Newsletters
Risk Central
Digital Edition
Conner Strong & Buckelew Broker Tracy Jadico Recognized as a 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
Tracy Jadico, Partner and Consultant, Conner Strong & Buckelew In employee benefits, exceptional consulting can involve reacting decisively to a life-altering outcome or sudden death in the family. Such was the case with Tracy Jadico, whose knowledge and responsiveness made enormous differences for two clients. One scenario involved a COBRA coverage lapse that threatened a… View Article
HUB International Broker Matthew Glaros Recognized as s 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
Matthew Glaros, SVP, Employee Benefits, HUB International For Matthew Glaros’ clients, commitment to service is far beyond their expectations, and he earns their trust and respect for the long term. “Like most employers, Bosak Auto was facing the challenge of continued escalating expenses regarding providing health care coverage – specifically medical,” said Mary Kate Teske,… View Article
Newfront Broker Michael Saechao Recognized as a 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
Michael Saechao, Benefits Consultant, Newfront There’s nothing like a steady hand to guide employers through the chaotic annual rite known as open enrollment. Michael Saechao has earned a reputation for steering clients away from troubled water. He’s credited with implementing a long-term strategy that offered MeridianLink more stability in employee health benefits renewal quotes and… View Article
Marsh McLennan Agency Broker Josh Hurst Recognized as a 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
Josh Hurst, Employee Health and Benefits Consultant, Marsh McLennan Agency Familiarity breeds comfort — at least it did for Jessica Ramirez, VP of human resources and people for Archer Meat Snacks, who enlisted the support Josh Hurst for two tours of duty. Hurst had done such a stellar job at her previous employer, she couldn’t… View Article
Gallagher Broker Shannon Gilbert Recognized as a 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
Shannon Gilbert, AVP, Health & Welfare, Gallagher When complex problems present themselves, Shannon Gilbert leads the charge to provide a clear path forward for a healthier business. “Shannon delivered a strategic risk management approach that completely transformed the way we manage and invest in our benefits. When she began supporting us, we had just harmonized… View Article
Conner Strong & Buckelew Broker Aaron Mitchell Recognized as a 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
Aaron Mitchell, Partner, Senior Consultant, National and Major Accounts, Conner Strong & Buckelew If there was ever a superhero in the benefits brokerage space, Aaron Mitchell might be called the Multimillion-Dollar Savings Man. Given how important generous health insurance coverage is to nonprofits, Bancroft CEO Toni Pergolin sought a more affordable solution in the face… View Article
IMA Financial Group Broker Nick Holdbrooks Recognized as a 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
Nick Holdbrooks, Senior Vice President, IMA Financial Group At a time of rising prescription drug costs, analytical rigor has never been as valuable in helping stabilize this fastest-growing segment of employee health benefit costs. When pharmaceutical spend rose sharply in 2025, Nick Holdbrooks quickly helped identify cost drivers and tweaked plan design to curb unnecessary… View Article
Marsh McLennan Agency Broker Lauren Fabbri Recognized as a 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
Lauren Fabbri, SVP, Employee Health & Benefits, Marsh McLennan Agency When one of Lauren Fabbri’s clients was up against pressure to switch networks, she rose to the challenge and performed detailed market research. “I adore Lauren and her team,” said Emily James, HR business partner, Shift Digital. “She goes above and beyond. Any time we… View Article
Newfront Broker John Meister Recognized as a 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
John Meister, SVP, Employee Benefits, Newfront Unilever, one of the world’s largest-consumer goods companies, faced a highly complex challenge: consolidating benefits programs across five companies that were structured differently with their own renewal dates, vendors and eligibility rules. John Meister led the charge in streamlining core coverages and supplemental offerings. The result: A seamless consolidation… View Article
Gallagher Broker Wes Grigston Recognized as a 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
