The following is a rundown of the latest hiring announcements, promotions, accolades, awards and scholarships that have been announced this week.
Appointments
HUB International New England Welcomes Maria Teal, Tony Volpe
HUB International New England, LLC, a division of HUB International Limited, recently announced that Maria Teal has joined the agency as an account manager for Personal Lines in the South Hadley office, and Tony Volpe has also come on board as an account executive in the Commercial Lines department.
Teal holds her certified insurance service representatives (CISR) and vertified professional in personal lines (CPPL) designations and has been in the insurance industry for 18 years. She will specialize in personal coverages including home, auto, renters, and umbrella insurance.
Volpe has more than 17 years of experience and has been recognized as an award-winning account executive. He is an eight-time Presidential Club winner “for distinguished performance in achieving overall production and profitability goals.” He has succeeded in meeting and exceeding company goals and sales profitability, and previously worked at Zurich Insurance, Allstate Insurance, Connecticut Casualty Company, and Insure.net. Volpe holds his property, casualty, life, and accident/health licenses in Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, and Rhode Island.
At HUB, he will specialize in all types of auto-dealership and garage insurance liability products and more, and will focus in the Connecticut area.
Appointments
DeCotis Specialty Insurance Announces the Addition of New Team Members to Braintree and Providence Offices
DeCotis Specialty Insurance, an industry leader in surplus and excess insurance, announced the addition of new team members to their Braintree, MA and Providence offices.
Joining their Braintree office are Michael Yanikoski, Ryan Smith, and Keisha Williams. In addition, five new members have joined the Providence office: Lisa do Rego, Brendan Kenahan, Ashley Adams, Melissa Pruett, and Jennifer Dubois. The newest members of DeCotis are joining the agency at an opportune time as the agency continues to eye growth in the Northeast and beyond.
We may sell insurance products every day, but we know that at our core, we are a service business. In order to properly serve our agent customers, we need to continually strengthen our “bench” to make sure that front line producers and underwriters have support that allows them to respond to business coming in. We are thrilled that we have so many qualified and dedicated people joining our team—everyone is excited about the extra bandwidth and we’re looking to drive past our growth goals this year. With our current pool of talent, anything is possible. The proof will be in our customers’ feedback as we move forward through 2018, but the initial response has been great. We’re really looking forward to the coming year.” – Tom DeCotis
The Braintree office will gain considerable experience from Ryan Smith and Michael Yanikoski, both joining as Brokerage Account Managers, and Keisha Williams who joins the agency as a new Customer Service Representative.
Award Opportunity – Deadline May 15th
The Worksite Wellness Council of Massachusetts opens their 2018 WorkWell MA Awards Program for Applications
The Worksite Wellness Council of Massachusetts has announced the launch of its 2018 WorkWell Massachusetts Awards program. The program and award is aimed at recognizing the best practices in worksite wellness programing among employers.
The WorkWell Massachusetts Awards program will recognize Massachusetts’ employers of all industries and sizes that are committed to creating a healthier worksite.
Applications for gold, silver and bronze recognition will require a two-step process:
- Complete the HERO Health and Well-Being Best Practices Scorecard in Collaboration with Mercer©. The HERO scorecard assesses: strategic planning, targeted planning, program design and integration, engagement and evaluation.
- Complete a set of supplemental questions to understand your organization’s wellness program and top line areas of overall wellness programming and results.
“Employers value earning an award from us because we recognize companies that go above and beyond to improve the well-being of their employees and commitment to build a healthier culture and community. And by going through our application process, it provides employers with industry validated tools to assess the effectiveness of their programs. We are thrilled to have employers apply year over year to measure and validate the effort they put into their program, and then have a forum to share best in class practices from each other. Check out our previous winners and apply to be one of them in 2018,” states Archana Kansagra, WWCMA Board Director and Awards & Recognition Board Chair.
A committee of independent industry professionals, who have been appointed by WWCMA, will review the applications and provide a free consultative assessment. Winners will be notified by August and announced at the WWCMA’s 7th Annual Conference at Gillette Stadium on October 11, 2018.
Applications for the 2018 WorkWell Massachusetts Awards are open from April 2 – May 15, 2018 and accessible through WWCMA’s website under the Awards tab.
More information can be found on the WWCMA website for 2017 Winners, 2016 Winners and 2015 Winners. For questions, please email awards(at)wwcma(dot)org.
