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Benefit pros on the move: New hires inside First Choice Health, Willis Towers Watson, Versant Health

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The roaring jobs market firing up the nation is also taking place in the insurance and employee benefit brokerage sectors. New hires and promotions took place inside major employee benefits, insurance and technology firms despite the typical summer slowdown of new hires.

In the past month there have been key appointments inside First Choice Health, Willis Towers Watson, Versant Health and other firms. Here we look at some of the key roles filled at brokerages, benefits admin and consulting firms, and healthcare service providers.

Do you have a new hire or promotion you would like to share? Is a key executive stepping down after years of service? Contact phil.albinus@sourcemedia.com and please provide a high-resolution headshot along with the new job details.

First Choice Health signs Cassel as director of Oregon sales

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James Cassel joins insurer and employee benefit provider firm First Choice Health as the director of Oregon sales. Prior to this, the 14-year veteran served as the lead account executive in sales at Providence Health Plan, where he developed an enhanced reporting process that saved nearly 1,000 payroll hours. He also held senior roles at Cigna and Humana and he will work out of First Choice Health’s Portland, Oregon office.

First Choice Health names director of product innovation

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First Choice Health has appointed Ron Cornell to the role of director of product innovation.

With more than 20 years of employee benefit experience, he will work directly with C-suite customers from government, managed care, pharmaceutical and technology sectors. Prior to joining FCH, Cornell served as a strategy and marketing consultant for numerous healthcare startups in New York City before transitioning to Premera Blue Cross, where he started in 2013 as a senior manager. In 2015, he was promoted to lead consultant for innovation and strategic development.

Willis Towers Watson appoints Delves as executive compensation leader, North America

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Don Delves is Willis Towers Watson’s new executive compensation practice leader for North America. In this role, Delves will help drive growth across the region’s executive compensation business by, in part, steering the development of intellectual capital and sponsoring marketing, sales and research initiatives. Delves joined WTW’s executive compensation practice in 1986. He then founded The Delves Group, a Chicago-based consultancy that worked with corporate boards and compensation committees. Delves returned to WTW in 2013.

Godsall named to ActiveRadar

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Pharmaceutical benefit management firm ActiveRadar (formerly known as RxTE Health) has named Dr. Ward Godsall as its newest medical director. He will be responsible for overall supervision and regulation of all medical facets of the company. Prior to this new role, Godsall spent more than three decades working in clinical, management, and administrative roles in the healthcare industry. He has worked as both a clinician and the Regional Medical Director at Allina Medical Clinic. Prior to that, he held the position of Chief Medical Officer at Aspen Medical Group and worked as an internal medicine and endocrinology expert in Connecticut.

Hermosillo joins Versant Health

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Eye health and vision care provider Versant Health tapped Jeff Hermosillo as its vice president of client management. He will oversee government, third party and commercial sales and will be responsible for Versant Health’s management, expansion and renewal of client relationships. Hermosillo started his career at Kaiser Permanente before joining United Health Group and Blue Shield of California. His most recent positions have been at MCG Health and Collective Health.

NBGH appoints General Mills’ Kofski as board chair

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Tracy Kofski, vice president, total rewards at General Mills, was appointed as chair of the board of directors at the National Business Group on Health. With more than 25 years of HR experience in corporate and consulting, she leads the strategy, program design, communication, and global governance of executive and broad-based compensation, benefits, wellness, recognition, relocation, and global mobility programs for General Mills’ 39,000 employees worldwide. She was first elected to the NBGH’s BoD in March 2011.

National Vision Administrators eyes Lucas

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Ernie Stripling
Vision benefits provider National Vision Administrators has appointed Dan Lucas to the role of sales manager of Southwestern States. With more than a decade of insurance industry experience, Lucas will report directly to NVA President Dave Karlin. Living in Dallas, Lucas will work with brokers and plan sponsors in a territory that encompasses Texas, Oklahoma and Colorado.

WTW names McEvoy as leader of U.S. delegated integrated solutions

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Global advisory, broking and solutions provider Willis Towers Watson has appointed Richard McEvoy to lead its U.S. Delegated Integrated Solutions. Based in New York City, McEvoy will report to Clint Cary, U.S. head of delegated investment solutions. McEvoy will oversee the development of delegated investment value propositions across investment and actuarial services. He will also serve as the strategic investment advisor to large pension plan sponsors. McEvoy joins WTW after 22 years at Mercer, where he led its financial strategy group.

Investor Protection Bureau Chief Milgram joins Guardian Life

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The head of the New York attorney general’s investor protection bureau Katherine Milgram joins Guardian Life Insurance as head of regulatory affairs and chief of staff to the chief legal counsel. A graduate of University of Pennsylvania Law School, Milgram has been at the AG’s office since 2013. The Investor Protection Bureau of Attorney General that Milgram has led is responsible for enforcement under New York’s securities anti-fraud law.

Alliant Insurance taps Oram for its employee benefits group

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San Diego benefits specialist Andrew Oram joins insurance, risk management, consulting, and employee benefits company Alliant. He will serve as vice president of Alliant’s employee benefits group. He specializes in employee benefits and group health care insurance solutions for manufacturers, charter schools, and mid-size employers. Previously, Oram was a benefits consultant at insurance brokerage and risk management firm Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

Steele becomes CEO of Namely

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Photographer: Edward Caldwell/ © 2018, www.edwardcaldwell.com
HR platform Namely, which focuses on mid-sized companies, announced the appointment of Elisa Steele as the company’s CEO. With more than 25 years of leadership experience at several technology companies, Steele joined the Namely Board of Directors in 2017. She has held the role of head of the office of the CEO since May. Before this, Steele served as president and CEO of Jive Software.

Phil Albinus
Former executive editor
Phil Albinus is a former executive editor of Employee Benefit Adviser and Employee Benefit News.
Yasemin Sim Esmen
Intern reporter
After studying radio, TV, and film at Syracuse University, Yasemin found herself working in a televised investigative reporting program. Later, she... Read full bio
This article originally appeared in Employee Benefit Adviser.
Willis Towers Watson
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