7 People on the Move

Chubb names new head of North America industry practices, Risk Strategies merges student health business segment under new leadership and more in this edition of People on the Move.

By: R&I Editorial Team | November 1, 2022

Topics: People on the Move

Chubb Names New Head of North America Industry Practices

Bill Hazelton, executive vice president, head of North America industry practices, Chubb

Bill Hazelton has been appointed to the newly created role of executive vice president, head of North America industry practices at Chubb.

Hazelton will lead Chubb’s efforts to “enhance delivery of comprehensive industry-focused insurance coverages, risk engineering and claims services to customers in all market segments,” according to a press release.

Although his leadership role has expanded, Hazelton will continue to serve as real estate and hospitality industry practice leader and oversee the practice’s casualty profit and loss performance. He will continue to report to John Lupica, vice chairman, Chubb Group and president, North America.

“Bill comes to this role with a deep understanding of Chubb’s network of distribution partners, the unique needs of our mutual clients, and all that Chubb has to offer them,” Lupica said. “Under his leadership, I’m excited to see our ability to serve clients across key sectors rise to new heights.”

Hazelton has been with Chubb since 2005 and has served in several leadership capacities.

Risk Strategies Promotes Student Health & Wellness Segment Leader

Ali Rana, managing director, education practice, student health and wellness segment, Risk Strategies

Risk Strategies has promoted Ali Rana to managing director, education practice, student health and wellness segment.

Rana previously served as the Academic HealthPlans division director/chief innovation officer for student health and wellness. He joined Risk Strategies with the acquisition of Academic HealthPlans in 2020.

In his new role, he will lead all aspects of the integrated student health business units including growth and operations. He will continue to report to Terry Lyons, national education practice leader.

“The Risk Strategies specialists bring deep understanding to client issues and are adept at developing new, effective ways to harness our vast resources to solve them,” Lyons said.

“Ali is a great fit for this position, as his career has been as much about innovation and leadership as insurance. His mix of talents and motivation gets real client results that build loyalty.”

RegEd Taps Ponce Kenton as Chief Technology Officer

Enterprise regulatory compliance solutions provider RegEd has appointed Ponce Kenton to the role of chief technology officer (CTO). In this role, Kenton will be responsible for directing RegEd’s technology strategy and driving the advancement of RegEd’s enterprise compliance and credentialing solutions.

“As client expectations for technology-enabled efficiency continue to evolve, a chief technology officer that is an innovation agent with highly disciplined execution is critical to our continued success,” said John M. Schobel, RegEd CEO and founder.

“Ponce brings extensive knowledge of product engineering, technology strategy, SaaS solutions development and systems architecture and design … His proven ability to execute technology and product transformation strategies and drive highly disciplined SLDC practices will help ensure RegEd’s continued success.”

Kenton joins RegEd from SAI 360 where he was SVP of product development and drove SAI’s technology vision and evolution, led a large global product and development team, scaled Agile best practices and transformed the customer user experience of SAI’s flagship 360 product line, according to a press release.

Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty Appoints Entertainment Global Product Lead

Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) recently named Mark Whayling as the new entertainment global product lead for the live sector.

In this role, Whayling will be chief underwriter for AGCS’ live events, sports and contingency with global responsibility for this portfolio. He will be responsible for the firm’s global live entertainment products that help protect organizers, promotors, performers, equipment and audience members from the risks associated with complex live event productions.

Reporting to Michael Furtschegger, global head of entertainment, Whayling will continue working out of AGCS’ London office.

Commenting on Mark’s appointment, Furtschegger said: “I’m delighted Mark is assuming this role leading Live Entertainment for AGCS globally. His experience and knowledge of live events and sport insurance will ensure we continue to be best placed to help our clients worldwide with their Live entertainment coverage needs. I very much look forward to continuing working together in his new capacity.”

Whayling was most recently senior underwriter, live entertainment, for AGCS’ London & Nordics region having joined Allianz in 2017. Prior to that he worked as an entertainment underwriter at ProSight Syndicate 1100.

The Hartford Names Meg Carter Head of Global Specialty Distribution

Meg Carter, head of global specialty distribution, The Hartford

The Hartford has promoted Meg Carter to head of global specialty distribution. In her new role, Carter will drive distribution strategy and sales excellence across The Hartford’s diverse set of products and channels in global specialty, per a press release.

She will report to The Hartford’s head of global specialty, Adrien Robinson.

“As we look to expand, Meg’s expertise advancing key partner relationships will be instrumental to evolving and scaling our organization,” Robinson said. “She will ensure cross-sell efforts continue to embed Global Specialty’s broad suite of products throughout The Hartford, further accelerating our progress to achieve top market share within our target industries.”

