Headquarters:
Gainesville, Florida
Year founded:
1987
Number of employees:
800
Phone:
888 918 3960
Email:
info@lionsgateuw.com
Website:
libertycompany.com
LinkedIn:
linkedin.com/company/the-liberty-company-insurance-brokers
"We are constantly living by our core values: integrity, impact and teamwork"
Julie Giraldi,
CAAT Pension Plan
Read on
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The Liberty Company Insurance Brokers
Bill Johnson
Chairman and CEO
Jerry Pickett
President
Adam Baillie
Chief Strategy Officer
Leadership
After graduating magna cum laude with a degree in computer science from California State University, Northridge, Bill Johnson founded The Liberty Company in 1987 with a desk and phone as the only assets of the company. Liberty quickly became successful with Johnson as its CEO. From 2000 to 2018, Jerry Pickett, Johnson’s best friend, led Liberty while the latter pursued a successful film career, producing over 30 feature films and raising over $800 million in capital. In 2018, Johnson returned to Liberty as CEO to launch the company into a new chapter of growth.
Chairman and CEO
Bill Johnson
In 2003, Jerry Pickett joined The Liberty Company to manage the operations and oversee a growth strategy that propelled Liberty from a single office to a full-service brokerage with numerous niche specialties and a national footprint. Today, he focuses on recruiting new producers. Prior to joining Liberty, Pickett was a member of senior management at a mortgage broker firm with 1,500 employees and 60 offices nationwide. He has a business degree from the University of Redlands, has authored numerous articles on agency value and operations, and has spoken at industry association meetings and conferences.
President
Jerry Pickett
Adam Baillie began his insurance career in 1997 with a small personal lines agency in Orange County. In 2001, he joined Dodge, Warren & Peters as the regional marketing director for their Orange County office. In 2004, he joined Hayward, Tilton & Rolappas as executive VP, responsible for leading the development of various agency niches, including a program for automotive parts manufacturers and importers. In 2014, he joined The Liberty Company as managing partner in the Orange County office and has since climbed the ranks to chief strategy officer, where he is involved in every aspect of the business.
Chief Strategy Officer
Adam Baillie
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“We are constantly living by our core values: integrity, impact and teamwork”
Julie Giraldi,
CAAT Pension Plan
“Now, we have much more frequent recognition awards because we want to celebrate people staying at CAAT and recognize the contributions that they bring to the organization”
Julie Giraldi,
CAAT Pension Plan
Read on
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Bio
“Now, we have much more frequent recognition awards because we want to celebrate people staying at CAAT and recognize the contributions that they bring to the organization”
Julie Giraldi,
CAAT Pension Plan
“We are constantly living by our core values: integrity, impact and teamwork”
Julie Giraldi,
CAAT Pension Plan
Read on
Award Winner
NODIFI
Leadership
SPECIAL REPORT
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Chari Amaro
Chief Human Resources Officer
A native of Hawaii, Cheri Amaro has worked in the insurance industry since 1992, starting in customer service while in college. Soon, she switched to the carrier side, working as an underwriter for Mercury Insurance before taking time off to be home with her children. She joined The Liberty Company in 2007 as a personal lines account manager, rising through the ranks to office manager, underwriting manager, Northern California regional manager, human resources manager, operations manager, director of corporate operations, and most recently, COO/CHRO, learning every aspect of Liberty’s business model.
Chief Human Resources Officer
Chari Amaro
Jeff Arricale
Chief Financial Officer
Jeff Arricale is a magna cum laude graduate of The University of San Diego with a BA in accounting and an MBA with an emphasis in finance from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. He also holds the Certified Public Accountant (inactive) designation in California. Jeff joined The Liberty Company as CFO in 2021 and is responsible for the agency’s accounting, finance, and capital markets activities. He also plays a leadership role in strategy, operations, partnerships, and ESG activities. Prior to joining Liberty, he served as chief of staff and head of capital markets at ProSight Specialty Insurance.
Chief Financial Officer
Jeff Arricale
The Liberty Company is an independently owned insurance broker handling the commercial, personal and employee benefits insurance needs of businesses, non-profits, and individuals for more than 35 years. The company was founded in 1987 by its chairman and CEO, Bill Johnson, who currently leads the firm along with Jerry Pickett, the company’s president.
Today, Liberty has over 800 passionate employees – also called a “team of creators” – and operates 40 offices across 12 states in the United States. The firm has consistently been recognized as one of the most dynamic companies and best places to work in the insurance industry, and has been named by the Hales Report as the #1 Fastest Growing Privately-Held Insurance Broker in the US over the past four years.
