People – South Central
Texas-based RSI International Inc. reported that Brian Bridges joined the firm as commercial underwriter. Bridges brings 10 years’ experience in commercial property/casualty insurance, specializing in middle market transactions.
Prior to joining RSI, Bridges worked as a sales executive for Pathfinder Insurance, based in Houston.
RSI International is a privately held managing general agency established in 1986 with offices in Arlington, Texas, and St. Louis, Mo.
Texas-based Ashley General Agency announced that Roger Karber has joined its underwriting team.
Karber began his insurance career in his father’s independent agency. He has managing general agency experience and has worked for several insurance companies.
Most recently, he was an underwriter for Catlin Specialty Insurance.
Commercial insurance broker William J. Crocker joined Higginbotham Insurance Group in Austin, Texas, as vice president, real estate practice leader.
Crocker will help build the firm’s presence in the real estate sector using his seven years of industry practice begun in Houston, a market he will continue to serve.
Early in his career, Crocker was a broker/analyst for Coldwell Banker in Houston, where he served as exclusive agent on 16 properties. He later managed risks for real estate accounts at USI Insurance Services in Austin.
Crocker holds a Commercial Lines Coverage Specialist (CLCS) accreditation, and is a member of the National Apartment Association (NAA), the Texas Apartment Association (TAA) and its local chapter in Houston (HAA).
Higginbotham has 17 offices in Texas including two in Austin.
Louisiana Workers’ Compensation Corporation (LWCC) promoted William B. Bangs IV to senior vice president of Policyholder Services and Agency Relations, and Michael Stiltner to vice president and general counsel.
Bangs joined LWCC in 2007 as vice president of Underwriting and Agency Relations. In 2010, he was named vice president of Corporate Services. He previously held insurance executive positions in Texas, Nebraska and Kansas, as well as Louisiana.
Stiltner, hired by LWCC in 1993 as a staff claims attorney, has served as senior attorney, managing attorney, deputy general counsel and deputy general counsel/chief compliance officer. Prior to joining LWCC, Stiltner practiced law doing insurance defense work.
Robert S. Howey has joined Southwest Risk LP to serve as the Dallas-based wholesale broker’s president.
Howey’s underwriting experience and expertise encompass 27 years of underwriting and managing property, inland marine and specialty lines primarily with Chubb and Swiss Re. He most recently served as chief marketing officer of The Republic Group.
Southwest Risk is a specialty lines insurance broker focusing on high hazard business exposures. The company delivers property and casualty insurance coverage for the real estate, construction, energy and manufacturing industries.
Insurance broker Willis North America appointed Bill Gilliam senior vice president, construction practice, in its Willis of Texas office.
Willis of Texas Inc., with 120 associates, serves clients from its office in Houston.
In this role, Gilliam will be responsible for business development within Willis’ Construction Practice. He will work to expand Willis’ footprint in the Houston marketplace and align Willis’ global resources to deliver outstanding risk management services to Houston-based construction firms.
Gilliam reports to Lloyd Esler, managing partner, Willis of Houston.
Gilliam brings more than nine years of experience in the construction and insurance industries into this role. Prior to joining Willis, he served as a producer at Bowen Miclette and Britt Inc.
The ACE Group named Juan Andrade, division president, Global Personal Lines and Small Commercial Insurance, to the additional post of chief operating officer of the company’s Insurance – Overseas General business.
In this new role, Andrade will assume a range of general management, underwriting and business development responsibilities for the company’s non-life insurance operations in 50 countries in the Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Europe, Middle East and Africa regions.
Based in New York, Andrade will continue to lead the company’s personal lines and small commercial insurance business globally.
Marsh, the insurance broking division of Marsh & McLennan Cos., appointed Brenda Shelly as the firm’s new U.S. directors and officers liability (D&O) product leader.
A veteran management liability broker and underwriter, Shelly succeeds Tripp Sheehan, who was named Marsh’s U.S. financial institutions practice leader.
During her career at Marsh, Shelly has held a variety of positions within its FINPRO practice, which specializes in financial and professional liability. Most recently she was the FINPRO growth leader for the Pacific North Partnership.
Shelly began her insurance career in 1986 as a management liability underwriting manager at Stewart Smith East.