Deals & People March 4, 2011

Symetra Expands Sales Team

Symetra Life Insurance Company hired Wes Severin as sales leader for its western division, along with six new regional vice presidents.
Reported by

As western divisional sales manager of Life and Retirement Sales, Severin will be responsible for sales planning and day-to-day management and training of 12 external wholesalers covering the western United States.   

Most recently, Severin was national sales director of financial institution markets at Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company in Denver, Colorado. Before that, he was a financial adviser with Simmers Capital Management.   

Want the latest retirement plan adviser news and insights? Sign up for PLANADVISER newsletters.

The regional vice presidents will provide annuity and life insurance sales support to financial planners in the following territories:  

  • Christopher Grubbs (Territory: Maryland, Washington, D.C., Virginia) — Grubbs most recently served as a regional vice president at New York Life. He also has held sales positions with ING and GE Financial (now Genworth Financial).  
  • Lydia Hopper (Territory: Los Angeles, Central California) — Hopper joins Symetra from Michel Financial Group, where she was an annuity specialist. She previously held regional sales roles at MassMutual Financial Group and AIG SunAmerica. 
  • Brad Kiesling (Territory: North Texas, Oklahoma) — Kiesling is an experienced annuity and life insurance sales professional, having held external wholesaling roles at Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company, AXA Equitable and Genworth Financial. He also was a regional director for Cherry Financial Partners. 
  • Matthew O’Neil (Territory: Maine, New York, Vermont) — O’Neil comes to Symetra from Genworth Financial, where he was a regional vice president responsible for annuity sales in upstate New York. He previously held regional sales roles at Phoenix Life and Liberty Funds Distributors. 
  • Matthew Sennet (Territory: Florida, excluding Panhandle) — Sennet joins Symetra from ING Financial Solutions, where he was a regional vice president in north Florida. He also has served as a regional marketing director for Lincoln Financial Distributors and a Florida district retirement planning adviser for Merrill Lynch.  
  • Tammy Viccari (Territory: Georgia, East Tennessee and Florida Panhandle) — Viccari brings to Symetra 13 years of experience as a successful external and internal wholesaler at ING Financial Services and Wachovia. Her financial services background also includes work as a stock broker at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter.  

«