Executives and professionals responsible for the development, marketing, and distribution of group and worksite/voluntary benefits, including Life, Disability, Critical Illness, Accident and other Supplemental Health products, Dental, Vision, and Healthcare plans. The conference features special sessions for senior executives to meet in a collaborative environment.
Gain fresh ideas and insights to successfully address short-and long-term changes in the U.S.
Director, Voluntary Products, Sun Life
Chief Marketing Officer, Assurance
Partner, Sterling Seacrest
Garry E. Hill has over 18 years of expertise in the financi al, consulting and insurance industries, and specializes in Employee Benefits. In July of 2011, Gary was named a Partner of Sterling Seacrest Partners.
Prior to joining Sterling Seacrest Partners Client Advisor, Garry held positions with Northwestern Benefit Corporation of Georgia as a Benefits Broker, Reagan Consulting as an Associate Consultant, and Silic on Valley Bank as a Portfolio Manager in the Technology/Life Services Group.
With a dedication to giving back to the community, Garry is actively involved with 60 Feet, a non-profit committed to serving the needs of imprisoned children in Uganda, sings in the Sound Investment a capella music group, volunteers as a soccer coach for Top Hat soccer club, Say Yes!, and is an active member of Mount Vernon Baptist Church.
Vice President, Distribution & Marketing, Workplace Solutions, Mutual of Omaha
Megan Holland is Vice President, Distribution and Marketing in the Workplace Solutions Division at Mutual of Omaha. She is responsible for managing, coordinating and monitoring distribution channel activities, projects and initiatives to assist in meeting performance standards and sales goals. In addition, she acts as a consultant to the sales management team and distribution channel representatives and has strategic oversight of the division’s national broker partnerships and benefit technology strategy. She is also responsible for the oversight and execution of the renewal teams nationally, sales and execution of the small case product offering, management of the marketing team, oversight of the sales trainee program and management of the distribution support of the division’s products.
Previously, Megan worked as a Sales Specialist in the Retirement Services Division at Mutual of Omaha where she was responsible for finalist presentations, wholesaler support, broker-dealer support and networking. She also supported the RMS distribution strategy in new sales opportunities.
Vice President, Corporate Controllers, Prudential Financial, Inc.
Maurice is the Finance Lead for the Company’s Transformation Office with additional responsibility for overseeing Finance’s expense center of excellence and the Corporate & Other segment unit within the global controllers group. Maurice is also the national co-director for the Black Leadership Forum, the company’s largest and oldest business resource group.
Prior to his current role, Maurice was the Controller for Prudential International Insurance (PII), encompassing Prudential’s operating life insurance and related financial services businesses outside of the U.S. In this role, he led a team responsible for accurate and timely financial and management reporting for PII. Since 2008, he has held positions of increasing responsibility at Prudential, including a two year expatriate assignment in Tokyo, Japan, and chief of staff to Prudential’s Global Chief Financial Officer.
Corporate Vice President, Workplace Benefits Research, LIMRA and LOMA
Patrick T. Leary, M.B.A., LLIF, is corporate vice president, workplace benefits research for LIMRA. This program provides research on the products, markets, and distribution of a wide range of life, health, and related employee benefits.
Before assuming his current position, Pat directed LIMRA’s distribution research program and, prior to that, was a member of LIMRA’s group insurance research team.
Pat joined LIMRA in 1989. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Hartwick College and his M.B.A. from the University of Connecticut. Pat also earned his LIMRA Leadership Institute Fellow (LLIF) designation in 2012.
Vice President and Group Actuary
Employee Benefits Actuarial, The Standard
As the Group Actuary at The Standard, Foon leads the Actuarial Department of Standard’s Employee Benefits business and has responsibilities for pricing, financial reporting, analytics, valuation, reinsurance and planning for Standard’s $2.6b Employee Benefits business. He also leads the Group Life and Disability business partnership with Northwestern Mutual Life and Dental partnership with Ameritas.
Foon is also the Executive Sponsor of CRED (Celebrating Racial and Ethnic Diversity), Standard’s employee resource group for People of Color. Prior to joining The Standard in 2004, Foon held various management positions at CNA, The Hartford, and Unum with responsibilities over financial reporting, valuation, analytics, strategy and capital management. Foon holds an MBA from Kellogg School of Business (Northwestern University), a Master's degree in Finance, and Bachelor's degree in Actuarial Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Foon has earned his FSA, and MAAA designations. He serves on the board of Wind and Oar.
