You've been in the insurance business fornearly 30 years now, in several leadership roles. What is it thatmakes heading up American Modern an attractive challenge for you,following your accomplishments at USAA?

It's an attractive challenge because I have the opportunity tolead a company that has a long tradition of success to “the nextlevel” as part of Munich Re's U.S. insurance operations. I knowfrom my personal experiences that there isn't a successful companyon the planet that doesn't have opportunities for improvement, andthat's what excites me. I think my experiences at USAA and othercompanies will allow me to work with other dedicated employees atAmerican Modern to foster an environment that will allow us tobecome a multibillion-dollar company in the next 10-13 years.

What are some of the specialty lines in which you feelAmerican Modern has had a significant impact of late, and what aresome of the ones that might be trending up or showing more promiseat the moment?

We have had tremendous success with our specialty-dwellingproducts aimed at vacant, seasonal and rental homes. Our deepexperience in pricing and underwriting these kinds of risks servesus well in meeting the needs of agent partners, strategic alliancepartners and the end consumer. We have also seen dramatic growth inthe collector-vehicle market due to the strengthening ofrelationships with several key specialty agent partners. We possessa very deep knowledge base in this area. 

American Modern's subsidiary companies are rated A+ byA.M. Best and the group has been selected for 14 consecutive yearsas one of the Top 50 P&C insurance companies in the U.S. by theWard Financial Group. What's the strategy behind maintaining thatstandard of client service that keeps American Modern held in suchhigh regard?

While the A.M. Best and Ward ratings are largely a reflection ofour company's financial stability and results, there is certainlyan implication of the kind of superior client service that it takesto sustain those lofty ratings and financial performance. Thestrategy isn't all that complicated. The challenge is in theexecution. Put simply, we strive to achieve “zero defects” in thedelivery of our products and services to our business partners andcustomers. We are a company of expertise, and we do our best to letthat expertise show in all our interactions.

How would you describe the benefits of being owned byMunich Re? How would you characterize thatrelationship?

American Modern was a solid company before it was purchased byMunich Re. But there is little doubt that being part of a globalorganization with expansive resources has helped make us an evenbetter company when it comes to risk management and investments ininfrastructure. I tend to refer to the relationship as “the best ofboth worlds” because we can enjoy the benefit of having access totheir expertise and resources while being allowed to run ourbusiness as we see fit given our deep knowledge and success in thespecialty primary insurance market.