People & Places

SPARTA Insurance Co. has named Ralph E. JonesIII president & COO. He has more than 30 years ofindustry experience and will help the SPARTA team build futurefranchise value. Jones recently held the positions ofCEO of Arch Worldwide Insurance and COO of Everest ReinsuranceHoldings.

Duncan Morrison joins OneBeacon Technology Insurance (OBTI) as assistantvice president, international. He will facilitate foreign admittedplacements through OBTI's European relationship network.

NewEmpire Group announced the formation of a Wholesale division,to be headed by James F. O'Neill, the currentexecutive vice president. The formation comes as a result of clientsuggestions to expand product offerings beyond New Empire's currentreal estate programs.

Erin Deaton joined Burns &Wilcox as a senior underwriter for the Marine Center ofExcellence. Deaton has over a decade of customer service,underwriting, marketing and risk management experience.

Willis NorthAmerica appointed Michael Malouf to managingpartner and CEO of Willis of Illinois. He will be responsible forbusiness development across the state, focusing on strategicplanning, heightening client service and retention and recruitingstaff.

Shaun Hooper moved from CGSC to Swett &Crawford to assume the role of COO. He will oversee divisionand practice groups and be responsible for Swett's commercialbusiness. Two veteran Swett executives, MikeBrennan and Michael Ruhe, have been namedcorporate sales directors and will join the HSMC board. Anew position, sales and client manager, was established and will befilled by Michael Baeurle. He will develop a morestructured and coordinated approach to managing the company'sclient base.

Founders Insurance promoted John M.Anderson to COO. He has more than 20 years of industryexperience and previously served with Allstate in severalcapacities.

Mergers & Acquisitions

Cook, Hall& Hyde and Maran Corporate Risk Associates announced a strategicmerger agreement. The resulting company, Cook Maran &Associates, will increase market opportunities and enhanceproduct portfolios. It will service clients from Eastern LongIsland through Southeastern Pennsylvania and provide a range ofservies including life and individual products, employee benefits,surety and credit risk solutions.

Cross Insurance acquired Sadler InsuranceAgency in Nashua, N.H. The acquisition continues Cross'expansion plans, which includes 90 other acquisions in the past 50years.

New Programs

Aspen US Insurance expanded its Marinecapabilities to include brown water hull, protection &indemnity and marine liability coverages. These new offerings weremade possible by Aspen's increased business relationship withAxiom InsuranceManagement. The program coverage is available for clients suchas ship repairers, terminals, wharfingers and charterers.

News

The Council for Disability Awareness (CDA) launchedthe Defend Your Income campaign and website to teachconsumers, advisors, employers and insurers about long-termdisability, a big threat to income. The web experience is paternedaround a martial arts dojo and invites users to actively learn bytaking quizzes to earn a “black belt” in income defense. Visitorsof the site can also calculate their own earnable income quotientto see what they stand to lose if they do not plan ahead.

Maggie Tirschman, account manager for M3Insurance in Madison, Wis., was awarded the 2012 NationalOutstanding CSR of the Year Award. The award is the mostprestigious honor available to industry customer servicerepresentatives. The Society of Certified Insurance ServiceRepresentatives (CISR) and the Society of Certified InsuranceCounselors (CIC) select the winner from a field of 37 statewinners.

THOMCO, a Markel company, and Markel Insurance Co. will underwrite medicaltransportation property-casualty insurance beginning in October2012. THOMCO provides specialized support to medical transportationoperators nationwide.

Jeffrey F. Harrold received The GriffithInsurance Education Foundation's 2012 Lifetime AchievementAward. He is chairman and CEO fo Auto-Owners Insurance Co., whichhe joined in 1977.