People – South Central

Mike Tullis was named president of MNH Tullis, a Little Rock, Ark.-based company that partners with Mullis Newby Hurst (MNH) in Addison, Texas.

Tullis began his career with MNH Tullis after opening the organization’s Little Rock office in 2010. Prior to that, Tullis worked for an independent construction insurance and surety agency in Little Rock.

Tullis graduated from the University of Central Arkansas obtaining a BBA with majors in Finance and also Insurance & Risk Management. He is a Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) and a past board member of the Arkansas chapters of Associated Builders and Contractors and Associated General Contractors.

Albert Betts will become executive director of the Insurance Council of Texas on April 1.

Betts, who had served as general counsel to ICT since 2009, will replace Rick Gentry, who is retiring after 17 years as the association’s manager.

Betts has nearly 25 years of experience in public policy, law and management related to various aspects of the insurance industry and insurance regulation.

He was a partner in the Austin office of Thompson Coe Cousins & Irons LLP. His law practice focused on representing the interest of clients before the Texas Department of Insurance and other regulatory agencies along with representing the insurance industry, insurance companies, and other clients before the Texas legislature and other government officials.

Prior to Thompson Coe, Betts was appointed as the state’s first commissioner of workers’ compensation for Texas by Gov. Rick Perry. He led the 2005 reform of the workers’ comp system and the Division of Workers’ Compensation. Betts previously worked at the Texas Department of Insurance, where he was chief of staff for former Insurance Commissioner Jose Montemayor and assistant general counsel to former Commissioner Elton Bomer. Betts also has served as the agency’s manager of human resources. In addition, Betts has been an assistant attorney general and general counsel for the state’s risk management agency.

The Insurance Council of Texas is located in Austin. Its membership includes roughly 500 property/casualty insurers writing business in Texas.

USG Insurance Services Inc., a national wholesaler and MGA, expanded its Arlington, Texas, operations with the addition of Angela Radke as an associate producer/broker.

Radke most recently held the position of associate broker at Southwest Risk. She also has served as account executive and associate broker at CRC|Crump, insurance and financial services sales agent at State Farm, and account manager at Carlisle Insurance Agency.

Radke is an alumnus of Kaplan University with a master’s degree in legal studies, contract law; Texas A&M University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, marketing; and University of West Florida with an associate’s degree in arts and general business, marketing research with sports emphasis. In addition, she holds both a CRIS and CIC designation.

Higginbotham hired Robert C. White Jr. as a producer to expand the life insurance department at the insurance firm’s Fort Worth, Texas office.

White is former owner of a locally based long-term care insurance brokerage firm, and he has broad experience working for financial institutions.

White joins a group of three life insurance brokers at Higginbotham in North Texas who provide personal coverage, executive compensation and estate planning services. They collaborate with the firm’s health, home and auto insurance brokers to provide a single source solution to individual customers and employers seeking to supplement their benefit plans.

White comes to Higginbotham from Sundance Solutions LLC, an automotive financer, and Sundance Lending LLC, a debt collector, in Fort Worth, Texas, where he was partner concurrently since 2009. From 1997 to 2007, White owned Marketing Group LTC that had more than 200 contracted agents selling long term care insurance to individuals and companies in multiple states. He sold the business to a private equity firm.

Florida-based workers’ compensation insurance provider, Patriot National Insurance Group Inc., appointed Colin B. Williams as Texas regional vice president.

Williams will oversee all marketing and underwriting responsibilities for the company’s Texas region, and will be based at Patriot’s Texas regional office in Austin.

Before joining Patriot National, Williams was a principal at RiskInterpose PLLC. He also held leadership positions at Houston International Insurance Group and AmCOMP Assurance Corporation.

Edward L. Dandridge joined Marsh & McLennan Cos. Inc. as chief communications officer.

He previously was with Collective, a digital technology company, where he served as chief marketing officer. Dandridge also has served as chief communications officer at Nielsen.

He will be based in New York.