Liberty has experienced tremendous growth by attracting talented and entrepreneurial people into its energetic and collaborative culture, which focuses on employee happiness, well-being, and personal development.
“Now, we have much more frequent recognition awards because we want to celebrate people staying at CAAT and recognize the contributions that they bring to the organization”
Julie Giraldi,
CAAT Pension Plan
Sonia Ahuja
Chief Operating Officer
John Laurie
Chief Partnership Officer
Sanjay Mehta
EVP and Chief Market Officer
Anthony Dippolito
Chief Wellness Officer
Sonia Ahuja has more than 25 years of experience building strong foundations and scaling organizations. With a master’s degrees in computer science and business administration from the College of William and Mary, Sonia has worked in all aspects of the financial services industry, including property and casualty insurance, banking, wealth management, life insurance, and FinTech. She’s led team across all areas, including strategy, business development, marketing, technology, operations, and analytics with firms like AIG, Wells Fargo, and Farmers Insurance. Previously, she managed the Venbrook Insurance Group of Companies, aiming to improve its EBITDA, served as the chief financial officer at Farmers Financial Solutions, and worked as the chief strategy officer for Cetera Financial Group.
Chief Operating Officer
Sonia Ahuja
John Laurie began his career in insurance as a principal and managing partner at Wyman, Green & Blalock in 1999. He then served as the managing partner for seven years before Wyman, Green & Blalock merged with BB&T Insurance Services to become McGriff Insurance Services. This is where he was promoted to regional insurance president, a role he held for 11 years before being recruited by USI Insurance Services to serve as the South Florida property and casualty insurance practice leader.
Laurie worked at USI for one year before starting his own consulting firm, Synergy Advisors LLC, where he began providing consulting services to The Liberty Company, focusing on agency partnerships and producer recruiting in January 2020. He is past chairman of the Florida Association of Insurance Agents, past alternate director of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America, and was appointed by the previous Florida Governor to serve as the state’s technical insurance advisor.
Chief Partnership Officer
John Laurie
Sanjay Mehta brought his 20+ years of experience in the insurance industry to The Liberty Company in July 2020 as executive vice president and chief market officer. He started his insurance career at Marsh in 2001 and continued to establish the BB&T (now McGriff) office in Orange County, California.
Mehta specializes in property and casualty, non-profits, manufacturing, service, and retail. He has created long-standing carrier and client relationships over the years and developed creative and specialized risk management solutions for clients across multiple industry segments.
EVP and Chief Market Officer
Sanjay Mehta
Anthony Dippolito is a graduate of the University of Southern California. Earlier in his career, he honed his leadership skills by managing top motion picture and TV talent as a Hollywood agent. In the midst of the fast-paced Hollywood lifestyle, he felt a deep desire to create greater lasting change in people’s lives. He earned his master’s degree in neuropsychology with a focus on neuro-linguistic programming and has been utilizing his diverse skill set to enable teams, groups, couples, and individuals to achieve what they desire. Sessions at Liberty with Anthony cover a variety of topics and outcomes with the goal of every individual and group finding greater clarity of vision, courage to take action, and adaptability to deal with whatever comes along the way. Through these sessions, Anthony is helping Liberty grow its wellness programs, allowing team members to enjoy their JOB – the Joy of Being.
Chief Wellness Officer
Anthony Dippolito
Sonia Ahuja
Chief Operating Officer
Anthony Dippolito
Chief Wellness Officer
Sanjay Mehta
EVP and Chief Market Officer
John Laurie
Chief Partnership Officer
Sonia Ahuja has more than 25 years of experience building strong foundations and scaling organizations. With a master’s degrees in computer science and business administration from the College of William and Mary, Sonia has worked in all aspects of the financial services industry, including property and casualty insurance, banking, wealth management, life insurance, and FinTech. She’s led team across all areas, including strategy, business development, marketing, technology, operations, and analytics with firms like AIG, Wells Fargo, and Farmers Insurance. Previously, she managed the Venbrook Insurance Group of Companies, aiming to improve its EBITDA, served as the chief financial officer at Farmers Financial Solutions, and worked as the chief strategy officer for Cetera Financial Group.
Chief Operating Officer
Sonia Ahuja
John Laurie began his career in insurance as a principal and managing partner at Wyman, Green & Blalock in 1999. He then served as the managing partner for seven years before Wyman, Green & Blalock merged with BB&T Insurance Services to become McGriff Insurance Services. This is where he was promoted to regional insurance president, a role he held for 11 years before being recruited by USI Insurance Services to serve as the South Florida property and casualty insurance practice leader.