Wes Grigston, AVP, Public Sector Practice, Gallagher There’s no denying the enormous strength in numbers cobbled together by Wes Grigston, who led a strategic redesign and expansion of the North Carolina Health Insurance Pool (NCHIP). The group, an innovative consortium of cities and counties that leverages shared data, purchasing power and collaborative governance, added 10… View Article
Gallagher Broker Brandon Debar Recognized as a 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
Brandon Debar, Area Vice President, Gallagher Brandon Debar leveraged his deep knowledge to transform his client’s employee offerings while remaining sensitive to their unique needs. “He was instrumental this year working with our superintendent in redesigning the entire health care plan — and I mean from the ground up — changes to the number of… View Article
Alliant Broker Chris McCarthy Recognized as a 2026 Employee Benefits Power Broker
Chris McCarthy, Senior Vice President, Alliant Some brokers excel at number-crunching; then there’s Chris McCarthy, who adds an entirely new level of crunch. His data-harvesting abilities are second to none, according to Chris Giannelli, group head of benefits for WPP. McCarthy developed a strategy to aggregate all the data within those areas and disseminate that… View Article
Aon Broker Chris Delia Recognized as a 2026 Environmental Power Broker
Chris Delia, Senior Broker, Aon When Chris Delia led its 2025 renewals, a hazardous waste company gained new appreciation for the broker’s role: “I could not say enough about how Chris changed the way we think about our property broker,” said Debi Dobbins, VP and corporate counsel, Arcwood Environmental. “Chris worked diligently to get us… View Article
Marsh Risk Broker Corinne Dougherty Recognized as a 2026 Environmental Power Broker
Corinne Dougherty, Vice President, Marsh Risk When Corinne Dougherty was hired by a law firm to find products pollution coverage for a client that produced personal protective outerwear, she understood the challenges ahead. Some of the materials used to make the water- and fireresistant clothing either contained, or historically had contained, PFAS, the “forever chemicals”… View Article
Marsh Risk Broker Sara Whiteway Recognized as a 2026 Environmental Power Broker
Sara Whiteway, VP, Environmental Practice, Marsh Risk When a client claims their broker “wildly exceeded our expectations,” you can bet something extraordinary happened. “Sara did a tremendous job renewing our environmental policy,” said Joe Michienzi, SVP, asset management, Competitive Power Ventures. An expiring three-year policy renewed at five years of broader coverage at a lower… View Article
Marsh Risk Broker JP Whelan Recognized as a 2026 Environmental Power Broker
JP Whelan, Vice President, Marsh Risk After several years of underwriting environmental coverage for two large insurers, JP Whelan felt it was time to gain new perspective on this challenging insurance line. Now, as a broker, that experience has proved valuable in his work with more than 40 insurers to find the best coverage fit… View Article
Marsh Risk Broker Matthew Lee Recognized as a 2026 Environmental Power Broker
Matthew Lee, Vice President, Marsh Risk Matthew Lee has proven that pollution legal liability renewals don’t have to be white-knuckle events for risk managers, even if loss histories are not pristine: “After tendering a large claim to our pollution liability tower, we were facing a difficult renewal,” said Trey Almond, risk manager, Colonial Pipeline Co…. View Article
Alliant Broker Marshall Yacoe Recognized as a 2026 Environmental Power Broker
Marshall Yacoe, Senior Vice President, Director, Environmental Liability, Alliant Improve efficiency, decrease costs and broaden coverage. That’s what Marshall Yacoe delivers every time. Yacoe and his team were tapped to help restructure the insurance program at Open Gate Capital, which had expanded through acquisitions and was left with several liability policies written by five insurers:… View Article
Aon Broker Mollie Smith Recognized as a 2026 Fine Arts Power Broker
Mollie Smith, Account Executive, Aon In working with her fine art clients, Mollie Smith makes it clear that she will be available when needed and that she can answer any question as it arises. Her clients, in turn, are grateful for it. For client Sansar, LLC, a newer entity in the art consultancy space, it’s… View Article
Gallagher Broker Tyler Najeer Recognized as a 2026 Fine Arts Power Broker
Tyler Najeer, Client Service Manager, Gallagher Tyler Najeer has deepened and honed his practice over years of working in the field while seeking the insight of mentors who familiarized him with the art world as a whole. That incisive understanding wins praise from a personal collector who describes themselves as “not the easiest client.” The… View Article