Senior Vice President and Treasurer, Liberty Mutual Insurance
Ed Peña is Senior Vice President and Treasurer for the Liberty Mutual Group. As Treasurer Ed oversees a broad scope of corporate finance activities including Capital Markets, Liquidity, Treasury Operations, Investor Relations and Rating Agency management. Prior to joining Liberty Mutual in 2017, he worked at ProSight Specialty Insurance, where he was Vice President, Finance and oversaw Capital and Financial Planning, M&A and Investments. Prior to joining ProSight, Ed worked in the Financial Institutions Group at J.P. Morgan’s investment bank. While there he helped structure mergers and acquisitions, and capital raises for insurance, and specialty finance clients. Ed has an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, and an undergraduate degree in Economics and History from Yale University.
Assistant Vice President, Government Relations, Sun Life Financial U.S.
Senior Strategy Consultant, Main Street Insurance Group
Vice President Business Insights & Underwriting Optimization, Prudential
Jessica is the Head of Business Insights and Underwriting Optimization Team for Prudential Group Insurance. In this capacity, she is accountable for the strategic direction of Group Insurance’s underwriting departments, leads the Specialty Risk team, business insights and analytics. Prior to this role, she was the Vice President of Voluntary Products and led the successful development and launch of the new Critical Illness, Accident and Hospital Indemnity products and the requisite capabilities.
Since joining Prudential 7 years ago, she has held various product ownership responsibilities for Term Life, Long Term Disability and Voluntary Products. She also served as the chairperson for the Group Insurance Experience Recognition program for three years and led the development of the Prutection Score which was Group Insurance’s early entry into Financial Wellness. Prior to joining Prudential, Jessica spent 17 years with Cigna Group Insurance in a variety of roles of increasing responsibility.
Employee Benefits Consultant, Marsh & McLennan Agency
With over 25 years of experience in the insurance industry, Christy Westermandelivers compliance support & oversight, employee communication strategy, strategic plan management, health management consulting, and voluntary benefits expertise to employee health & benefits clients with the utmost confidence and professionalism.
A Marsh & McLennan Agency (MMA) colleague since 2004, Christy practices across a variety of industries including construction, healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, not-for-profit, senior living, energy, and technology. She works alongside her clients as a trusted advisor to develop an overall employee benefits strategy that supports each organization’s unique culture and objectives.
Christy identifies most closely with MMA’s value of integrity because it is a top priority in her personal and professional life. She is committed to always doing the right thing, no matter how hard.
Vice President, Human Resources, Sun Life U.S.
Tammi oversees a team of strategic human resource professionals focused on continuing to grow the business, enhancing the employee experience and attracting top talent. She has extensive experience in building client-focused culture and talent development.
Previously, Tammi was vice president, Group Benefits Client Services, leading the largest unit in the U.S. business for a wide range of operational functions and a team of more than 700. In that capacity, she introduced a number of strategies to deliver an integrated and seamless client experience, including digital “click to chat” capabilities, a robotics center of excellence and a client-centric culture focused on Sun Life’s Client for Life business approach.
President, Employee Benefits, Voya Financial
Executive Vice President, Benefits Division, Symetra Financial Corporation
Harry Monti is executive vice president, Benefits Division, for Symetra Financial Corporation and its insurance subsidiaries. He is responsible for the company’s medical stop-loss insurance, group life and disability income insurance, and Select Benefits business that focuses on voluntary and limited benefit medical products. Mr. Monti joined Symetra in June 2014 as vice president, Life and Disability (LAD) operations, with nearly 25 years of experience in the group benefits industry. He was named senior vice president for LAD and Select Benefits in April 2018.
Prior to joining Symetra, Mr. Monti was a Director of Insurance Advisory Services with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in Hartford, Conn. He had previously spent 13 years in senior level operational and claims roles within The Hartford’s group benefits, retirement plans and enterprise-wide shared services organizations. His professional background also includes financial management roles at MassMutual and UNUM. He is also an Executive Board member of the Connecticut Insurance & Financial Services organization, a member of ACLI’s Group Insurance Executives Council, and a former chair of the ACLI’s Disability Income Committee.
