Executive Changes
UK Property/Casualty Underwriter Direct Line Names CEO

Penny James has been named the next chief executive officer of Direct Line Insurance Group plc and will succeed Paul Geddes at the conclusion of the insurer's annual general meeting on May 9.

Geddes will step down as a member of the board following the annual meeting and will leave the group at the end of July, Direct Line said in a statement. He has been Direct Line's CEO for 10 years.

James is the current chief financial officer of Direct Line. The company said it has launched a search for a new CFO.

“The board is confident that Penny is ideally suited to leading the delivery of DLG's short-term strategic imperatives, including technological and business transformation, and the development of the next stage of our strategy,” Mike Biggs, chairman of Direct Line Group, said in a statement.

James was appointed to Direct Line's board in November 2017 and became CFO in March 2018.

She was previously with Prudential plc, where she was group chief risk officer and a member of the board. She had previously been Prudential's director of group finance, group CFO of Omega Insurance Holdings plc and CFO of U.K. general insurance at Zurich Financial Services, where she held a number of senior finance roles.

She was also an independent nonexecutive director of Admiral Group plc from 2015 to 2017.

—David Pilla

H.W. Kaufman Group Creates First Chief Compliance Officer Post

Burns &Wilcox parent company H.W. Kaufman Group has appointed Kori Johanson as its first chief compliance officer as it expands globally.

She will oversee the company's compliance team and be responsible for corporate and regulatory compliance, government affairs and state insurance taxation for Kaufman and its subsidiaries.

Johanson brings more than 20 years of experience in corporate compliance, regulatory and government affairs, most recently at high net worth carrier Pure, where she was associate general counsel in charge of compliance and regulatory operations.

Earlier, she served as chief compliance officer at Acord, and was at Travelers Insurance for 15 years.

Lockton Appoints Execs to New Global Re Business and in Asia-Pacific

Lockton Inc. has appointed three Marsh &McLennan Cos. executives to lead a new global reinsurance unit, Lockton Global Re.

It will operate from New York and incorporate the broker's London-based specialty team. Guy Carpenter's chief executive officer of North America operations, Tim Gardner, will serve as CEO of Lockton Global Re. The company also appointed Claude Yoder, Guy Carpenter's managing director and global chief innovation and product development officer, and Marsh captive solutions President Mick Durant to executive positions within the new business.

Gardner has more than 20 years of reinsurance and insurance business experience with Marsh &McLennan Cos., where he has held multiple leadership positions, including Marsh head of international sales and risk management segment global leader.

Yoder joined Marsh in 2011 after spending nearly 20 years at carriers. He has primary insurance, underwriting, risk management, product development and research and development experience. Earlier, he was head of Marsh global analytics.

Durant spent 20 years working on reinsurance analytics and earlier was Marsh's global analytics sales leader.

Earlier, Philip Corrigan was named regional chief operations officer for Lockton Cos., as the broker looks to expand its business and expertise across the Asia-Pacific region.

Corrigan has more than 30 years of industry experience, including 15 years of experience leading insurance teams in the Asia-Pacific region. He has spent much of his career at Jardine Lloyd Thompson and worked for the firm in managerial roles in Indonesia, Vietnam and South Korea, Lockton said. Most recently he was CEO of JLT Thailand.

Artex Co-Founder Rejoins Company as CEO

Peter Mullen has rejoined Artex Risk Solutions Inc., the company he helped found, as chief executive officer.

He succeeds David McManus, who will assume the new role of chairman of the Arthur J. Gallagher &Co. subsidiary.

Previously, Mullen was CEO of Aon Captive &Insurance Management. His return was announced last year and delayed by contractual obligations to the company. At the time, Artex said Mullen would serve as CEO-elect until July 1, 2019.

Mullen, McManus and Jennifer Gallagher founded Artex in 1997.

RSA Insurance Names Chief Financial Officer

RSA Insurance Group plc. named Charlotte Jones as chief financial officer.

She replaces Scott Egan, who became chief executive officer of RSA's U.K. and international division on Feb. 5. She will also serve on the board as an executive director, reporting to Group CEO Stephen Hester. Her appointment is subject to regulatory approval.

Jones is expected to begin the CFO position by summer 2019. She is currently CFO of Jupiter Fund Management plc, which she will leave to take up her new role at RSA.

Currently a nonexecutive director of RSA, Jones is a member of the group audit and board risk committees. She will continue as a nonexecutive director but will no longer be considered independent. In this capacity, she will continue as a member of the board as well as an attendee at the group audit and risk committees.

