People and places

Aon promotes Ram to national technology practiceleader: AonRisk Solutions has promoted Shawn Ram tonational technology practice leader. Most recently serving as anaccount executive and the San Francisco Bay area technologypractice leader, Ram has worked with many clients in Silicon Valleyand across the country for more than 10 years to deliver riskadvisory services.

Main Street America promotes Medvidofsky to vicepresident: The MainStreet America Group has promoted DaveMedvidofsky to vice president and head of its internalaudit unit. Medvidofsky has led the super regionalproperty/casualty insurance carrier's corporate strategy functionsince 2005. In his new role, Medvidofsky will be responsiblefor providing Main Street America's senior management, auditcommittee and board of directors with independent and objectiveassurance on strategic, operational, financial and complianceobjectives.

Utica Mutual promotes officers to senior vicepresident: The Utica Mutual Insurance Co. haspromoted three officers to the title of senior vice president andadded a new officer to its operations in New Hartford, N.Y. Robert Manfredo, senior underwritingofficer, has been promoted to senior vice president. Manfredo beganhis career with Utica National in 1981 as an underwriting traineeat the company's Eastern regional office in Utica. He was mostrecently named assistant vice president the following year andnamed vice president in 2008. Kristen Martin,general auditor and compliance officer, is also a senior vicepresident. Martin joined Utica National in the claims department asan examiner in 2001 and soon was promoted to staff attorney. Shemost recently was the vice president in the home office internalaudit department. Bernard Turi, associate generalcounsel and claims attorney, joined Manfredo and Martin as seniorvice president. Turi joined Utica National in 1987 as a seniorclaims specialist in the E&O department. He was most recentlypromoted to vice president in 2007. MichaelButtimer, manager, claims systems administration, joinsUtica Mutual as assistant vice president. Buttimer joined UticaNational in 1987 as an adjuster in the Claims department. He wasnamed to his current post as manager of claims systemadministration in 2000.

Oryx promotes Pasquale to president and CEO:Oryx Insurance BrokerageInc. announced that Tom Pasquale has becomethe new president and CEO. Pasquale will oversee thecompany's financials and the program business, wholesale and claimsadministration departments. Prior to his appointment as presidentand CEO, Pasquale had served as the company's vice president wherehe was responsible for company financial, underwriting and overallagent/policyholder satisfaction.

Riordan elected vice president of Berne Union: DanielRiordan, president, specialty products, Zurich, waselected vice president of the Berne Union at theassociation's Annual General Meeting in Cape Town, South Africa.The Berne Union is the leading international association for theexport credit and investment insurance industry. It works towardcooperation and stability in cross-border trade by supporting theinternational acceptance of sound principles in export credits andforeign investments, and by providing a forum for professionalexchange among its members. In 2009, Berne Union members provided$1.4 trillion of credit and investment insurance support, whichrepresents over 10 percent of world trade.

Admiral names Jones vice president: Admiral Insurance Co. has namedStephen Jones vice president of professionalliability in the company's Atlanta, Ga. branch. Admiral Insurancemarkets and underwrites specialty insurance products and programsto a variety of niche markets through its regional offices locatedacross the U.S.

Mergers & Acquisitions

Distinguished acquires GreenLine Underwriters:DistinguishedPrograms Group LLC has acquired a controlling interest inGreenLine Underwriters, a Dallas-based program administratorfocused on delivering insurance products through industry-leadingweb-based technology. The deal strengthens Distinguished'sleadership position in property and casualty insurance programmanagement. The GreenLine platform enables agents and brokers toquote, bind and issue policies seamlessly in a straight-throughprocess.

New Policies

BB&T launches iPad app: BB&T has launched a free iPadapplication that allows more convenient banking access to itson-the-go clients. The BB&TiPad App is one of the first of its kind in the U.S. that's notonly a high definition version of mobile banking. It is nowavailable for download on the iTunes App Store. The app allowsclients to:

• Access BB&T online banking – check account balances,transfer funds, pay bills, sign up for paperless statements andaccount alerts.
• Open new accounts – apply for checking and savings accounts,home equity loans and more. In minutes, clients can add accounts totheir shopping cart, get an instant decision and fund accountsonline.
• Find BB&T locations – locate the nearest BB&T financialcenter or ATM using GPS (Global Positioning System)technology.
• Learn and plan – access an online library of financialeducation information and interactive calculators.