Senior Managing Director, Employee Benefits, Transamerica Life Insurance Company
John Stanley brings nearly 26 years of sales and marketing management experience to his role as the Senior Managing Director, Employee Benefits. As a recognized market leader in supplemental health and life insurance, Transamerica serves more than 1 million policyholders and 19,000-plus employer customers, while managing more than $1 billion in in-force premiums. Responsible for leading the Employee benefits distribution organization, John has overseen a comprehensive re-organization of the business. By aligning four distribution channels, installing key management metrics, creating a culture of accountability, John is focused on positioning Transamerica for continued long-term growth within the employee benefits marketplace.
Prior to assuming the leadership role, John spent five years as the chief marketing officer for the Employee Benefits business. Among his many accomplishments, he refined the company’s go-to-market strategy in employee benefits, revamped the branding and messaging, and built the infrastructure for the Large Markets and Business Development channels.
Assistant Vice President, Thought Leadership – Group & Worksite Marketing, Guardian Life Insurance Company of America
EXHIBIT HALL OPEN
WELCOME & OPENING REMARKS
Partner, Sterling Seacrest
Senior Strategy Consultant, Main Street Insurance Group
Employee Benefits Consultant, Marsh & McLennan Agency
Vice President, Distribution & Marketing, Workplace Solutions, Mutual of Omaha
2020 has brought uncertainty, disruption and change to the employee benefit landscape and the market in general. In this panel discussion, these individuals will focus on addressing some key questions in today’s broker environment including the impact of Covid-19 on the way they do business, how to grow and retain customers in a market of change and disruption, key employee benefit trends and what they are looking for in today’s landscape for a carrier of choice for their clients.
Director, Voluntary Products, Sun Life
Corporate Vice President, Workplace Benefits Research, LIMRA and LOMA
Assistant Vice President, Government Relations, Sun Life Financial U.S.
The Election is right around the corner and COVID-19 continues to disrupt the U.S. business market. Please join Sun Life’s James Slotnick and LIMRA’s Pat Leary to review the likeliest outcomes and impacts on the workplace benefits industry from the most important events in 2020, including:
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Vice President, Corporate Controllers, Prudential Financial, Inc.
Vice President and Group Actuary
Employee Benefits Actuarial, The Standard
Senior Vice President and Treasurer, Liberty Mutual Insurance
Vice President, Human Resources, Sun Life U.S.
Vice President Business Insights & Underwriting Optimization, Prudential
The death of George Floyd and subsequent protests has triggered many carriers, customers, and employees to challenge long-held views and assumptions about the role they play in addressing racial injustice and racial equity. Passivity or corporate philanthropy alone are no longer options. Many companies are making public statements on their position and having unprecedented internal discussions about systemic racism and the actions they should take to address them. Understanding how to navigate and lean into this difficult topic will help to ensure that firms remain relevant in the eyes of their customers, brokers, and prospective and current employees.
EXHIBIT HALL OPEN
President, Employee Benefits, Voya Financial
Executive Vice President, Benefits Division, Symetra Financial Corporation
Senior Managing Director, Employee Benefits, Transamerica Life Insurance Company
Assistant Vice President, Thought Leadership – Group & Worksite Marketing, Guardian Life Insurance Company of America
Every year at our event, industry leaders share their thoughts about today's most important topics. This is your opportunity to hear what's on the minds of these executives as they focus on our role in shaping the new benefits landscape.
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Chief Marketing Officer, Assurance
Being recognized as a "great place to work" can help your organization by attracting high quality recruits and keeping your current employee base engaged and delighted. More importantly, studies have shown that great workplace cultures deliver greater financial results and enhanced client satisfaction.
Steven Handmaker will share the secrets behind Assurance's celebrated and award-winning workplace culture in this surprising session. You'll learn tips for implementing similar strategies in your own workplace, whether in-person or virtual — and that the majority of things which breed cultural success don’t cost a thing.
CLOSING COMMENTS & ADJOURNMENT
Early Registration: (Before September 4, 2020)
Member: $595
Non-Member: $895
One Day:
Member: $355
Non-Member: $535
Registration: (After September 4, 2020)
Member: $695
Non-Member: $1,045
One Day:
Member: $415
Non-Member: $625
