People

The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) elected new officers during its annual meeting in Boston recently. Robert Joyce, chairman and chief executive officer of Westfield Group, was elected as the association’s new chair; John Blackburn, CEO of Country Insurance & Financial Services was elected first chair, and Janice Abraham, president and CEO of United Educators Insurance, was elected second vice chair.

PCI also elected two new members to its board: Vincent Donnelly, president and CEO, PMA Capital Corp., and Darin Kath, president and CEO at Jewelers Mutual Insurance Co.

PCI’s new chair, Joyce, has more than 25 years experience in the insurance industry and currently leads Westfield, a diversified financial services organization with over $3 billion in assets. Joyce’s experience includes serving as senior vice president and treasurer of Philadelphia-based Reliance Insurance Group, followed by senior vice president and chief operating officer of Reliance Surety before joining Westfield in 1996. Prior to CEO, he held the positions of president of Westfield Management Co. and chief operating officer at Westfield.

PCI’s First Vice Chair Blackburn has served as CEO for Country Insurance & Financial Services since August 2001. He is also chairman of the board of directors of three companies with which Country has strategic alliances: Holyoke Mutual Insurance Co., Salem, Mass.; Middlesex Mutual Assurance Co., Middletown, Conn.; and MSI Preferred Insurance Co., Arden Hills, Minn.

Blackburn began his career with Country in 1982 as an agent in Christian County (Ill.). Later, he served as agency manager, district director of Agencies, regional vice president of Agency, vice president of Agency and senior vice president of Marketing.

PCI’s Second Vice Chair Abraham joined United Educators Insurance as president and CEO in January 1998. She is also president and CEO of United Educators Management Co. Abraham has 14 years of experience in serving the higher education community through her work as chief financial officer/treasurer at Whitman College (1989-1997), various senior positions at Cornell University (1985-1989), and the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) where she served as staff associate.

PCI has more than 1,000 member companies.

Berkley Net Underwriters announced the addition of Brian Risen as senior vice president of Sales and Marketing and the promotion of Brian Douglas to the newly created position of director of Marketing and Strategic Development.

Risen has more than 26 years of sales and marketing experience including field marketing for a national carrier and large account sales for a major direct writer. He was a founding partner of a $150 million agency and most recently a senior officer for affinity groups and program related business.

Douglas’ duties will expand to focus on development of the company’s web applications, online user experience, new strategic initiatives and program development, including niche workers compensation programs. Douglas has held various roles in sales and marketing, operations and risk management over the past 10 years.

BerkleyNet is a subsidiary of W. R. Berkley Corp. specializing in workers’ compensation insurance delivered through the internet.

Provider Insurance Group, headquartered in Needham, Mass., recently promoted William Darcey to chief operating officer. Prior to the promotion, he was senior vice president and sales manager.

With 17 years of experience, Darcey’s expertise is in commercial insurance, with a focus on sales, marketing, client service, and agency operations.

Provider Insurance Group has agency offices in Needham, Brookline, and Belmont, Mass., and Woonsocket, R.I.

Michael S. Bertrand has been appointed to the post of deputy commissioner of insurance in the Vermont Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities & Health Care Administration. Bertrand, an attorney, has been employed by the state since 1999, and has served in various positions in the executive branch since January 2003. He most recently served as deputy secretary of administration. Prior to that appointment, he was deputy legal counsel and special assistant to Governor Douglas, and served as Commissioner of the Department of Labor and Industry, where he was involved in administering workers’ compensation insurance laws.

Great American Insurance Group’s Executive Liability Division has opened a new branch office in Princeton, New Jersey and named David Garrison as divisional vice president. Garrison will be responsible for the underwriting and marketing activities of this office, which will underwrite Great American’s new Private Equity Liability product and the new General Partners’ Liability product.

Garrison has spent seven years underwriting General Partners’ Liability, Private Equity Fund and Management Liability products. He also has experience on the brokerage side of this business, working for an international brokerage firm.

Maryland Insurance Commissioner Ralph S. Tyler has appointed Elizabeth Sammis as deputy insurance commissioner.

Sammis is currently vice president for Government Affairs, Mid-Atlantic Region, for United Healthcare, and she previously held senior positions at Mid-Atlantic Medical Services Inc., prior to its acquisition by United Healthcare. Between 1993 and 1996, Sammis was deputy director of the Health Care Access and Cost Commission and before that, she was a legislative analyst with the Department of Legislative Reference.

Berkshire Insurance Group Inc., a Berkshire Bank company in Pittsfield, Mass., has named John S. Millet, CPA, as its chief operating officer. Millet will oversee operations, finance, information technology, and other key corporate functions as well as the development and execution of the business’ strategic plan.

Millet was most recently senior vice president interim chief financial officer, and controller at Berkshire Bank. Prior to joining the bank, Millet was senior operating executive of Link to Life, in Pittsfield.