Having served 17 years with The Hartford, Carter has held numerous roles of increasing responsibility across underwriting, sales, and management spanning multiple business units and disciplines. Prior to joining global specialty, she led the organization’s middle and large commercial sales underwriting teams for North Carolina and South Carolina.

ATF Medical Hires Rehab Expert as Manager of Complex Rehab

David Bedard, ATP, C.H.A.M.P., manager of complex rehab technology, ATF Medical

David Bedard, ATP, C.H.A.M.P. has joined ATF Medical as manager of complex rehab technology. ATF Medical supplies mobility equipment, rehabilitation and assistive technologies, and adaptive housing solutions for complex workers’ compensation claims.

Bedard is responsible for the organization’s day-to-day operations and quality assurance. He also coordinates ongoing training for staff on products and services.

He brings over three decades of rehab experience with workers’ compensation, Medicare, Medicaid and group health payers to the position. Most recently, he served as senior vice president of quality assurance for Orchid Medical.

“David vast knowledge of complex rehab equipment is a great asset to our clients,” said Sid Glover, ATF Medical’s president and CEO. “And he shares our passion for equipping workers’ comp patients for a high quality of life.”

Bedard began his career in the industry at 17 as a high school intern for a durable medical equipment company. “I found my passion there. It’s a rewarding experience to provide medical equipment that puts a person back in the game of life.”

Signal Restoration Hires New VP of National Accounts

Carrie Broussard, vice president of national accounts, Signal Restoration Services

Carrie Broussard is the new vice president of national accounts for Signal Restoration Services, a provider of emergency response and property damage restoration for industrial, healthcare, education, government, hospitality, multi-family, and retail industries.

With more than a decade in the disaster recovery and restoration industry, Broussard is responsible for cultivating business development and sales as well as exploring partnership opportunities that support Signal’s growth.

She will report to chief relationship officer Barry Zollman.

“As we continue to build Signal into a world class brand, our strategy is to recruit the absolute best talent in the industry,” said Mark Davis, co-CEO, Signal. “Carrie has a proven track record of delivering best-in-class service for her clients. Her experience, character, and passion for delivering relentless customer service will contribute to Carrie making an immediate impact in Signal’s growth.”

In addition to a 12-year tenure in disaster recovery and restoration, Broussard previously worked in nonprofit and pharmaceutical sales. &

The R&I Editorial Team can be reached at [email protected].

Vermont’s Future Is Golden

Challenging market conditions are driving insureds to captives. Vermont offers a reliable domicile.

Hard markets in commercial insurance lines have been a problem for years now. Many lines don’t show signs of softening, though some, like cyber, have ebbed over the past few years.

High claims volumes and costs have caused carriers to tighten terms and conditions, introduce new exclusions and increase premiums. A variety of different risks are included in this market tightening, and it’s affecting both public and private companies.

As Sandy Bigglestone, deputy commissioner for the State of Vermont’s captive insurance division, explained, schools, churches and other nonprofits are contending carriers are “excluding sexual abuse and molestation from coverage for a lot of these types of entities. These organizations understand the risk and the public needs to have confidence the organizations are addressing the risks, so they must have the coverage.”

Though many commercial lines are affected, property has perhaps been hit the hardest. Increased claims, inaccurate property valuations and other challenges have caused insurers to tighten their books in recent years. 2024’s spate of hurricanes will likely make matters worse.

“There continues to be challenges in the commercial market,” Bigglestone said. “Some companies are coming to us with risks that they say they’ve been self-insuring on their balance sheet, and why not transfer that to a captive to receive greater benefits?”

Consistency and Stability

Sandy Bigglestone, Deputy Commissioner for the State of Vermont’s Captive Insurance Division

With the commercial insurance market so unstable, companies are turning to captives to house their exposures. Vermont, a long-time domicile, is getting increased attention because of their strong reputation and their leadership as the top domicile worldwide.

“All stakeholders enjoy the stable political and regulatory environment Vermont has to offer to operate in,” Bigglestone said.

Of course, a lot of consideration goes into deciding whether or not a captive is the right choice for a particular company. Businesses need to assess their exposures and their books to make sure they can adequately operate a captive.

There are significant advantages, however. “For low frequency, high severity risks, captives can access the reinsurance markets directly, so it’s very attractive for businesses to put a captive in place,” Bigglestone said.

And carriers are more accepting of captives as part of a broader insurance program.

“Captives are changing the relationship businesses have with commercial carriers,” Bigglestone said. “Commercial carriers are wanting to see companies with skin in the game; therefore, the relationships have evolved to be less transactional and more strategic.”