MetLife Makes Executive Changes in Connection With CEO Transition

MetLife Inc. made several executive appointments in connection to the coming change in its chief executive officer.

Ramy Tadros was appointed as president of U.S. business. Marlene Debel will succeed him as chief risk officer and Graham Cox will succeed Debel as head of retirement and income solutions, the company said in a statement. All appointments are effective May 1, when Michel Khalaf succeeds retiring President and Chief Executive Officer Steven Kandarian.

Tadros succeeds and reports to Khalaf. He joined MetLife in September 2017 from Oliver Wyman, where he was a partner and global head of insurance. Tadros has more than 20 years of experience advising global life and property/casualty insurers on strategy, product, distribution and finance.

Debel, currently an executive vice president, joined MetLife in 2011 from Bank of America, where she was global head of liquidity risk management and rating agency relations. Earlier, she spent 20 years at Merrill Lynch &Co. She served as treasurer and chief financial officer for U.S. business prior to leading RIS at MetLife. Debel also will report to Khalaf.

Cox, currently an executive vice president in global risk management, will report to Tadros. He joined the company in 1995 as an actuary, MetLife said, and has since overseen the insurer's group life product portfolio and the product and operations unit of the former international business. He served as head of Western Europe.

Khalaf is also president of MetLife Europe, Middle East and Africa. Dirk Ostjin, senior vice president and head of EMEA, will continue to manage the region under Khalaf's direction, MetLife said.

NJM Appoints Chief Financial Officer

Chris Malone has been appointed chief financial officer of NJM Insurance Group. He succeeds Alastair Shore, who is no longer with the company.

Malone brings more than 25 years of experience, most recently as Ameriprise Auto &Home insurance vice president and lead financial officer. He led the company's financial, data analytics, workforce planning, vendor management and quality assurance operations.

Earlier, he held leadership positions at Plymouth Rock Assurance Co., Travelers Cos. and Hartford and has worked in finance, product management, field operations and marketing.

Malone will oversee NJM's financial and actuarial departments and will be a member of NJM's executive leadership team, reporting to President and Chief Executive Officer Mitch Livingston.

Marsh Names Sharing Economy and Mobility Practice Leader

Robert Bauer has joined Marsh as practice leader for its U.S. sharing economy and mobility practice.

He will focus on developing and delivering products and services to companies operating in the new economy, working with experts across Marsh, including the company's digital, data and analytics team, the insurance broking and risk management solutions firm said in a statement. The role Bauer is assuming has been expanded to include mobility.

Bauer joins Marsh from American International Group, where he was most recently general insurance head of innovation and its sharing economy group.

He is based in San Francisco and reports to Jeffrey Alpaugh, growth and industry leader for Marsh's U.S. and Canada division. Marsh is a subsidiary of Marsh &McLennan Cos.

Lloyd’s Names Head of Global Operations

Lloyd's has appointed Hayley Spink as head of global operations.

In her new role, Spink will provide operational leadership for Lloyd's internal and marketwide programs. She succeeds Joe Dainty, who leaves Lloyd's in March to join DXC.

She reports to Chief Operating Officer Shirine Khoury-Haq.

Spink joined Lloyd's in 2007 and has held a variety of operational leadership roles where she has implemented and overseen Lloyd's operations in locations including Dubai, India, China, Malaysia, Colombia and Mexico.

Pioneer Underwriters Appoints US CEO

Pioneer Underwriters has appointed Nick Greggains as chief executive officer of its U.S. operation. He will be based in New York and will report to Andrew McMellin, Pioneer Group CEO.

Gene Hinman, the current U.S. CEO, will become president of Pioneer U.S. until his retirement at the end of 2019. When Hinman retires, that president's role will merge into Greggains' U.S. CEO role.

Greggains has 30 years of insurance industry experience, mainly with a U.S. focus. Beginning in 2007, he was U.S. chief underwriting officer at Catlin before Catlin's merger with XL Group. He then became director of underwriting at XL Catlin Americas and CEO of XL Catlin Canada.

Charles A. McAlear, Founder of NAPSLO, Dies at 87

Charles A. McAlear, a founder of the National Association of Professional Surplus Lines Offices, died March 12 at his home in South Haven, Michigan. He was 87.

