Liberty Specialty Markets expands digital: Insurance, insurtech career moves

July 18, 2022 6:30 AM

London buses pass through the City of London in view of skyscrapers in London, U.K., on Thursday, Jan. 7, 2021. Persimmon Plc, the U.K.’s biggest housebuilder, said the long-term outlook for the country’s housing market remained resilient despite the economic gloom and latest national lockdown. Photographer: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg — London buses pass through the City of London in view of skyscrapers in London, U.K., on Jan. 7, 2021.

Liberty Mutual Insurance Group’s Liberty Specialty Markets appoints Parul Kaul-Green to its new chief digital strategy officer. In the role, Kaul-Green will lead digital strategy for underwriting.

She joins the company from AXA XL where she was chief of staff, Asia Pacific and Europe. Additionally, Carol Baker was appointed as the head of digital strategy, London, global products. Phil Hobbs, president and managing director at LSM, said in a statement: “I’m delighted to welcome Parul to Liberty. She brings a broad track record in strategic and digital transformation. This is the skillset we need to deliver on our strategic objectives. Carol has championed digital innovation within our business development team, and we look forward to her continuing to bring this value to our brokers and clients in her new role.”

Chubb announces several news hires. Natalie Chiaramonte has been named division president of Sovereign Risk insurance Limited, an underwriter of political risk insurance and a Chubb company. Gail Costa will lead the newly acquired life insurance operations in New Zealand that Chyb acquired from Cigna. Costa is currently the CEO of Cigna Life New Zealand, so she will continue its operations. Jack Chang has also been appointed the lead of the newly acquired life insurance operations of Cigna in Taiwan.

Berkshire Hathaway Homestate Companies names Danny Engell, senior vice president, chief underwriting and analytics officer of its workers compensation division. In the role, Engell will lead strategic underwriting and data analytics efforts. Previous to this role, Engell worked as the senior vice president and chief underwriting officer for Republic Indemnity. “Danny is a solutions-oriented executive with substantial experience building and leading complex, established insurance functions as well as new ventures,” said Rob Darby, president, and CEO of BHHC, in a statement. “He has a breadth of experience and talent with strategic underwriting, process improvement, and data analytics that will support BHHC’s goal of maintaining its competitive market advantage.”

Lincoln Financial Group announces James Reid as executive vice president, head of workplace solutions. Reid will lead the group benefits and retirement plan services businesses. President and CEO Ellen Cooper said in a statement: “James is incredibly seasoned with deep industry knowledge – he is an ideal leader to guide these businesses to foster growth and innovation for our employer clients and their employees, as we continue to build a superior and unique customer experience. Continuing to align these two employer-focused businesses will enable strong collaboration and will position us well to further build our portfolio of group benefits and retirement solutions and our robust suite of financial wellness offerings.”

Protective Life Corporation names Kathryn Cox as senior vice president of the protection division. In the role, Cox will lead business operations, product development and underwriting. Previously, she served as senior vice president, business development of U.S. Mortality Markets at Reinsurance Group of America. “With broad experience spanning many areas of our industry, Kathryn is an exceptional fit for our company and this role,” said Wade Harrison, executive vice president and chief retail officer of Protective, in a press release. “She joins a strong team of life insurance professionals, and I am excited to see what we all accomplish together with her leadership.”

Better, a digital homeownership company, announces the hiring of several executives. Sushil Sharma is the company’s first chief growth officer and Steve Riddell is the new head of sales. Sharma has 20 years of experience in product management and software engineering, according to a press release. Additionally, Ryan Jewison is the head of Better cover; Nick Taylor is the head of Better Real Estate; Josh Durodola is the head of Better services; Brian Ro is the vice president of people; Jennifer Malin is the vice president of enterprise risk and Nitin Bhutani is the vice president of marketing.

Security Benefits appoints Jacquline Morales as SVP, chief operating officer. Morales has previously served as chief insurance officer for two insurtechs. In this new role, she will be focused on operations and technology for the company’s manufacturing group. “Jacquline is a results-oriented executive with substantial experience building and leading complex, established organizations as well as start-ups,” said Doug Wolff, CEO, in a statement. “She has an exceptional track record of instilling cultures that are customer-focused, process improvement-oriented, highly engaged, and innovative.

Jericho Vinsonhaler is the new head of underwriting at Hourly.io, a workers comp insurtech. Vinsonhaler, who spent 20 years leading underwriting strategy at Markel, will oversee underwriting strategy. Vinsonhaler said in a statement: “What really drew me to the company was the impact it could have on employers and employees. Because we have the opportunity to engage directly with both on a daily basis, we see labor costs in real time which means premiums are accurate, claims are reduced, and workers’ comp insurance ultimately becomes more affordable for everyone.”