Practice management

In a move that reflects global insurance broker Willis Group Holdings’ acknowledgement of the growing role analytics plays across all domains of insurance and risk management, the global insurance broker announced that Rowan Douglas has been appointed CEO Global Analytics for Willis.

Christi Daughenbaugh, 2011 Chairman of the National Association of Independent Life Brokerage Agencies (NAILBA), selected Melinda Meyer, VP, Member Office Development for national broker/dealer ValMark Securities, as the recipient of the 2011 NAILBA Chairman’s Award. The honor was presented yesterday at the association’s annual meeting, NAILBA 30, in Phoenix, Arizona.

People in Portland, Ore. are mad as hell at distracted drivers and they’re not going to take it any more, according to a poll conducted by PEMCO Insurance. The problem is: some of those same drivers admit to the driving-while-distracted behavior, violating safe driving laws on a regular basis.

Marsh & McLennan Agency (MMA), a subsidiary of insurance broker Marsh Inc., has set forth a strategy to build a preeminent property/casualty and employee benefits organization to serve the needs of the middle market. And, the firm is acting on it. Just in the month of November, MMA announced three acquisitions: Seitlin Insurance, an insurance brokerage firms South Florida, Gallagher & Associates Inc. a property/casualty insurance agency specializing in public school districts, and the employee benefits division of Kaeding, Ernst & Company a Marlborough, Massachusetts-based employee benefits, life insurance, and financial planning consulting firm. Terms of all three transactions were not disclosed.

Roughly two-thirds of life and annuity producers surveyed by Deloitte (http://www.deloitte.com) expect to change carriers within the next 12 months. Twenty-nine percent plan to add carriers and one-third expect to both add and drop carriers. Sales support, speed of underwriting and policy issue, and carrier brand are the top factors influencing these decisions. Forty percent are not satisfied with the support they currently receive. And, with more than 80 percent of a producer’s total compensation coming from two favored carriers, there is room for improved producer loyalty and sales through better support, said Rebecca Amoroso, vice chairman, Deloitte LLP and insurance leader.

The Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America (IIABA) recently honored Caliper Corporation's Founder and CEO Dr. Herb Greenberg, for his role over a five-decade period in improving the performance of its state associations and member agencies. In particular, Greenberg was noted for his development of the Caliper Profile, a proprietary personality assessment.

Insurance executives downplay their service delivery and mobile capabilities so far, which is promising.

Accenture survey says industry needs to embrace analytics and better tailor products and services to customers’ needs.

Unpredictability, layers of complexity, yet-to-be-seen risks all play forward into challenges and opportunities for insurers’ social media strategies.

The carrier is looking to fill 100 positions in its Dallas office by February of next year.

Poor Communication Feeds Life Insurance Sales Gap

Insurance Networking News, the independent authority on the latest technology to support insurers' business strategies, kicked off its annual 2011 Vanguards in Insurance (VIP) awards program, in which carriers vote for their industry's top technology providers and these providers in turn nominate the most visionary insurance carriers.

As consumers’ and agents’ service demands increase, insurers will need to improve their websites and portals.

IIHS Evaluates Minivan Safety

Social media is another form of data that companies must work with regularly, but most businesses have a long road to travel before achieving effective integration.

According to ForeSee’s fourth annual health care benchmark study, health insurance companies, as a whole, provide the least satisfactory websites in the health industry.

Report from PLUS: Tony Blair says changes in our economic and regulatory systems are a given, but should have the core goal of creating a healthy, thriving financial sector.

Ronald Pressman is a veteran of the conglomerate's reinsurance and asset management divisions.

As cell phone use persists behind the wheel, countervailing technologies can help carriers confront the issue of distracted driving.

Colonial Life survey reveals that, when compared to all other age groups, Gen Y employees are least likely to rely on the workplace for benefits information.