Balancing Bureaucracy

With 76 global domiciles, companies have a lot of options when it comes to selecting a captive partner. “Captive insurance domiciles compete globally for the business,” Bigglestone said. “If you were to put all 7,000-plus captive insurance companies around the world, all in New York, it wouldn’t have the same economic impact as 700 captives in Vermont does. The captive insurance industry is very important to our state and we will continue to support it in any way we can.”

Businesses should look for domiciles that balance a need for quality regulations with a process that isn’t overly bureaucratic and is seamless for business owners to navigate.

“Companies are attracted to an environment with quality regulatory standards and a stable regulatory environment,” Bigglestone said. “Vermont sets the regulatory standard in terms of financial analysis and examinations.”

In addition to quality regulations, firms will want to seek out a domicile that is agile enough to license captive insurance companies that fit their unique needs. It is important that a domicile have firm but fair regulation and the experience to consider new ideas and implement them. Companies must consider a variety of factors when choosing a domicile and not everyone will be the right fit for every company.

“You have to consider the captive owner and the industry sector that that owner operates in, as well as the insurance risks that are going into the captive program,” Bigglestone said. “Captive laws and regulations have to have a reasonable degree of flexibility to accommodate all the varying needs of owners and then impose rules based on the merits of each captive program.”

She added that creativity is a critical part of the process: “The ability to vet concepts and ideas with trusted individuals is key to having quality standards,” Bigglestone said. “And it can make captives appealing to insureds who are tired of commercial carriers not meeting the needs of the business, and who desire more control over their insurance programs.”

“When you think about the commercial marketplace, commercial insurers are supposed to operate in each jurisdiction in a competitive manner. Commercial carriers often look the same. They sell auto coverage to anyone with a driver’s license. The rules and regulations imposed upon commercial insurance companies are designed to be more formulaic for that reason,” Bigglestone said.

“Uniform regulatory standards apply to commercial carriers for the protection of the policyholders. These are standards all insurance regulators focus on, and standards captive insurance regulators need to understand, but with a specialized focus.”

A Quality Domicile Built for the Future

A combination of experience, regulatory standards and talent make Vermont a top domicile for companies looking to form a captive. The longevity of licensing captive insurance companies for over forty years is a testament to the quality work they’ve provided in the past and will continue to provide for many years to come.

Vermont’s reputation has helped the state attract and retain top captive talent, ensuring the businesses it serves are in good hands. The state has 32 employees dedicated to captives, and their average employee retention is 15 years. The Vermont Captive Insurance Association, the largest captive insurance trade organization, also helps companies connect with professional services needed to make their captive successful.

“There’s a whole host of service providers with proven expertise right here in Vermont,” Bigglestone said.

Taken together, Vermont’s resources, expertise and talent make it a prime domicile. They’ve been on a growth trajectory over the last few years and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon. Companies can trust their captive will be in good hands when they choose Vermont.

“Vermont has always competed on quality,” Bigglestone said. “We do have a mission and that hasn’t changed in over 40 years. It’s to maintain a system, or domicile that attracts quality business to Vermont, to promote our reputation in the industry, and to uphold a regulatory framework to protect the solvency of the companies that choose to place their business here.”

To learn more, visit: www.vermontcaptive.com

This article was produced by the R&I Brand Studio, a unit of the advertising department of Risk & Insurance, in collaboration with State of Vermont. The editorial staff of Risk & Insurance had no role in its preparation.

The State of Vermont, known as the “Gold Standard” of captive domiciles, is the leading onshore captive insurance domicile, with over 1,200 licensed captive insurance companies, including 48 of the Fortune 100 and 18 of the companies that make up the Dow 30.

7 People on the Move

Chubb Names New Head of North America Industry Practices

Risk Strategies Promotes Student Health & Wellness Segment Leader

RegEd Taps Ponce Kenton as Chief Technology Officer

Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty Appoints Entertainment Global Product Lead

The Hartford Names Meg Carter Head of Global Specialty Distribution

ATF Medical Hires Rehab Expert as Manager of Complex Rehab

Signal Restoration Hires New VP of National Accounts

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7 People on the Move

Chubb Names New Head of North America Industry Practices

Risk Strategies Promotes Student Health & Wellness Segment Leader

RegEd Taps Ponce Kenton as Chief Technology Officer

Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty Appoints Entertainment Global Product Lead

The Hartford Names Meg Carter Head of Global Specialty Distribution

ATF Medical Hires Rehab Expert as Manager of Complex Rehab

Signal Restoration Hires New VP of National Accounts

Share this article!

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The Buckeye State’s Insurance Talent Recruitment Approach

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Sponsored: State of Vermont

Vermont’s Future Is Golden

Consistency and Stability

Balancing Bureaucracy

A Quality Domicile Built for the Future

Share this article!