It’s been a while since the last senior job moves round up, so let’s get into it;
ALLIANZ
Allianz Commercial has appointed Nick Kelsall as head of motor claims.
Nick joined Allianz in the UK in 2015 as technical claims manager, progressing to fraud manager and head of insurance claims, with a secondment to head of motor. In 2020, he pursued an opportunity with Allianz Group in Munich.
As senior global P&C executive, he led on the creation and implementation of a globalised digital fraud solution. He then became part of the Allianz Customer Model (ACM) leadership team with a focus on improving claims processes and aligning supply chain networks globally. He led an international team responsible for the development of global IT assets that support the claims journey. These harmonised strategies are aimed at delivering customer satisfaction and profitability.
Nick is replacing Ian Kershaw, who is leaving Allianz to pursue other opportunities, after a brief handover period.
GENERALI
Generali Country Italy and Global Business Lines announces three key appointments.
Giulia Raffo, formerly Group Head of Investor and Rating Agency Relations, is appointed Chief Financial Officer of Generali Country Italy & Global Business Lines. Raffo also assumes the role of Chief Financial Officer of Generali Italia as well as the role of Managing Director of the Administration area at Generali Business Solutions.
Raffo takes over from Cristina Morgan, who retires after more than 30 years at Generali, during which she held roles of increased responsibility.
Manlio Lostuzzi – CEO of Generali Global Corporate & Commercial (GC&C) – is appointed Head of GBL Insurance Technical Coordination, with the responsibility to steer and monitor Generali Global Business Lines’ technical performance. Manlio Lostuzzi also maintains his role as CEO of GC&C.
Ludovic Bayard is appointed CEO of Generali Employee Benefits (GEB). Former General Manager Generali Employee Benefits, Bayard can leverage an extensive experience in the market, and he is recognized as a trusted point of reference in a sector where GEB plays a leading role.
OPPORTUNITY IN BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
Guernsey Finance and the Guernsey International Insurance Association (GIIA) are looking to appoint a dedicated Business Development Representative for the Insurance Sector. The move represents a step-change in the way the agency works in partnership with industry to achieve their shared goal of promoting and connecting Guernsey’s specialist financial services industry to the wider world.
It will be the first time that a sector-specific Business Development Representative will be appointed with objectives directed by both Guernsey Finance and GIIA to ensure they meet industry’s requirements.
“Business Development representatives have traditionally focused on a region rather than a sector, so this is a significant departure from the way we previously aimed to achieve our objectives,” said Guernsey Finance Chief Executive Rupert Pleasant. “However, following detailed discussions with GIIA, we recognise that the insurance sector is unlike the other specialist financial services sectors that we have here in Guernsey.
“We feel that now is a good time to proceed with a slightly different approach and there are robust key performance indicators in place from Guernsey Finance and from GIIA so that we can closely monitor the candidate’s progress and ensure that this investment in Guernsey’s economic future pays dividends.”
McCARRON COATES
Yorkshire-based insurance broker, McCarron Coates, has continued on its phenomenal growth trajectory, by appointing one of the top talents in the Yorkshire commercial insurance broking scene as an account director.
The brokerage, founded by directors Ian McCarron and Paul Coates, has brought on board Leah Kendall, formerly an account executive with Doncaster-based ProAktive, where she worked for nearly six years.
Leah Kendall has established a strong reputation in the Yorkshire insurance broking sector, having long been regarded as one of its brightest stars. She will now be responsible for working with clients nationwide, furnishing them with quotes and renewal quotes, claims assistance and risk management strategies.
She will be focused on a wide range of commercial insurances, across sectors such as manufacturing, property, contracting, motor trade and engineering, and will work closely with director, Luigi Maggio, who joined McCarron Coates’ board in mid-2021.
NTT DATA
NTT DATA UK, a leading global IT services provider, has announced that it has appointed Dave Brooks as its new Head of Insurance. Leading the Insurance business practice across the UK, Brooks will focus on bolstering NTT DATA UK’s growing influence in the UK insurance market.
The UK insurance practice is an integral part of NTT DATA’s growth strategy, as the organisation continues to guide its clients through the insurance industry’s unprecedented digital transformation accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Many new insurance customers now come to expect real-time responses and unbroken access to information from their insurance providers. As a result, automation, big data and new insurtechs are becoming crucial for businesses looking to compete within the sector and deliver the best experience for their customers.
Brooks is an experienced leader with a career spanning more than 35 years growing businesses, with the last 15 years having been focussed on the insurance industry. Most recently, he was the European Business Leader for the insurance practice at Genpact where he was instrumental in creating an insurance practice to deliver significant sustainable and profitable growth for the region.
Brooks stated: “Building relationships and delivering profitable growth is at the heart of what has interested me throughout my career. Joining NTT DATA UK provides a fantastic opportunity to finesse a team that is a central part of the company’s ambitious growth strategy. I look forward to building and developing a business that will not only deliver innovative services for NTT DATA UK’s client base, but will also help them to traverse a rapidly evolving business landscape.”