K&K offers K-12 accident medical program:K&KInsurance launches a new K-12 accident medical program. Theprogram includes coverage for public schools and is available inall 50 states. The accident medical program provides coveragefor students participating in scheduled school activities,including athletics. In addition, 24-hour accident and sicknesscoverage is available in most states. Minimum premiums vary.Available coverage includes:

• Basic accident medical benefits up to $25,000
• Catastrophic medical benefits up to $2 million
• Accidental death & dismemberment benefits up to$10,000
• Optional cumulative trauma and stress, re-injury and injuryaggravation benefit rider (available in most states)
• Optional heart or circulatory malfunction benefit rider(available in most states)
• Pre-season and post-season play and conditioning
• Tryouts
• School tournaments and competitions
• Travel directly to and from activity when provided by theschool

New Life Agency partners with Pacific FertilityCenter: New LifeAgency Inc. has added PacificFertility Center-Los Angeles to its Assisted ReproductionInsurance Program (ARI) preferred provider network. Together, withPacific Fertility Center-Los Angeles and The Diamond Institute IVFCenter-New York, ARI continues to offer some of the best financialsolutions in the country for the ever-rising costs of in vitrofertilization (IVF) treatments, procedures and fertilitymedications to patients suffering from infertility. ARI providesnegotiated contract rates with board-certified obstetrics,gynecology, reproductive endocrinology and infertility physiciansto insure patients' fertility treatments, complications and providefull maternity insurance. ARI combines insurance coverage with afertility medication discount plan that can save Pacific FertilityCenter's patients more than 50 percent on the cost of standardservices, totaling thousands of dollars over the average treatmentterm.

News

Signature Group opens office in Woodland Hills:SignatureInsurance Group, a leading insurance brokerage firm in SouthernCalifornia, has opened new offices in the city of Woodland Hills toaccommodate newly acquired sales staff and to better meet the needsof their clients in the area. Plans to open offices in SanFrancisco and Phoenix, Arizona are on track for later in 2011 andpromise to give Signature Insurance Group great recognition inthese new regions.

Griffith Foundation announces scholarshipdeadlines: The Griffith Foundationwill award more than $35,000 through 29 scholarships for the2010-11 academic year to 25 deserving students studying riskmanagement, insurance or actuarial science at colleges anduniversities. The Foundation also announced the deadline forseveral other 2011 scholarships will be on March 10. Toreview the complete list of scholarship deadlines, applicants areencouraged to check the foundation website. Eligible applicants include risk management, insurance andactuarial science majors. Business and non-business studentswith an interest in entering the insurance industry and who committo taking a risk management and insurance course are alsoeligible.

WAHVE winner of insurance entrepreneurialaward: Work At Home Vintage Employees LLC (WAHVE), a newcompany formed in 2010 that offers domestic outsourcing forinsurance firms, was named winner of the “Insurance EntrepreneurialAward” by the Insurance Innovation Alliance. WAHVE was recognizedfor its service offering—providing insurance agencies, wholesalebrokers, and carriers with skilled insurance retirees who work fromhome. The company was tops among 11 finalists in the insurancedistribution category in the award program run by MarketScout inconcert with Microsoft and the National Alliance for InsuranceEducation and Research. Winners also were honored in the categoriesof underwriting and technology. Learn more about WAHVE here.

ASCnet open offices in Chicago: AppliedSystems Client Network (ASCnet) has completed its transition tonew offices near Chicago and hired several new staff. The Chicagomove is part of a multi-year effort to centralize ASCnet'sactivities throughout North America and sharpen the group's valueto members. The change enables ASCnet to centrally locate itsleadership, and it allows for improved collaboration with a keystakeholder, Applied Systems, which is based south of Chicago.