People and Places

April 23, 2007

Doug Eden has joined Main Street America Group as senior vice president, field operations. Eden will be a member of the company’s senior management team based at its corporate headquarters in Jacksonville, Fla., and will report to chairman, president and chief executive officer, Tom Van Berkel.

Eden joins Main Street America from The Hanover Insurance Group Inc., Itasca, Ill., where he was regional president, Midwest. In this position, Eden was responsible for profit and loss results of Hanover’s largest region, representing $1.1 billion of premium in personal lines, commercial lines, inland marine and bonds.

Calif.-based Countrywide Insurance Group, a member of the Countrywide Financial Corp. companies, named Myron Hendry as managing director and chief operating officer of Countrywide Insurance Group. Hendry being tasked with ensuring that Countrywide can support the aggressive growth plans of its insurance subsidiary which has grown from $449 million in net premiums earned in 1995 to $948 million in 2006.

Prior to this appointment, Hendry was responsible for overseeing Countrywide Insurance Group’s central operations, claims and information technology. He has more than three decades of experience in the insurance industry experience.

The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. reports that Judith A. Patterson has been named president of First State Management Group (FSMG), a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Hartford which primarily underwrites surplus lines insurance for high risk accounts and distributes this coverage through licensed wholesalers.

Patterson, who is currently the executive vice president of FSMG, will assume overall responsibility for the Boston-based operations effective May 1. In her new role, Patterson will replace Ralph J. Palmieri, who is retiring after a 31-year career with FSMG and The Hartford.

Patterson started her career with The Hartford in 1975, gaining experience in various underwriting roles before serving as property manager for the company’s Boston regional office. In 2001 she became an executive underwriting manager and was promoted to senior vice president of FSMG in 2003. Patterson assumed her present position in 2004, where she is responsible for directing underwriting operations, business systems, office services, communications, ceded reinsurance, and regulatory and compliance matters.

Robert Franzese has been named the 2007 PIA National Professional Agent of the Year by the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents. Franzese is chief executive officer of Capital Bauer Insurance Agency, Inc. of Albany, New York. What Franzese began as a start-up agency in 1991 has grown to one of the largest property/casualty agencies in New York. A member of PIA since 1991, Franzese has served in virtually every volunteer PIA position. In 1999, he served as president of PIA of New York. From 2000 through the present he has been active as a past president for PIANY, and is a spokesperson on the association’s behalf on legislative and regulatory issues.

Personal lines underwriter Jamie Canady has joined Burns & Wilcox at the broker’s Morehead City, N. C., office. Canady is experienced in high-value homeowners, personal umbrella, excess flood, vacant dwellings and excess liability coverage and will be primarily responsible for underwriting and quoting new personal lines business.

Most recently, Canady served as a territorial manager with SIA Group in Jacksonville, N.C.

Insurance education provider, The National Alliance for Insurance Education & Research, has selected Beverly A. Messer as vice president, in charge of National Business Development for the not-for-profit organization.

Messer began her insurance career in 1975 when she joined her family-owned insurance agency located in Northwest Indiana. Her responsibilities included all aspects of sales and agency operations.

She has been honored twice as the Insurance Agent of the Year by the Independent Insurance Agents of Indiana (IIAI), and is also an instructor for Certified Insurance Counselors (CIC) institutes and Certified Insurance Service Representatives (CISR) courses.

Marsh Inc. has appointed chief operating officers for three of its core business sectors. The executives are: Patricia Hagemann, who has been named chief operating officer of the Americas; David Lessing, chief operating officer of U.S. Middle Market, and Philip Petronis, chief operating officer of Global Products and Services Management.

Hagemann’s responsibilities include driving process enhancements and operating efficiencies throughout operations in the Americas. Previously, she was CFO of North America operations.

Lessing joins Marsh from Merrill Lynch, where he was managing director and chief operating officer of the Direct Division. Previously, he led the Americas strategy group of Merrill Lynch.

Global Products and Services Management encompasses Marsh’s risk practices, risk specialties, placement, global industry teams, and managing general agent businesses, as well as Private Equity and M&A Services, market relationship management, and global product management. Petronis will be responsible for assisting in executing a growth strategy for Global Products and Services in coordination. Petronis has been with Marsh & McLennan Companies for more than 32 years.

Zurich Financial Services Group announced that Arun Sinha has joined the company as group chief marketing and communications officer. He will oversee all marketing and communications functions worldwide across the Group.

Zurich brings 20 years of marketing experience to Zurich, having served as chief marketing officer for Pitney Bowes since 2001 as well as in senior marketing and business development roles with Philip Morris and Young & Rubicam.”

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Insurance Journal Magazine April 23, 2007
April 23, 2007
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