People and Places

Bob Lund, vice president and general counsel of SFM Mutual Insurance Co. since 1998, has been chosen as SFM’s new president and chief executive officer, Board Chair Truman Jeffers recently announced.

Lund succeeds Pat Johnson, who is retiring after 14 years as president and CEO. Lund takes office May 1.

Lund, a key member of SFM’s leadership team, has been instrumental in the company’s growth in recent years, including reorganizing the company around multi-functional teams and customer segments. SFM writes workers’ compensation insurance and services in Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Hub International Midwest Limited has appointed John E. Blachaniec to the newly-created position of director of personal lines sales for the private client group in Chicago. Blachaniec will assume the responsibility for personal lines sales and growth strategies in the Chicago office.

Blachaniec brings nearly 15 years of insurance experience. Most recently, he served as a business developer for the private client services at Marsh Inc. Earlier in his career, Blachaniec owned and operated an independent Farmer’s insurance agency in Libertyville, Ill.

David Linton has been promoted to vice president of information services at the American Association of Insurance Services (AAIS), a national insurance advisory organization that develops policy forms and manuals used by more than 600 property/casualty insurers throughout the U.S.

Linton came to AAIS in August 2005 as director of information services. Previously, he had been with Metavante Corp., Meadowbrook, Ill., where he was manager of application development for the corporation’s electronic funds group. Prior to that, he was a technical consultant and manager for ICS Advantage, Aurora, Ill., and held positions in programming and marketing positions at PagePath Technologies, Bensenville, Ill.

Rockhill Insurance Co. recently appointed Jerry Brumfield as its new vice president, general counsel and chief claims officer.

In his new role he is responsible for legal, compliance, and regulatory issues for all Rockhill-related entities as well as the claims processes for all Rockhill product lines. Brumfield has been with Rockhill since January 2006.

Rockhill Underwriting Management also recently named Curt Crozier vice president and director of Property Underwriting. In his new role, Crozier will work closely with Rockhill’s Chief Property Officer to manage and grow the company’s placement of property insurance. As part of Rockhill’s management team he will provide expertise in both the property and reinsurance areas.

Crozier comes to Rockhill from General Reinsurance Corp. where he held underwriting management roles including vice president, senior underwriting specialist.

Mich.-based Professional Concepts Insurance Agency (PCIA) announced that Mike Cosgrove has assumed the role of president and chief operating officer for the firm.

The company also announced that Kim Fricke will take over the role of chairman and chief executive officer.

PCIA provides insurance products and customized risk management services for architects, engineers, accountants, lawyers, financial planners, technology firms and real estate professionals.

Ohio-based Grange Mutual Casualty Co. announced that it has appointed M. Marnette Perry as its newest board member. Perry is senior vice president for The Kroger Co., one of the nation’s largest retail grocery chains with more than $60 billion in annual sales. Perry oversees seven of Kroger’s Supermarket Divisions, including the Company’s Cincinnati-Dayton, Delta, Dillon Stores and Baker’s, Jay C, King Soopers and City Markets, Mid-Atlantic and QFC Divisions.

Perry joined Kroger in 1972 as a part-time cashier while attending Ohio University and since joining Kroger, she has held a variety of positions with increasing responsibility.

Throughout her 35 years career Kroger, Perry has played an instrumental role in shaping several of Kroger’s trademark customer offerings and helping the company to No. 21 on the Fortune 500 list.

Patrick McDaniel has joined Hylant Group as a vice president in the firm’s Ann Arbor, Mich., office. McDaniel will be part of the firm’s Executive Risk Practice, which specializes in directors’ and officers’ liability, fiduciary, fidelity, kidnap and ransom, employment practices liability, professional liability and technology and cyber related risks. In his new role, McDaniel will be responsible for advising existing clients and potential clients on the emerging risks of corporate governance.

Prior to joining Hylant, McDaniel served as team leader for the Baltimore office of Marsh USA’s FINPRO division. He led the operation, managed the advisory team and was named to the executive leadership team. He also served as vice president in Marsh’s Louisville, Ky., office where he was a member of the Midwest Region FINPRO Professional Development Committee.

Doug Miller was recently named vice president in Hylant Group’s Ann Arbor, Mich., office.

Miller has almost 20 years of experience in the executive risk field serving Fortune 500, middle market, public, private, and non-profit companies with their management liability needs. Prior to joining Hylant, Miller served as the Marsh FINPRO Practice leader for Michigan. He also was the Executive Protection Department manager for Chubb Group of Insurance Cos. in Milwaukee. In that role, he was responsible for underwriting management of all of the company’s management liability lines of coverage.

Minn.-based Oswald Cos. recently announced the appointment of Raymond C. Longo as vice president, healthcare practice leader. In his new position, Longo will be responsible for expanding Oswald’s client services through the innovation of new insurance and risk management products, while contributing to the Midwest’s leading risk management and business insurance firm’s overall presence in the healthcare industry.