Tom Fitzgerald, the former president of specialty and commercial business for QBE North America, and Brian Bissett, now group chief financial officer of Convex were among executives on the move this week.

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Fitzgerald Joins World Insurance Associates. Iselin, N.J.-based insurance brokerage World Insurance Associates, LLC announced its recruitment of Tom Fitzgerald as the new president of its retail business on Thursday.

For the past three years, Fitzgerald has been president of specialty and commercial business at QBE North America, as well as a member of the firm’s North America Executive Committee.

Fitzgerald also has more than 30 years of leadership experience in the commercial insurance brokerage space. Prior to QBE, he spent 28 years at Aon Corporation, most recently as its chief executive officer of Aon broking where he led all operations globally. Prior to that, he was CEO of Aon’s U.S. retail operation where he led more than 5,500 colleagues to become the preeminent retail broker in the U.S.
In a newly created role at World Insurance Associates, Fitzgerald will have oversight of World’s retail insurance distribution business and will leverage his extensive broking experience focused on value-added services and best-in-class placement outcomes, a statement from the broker said.

Rich Eknoian, World’s chief executive officer and founder, said the company conducted an extensive search before ultimately offer Fitzgerald the position. “As we move into 2023, it is perfect timing for Tom to bring new ideas and a fresh perspective to our rapidly growing retail business. His strong industry relationships and in-depth industry knowledge will no doubt make a positive impact for our insureds and carrier partners alike,” Eknoian said.

The media statement refers to Fitzgerald’s expertise in successfully growing and improving operations that lead to superior customer experiences, increased employee satisfaction and sustainable firm expansion.

In November, while still at QBE NA, Fitzgerald spoke to Carrier Management about a digital transformation in progress to increase the satisfaction of commercial underwriters who have been operated in a highly manual way—a transformation that will also increase underwriter efficiency and uniformity. (Related article: Commercial Underwriters On A Never-Ending Journey: Meet the Transformers)

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Convex Promotes Bissett. Convex Group Limited, an international specialty insurer and reinsurer founded by Stephen Catlin and Paul Brand, announced that group chief actuary Brian Bissett would move into the role of group chief finance officer.

The promotion is effective immediately, and Bissett will report to CEO Brand in the London office.

In his new role, Bissett will be responsible for overseeing the Convex finance function, while retaining responsibility for the data and the actuarial teams.

Bissett, a fellow of the Institute of Actuaries, joined Convex at its inception in 2019 as group chief actuary. He has more than 30 years of experience in the data and actuarial sector in the insurance and reinsurance industries. He previously held senior positions at Catlin, XL Catlin and Zurich.

As part of a planned transition of roles, Benji Meuli will be stepping aside to become Chief Investment Officer (CIO). He will remain on the Board, and will continue to represent the investment function.

In a media statement, Brand described Bissett as being instrumental in building and leading Convex’s successful actuarial and claims functions, as well as in orchestrating Convex’s data agenda. “His exceptional actuarial and leadership capabilities make his promotion to CFO a natural and well-deserved step,” Brand said, going on to thank Meuli for his contribution to Convex’s growth, adding that Convex would continue to benefit from expertise in his new role of CIO.

Source: World Insurance Associates; Convex