, Harry M. Turner, and Chester Garber. They were all local, independent insurance agents who pooled their resources to build a carrier that actually respected local brokers.
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