Laurie worked at USI for one year before starting his own consulting firm, Synergy Advisors LLC, where he began providing consulting services to The Liberty Company, focusing on agency partnerships and producer recruiting in January 2020. He is past chairman of the Florida Association of Insurance Agents, past alternate director of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America, and was appointed by the previous Florida Governor to serve as the state’s technical insurance advisor.
Chief Partnership Officer
John Laurie
Sanjay Mehta brought his 20+ years of experience in the insurance industry to The Liberty Company in July 2020 as executive vice president and chief market officer. He started his insurance career at Marsh in 2001 and continued to establish the BB&T (now McGriff) office in Orange County, California.
Mehta specializes in property and casualty, non-profits, manufacturing, service, and retail. He has created long-standing carrier and client relationships over the years and developed creative and specialized risk management solutions for clients across multiple industry segments.
EVP and Chief Market Officer
Sanjay Mehta
Anthony Dippolito is a graduate of the University of Southern California. Earlier in his career, he honed his leadership skills by managing top motion picture and TV talent as a Hollywood agent. In the midst of the fast-paced Hollywood lifestyle, he felt a deep desire to create greater lasting change in people’s lives. He earned his master’s degree in neuropsychology with a focus on neuro-linguistic programming and has been utilizing his diverse skill set to enable teams, groups, couples, and individuals to achieve what they desire. Sessions at Liberty with Anthony cover a variety of topics and outcomes with the goal of every individual and group finding greater clarity of vision, courage to take action, and adaptability to deal with whatever comes along the way. Through these sessions, Anthony is helping Liberty grow its wellness programs, allowing team members to enjoy their JOB – the Joy of Being.
Chief Wellness Officer
Anthony Dippolito
Sonia Ahuja
Chief Operating Officer
Sanjay Mehta
EVP and Chief Market Officer
John Laurie
Chief Partnership Officer
Anthony Dippolito
Chief Wellness Officer
Sonia Ahuja has more than 25 years of experience building strong foundations and scaling organizations. With a master’s degrees in computer science and business administration from the College of William and Mary, Sonia has worked in all aspects of the financial services industry, including property and casualty insurance, banking, wealth management, life insurance, and FinTech. She’s led team across all areas, including strategy, business development, marketing, technology, operations, and analytics with firms like AIG, Wells Fargo, and Farmers Insurance. Previously, she managed the Venbrook Insurance Group of Companies, aiming to improve its EBITDA, served as the chief financial officer at Farmers Financial Solutions, and worked as the chief strategy officer for Cetera Financial Group.
Chief Operating Officer
Sonia Ahuja
John Laurie began his career in insurance as a principal and managing partner at Wyman, Green & Blalock in 1999. He then served as the managing partner for seven years before Wyman, Green & Blalock merged with BB&T Insurance Services to become McGriff Insurance Services. This is where he was promoted to regional insurance president, a role he held for 11 years before being recruited by USI Insurance Services to serve as the South Florida property and casualty insurance practice leader.
Laurie worked at USI for one year before starting his own consulting firm, Synergy Advisors LLC, where he began providing consulting services to The Liberty Company, focusing on agency partnerships and producer recruiting in January 2020. He is past chairman of the Florida Association of Insurance Agents, past alternate director of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America, and was appointed by the previous Florida Governor to serve as the state’s technical insurance advisor.
Chief Partnership Officer
John Laurie
Sanjay Mehta brought his 20+ years of experience in the insurance industry to The Liberty Company in July 2020 as executive vice president and chief market officer. He started his insurance career at Marsh in 2001 and continued to establish the BB&T (now McGriff) office in Orange County, California.
Mehta specializes in property and casualty, non-profits, manufacturing, service, and retail. He has created long-standing carrier and client relationships over the years and developed creative and specialized risk management solutions for clients across multiple industry segments.
EVP and Chief Market Officer
Sanjay Mehta
Anthony Dippolito is a graduate of the University of Southern California. Earlier in his career, he honed his leadership skills by managing top motion picture and TV talent as a Hollywood agent. In the midst of the fast-paced Hollywood lifestyle, he felt a deep desire to create greater lasting change in people’s lives. He earned his master’s degree in neuropsychology with a focus on neuro-linguistic programming and has been utilizing his diverse skill set to enable teams, groups, couples, and individuals to achieve what they desire. Sessions at Liberty with Anthony cover a variety of topics and outcomes with the goal of every individual and group finding greater clarity of vision, courage to take action, and adaptability to deal with whatever comes along the way. Through these sessions, Anthony is helping Liberty grow its wellness programs, allowing team members to enjoy their JOB – the Joy of Being.
Chief Wellness Officer
Anthony Dippolito
