Skills for the Future of Insurance with Diane Hanlon
IN-the-Know
Diane Hanlon serves as Head of Sales and Market Development at The Institutes. With more than 23 years of experience in Fortune 500 B2B sales, account management, and contract management, Diane brings deep expertise in business development and client relationship management. Before joining The Institutes, she held senior sales leadership roles at On Call International, a Tokio Marine HCC company, and Enterprise Holdings. In this episode of In the Know, Chris Hampshire and Diane discuss sales leadership and insurance industry careers, the latest initiatives at The Institutes, and the value...
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50 Years in Insurance with Betsey Brewer
IN-the-Know
Betsy Brewer is a founding member of the USC Marshall School, Peter Arkley Risk Management Institute. She serves on the Nominating Committee and is past global president of the CPCU Society and of Independent Agents & Brokers of California-Los Angeles. For her service to the risk management and insurance industry, she received the California Ramsden-Sullivan Award. In this episode of In the Know, Chris Hampshire and Betsy discuss her experience as one of the first female leaders in the global CPCU Society, as well as a female leader in the risk management industry and the brokerage...
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Developing an Emerging Insurance Market with Paul Dumitru
IN-the-Know
Paul Dumitru is an Insurance Specialist at the Financial Supervisory Authority of Romania, President of the CPCU Romanian Chapter, and 2025 CPCU Society International Ambassador, where he will represent the CPCU Society and continue fostering international connections and awareness of the CPCU designation and the CPCU Society. A CPCU Society member since 2013, Paul earned his CPCU designation in 2017. He is a member of the Europe Chapter, serves as the acting President of the newly forming Romania Chapter, and is a committee member on the Global Virtual Community Steering Committee....
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Strategic Operations Support in Modern Insurance with Brian Schmidt
IN-the-Know
Brian Schmidt is a senior insurance executive with more than two decades of experience across primary insurance, reinsurance, data and analytics, and consulting. At Xceedance, Brian leads the Strategic Accounts division as Senior Vice President and Business Leader, overseeing global teams that deliver operational excellence across the insurance policy lifecycle. Brian holds several industry designations, including CPCU, CIC, and ASLI, and earned both his BBA in Marketing and MBA from the University of Cincinnati’s Lindner College of Business. Brian has served as Chair of the Underwriting...
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The Go-Getter Mindset with Janice Romero
IN-the-Know
Janice Romero is Home Office Manager at ICW Group Insurance Companies and the CPCU Society's inaugural Go-Getter of the Year Award winner. This new award recognizes a CPCU Society member whose professional growth and active engagement best exemplify the spirit of the organization. With over three decades in workers' compensation underwriting, Janice has witnessed the insurance industry's transformation from a traditionally male-dominated field to today's more inclusive and diverse landscape. She is passionate about mentoring the next generation and encouraging young people to consider...
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From Panic to Purpose in a Changing Industry with Amy Waninger
IN-the-Know
Amy Waninger is the Founder & CEO of Lead at Any Level, where she helps organizations transform their STEM professionals from reclusive nerds into inclusive leaders. Amy offers assessments, advisory services, and training on essential skills for inclusive leaders. She is the author of eight books, including Network Beyond Bias: Making Diversity a Competitive Advantage for Your Career. Amy spent twelve years working in the insurance industry, where she achieved the CPCU designation in 2016 and the Certified Insurance Data Manager (CIDM) designation in 2018. She also holds associate...
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Innovation and Ecosystems in Insurance with Rose Hall
IN-the-Know
Rose Hall is a visionary innovation strategist and risk management expert with 25 years of experience. She leverages innovation to solve complex business problems and create unique growth opportunities at the intersection of technology and risk. Her unique expertise spans the insurance, construction, and technology industries, and was cultivated in senior leader roles at global organizations such as AXA XL and Turner Construction. As CEO of RH Business Ventures, she advises the insurance, technology, and construction industries, focusing on transforming risk management through innovation and...
