ACORD Unveils 2018 Board Of Directors

PEARL RIVER, N.Y., Feb. 16, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- ACORD, the global standards-setting body for the insurance industry, today announced its 2018 Board of Directors. The ACORD Board continues to be led by J. Spero Zacharias and consists of 26 members, including two new directors. Zacharias, Senior Vice President of Chubb, was elected Chair of the Board last year.

"Our industry is changing rapidly and we have to evolve with it," said ACORD President and CEO Bill Pieroni. "I'd like to welcome our new Directors, and look forward to working with the Board this year to continue to drive ACORD forward."

The new Directors include:

John M. Artesani, Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer, Lexington Insurance Company. In his role at Lexington, Artesani oversees the organization's operational management, working on the development and design of processes and systems Lexington relies on to conduct business.

Mark Cook, Global Chief Information Officer, Marsh. In this role, Cook is responsible for technology across all business lines and geographies within Marsh. He has 28 years of technology experience, including 14 years in the insurance industry. In previous roles at Marsh, he led Enterprise Architecture as Global CTO, as well as holding various IT delivery leadership roles across the International division.

Additional ACORD Board of Directors members include:

J. Spero Zacharias, Chair, Senior Vice President, Chubb. Zacharias is Manager of International Field Operations for its Accident and Health Division, and leads Agency distribution for Chubb's Accident and Health businesses across 54 countries outside of the United States.

Tony Mattioli, Vice-Chair, Chief Information Officer, AssuredPartners, Inc. Mattioli is responsible for focusing on technology solutions and initiatives throughout the company. He has 35 years of experience in the property and casualty insurance business and has held a number of senior executive positions in the industry.

Bill Pieroni, President & CEO, ACORD. Prior to his appointment in 2016, Pieroni served as Global Chief Operating Officer of Marsh and was responsible for the firm's global operations. Additionally, he was the Chief Technology and Transformation Officer across the Risk & Insurance Segment.

John Leonard, Past Chair, Outside Director. Leonard, President Emeritus of MEMIC, recently retired from the MEMIC Group where he served as President and CEO since 1993. During his tenure, the company grew from a start-up to an organization that is now firmly established as one of the premier Workers Compensation specialists along the eastern seaboard.

Christoph Carus, Head of Central Division, Reinsurance Accounting, Munich Re. In his role at Munich Re, Carus leads the Enterprise Architecture (EA) function and chairs IT-investment initiatives with business, IT and EA strategy.

Joe Dainty, Global Head of Operations, Lloyd's of London. Dainty has more than 20 years' experience in the insurance industry, initially as a Private Medical Insurance underwriter with BUPA and Guardian Health, before joining QBE in 1998 to manage a Private Medical Insurance team. He joined Lloyd's in 2015 as Global Head of Operations managing a market-facing operations team in London and developing operational support in Europe, Asia, and the Americas.

Mark Esposito, Senior Vice President and CIO, The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. As Chief Information Officer and Senior Vice President accountable for enterprise architecture, line of business, corporate and shared business applications for The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., Esposito is responsible for developing and implementing an information technology strategy across all business and corporate segments, driving application innovation, and standardizing on new application delivery models.

Sue Figueredo, Senior Vice President, Business Insurance Operations, Travelers. Figueredo is responsible for strategy, development and execution delivery, relationship management, customer and agent experience, operational excellence and most important, recruiting and developing future leaders.

Alessandro Iuppa, Outside Director. Iuppa is the founder and Principal Executive of Global Insurance Perspectives, a consultancy focused on international public policy issues for the insurance sector. Iuppa has almost three decades of experience in the sector, including 20 years as a senior supervisor.

John Kellington, Senior Vice President and CIO, Cincinnati Financial Corporation. Before his appointment as SVP and CIO of Cincinnati Financial Corporation, Kellington was SVP of ACORD, and SVP and Chief Technology Officer for the Ohio Casualty Group. He also spent 18 years at IBM, where he held several positions.

Robert Kelly, Managing Director, CEO, Steadfast Group Limited. In his role at Steadfast Group Limited, Australia's largest broking cluster, Kelly became the first Shareholder and Director of the Steadfast Group. Having been a practicing Insurance Broker since 1969, Kelly has served as Managing Director of the Sydney Insurance Broker, Delaney Kelly Golding, and the National Underwriting Agency, Rentsure.

Mark Knipfer, Chief Operations Officer, Zurich North America. Knipfer oversees the Business Change & IT, Operational Transformation, Operations Policy & Administration, Premium Audit, Underwriting Support & Service and Enterprise Planning & Execution teams. He is responsible for driving and assuring the achievement of desired business results from the organizations' strategic and operational transformation initiatives.