McAlear worked as a chartered property/casualty underwriter, and founded McAlear Associates, a wholesale insurance brokerage firm in Grand Rapids, Michigan. During that time, several states had surplus lines associations, but none represented the industry on a national level, according to the Wholesale Specialty Insurance Association, NAPSLO's successor organization. In the early 1970s, McAlear initiated the effort to form a nationwide association.

In 1975, NAPSLO was incorporated in New York. It held its first annual meeting in November 1975, where McAlear was elected the association's first president. He would serve two years. NAPSLO in 1994 renamed its award honoring individuals who made significant contributions to the surplus lines industry the Charles A. McAlear Industry Award, WSIA said.

WSIA itself was formed in 2017 with the merger of NAPSLO and the American Association of Managing General Agents.

McAlear continued working in the field until his retirement in 1987. In 1994, he became a charter member of the Michigan Insurance Hall of Fame.

Born in Bay City, Michigan, he served as a U.S. Army corporal during the Korean War, according to his obituary. He learned Mandarin Chinese at the Army Language School before being deployed, it said. He studied at the University of Michigan, from which he received his bachelor's and master's degrees.

McAlear was the author of two books, one of which, Reappraising China, Redefining Literacy, was published in November.

Service American Indemnity Names COO

Service American Indemnity Co. and Service Lloyds Insurance Co. have officially named Steve Collier as chief operating officer for SAIC, which officially launched March 1.

His appointment became effective with the founding of SAIC on March 1, 2018, the result of the acquisition by Service Lloyds' parent company, Service Insurance Holdings Inc., of American Healthcare Indemnity Co. The purchase gave Service Insurance Holdings the licensing needed to expand across the United States.

Collier will be responsible for leading SAIC operations and the company's overall strategy and execution of its national expansion.

Collier has 40 years of experience in a variety of executive roles and most recently held the position of vice president of underwriting and managing director for Service Lloyds Insurance. He joined Service Lloyds in 2000.

Illinois Governor Names New Insurance Department Director

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, has named Robert Muriel as the new director of the state Department of Insurance.

He succeeds acting Director Kevin Fry, who stepped in when former Chief Operating Officer Karin Zosel temporarily took the post in late 2018. The appointment is pending state Senate confirmation.

Muriel is a civil and commercial lawyer with more than 20 years of experience representing small businesses in trials, appeals and arbitrations in state and federal courts.

According to the governor's office, Muriel's core practice is civil and commercial litigation, including insurance coverage and bad faith claims, financial fraud claims, legal malpractice cases and consumer class-action cases, including actions brought under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

Lloyd’s Broker THB Names CFO

Kay Smith joined THB Group as group chief financial officer as the specialist insurance and reinsurance broker also announced senior board appointments.

Smith takes over the CFO role from Rob Wilkinson, who becomes commercial director.

Smith held a number of senior financial positions in the insurance broking sector, most recently at Arthur J. Gallagher in London. She was previously at Towergate.

The THB board also appointed a new chairman, Malcolm Beane. He has been a nonexecutive director with THB for more than two years and serves as chairman of the audit committee.

A new nonexecutive director, Jane Comerford, also joined THB. She has about 40 years of experience in broking, underwriting and MGA operations.

Axa XL Names Underwriting Manager for War, Terrorism and Political Violence

Axa XL named Morgan Shrubb as underwriting manager to its U.S. terrorism insurance team, as the commercial and specialty unit of Axa S.A. cites increased demand for coverage in the market.

Shrubb joined Axa XL Insurance's U.S. crisis management and special risks team as underwriting manager for war, terrorism and political violence, and will report to Daniel O'Connell, global head of war, terrorism, political trade and violence. She will be based in Atlanta and will be responsible for the management, marketing and underwriting of specialized war, terrorism and political violence insurance including standalone U.S. terrorism policies, active assailant insurance, and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear coverage.

Shrubb joins Axa XL from Ironshore International, where she was a production specialist charged with growing the company's war, terrorism and political violence book of business on the West Coast, said Axa XL. She began her underwriting career at Hiscox USA.

USAA Chief Operating Officer Appointed Incoming CEO at AutoNation

USAA Chief Operating Officer Carl Liebert has been appointed chief executive officer and president of automotive retailer AutoNation Inc.

USAA has not yet named a successor, according to a spokesman.

Liebert joined USAA in 2013 from 24 Hour Fitness, where he was CEO. He was president of USAA Capital Corp. and was named COO a year later at USAA when Stuart Parker was appointed CEO.