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The Changing World of Workers’ Compensation with Mark Walls
IN-the-Know
Mark Walls is the Chief Marketing Officer at Safety National, a multi-line specialty insurance and reinsurance carrier and member of the Tokio Marine Group. With over 30 years of workers’ compensation and risk management experience, Mark’s career spans claims management, client engagement, strategic analysis, and market research. He previously served as VP Client Engagement at Safety National and as Senior VP at Marsh’s Workers’ Compensation Center of Excellence. Mark is the founder of the Work Comp Analysis Group on LinkedIn, the largest online discussion group dedicated exclusively...
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The Evolution of the Legacy Sector with Katie Reynolds
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Katie Reynolds is the Executive Director of AIRROC, the Association of Insurance and Reinsurance Run-Off Companies, the only U.S. nonprofit dedicated to promoting the interests of the legacy insurance and reinsurance community. She brings nearly a decade of experience in the legacy sector from claims leadership roles at RiverStone and The Hartford. An active AIRROC member since 2020, Katie has served on committees, the NextGen Council, and the Board of Directors. She holds a B.A. from the University of Rochester and a J.D. from the University of New Hampshire School of Law. On this episode of...
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Removing Friction for Growth in Wholesale Specialty with Leah Ohodnicki
IN-the-Know
This episode of In The Know features host Chris Hampshire and Leah Ohodnicki, Executive Vice President of Carrier Relations at RT Specialty. Leah leads strategic initiatives to strengthen trading partnerships and drive growth across the wholesale insurance landscape, and brings two decades of experience spanning retail brokerage, E&S carriers, MGUs, and program business. Leah began her career at Marsh in 2006, advancing through leadership roles in marketing and business development. In 2015, she joined Argo Group, where she led distribution for the group and later led Specialty Programs....
info_outlineRyan White serves as Assistant Vice President and Director of Ceded Reinsurance at UFG Insurance. He has held the roles of associate, commercial, and senior underwriter, underwriting supervisor, and the first underwriting manager of UFG Online. In 2021 he was named Assistant Vice President and recently transitioned into the newly created role of Director of Ceded Reinsurance. White holds extensive reinsurance experience, a BBA in Finance, and an MBA from the University of Iowa. He also holds the CPCU, ARe, AU-M, AU, and Associate in General Insurance (AINS) professional designations. He has served on the board of the Cedar Valley CPCU Chapter since 2020, and recently joined the CPCU Reinsurance and Excess Surplus Lines Interest Group in 2023, serving as Vice Chair for the 2024 term. In this episode of In the Know, Chris Hampshire and Ryan discuss launching an online platform in the reinsurance sector, ceded risk and reinsurance, and the career benefits of earning the CPCU designation.
Key Takeaways
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Unlike so many, Ryan entered the insurance industry intentionally.
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Reinsurance or primary insurance? Ryan weighs in.
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Details of the ceded reinsurance marketplace.
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Essential skill sets that aided Ryan’s rise from associate to management.
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The highs and lows of launching an online digital platform.
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The impact of the pandemic on Ryan’s work.
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Lessons learned while transitioning from the small business digital platform to the reinsurance arena.
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A tailored approach to meeting the ceded reinsurance needs of each client.
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An overview of the breadth of ceded reinsurance coverage.
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Ryan’s motivation behind his involvement in the CPCU Society.
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Reinsurance & Excess Surplus Lines Symposium 2025.
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Iowa as a global insurance hub.
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Ryan’s perspective on earning both the MBA and the CPCU.
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Ryan’s message to anyone considering the reinsurance sector.
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A five-year look to the future of the insurance industry and AI.
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Advice from current Ryan to his early career self.
Quotes
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“Launching an online digital platform was a really exciting time in my career and in the company.”
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“No matter what part of the industry you’re in, it’s all about relationships.”
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“The opportunities that are in front of you in the reinsurance industry are unlimited.”