Barbara Koster, Senior Vice President and CIO, Prudential Financial. Koster is head of Global Business and Technology Solutions and a member of Prudential's Senior Management Committee. She is responsible for IT at all Prudential locations worldwide and ensures the privacy and integrity of the company's information. Koster also manages the company's global networks, data centers and other technology infrastructure.

Dennis Mahoney, Executive Chair, RFIB. Mahoney is a forty-two-year veteran of the broker industry, having served as President of the Insurance Institute of London. In 2012, he joined Ironshore as a Director serving on its board. During his years with AON and its predecessor, he maintained a number of senior leadership roles in retail, wholesale and reinsurance.

Christof Mascher, Member of the Board of Management & Chief Operating Officer, Allianz SE. Mascher is the Functional Leader of Operations at Allianz defining standards and strategy for Operations, including operational underwriting, claims management, information technology and organizational management. He created Allianz Managed Operations & Services (AMOS) to provide shared services to Allianz Group companies in the areas of IT, operations and corporate services, enabling the Group to leverage economies of scope, scale and skill.

Dave Matcham, Chief Executive Officer, International Underwriting Association of London. IUA is the market association representing insurance and reinsurance companies writing international business in or through London, outside of the Lloyd's market. Prior to joining IUA, Matcham worked for 18 years in senior managerial positions for the Institute of London Underwriters – a long established trade association for marine and aviation insurers in London.

Gray Nester, ADS Insurance Business Information Officer/SVP, BB&T. Since 2004, Nester has worked closely with the various insurance businesses at BB&T to assist the business in providing efficiency and solutions to managing the distribution of insurance across all channels.

Robert Rusbuldt, President and CEO, IIABA. Rusbuldt joined IIABA in May 1986 and was named CEO in April 2001. During his time at IIABA, Rusbuldt earned recognition as one of the leading lobbyists on tax, banking, insurance and financial services issues in Washington, D.C. The Washington Post, The Hill and Roll Call all have named Rusbuldt as one of the "hot" top lobbyists in Washington.

Markus Schmid, Division Head IT & Member of the Group Management Board, Swiss Re. In his role, Schmid runs a transformation program with the goal of globalizing Swiss Re's IT organization and increasing its productivity. In 2012, he aligned the IT organization with the new Group operating model by creating dedicated IT Units, and introduced a service-based cost management framework for the entire Swiss Re group.

Richard Schuyler, AON Chief Information Officer, Business Technology Solutions, AON Services Corporation. Schuyler has twenty years of technology experience across a variety of industries including insurance, financial services, and consulting. In his role, he is responsible for the overall IT vision, strategic direction and tactical delivery of all technology solutions for AON Risk Business and AON Benfield.

Christopher B. Smith, Executive Vice President & Head of Global Operations, MetLife. Smith has more than 25 years of industry expertise, and currently oversees MetLife's core insurance operations including underwriting, policy administration and claims.

Dexter S. Umekubo, Sr. Managing Partner, Producers XL. In 1988, Umekubo joined John Rupright, founding partner of Producers XL, (a BRAMCO Partner Agency) as co-owner and managing partner of the agency. He is a Past-Chair of NAILBA and a member of AALU, NAIFA and SFSP and has served in various leadership roles with each association. His professional area of expertise is the advanced life markets, with an emphasis on Business and Estate planning strategies.

Conor Whelan, Chief Information Officer, JLT Group. Whelan's objective is to transform the IT function while also leading the digital revolution within JLT. Prior to this, he spent the last five years transforming the IT capability within TNT Express, a global express parcel distribution company employing 70,000 people across more than 100 countries.

Carol Zacharias, SVP, Underwriting Counsel, QBE. Zacharias is underwriting counsel to QBE North America, a multinational insurer providing property, casualty and specialty insurance including directors' and officers', employment, professional liability, and errors and omissions insurance. Prior to joining QBE, Carol was Deputy General Counsel to Ace North America, now part of the Chubb Group of Insurance Companies.

For a full listing of the 2018 ACORD Board of Directors with photos and complete biographies, please visit www.acord.org.

About ACORD
ACORD (Association for Cooperative Operations Research and Development) is the global, standards-setting body for the insurance industry. ACORD facilitates fast, accurate data exchange, and efficient workflows through the development of electronic standards, standardized forms, and tools to support their use. ACORD members worldwide include hundreds of insurance and reinsurance companies, agents and brokers, software providers, financial services organizations and industry associations. ACORD maintains offices in New York and London. Learn more at www.acord.org.

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