Risk Sciences Group Names John Thurman and Jim Collins Regional Vice Presidents

ATLANTA, Feb. 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Insurance industry executives John Thurman and Jim Collins have been named regional vice presidents of Risk Sciences Group (RSG), a leading provider of risk management information systems used to consolidate and evaluate risk data for the domestic and international market.

Collins, who is based in New Jersey, will direct the integration of the Northeast and Southeast region into one East Region with offices in Georgia and New Jersey. Thurman, based in California, will continue to oversee RSG's West Region, including offices in California, Texas and Illinois.

Both report to Brenda Rarick, senior vice president and managing director of RSG. "This is a great opportunity to create additional efficiency, consistency and continual quality improvement," Rarick said. "Jim and John have the knowledge and skill to continue to raise the already high standard RSG has set for its clients."

Collins and Thurman are responsible for managing all aspects of RSG's business within their regions, including client relations, needs analysis, specifications development, product design, systems development, testing, product implementation and ongoing system and data support.

Thurman began with RSG in 1988 as a senior programmer and held several technical leadership positions before assuming the role of director of operations for the West Region in 1997. He has a bachelor of science in business administration from California State University and is currently completing an Associate in Risk Management (ARM) designation.

Collins joined RSG in 1997 after spending 26 years in various segments of the insurance industry. His career began with The Travelers in 1971; after 20 years in the property-casualty and corporate marketing divisions, he left to become the general manager of a multi-line brokerage firm in New York. He later became a member of the Million Dollar Club for two consecutive years while a regional sales manager for Applied Systems. Immediately before joining RSG, Collins was a regional vice president for MMI Companies, a professional liability carrier specializing in medical malpractice and clinical risk management.

Collins has a bachelor's degree from Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia. He earned a certificate of completion in agency management from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and is a candidate for the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriters designation.

About Risk Sciences Group (RSG)

Since 1978, RSG (www.risksciencesgroup.com) has been dedicated to delivering risk management information systems (RMIS) that provide the ability to track multi-coverage claims and enterprise-wide exposures to risks. Because effective risk management depends on a high degree of data integrity and quality, RSG maintains highly accurate and credible databases on behalf of each client. RSG's RMIS solutions, which include flexible business intelligence tools and expert account management, help risk managers accurately analyze pre- and post-loss trends to guide their business decisions. As a wholly owned subsidiary of Crawford & Company, RSG supports the Broadspire business unit with TPA RMIS solutions as well as an independent client base with advanced RMIS solutions.

About Broadspire

Broadspire (www.choosebroadspire.com), a leading international third party administrator, provides risk management solutions designed to help clients improve their financial results. Broadspire offers casualty claim and medical management services to assist large organizations in achieving their unique goals, increasing employee productivity and reducing the cost of risk through professional expertise, technology and data analytics. As a Crawford Company, Broadspire is based in Atlanta, Ga., with 85 locations throughout the United States. Services are offered by Crawford & Company under the Broadspire brand in Europe (www.Broadspire.eu), including the United Kingdom (www.BroadspireTPA.co.uk).

About Crawford

Based in Atlanta, Ga., Crawford & Company (www.crawfordandcompany.com) is the world's largest independent provider of claims management solutions to the risk management and insurance industry as well as self-insured entities, with a global network of more than 700 locations in 63 countries. The Crawford System of Claims Solutions(SM) offers comprehensive, integrated claims services, business process outsourcing and consulting services for major product lines including property and casualty claims management, workers compensation claims and medical management, and legal settlement administration. The Company's shares are traded on the NYSE under the symbols CRDA and CRDB.

SOURCE Crawford & Company