The Independent Insurance Agents of Texas (IIAT) elected Jeffrey L. Brady of Brady, Chapman, Holland & Associates (BCH) in Houston to serve as IIAT chair for 2018-19.
Brady was elected during IIAT’s 121st Annual Conference and Trade Show in San Antonio. Mark Ray of Borden Insurance in Corpus Christi was elected to serve as chair-elect, and Robert Nitsche of The Nitsche Group in Giddings will serve as vice chair for the coming year.
Brady started his insurance career in 1985 by joining the newly formed Brady, Chapman, Holland & Associates Inc. in Houston and now serves as chairman of the firm.
He has served on various committees with the Independent Insurance Agents of Houston (IIAH) and IIAT. He served on the IIAH Board and as its president in 1997-1998. He is a past recipient of IIAT’s Young Agent of the Year award, the IIAH John Daniel Outstanding Committee Chairperson Award and the IIAH Outstanding Service Award.
Ray is a vice president with Borden Insurance. His insurance experience spans more than 30 years. He started his career as a commercial insurance agent with Swantner and Gordon Insurance Agency before joining Borden Insurance more than 12 years ago. He specializes in oil and gas, lawyers’ professional liability and other commercial property and casualty coverage.
Nitsche is president and CEO of The Nitsche Group with multiple locations throughout Texas. Nitsche grew up in the insurance agency, spending time in multiple departments at The Nitsche Group. In 1995, he assumed the role of CFO until 2010 when he was appointed CEO.
IIAT also elected four new directors for three-year terms: Josh Andrajack with Boley-Featherston Insurance in Wichita Falls; Pete Bibby with Bibby, Brilling & Associates LP in Dallas; Jim McNeill with McNeill Insurance Agency in Nederland; and Jason Rollo with Rollo Insurance Group in College Station.
IIAT also named William “Billy” Crocker with Higginbotham in Austin as its Young Agent of the Year. This award is given annually to a young insurance agent in Texas who has achieved success through hard work, community engagement and industry participation in a manner that is considered exceptional for a person of his or her age.
Crocker began his career as a broker/analyst for Coldwell Banker in Houston and joined Higginbotham in 2013, where he now serves as vice president and real estate practice leader. He is also the incoming chair of ELITExas and the immediate past president of the Independent Insurance Agents of Austin.
Harlingen independent insurance agent Bob Shepard was honored with IIAT’s Paige Eiland Political Action Award, which recognizes an agent whose political involvement has had a great impact on the independent insurance agency system. It is named for Paige Eiland of Stanton, Texas, a longtime IIAT member who worked tirelessly on behalf of agents in both state and federal political arenas.
Shepard is a past board member and president of both IIAT and the IIAT Services Boards. He has served on IIAT’s Legislative Committee and most recently served as the chairman of the IIAT IMPACT Board of Trustees.
IIAT named Christine Davis of TexCap Insurance in Dallas as Account Manager of the Year. This award is given annually to an account manager in Texas who exemplifies outstanding leadership and service to the independent agency system and to the public at large.
IIAT Director Cindy Quy received the Drex Foreman. Named after Drex Foreman, who served as the chief executive director of IIAT for more than 30 years, the award is the highest honor IIAT bestows annually to an individual who has contributed greatly to the independent agency system.
Quy joined IIAT in 1997 as an administrative assistant to former president Ernie Stromberger. She currently serves as IIAT’s director of Member Experience.
Texas-headquartered independent brokerage, RHSB, added Lane Allen as assistant vice president in its Personal Client Services Practice. Based in Dallas, Allen will be a personal risk advisor providing concierge services to clients with emerging and established wealth who have high value and unique assets.
Allen has over 15 years of experience in insurance and real estate.
A member of Assurex Global, RHSB has offices in Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas.
Insurance wholesale broker Maximum added Bill Lally to its property team in Texas. He is based in Houston.
With previous experience as a property broker and several years spent developing a property underwriting expertise at Axis Insurance, Lally brings a well-rounded understanding of the industry as he makes his return to a brokering role.
As a native Chicagoan, Lally carries some of the same energy and drive found in Maximum’s home office to Houston.
In business since 1998 and headquartered in Chicago, Maximum is a surplus lines wholesale broker of specialty products and services.
Alliant Insurance Services Inc. hired Brian Hotard as vice president in its Energy and Marine Group. He is based in Alliant’s Metairie, Louisiana, office.
Hotard joins Alliant with extensive experience providing a full range of property/casualty insurance products and services to clients throughout the Gulf South. He previously was a producing agent with a large regional insurance brokerage firm, specializing in the energy and marine sectors.
Hotard has obtained his Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) designation.
Headquartered in Newport Beach, California, Alliant provides property/casualty, workers’ compensation, employee benefits, surety and financial products and services to clients nationwide.
Dallas-headquartered A-MAX Auto Insurance has appointed Rick Genest as vice president of Sales and Operations.
Genest, a seasoned insurance executive with over 25 years’ experience in the insurance services industry, most recently served as president and COO of Premier Insurance Service, with headquarters in California. Prior to that, he was president of Sales for Freeway Insurance Texas, operating over 70 offices nationwide. During his career, Genest also led the effort to create and build several successful startups.
A-MAX Auto Insurance specializes in providing low-cost insurance to thousands of Texas residents and businesses. From 2004 to 2017, the company grew its retail presence across Texas from 13 offices to 110 offices. Having added more in 2018, it now has more than 150 retail locations.
Genest’s recruitment is the latest in a series of moves by A-MAX Auto Insurance aiming to bring more talents to join its executive management team to sustain its continued growth.
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