Retirement Industry People Moves

Marsh & McLennan Agency Expands Leadership

Marsh & McLennan Agency (MMA), the middle market agency subsidiary of Marsh, has appointed Bill Jeatran as president and Christina Mott as chief operating officer. In these roles, both will report to David Eslick, chairman and CEO.

As president of MMA, Jeatran will focus on developing and advancing MMA’s strategic direction through acquisitions, client engagement and talent development. He will continue to be based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Jeatran succeeds Ben Allen who has left the firm. Formerly CEO of its upper Midwest region, Jeatran founded RJF Agencies in 1986 and served as CEO until its acquisition by MMA in 2011.

As COO, Mott will be responsible for operational best practices, innovation, technology/digitization initiatives, and product development. She will work closely with regional MMA leaders and teams across Marsh & McLennan Companies. Based in New York, Mott previously served as innovation leader, Marsh Global Risk & Specialties. Her prior roles include corporate global head of innovation and director of Solution Development for Oliver Wyman.  

NEXT: Zenith American Solutions Acquires Insurance Programmers

Zenith American Solutions Acquires Insurance Programmers

Zenith American Solutions announced today that it has acquired Connecticut-based Insurance Programmers (IPI).  

The firm provides health, welfare and retirement administration services to union trust organizations located across the East Coast. The acquisition of IPI expands Zenith's presence in the greater New England region and extends its client base, which includes Taft-Hartley trust funds, trade associations, government entities and corporate employers across the United States.

"IPI and Zenith share a long and impressive history of serving clients in this industry for more than 100 years combined,” says Art Schultz, chief executive officer. “Our companies also share a deep commitment to providing our customers with unmatched expertise and support."

Lawrence Bourland, chief executive officer and president, will continue to lead IPI and report to Schultz. The acquisition is effective immediately. Financial terms are not being disclosed.

This move marks the third acquisition that Zenith has completed in the past 18 months.

NEXT: Hirtle Callaghan Hires Head of Client Engagement

Hirtle Callaghan Hires Head of Client Engagement

Erica Evans has joined Hirtle Callaghan as head of client engagement. She will work closely with Hirtle Callaghan’s investment officers to advance a client-centric model.  

Evans brings more than 25 years of experience in the financial services industry. She’s served as head of sales strategy and institutional partnerships at Hartford Funds, head of institutional business at ING Investment Management and head of client investment management services at GE Asset Management.

In previous roles Evans has successfully worked with clients, grown assets, recruited and managed sales forces, and built strategic planning processes, according to the firm.  

NEXT:FIS Partners with CUNA Mutual

FIS Partners with CUNA Mutual

FIS announced a new contract to provide recordkeeping, data processing and operational processing for plans working with CUNA Mutual Retirement Solutions.

As part of the multi-year agreement, CUNA Mutual will have access to the FIS OMNI platform, which will be leveraged as part of a new initiative called PlanOnTarget.  

The program will provide CUNA Mutual’s adviser partners, plan sponsors, third-party administrators and participants with enhanced recordkeeping, reporting, and data management capabilities. A redesigned website and mobile application is also part of the effort.  

Paul Chong, senior vice president, CUNA Mutual Retirement Solutions, says this initiative will allow the firm to focus on its strengths, invest in resources to create a customer experience that differentiates it in the market, and reinforce its long-term commitment to the retirement business.

NEXT: Nationwide Names Chief of Investment Research

Nationwide Names Chief of Investment Research

Mark Hackett has been named chief of Investment research at Nationwide.

In his new role, Hackett will lead Nationwide Funds' capital markets analysis and mutual funds thought leadership initiative. He will be tasked with developing content to educate financial advisers and their clients on financial markets and the implications for investors. He is also responsible for conducting asset class research, making market commentary, and writing white papers. In addition, he will support several teams within Nationwide's mutual funds division.

Hackett has more than 17 years of experience in the asset management industry including roles in research for both Nuveen and Vanguard Group. He also served as a portfolio manager for Nuveen.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration with concentrations in finance and economics at the University of Richmond. He holds chartered financial analyst (CFA) and chartered market technician (CMT) designations and is a member of the CFA Institute. 

NEXT: American Century Brings on New Portfolio Manager

American Century Brings on New Portfolio Manager

Tsuyoshi (“Yoshi”) Ozaki has joined American Century Investments as a portfolio manager within its Disciplined Equity Group. He co-manages the U.S. Disciplined Large Cap Growth, U.S. Disciplined Large Cap Long/Short, and the U.S. Utilities strategies.

Ozaki brings more than 18 years of experience to his new role. He has served as executive director of MSCI, senior quantitative researcher with Quantal International, and portfolio manager on the Japan Equity Market Neutral strategy for Algert Coldiron Investors.

He joined American Century from Axioma, where he served as director and senior member of the global equity analytics team. He will report to Vice President and Portfolio Manager Yulin Long.

Ozaki holds a bachelor’s degree in biophysics from Columbia University and a doctorate in neuroscience from Rockefeller University.