The countdown continues! Today we reveal numbers 30-11 in our list of the 50 most influential people in the captive market.
The 2023 Power 50 has landed, Captive Review’s Who’s Who guide to the must-know people in the world of captive insurance.
Over 7,800 captive professionals responded to our call for nominations this year, proving that inclusion in our prestigious list is just as important today as when we launched the first Power 50 11 years ago.
Yesterday we revealed to you who made the list from 50-31, and today we continue the countdown from 30 down to 11.
Earlier in the week we also announced those inducted into our Hall of Fame, and the Ones to Watch for 2023.
Be sure to come back tomorrow, when we finish off our Power 50 countdown by revealing who made the top ten.
- Mike Meehan, principal, Milliman
Boston-based Mike Meehan, a principal with Milliman, has been working with captives for nearly 30 years and is a frequent speaker and author on captive insurance topics. Meehan works closely with several industry associations, having served on the boards of both the North Carolina Captive Insurance Association and the Vermont Captive Insurance Association, and volunteered his time on committees for several others. Meehan, widely touted as a forward-thinker and innovator for captives, has helped lead Milliman to success – the company earned two awards at the recent Captive Review US Awards, including actuarial firm of the year.
- Oliver Schofield, managing director, RISCS
Known for being an innovative entrepreneur in the industry, Oliver Schofield has built up Risk and Insurance Strategy Consultants to be one of the most trusted captive consultants in the industry. After recently teaming up with Malcolm Cutts-Watson and agreeing to merge RISCS with CWC to form RISCS CWC – of which Schofield will be CEO – he will be taking his business to the next level and leading a truly global captive consultancy with a presence in six regional hubs around the world.
- Dan Kusaila, tax partner, Crowe
One of the North American market’s go-to people on captive tax matters, Dan Kusaila has built himself a strong reputation with many captive professionals. As captive tax has become more closely inspected by the IRS and other regulators, Kusaila’s knowledge has proved invaluable, and this is sure to continue being the case. Besides his knowledge, he is a regular speaker on panels and a very accessible figure.
- Phil Giles, managing director, MSL Captive Solutions
Phil Giles has earned a reputation as being a great innovator in his field of medical stop-loss captives, which is itself an increasingly popular class captive owners are looking at. With more than 16 years’ experience in the employee benefits space, he is responsible for all business development at MSL, structuring single parent and group captives for the growing organisation. With medical inflation continually on the rise, it makes Giles’ services more in-demand.
- Amy O’Brien, vice-president TPA sales – carrier practice, Gallagher Bassett
The captive service professional of the year at our Captive Review US Awards, Amy O’Brien is very highly thought of in the captive claims management arena. Since joining Gallagher Bassett 24 years ago, O’Brien has climbed the ladder and has been in her role as vice-president since May 2021. Working on new claims management programmes and alternative risk retention arrangements, O’Brien works with all types of captives, as well as pooling arrangements and risk retention groups, and has helped grow the TPA sales practice.
- Anjanette Fowler, managing director, insurance solutions group, PNC Institutional Asset Management
Making a decent investment return in the current economic climate has been a major challenge to captive owners in the last few years, but Anjanette Fowler has emerged as a real leader in helping owners through these tough times. Fowler has consistently demonstrated innovation and expertise when it comes to investments. She has also chaired CICA’s Amplify Women committee, which aims to tackle some of the challenges faced by women in the captive industry.
- Thomas Keist, global captive solutions leader, Swiss Re Corporate Solutions
Awarded our outstanding achievement by an individual award at the recent Captive Review European Awards, Thomas Keist’s history with Swiss Re Corporate Solutions goes back to 1994, but it’s from 2011 and his return to Switzerland after a stint leading their Asia Pacific business that his influence has truly been felt. He has since taken a leading role in developing Swiss Re Corporate Solutions’ EMEA specialty proposition and championing the use of new and innovative ways to transfer risk. He became global captive solutions leader in April 2020, the perfect place for him to put his creative ideas into action.
- Dr Leena Johns, chief health and wellness officer, Maxis Global Benefits Network
There is currently a boom in captive interest in the world of healthcare, which makes Dr Leena Johns an extremely influential person for a great number of captives. As head of health and wellness at Maxis GBN, Dr Johns is responsible for global healthcare claims and analytics and wellness. A former ER physician, Dr Johns has worked across the world, from the Middle East to the US. At the forefront of innovation in the employee benefits space, she has developed a suite of Maxis multinational global medical dashboard reports and is always looking for new ways to innovate.
- Christian Keller, chief strategy and transformation officer, Generali Employee Benefits NEW
Our captive service professional of the year at the recent Captive Review European Awards, Christian Keller richly deserves recognition in our Power 50 list after leading Generali Employee Benefits in what was a strong year for the business in an extremely competitive space for captive professionals. Well-liked by many in the European captive sphere, Keller moved from head of marketing and customer experience to chief strategy and transformation officer in October, where he should be able to implement his innovative ideas on the business.
