People – West

Property/casualty insurance media company Wells Media Group announced four C-suite and managerial staff promotions.

Julie Tinney now serves as chief marketing officer, Josh Carlson has been promoted to chief technology officer/chief innovation officer, Andrew Simpson became chief content officer and Lauren Knapp is now the company’s sales manager.

Tinney, most recently vice president for sales and marketing, is now responsible for leading the company’s promotional and branding strategies, sales management, corporate communications and public relations. Her media career began with a position at Petersen Publishing Co. in Los Angeles. She was the Western regional sales manager for Selling Power Magazine, and also owned an independent media rep firm.

Carlson, previously vice president of technology, heads the team responsible for all aspects of web publishing, including server and database administration, email delivery, online ad trafficking and creation and development of online products.

Simpson, formerly vice president of content, will continue to oversee team coverage for Wells Media’s multiple print and digital platforms, and will also be responsible for multi-channel publication and syndication of Wells Media’s content across brands online, in print and mobile, and via audio and video platforms. Simpson is a veteran of insurance publishing and journalism. He is based in his home state of Massachusetts.

Knapp has served as the 12-state Midwest sales manager for the company for the past seven years. In her new role, she will be providing day-to-day leadership of the Insurance Journal, ClaimsJournal.com, MyNewMarkets.com and Carrier Management sales team members. Her career has included marketing and sales positions with Maclean Hunter Publishing, Thomson Financial Publishing and Ball Publishing.

San Diego, Calif.-based Wells Media Group serves the property/casualty insurance industry. In addition to Carrier Management website and magazine, its services include: national and regional Insurance Journal magazines; the P/C insurance industry’s leading website, InsuranceJournal.com; a website, www.ClaimsJournal.com, for P/C claims professionals; an online database of available P/C markets, www.MyNewMarkets.com; a media site featuring insurance industry videos and podcasts, www.InsuranceJournal.TV; and the Academy of Insurance, an online learning center for P/C insurance professionals.

The American Insurance Association has named Jay F. Day vice president of state affairs for the Western region.

The appointment is effective March 9. Day, who will join AIA’s Assistant Vice President Steve Suchil in the association’s Sacramento, Calif. office, will oversee AIA’s state affairs activities in the following states: Alaska; Arizona; California; Hawaii; Idaho; Montana; Nevada; Oregon; Utah; and Washington.

Day joins AIA from the office of California Assemblyman Jim Frazier, D-Oakley. Prior to that Day worked as a consultant for former Assembly Speaker John Perez, D-Los Angeles. He has also served in various capacities for a variety of legislators in the California Assembly and Senate since 1994.

AIA is a property/casualty insurance trade organization representing roughly 300 insurers that write more than $100 billion in premiums each year.

Hub International Limited added Bobbi Curry and Robyn Welch to its entertainment practice in Los Angeles, Calif.

Curry, named managing director of entertainment, focuses on commercial risks, including live event production, and music and touring risks. Welch, named managing director of entertainment, focuses on personal insurance and risk services for high profile and high net worth individuals. They will report directly to Andrew Forchelli, president of Hub’s entertainment practice.

Both women have more than 30 years of experience working with entertainment and risk services. Prior to Hub, Curry and Welch led the entertainment division at Lockton Cos.

Based in Los Angeles, Hub’s entertainment practice offers risk management and insurance solutions across the U.S. for film and television productions, music tour and festivals, theatres and performing arts centers, business management firms, high-risk live events and video game companies. Chicago, Ill.-based Hub International Limited is a global insurance brokerage that provides property/casualty, life and health, employee benefits, investment and risk management products and services.

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance named Akshay Gupta senior vice president and head of catastrophe engineering and analytics.

Gupta is based in the San Francisco Bay area.

Gupta has more than 20 years of experience in catastrophe risk analysis, engineering, mitigation and modeling. Most recently he was senior vice president at AIR Worldwide, where he led a practice providing engineering-based risk modeling and assessments for complex industrial and commercial facilities and operations.

His background also includes catastrophe model research and development, supply chain risk modeling, and disaster risk financing and mitigation projects for corporations and sovereign states.

Boston-based Berkshire Hathaway provides commercial property/casualty, healthcare professional liability, executive and professional lines, surety, travel, programs and homeowners insurance. Berkshire Hathaway has regional underwriting offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Toronto, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Liberty Mutual’s national insurance property operation has named Melissa Kayali division underwriting manager in its West region.

Based in Los Angeles, Calif., Kayali is responsible for expanding Liberty Mutual’s global property presence in the West. She oversees a team of property underwriters, risk engineers and service professionals.

She has more than 30 years of experience. Prior to Liberty Mutual, Kayali served as vice president and senior property underwriter at XL Insurance. She also held underwriting and risk engineering positions at Royal and Sun Alliance, Zurich-American Risk Engineering and American International Underwriters.

Liberty Mutual’s national insurance property operation provides commercial property products, including single carrier, shared and layered, multi-national, equipment breakdown and inland marine. Boston, Mass.-based Liberty Mutual has operations in 30 countries around the world.