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The Insurance Marketing and Communications Association named Richard Look president. He is a marketing communications veteran with agency and insurance company experience, and currently serves as vice president of marketing communications for Inventure Inc., a privately owned insurance services company based in West Chester, Pa. Look has served as director of communications for Venture Insurance Programs and was vice president of brand marketing for Commonwealth Risk Services. On the agency side, he served as president of Jenkins Advertising, vice president and account supervisor of McAdams, Richman & Ong, and managed e-marketing initiatives through Kingswood Interactive.

Other appointed IMCA 2008/2009 officers and directors are:

• Executive Vice President Linda Collins of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.
• Vice President Randall Clinger of SwissRe
• Vice President Mitch Dunford of Insurance Journal
• Past President at Large: Reg Pierce of Bailey Brand Consulting

IMCA also appointed three new board members: Zdenka Melnyk of Manitoba Public Insurance, Krista Winters of American Modern Insurance Group and Mark Friedlander of Main Street America Group.

American International Group Inc. (AIG) has named Russell Johnston president and chief executive officer of AIG Environmental, a unit of AIG Commercial Insurance and the nation’s leading Pollution Liability insurance provider. Johnston assumes management responsibility for AIG Environmental from Joseph Boren, who has left the company. Johnston joined AIG in 1990 serving in senior management positions within AIG’s Risk Management Group, including president of National Accounts, president of Domestic Risk Management and most recently as president of AIG Risk Management.

In addition, Kimberly Hanna has been named executive vice president and chief operating officer of AIG Environmental. Hanna joined AIG’s Canadian operations in 1996 and in 2000, she became a product line manager for AIG Environmental. She has held positions within the Environmental unit, including her most recent position as senior vice president and chief underwriting officer.

American International Group (AIG) named Peter Eastwood as president and chief executive officer of its surplus lines insurer Lexington Insurance Co., a unit of AIG Commercial Insurance. Eastwood assumes management responsibility for Lexington from Kevin H. Kelley, who has left to become CEO of specialty insurer Ironshore.

Eastwood joined AIG in 1991 serving in senior management positions within AIG Executive Liability, AIG Risk Finance, AIG Reinsurance Advisors and Lexington Insurance Co., including division vice president of Commercial Directors and Officers Liability Insurance, executive vice president and chief operating officer of AIG Risk Finance and president of AIG’s Risk Specialist Companies.

Specialty insurer Ironshore Inc. named Kevin Kelley chief executive officer. Kelley has been the longtime CEO of Lexington Insurance Co., which under his leadership became the largest excess and surplus lines insurer in the world. Ironshore was formed in 2006 and writes property catastrophe and property all-risk coverage for small to mid-sized commercial risks.

Bob Deutsch, the company’s founding CEO, will become Ironshore’s president.

Nicholas Schroeder is the first executive director of the new Surplus Lines Association of Minnesota, a nonprofit organization of brokers of insurance that is placed with companies that are not licensed in Minnesota.

Schroeder previously worked as a commercial lines insurance agent for both an independent agency and a direct writer agency.

The association was created by legislation in 2008 to serve as a “stamping office” for surplus lines insurance policies. In Minnesota, all surplus line placements must now be filed for review with the association.

Hylant Group, one of the nation’s largest privately held commercial insurance brokerage firms, recently named Todd Belden as president in its Cincinnati, Ohio office. Belden will be responsible for the management and growth of the office.

Hylant will focus on further expansion in the large account and middle market segments in southwestern Ohio and Kentucky while continuing to expand the employee benefits and healthcare divisions.

Prior to joining Hylant, Belden was the CEO at Willis of Tennessee. He was also president of Willis Ohio and senior vice president of Wells Fargo in Cincinnati.

Jeff Sanders, former president of the office, will concentrate on the large account practice in the region.

International insurance insurer Hiscox has appointed Jim Whetstone as senior vice president for Global Errors and Omissions (E&O) in the Global Markets area. He is based in Hiscox’s Chicago office. Whetstone will be underwriting Hiscox technology and privacy protection products for US-based entities.

Prior to joining Hiscox, Whetstone was with ACE USA’s Professional Risk division. Prior to joining ACE USA, he was a vice president in Aon’s Technology and Professional Risk group where he worked with companies to address risk management best practices, contracting process improvements, and risk transfer solutions related to their use of and dependence on technology.

Prior to working in the insurance industry, Whetstone spent more than 10 years in various technology-related roles in both traditional and new-economy industries.

Topics Excess Surplus Ohio Pollution Minnesota AIG Risk Management