People

Cincinnati, Ohio-based American Empire Surplus Lines Insurance Co. (AESLIC) has named Frederick J. Woebse president and chief operating officer. He succeeds Robert Nelson, who was named chairman and chief executive officer, until the time of Nelson’s retirement in July 2010.

Woebse joined AESLIC, a member of the Great American Insurance Group, in 1989 and has served as chief underwriting officer since February 2002.

He began his insurance career with the Continental Insurance Companies in Glens Falls, N.Y. Prior to moving to Cincinnati, Woebse spent nine years in Hartford with Constitution State Management Co., a subsidiary of Travelers.

Mid-Continent Casualty Co., based in Cincinnati, Ohio, has named H. Michael (“Mike”) Coon president and chief operating officer.

Coon succeeds Jim Pierce, who was named chairman and chief executive officer until the time of Pierce’s retirement in December 2010.

Coon has 37 years’ experience in the insurance industry. He joined Mid-Continent, a member of the Great American Insurance Group, in 1991, most recently serving as executive vice president. Before coming to Mid-Continent, Coon worked as an underwriting manager with INA/Cigna in Dallas, Texas, and with Crum & Forster in San Antonio.

Great American Insurance Group, based in Cincinnati, Ohio, has promoted Timothy C. “Tim” Weber and Jeffery D. “Jeff” Kohl.

Weber, was named divisional president of Great American’s Crop Division, succeeding Ron Brichler, who will continue in his role of senior vice president of Great American Insurance Co., overseeing these operations.

Weber most recently served as the divisional executive vice president of the Crop Division where he is responsible for day-to-day operational matters within Great American’s Crop Division. He has been involved in the crop insurance industry in varying levels of responsibility with Great American for the past 21 years.

Kohl has been promoted to divisional senior vice president, overseeing the IT Infrastructure of Great American Insurance Group. He has served as an IT professional operating in the property/casualty insurance business for more than 20 years.

Itasca, Ill.-based Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services Inc. (AJGRMS), the retail property/casualty insurance brokerage division of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (Gallagher), has hired William Zanoni as a senior vice president in the Midwest Region.

Zanoni will supplement the AJGRMS team responsible for acquiring and integrating agencies and will also assist in business development.

His previous experience includes 35 years with Hub International Midwest Ltd. in Chicago, including four years as president. He will be based in AJGRMS’s Itasca office.

Insurance broker the Lockton Companies, headquartered in Kansas City, Mo., has expanded its Chicago team with the addition of Thomas M. Schmidt as a vice president in the Employee Benefits Practice.

Prior to joining Lockton Companies, Schmidt was managing director of Schmidt Group LLC, specializing in health and productivity management consulting and health care data analytics. He also has worked at Mercer as a principal and practice leader in its healthcare and group benefits practice, and at Winterthur as senior vice president of the International Employee Benefits Division in New York.

Paul Sexton has joined Ohio-based Norman-Spencer Agency and Western Marine Insurance Services, headquartered in California, as a vice president, responsible for developing a new boat/yacht program.

Sexton brings 15 years of product development and sales experience to his new position. He began his insurance career with American Modern Insurance Group in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he was responsible for rate, form and underwriting development and distribution of all national recreational marine programs; and was influential in the development, delivery and growth of the company’s commercial marine programs.

United Heartland, a property and casualty insurance company based in New Berlin, Wis., has appointed Greg Donovan as vice president of Field Operations.

Donovan will join United Heartland’s executive team and be responsible for the Underwriting and Risk Management Services departments.

He has 38 years of experience in the insurance industry. He most recently served as the vice president of Marketing at Aon Risk Services in Milwaukee, Wis.

Hylant Group, a privately owned insurance brokerage firm headquartered in Ohio, has hired Jackie Iwanski as manager of Health and Wellness Strategies in the firm’s Employee Benefits Practice.

Iwanski will develop a series of interactive health and wellness programs, establish a detailed resource library and provide employers with methods for mitigating risk by promoting healthier lifestyles throughout their workforce.

She also will be responsible for managing a team of regional wellness coordinators and building Health Risk Management strategies for Hylant’s clients.

Equity Risk Partners (ERP), an insurance brokerage and employee benefits consulting firm focused exclusively on the needs of the private equity industry, has added Charles Blackmon as senior principal – Executive Liability in its Chicago office.

Blackmon joins Equity Risk Partners’ from Marsh, where he most recently held a vice resident position in its Financial and Professional Liability practice.

The Michigan Insurance Hall of Fame will honor three leaders in the insurance industry at the 17th annual induction ceremony on August 18 on the campus of Olivet College.

Mark Odland of Stevensville, Mich., retired from State Farm Insurance Companies in 2009 as vice president of operations, overseeing claim operations for the Great Lakes Zone, which includes Michigan, Indiana and Illinois.

Merton J. Segal of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., founded Meadowbrook Insurance Group and helped many businesses and groups by developing insurance alternatives when insurance was unaffordable or unavailable.

James E. Wilds of Frankenmuth, Mich., is senior vice president, overseeing claims operations, for Frankenmuth Insurance. During his career he improved claims service, and pioneered the use of voluntary alternative dispute resolution.

The Michigan Insurance Hall of Fame was established at Olivet College in 1994 as a way to pay tribute to individuals who have made a significant impact on the ability of the Michigan insurance and risk management industry to serve the public.

Topics Agencies Ohio Michigan Market Property Casualty Risk Management