ALLIANZ GLOBAL
Starting on May 16, 2022, Mike Martin will be appointed Global Head of Property at Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS), reporting to Chief Underwriting Officer Corporate Shanil Williams. He joins AGCS from AIG and will succeed Maria Grace who left AGCS in late 2021. He will be based in AGCS’s Atlanta office.
Mike Martin has over 35 years of experience in international property underwriting, most recently with AIG, where he currently is Chief Underwriting Officer – US Retail Property with responsibility for leading the property underwriting transformation strategy and driving technical excellence. Prior to that he held various insurance industry executive roles at Velocity Risk Underwriters, Liberty Mutual, XL, and Industrial Risk Insurers, including roles in the US, Bermuda, and Switzerland. He has a degree in Engineering & Mechanical Technology from Texas Tech University.
QLAIMS
Insurtech MGA, Qlaims, announces that well known industry name, David Williams, joins as a non-executive director.
David has more than 30 years of experience in general insurance, predominantly across claims and underwriting. This is the first non-executive role that David has announced since leaving AXA at the end of 2021.
Qlaims provides loss recovery insurance to businesses and consumers via brokers. Through its subsidiary Qlaimstech, it offers complementary, supporting services aimed at streamlining and improving customer experience when making a claim.
Commenting on his appointment, David said “I’ve always seen Loss Recovery Insurance as filling an important gap in UK Policies, that combined with the use of better technology in the claims process makes Qlaims an exciting proposition. I said when I left AXA I wanted to stay involved and around the insurance industry, this lets me do that whilst helping Qlaims build on their proposition and relationships with Brokers and Insurers. There remains too much friction and duplication of effort on insurance claims, with the exclusive use of chartered loss adjusters I do believe Qlaims can help massively improve this, build trust across parties, and a more efficient and cost-effective service to customers”
PREMFINA
PremFina announces the appointment of Paul Trail as UK Sales & Marketing Director and Laura Sweetman as UK Chief Operating Officer.
Paul previously worked at Close Brothers Premium Finance, where he held the positions of Sales Director and Managing Director. Before joining its Premium Finance business, he worked at Close Brothers’ Motor Finance business and has held senior sales roles at HSBC and Citibank. At PremFina, Paul will be responsible for managing and developing broker relationships.
Laura Sweetman spent 20 years in several senior operational and sales at Close Brothers Premium Finance, working closely with some of the UK’s largest brokers to deliver a high level of service and support.
Both will report to UK and Ireland CEO Sharon Bishop who joined the business last summer.
PremFina aims to provide an alternative to the incumbent premium finance providers, grounded in technology to facilitate flexible insurance financing solutions for brokers and customers and deliver a superior customer experience.
PIE INSURANCE
Pie Insurance (“Pie”), an insurtech company specializing in workers’ comp insurance for small businesses, recently announced it has appointed new senior leadership team members including David Samuels as the first chief commercial officer, Dimitrius King as the first chief claims officer, Kelly North as vice president of business development, and Jen Straus as the first vice president of people operations. Pie also appointed insurance veteran Laura Bishop to the company’s board of directors. These executives will apply their valuable experience to help lead Pie in its next phase of growth.
Samuels joins Pie after nearly a decade at SAP/Concur, where he most recently held the position of chief customer officer. As Pie’s first chief commercial officer, Samuels is responsible for setting Pie’s operational strategy and overseeing all premiums generated from our insurance agents and brokers.
As Pie’s first chief claims officer, King is responsible for leading and implementing the company’s claims strategy. He joins Pie most recently from Liberty Mutual, where he was a vice president of the workers’ compensation division.
North joins Pie as vice president of business development, overseeing the team responsible for growing and maturing the company’s insurance agency channel. Prior to Pie, she spent two years at Beam Dental as the company’s vice president of business development.
Straus is responsible for Pie’s compensation, benefits, people operations and analytics, as well as learning and development. She joins the company with a wealth of people operations experience at hyper-growth startups, including Kabbage and Alteryx.
In addition to the new leadership team hires, Pie added Laura Bishop to its board of directors. Bishop brings nearly 40 years of executive leadership experience at publicly traded and privately held companies, including almost 20 years at USAA, most recently as its chief financial officer.
NORMATIVE
Maggie Buggie and Neil Ryland have joined Normative to accelerate enterprise value chain carbon reduction and management.
Buggie joins as COO after holding senior executive roles at SAP, Capgemini and Fujitsu and is on the Board of Spirent Communications. Ryland joins as CCO with executive experience from Peakon (acq. Workday) and Huddle. Buggie and Ryland join an existing executive team who have held leadership positions at Spotify, Tink, and Podio (acq. Citrix).
“At Normative, we have the credibility, product depth and experience to help customers understand their path to net zero and deliver sustainability outcomes. I am excited to create a new market standard and help fulfill our mission to expose the sustainability impact of all economic activities on the planet” says Maggie Buggie.
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