Scholarship Opportunity – Deadline August 1st
Soderberg Insurance Services, Inc. Announces the Frances R. Soderberg Scholarship
Soderberg Insurance Services, Inc. is offering an educational scholarship dedicated in memory of the agency’s co-founder Frances Soderberg. Frances was an active member of the North Shore community for over 50 years. In addition to her commitment to her family, she dedicated her life to improving the lives of those with special needs.
Her youngest daughter Karen was born with Down’s Syndrome. Mrs. Soderberg was instrumental in the integration of recreational and educational programs for children and young adults who are mentally disabled. The co-founder coordinated an instructional tennis program that ran for fifteen years. Mrs. Soderberg, along with the assistance of the special needs participants and North Shore community, organized an annual fundraiser for 25 consecutive years to raise money for the recreational, educational, and social programs for the special needs young adults.
The Frances R. Soderberg Memorial Scholarship will be awarded to an individual who shares her same passion to help those with special needs. This scholarship will be awarded to a current college student, or college bound student who shares her commitment for education of individuals with disabilities and improving their overall quality of life. Mrs. Soderberg believed that integration of the handicapped in society is beneficial to all. When a community embraces the disabled, the community evolves into a more passionate, caring place for all residents.
Preferential consideration will be given to North Shore residents. This resident must be a student pursuing a degree or other higher education/vocational career that will help those with disabilities. The selection committee would also like to see evidence of the student’s involvement with the special needs community. Whether it is in a hospital, school, or community event, the selection committee seeks evidence of the applicant’s commitment to this important line of work.
To be considered for the scholarship, please send a personal statement, including personal and professional goals to info@soderbergins.com. Applications will be accepted through August 1st. The award will be made in September 2018.
Kathryn Soderberg, CPCU
800-866-9363
Kathryn@soderbergins.com
New Corporate/Community Initiative
Boston Mutual Life Insurance Company is Making an Impact in the Community
Boston Mutual Life Insurance Company, a national provider of insurance solutions for individuals and at the workplace, today announced the launch of its corporate citizenship program, Making An Impact. Led by the company’s External Affairs & Corporate Communications department, the Making An Impact program will unify and support Boston Mutual’s employees’ service and charitable giving efforts. The new program offers employees and producer partners a variety of opportunities to support worthy causes through volunteering, donating goods, monetary donations, supporting environmental sustainability, and partnering with local and industry organizations on charitable initiatives.
“Boston Mutual has always been a good corporate citizen, but in the past, charitable efforts were loosely coordinated across different teams in the company,” said David Mitchell, Executive Vice President, External Affairs & Corporate Communications at Boston Mutual Life Insurance Company. “By formalizing this great program, we will continue empowering employees and producer partners to exemplify our mutuality and give back to the broader community under one unified banner to better help causes in our local communities and across the country.”
The corporate citizenship program will focus its giving on opportunities that best align with the company’s values and core beliefs in three key areas of community, education, and family. Participants of the program are encouraged to help the community through four different areas of volunteerism, charitable giving, public affairs, and environmental sustainability. For example, Boston Mutual will match employee donations to any qualifying cause that fits within one of the three key focus areas, and employees are granted one full workday each year to volunteer at a service organization or charity of their choosing. The Making An Impact program team will also work closely with the company’s Activities Committee, a volunteer group of employees, to coordinate on larger initiatives throughout the year.
“As a mutual company, and as part of the Boston Mutual brand, corporate citizenship is in the essence of who we are and what we do,” said Paul A. Quaranto, Jr., Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President at Boston Mutual Life Insurance Company. “Our commitment to the Boston Mutual family extends to the members of the communities where we live and work, and I’m looking forward to continuing our goodwill with this new program.”
Based on current employee engagement and long-term relationships and activities, Boston Mutual has selected four signature partners that embody many of the key traits the company embraces, including The Salvation Army, My Brother’s Keeper, United Way, and the Town of Canton, Massachusetts. Along with these signature partners, Boston Mutual will continue to support a wide variety of national and regional charitable causes and organizations, including the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, American Red Cross, Joslin Diabetes Center, and Junior Achievement.
To learn more about Boston Mutual’s new corporate citizenship program, please visit www.bostonmutual.com/about-us/#corporate-giving or contact MakingAnImpact@BostonMutual.com.
