CRM Names Walczyk as COO

Irvine, Calif.-based Risk Managers of California, LLC (CRM) announced the appointment of a new chief operating officer.

Chet Walczyk, a veteran workers’ compensation insurance executive with more than 25 years of experience – the last five at CRM, will be responsible for all day-to-day operations and activities of the rapidly growing California company. CRM manages group self-insurance programs and is committed to significant expansion within the state.

In his new role as COO of CRM California LLC, Walczyk will report directly to CRM CEO Martin D. Rakoff and CRM President Daniel G. Hickey Jr. and will work closely with the boards of directors that govern the four separate programs CRM operates in that market.

“Chet Walczyk has been an integral part of CRM since its inception and has played a key role in the company’s growth, direction and ultimate success,” said Martin D. Rakoff, CEO of CRM. “We feel confident in knowing that Chet will bring his extensive knowledge of underwriting and product development to one of our fastest-growing markets.”

A native of Buffalo, N.Y., Walczyk was most recently senior vice president of risk management for CRM. Prior to joining CRM during its founding in 1999, Walczyk held several positions with many other insurance organizations. Walczyk has a Bachelor of Science degree from the State University of New York (SUNY) at Buffalo and maintains the ARM certification.

“The California division is an exciting opportunity for me personally and represents a new landscape for CRM to bring its multiple programs, good reputation and sound financial foundations to the state.” Walczyk said. “My challenge, and that of my staff, will be to help CRM capitalize on these valuable assets to grow our membership base by finding and understanding our client’s and prospective client’s challenges and develop creative and financially sound solutions for them.”

CRM began operating in California in 2003. Presently, CRM offers four separate and distinct workers’ compensation programs in California that serve workers in the industries of construction, plastics manufacturing, franchised auto dealers and health care.

With regional offices in Irvine and Sacramento, Calif., CRM is fully staffed to aggressively support all of its programs. CRM offers group self-funded workers compensation programs for most major industry sectors through 12 separate programs or trusts in California and New York.

Earlier this year, CRM reported results that show gross written premiums of $125 million, representing an increase of 27 percent from the previous year.

Topics California Workers' Compensation