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Zurich announced that Oliver Ade has been named regional executive for the company’s North Central Region. Ade will be responsible for all business operations within the region, including profit-and-loss objectives, developing strategic marketing initiatives, and strengthening relationships with distributors and customers.

Ade previously served as regional manager for Zurich’s specialties lines. He developed and managed the North Central Region Chicago Branch and South Central Region Dallas Branch for Zurich’s Management Solutions Group. He joined the company in 1994 as an underwriter and was promoted to senior underwriter two years later. In 1997, he was named regional underwriting officer. Ade began his insurance career in 1992 with The Chubb Corp.

Zurich’s North Central Region encompasses Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

Neal Spero, veteran health insurance executive, joins Michigan-based American-Community Mutual Insurance Co. as senior vice president-Individual, charged with advancing the company’s new revolution in coverage choices and affordability. American-Community is introducing four innovative consumer-directed programs. The new products are priced at levels affordable by many who have reluctantly gone uninsured due to the high cost of coverage. Spero has more than 25 years health insurance marketing and actuarial experience.

The Precedent suite of low-cost health insurance programs uses creative, precedent-setting approaches to risk- and cost-sharing to reduce premiums, while assuring financial protection against catastrophic hospital and medical costs, he stressed. The Precedent plans are being offered in both individual and group versions. All the plans include an industry-leading assortment of self-directed care management tools to help insureds stay healthy, make more informed use of health services, better control health care costs, and receive access to health experts 24-hours a day. Spero in his career has held positions of rising responsibility with health insurers, mainly in states where American-Community programs are sold. The company currently writes health insurance in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska and Arizona.

The new Precedent programs are being introduced across American-Community’s eight-state market area between June and September, he said. They can be purchased through 6,000 independent insurance agents in those states.

ACUITY recently named three new employees as members of the Staff Functions – Commercial Team at its corporate headquarters in Sheboygan, Wis.

Patti Gardner has joined ACUITY as a commercial lines staff underwriter. Previously, she served as both training specialist and business development underwriter at West Bend Mutual Insurance and in various commercial lines capacities at Sentry Insurance. Additionally, Gardner is a Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) and Certified Insurance Service Representative (CISR) instructor for the Professional Insurance Agents of Wisconsin (PIAW) in Commercial Property. Debbie Kretschmann has been promoted to commercial lines processing consultant. Kretschmann joined ACUITY in May 1988 as a supply clerk and has held a variety of staff and management positions in both commercial and personal lines. For the past four years, Kretschmann has been a service unit manager in Commercial Processing. Katie Schamberger has been promoted to commercial lines staff processor. Schamberger joined ACUITY in August 2003 as a commercial processor.

ACUITY, headquartered in Sheboygan, Wis., is a regional property and casualty insurer that operates in 15 states.

Chicago-based Old Republic International Corp.’s Board of Directors had approved the following senior management appointments effective July 1, 2006:

James A. Kellogg, 54, currently president of the Old Republic General Insurance Group, has been appointed to president and chief operating officer of the corporation. He becomes the fifth president in Old Republic’s 83-year history, succeeding Al Zucaro, who continues as the corporation’s chairman and chief executive officer.

R. Scott Rager, currently chairman and chief executive officer of Old Republic’s Great West Casualty Co. operating subsidiary, has been elevated to president and COO of the Old Republic General Insurance Group, succeeding Kellogg. Additionally, Rager was named to the new position of senior vice president-Administration and Planning. In addition to these new responsibilities, Rager will join Old Republic’s office of the chief executive officer which, as a result, will consist of:

JimKellogg, president and CEO; Spencer LeRoy, senior vice president, general counsel; Karl Mueller, senior vice president and CFO; Al Zucaro, chairman and CEO; Chris Nard, senior vice president-Mortgage Guaranty; Scott Rager, senior vice president-General Insurance; and Rande Yeager, senior vice president-Title Insurance.

Toledo, Ohio-based the Hylant Group recently announced the addition of Jason Chapman as state sales manager for Hylant Administrative Services.

Chapman began employment with Hylant Administrative Services in May of 2006 as the state manager for Ohio public entities. Prior to joining Hylant Administrative Services, he managed the Wapakoneta, Ohio, office of the Stolly Insurance Group from 2003 to 2006. Chapman specialized in the public entity insurance market with the Ohio Government Risk Management Plan. He also spent twelve years with his family’s insurance agency in Lima, Ohio.

At Hylant, Chapman is responsible for assisting The Ohio Plan regional representatives with sales, marketing and service as well as appointing new agents to represent The Ohio Plan in the state of Ohio.

Illinois-based Resource Brokerage LLC, a Rippinger Financial Group Company, announced the addition of Judy L. Wrigley as administrative assistant. She will provide support to Resource Brokerage Vice President Blair Farwell, as well as other members of the individual and group health practices. Wrigley has more than 30 years of administrative experience. Prior to joining Resource Brokerage, she served as vice president, insurance administration of Nserv Corp. and affiliated companies.

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