- Emma Sansom, group head of captives, Zurich NEW
The highest new entrant in our Power 50 list this year, Emma Sansom took a massive promotion at the end of last year, moving from head of UK to taking over from Hall of Famer Paul Woehrmann as group head of captives. A popular figure in the UK and European captive space who is always happy to discuss captive issues and speak on panels, the news of Sansom’s promotion was warmly welcomed. One of the first in a new era of emerging captive leaders, she is sure to bring refreshing new ideas to the role and the industry looks forward to seeing what she does.
- Adrian Lynch, executive vice president – North America, Bermuda & Cayman, Artex Risk Solutions
A popular figure in the Cayman captive industry, Adrian Lynch has worked across Ireland, the US and the Cayman Islands over his 25-plus-year career. Lynch was appointed to his role at Artex after running Aon Cayman’s operations for eight years. He is now charged with running Bermuda, Cayman and North America for Artex’s growing business. Known for his energy, good humour and impeccable knowledge of the industry, Lynch has been a key force in growing Artex’s business.
- Steve Bauman, global programs and captives director, Americas, AXA XL
AXA XL is stepping up its captive focus in the US with several key hires in the last year. With more than 30 years of experience in captives and wider insurance, Steve Bauman will be a key leader in guiding AXA XL’s US captive operation forward. Before re-joining XL Catlin (now AXA XL) in May 2017, Bauman had been senior vice-president – head of captive services at Zurich Insurance Group, where he spent 10 years. When it comes to US fronting arrangements, there are few more respected figures. He was first at XL Group from 2000- 2005 as head of its New York office, and also spent two years with Aon.
- Brian McNamara, global head of captive solutions, regional head of multinational, North America, Allianz Global Corporate and Specialty
Formerly a captive executive at AIG, Brian McNamara moved to Allianz Global Corporate and Specialty in 2019, initially as global head of fronting for North America, and then as the group’s global head of captive solutions. In November, he additionally took on the role of regional head of multinational, North America. He is leading a captive operation that is looking to scale up, after Allianz also announced in November that the business would target growing the captive solutions unit with 20 new positions in the alternative risk transfer team.
- David Gibbons, partner, captive insurance leader, PwC Bermuda
David Gibbons heads up PwC Bermuda’s dedicated captive insurance group, working with more than 200 captive insurance companies in Bermuda, including some of the largest in the world. Gibbons has worked at PwC Bermuda for nearly 18 years and is a long-established expert on Bermuda captive matters. Gibbons is highly respected by his peers and is a former chair of the Bermuda Captive Conference.
- Mark Cook, senior director, WTW
As an employee benefits specialist for WTW, Mark Cook has been a much-valued captive professional for a number of years now. As a group, WTW has developed its captive service proposition significantly in the last few years and Cook’s innovation in the booming field of employee benefits is thought to be a major driver behind this success. Having worked for WTW since November 1996, he has decades of experience, which he is happy to share with new entrants to the captive industry.
- Renea Louie, chief operations officer, Pro Group Captive Management Services
This year’s CICA chair, Renea Louie’s dedication to the captive industry through volunteering on numerous boards and attending many events have earned her the respect of many captive professionals. As well as being committed to supporting the industry as a whole to thrive, as chief operations officer for Pro Group Captive Management Services, she has over 17 years of experience in captive feasibility, formation, licensing and captive management.
- Dan Towle, president, Captive Insurance Companies Association (CICA)
The biggest mover in our Power 50 list this year, Dan Towle, president of CICA, fights on behalf of the entire captive industry and has overseen the trade organisation’s expansion in recent years. A regular attendee and speaker at industry events, he has also been behind several key industry initiatives, including NextGen and Amplify Women, both of which are now proving their value with the emergence of younger captive professionals and more female leaders.
- Ciaran Healy, chief commercial officer, EMEA, Aon Global Risk Consulting
Thought of very highly by professionals across the European captive industry who are always keen to speak with him. Ciaran Healy is an accessible and knowledgeable leader within Aon’s captive offering, who is a willing speaker at industry events, with a particularly strong focus on ESG captive solutions – a subject becoming more and more important. He was recently promoted to a broader role in the Global Risk Consulting team, but will still play an active part in Aon’s captive operation.
- Reto Heini, regional distribution manager, Zurich Global Employee Benefits Solutions
One of Europe’s leading experts in employee benefits, Reto Heini has extensive experience in this field, having been in the industry for over 30 years. With Zurich since 2011, Heini looks after the employee benefits plans of multinational corporates in Europe, including pooling, captive solutions and alternative risk transfer, and is considered a real innovator in this space.
- Paul Phillips, chief of operations, global captive tax network, EY
Paul Phillips and his EY team have become go-to guides on topical issues throughout the industry, ranging from alternative risk to tax, giving them the ability to influence and lead the way. Phillips regularly tackles key industry challenges and, by overseeing the work of teams in 23 countries, he is now considered a leading voice on all captive matters.
