Headquarters:

261 N. University Dr., Ste 510, Plantation, FL 33324

Year founded:

2006

Number of employees:

Phone:

954 331 3031

Email:

pvidal@gridironins.com

Website:

gridironins.com

LinkedIn:

linkedin.com/company/gridironins

“It’s our willingness to consider unique circumstances and offer innovative solutions where other carriers may not”

Christine Schneider, Arch Insurance

Dave DeMott

President

Peggy Vidal

Chief Financial Officer

Jason Green

Chief Operating Officer

Leadership

David DeMott has served as president of Gridiron Insurance Underwriters for 13 years, during which time he has achieved an average annual growth rate of 24 percent for the insurance program manager, in collaboration with leading global insurers. He is actively involved in industry leadership, sitting on the Florida Surplus Lines Board and contributing to the WSIA Legislative Committee. DeMott holds a bachelor’s degree in risk management and insurance from Florida State University (FSU) and an MBA from the University of Miami. He is distinguished by his CPCU, AMIM, AU, ARM, ARe, and ASLI designations, and maintains active Agent and Surplus Lines Broker status across all 50 states.

President

Dave DeMott

Peggy Vidal joined Gridiron Insurance Underwriters 12 years ago, after receiving her undergraduate degree in accounting from Florida International University (FIU). She started at Gridiron as a staff accountant while earning her master’s degree in accounting, and ultimately obtaining her CPA license. Over the years, Peggy has grown the finance team and helped foster a strong company culture at Gridiron.

Chief Financial Officer

Peggy Vidal

Jason Green assumed the role of COO at Gridiron Insurance Underwriters more than six years ago, leveraging a wealth of experience gained from diverse roles in underwriting and operations within the insurance sector spanning over 20 years. His expertise has been instrumental in guiding Gridiron toward becoming a technology-driven enterprise through the implementation of cutting-edge operating systems and streamlining workflow efficiencies.

Chief Operating Officer

Jason Green

“It’s our willingness to consider unique circumstances and offer innovative solutions where other carriers may not”

Christine Schneider, Arch Insurance

Leadership

“It’s our willingness to consider unique circumstances and offer innovative solutions where other carriers may not”

Christine Schneider, Arch Insurance

Leadership

Dayne Thornicroft

Senior Vice President, Claims

Dayne Thornicroft is a senior vice president within Arch Insurance claims, heading analytics, metrics, strategy, and technology. He is currently leading the implementation of the Guidewire Claims Center from a business perspective. He is building the claims three-year strategic plan as well as executing on several other analytics-related initiatives. Thornicroft has spent almost two decades in the property and casualty insurance industry in several roles at four major carriers prior to Arch. Most recently, he was the chief financial officer within Assurant’s global housing division, where he was responsible for a $2 billion P&L. Thornicroft holds an MBA from Boston College, where he graduated with Beta Gamma Sigma honors and distinction, and he has an undergraduate degree in finance from the University of Massachusetts. He also holds the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter designation.

Senior Vice President, Claims

Dayne Thornicroft

Vincent Kellaher

Senior Vice President, Property and Casualty Claims

Vincent Kellaher currently serves as senior vice president of claims at Arch Insurance. He provides leadership and technical claim direction for property and casualty claim lines of business. Prior to joining Arch in August 2015, Kellaher served as chief claim officer for Carolina Casualty and Gemini Transportation Underwriters, a division of WR Berkley. Prior to WR Berkley, he worked for Zurich Insurance, serving in both domestic and international claim assignments. From 1996 to 2007, he directed and managed Zurich 36 Field claim offices in the US.

Senior Vice President, Property and Casualty Claims

Vincent Kellaher

Gridiron Insurance Underwriters is a dedicated program manager and MGU that distributes niche and program-driven insurance products. It is strategically placed to manage insurance facilities and affinity-based program business on a regional and national basis. Gridiron’s programs are developed on the backbone of analytics, technology, and underwriting discipline.

Brian Kristiansen

Senior Vice President, Financial and Specialty Claims

Francine Minervini

Senior Vice President and Chief Technical Claims Officer

Dan Draper

Group Chief Underwriting Officer

Simon Williams

Chief Strategy & Distribution Officer, Arch Insurance International and Active Underwriter, Syndicate 1955

Brian Kristiansen joined Arch in 2012 and currently oversees Arch’s executive assurance, healthcare, professional liability, cyber, surety, and warranty and lenders solutions claims groups. Prior to joining Arch, Kristiansen held various positions in the claims groups at two other insurance carriers. He began his insurance career at a New York City law firm, where he represented insurance carriers in connection with management liability coverages.

Senior Vice President, Financial and Specialty Claims

Brian Kristiansen

Francine Minervini is the chief technical claims officer. She joined Arch in 2007 as an assistant vice president in the casualty division and has held various roles of increasing responsibility in the claims department, ultimately being promoted to senior vice president in 2018. Prior to joining Arch, Minervini held several claims handling roles with AIG. She has her JD from the New England School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Seton Hall University. She is licensed to practice law in both New Jersey and New York.

Senior Vice President and Chief Technical Claims Officer

Francine Minervini

Dan Draper was appointed group chief underwriting officer in September 2022. He had previously served for more than two years as group head of underwriting at AXIS. Prior to that, he had been group chief risk and actuarial officer at VIBE. Before joining VIBE, Draper spent eight years with AXIS, holding a number of leadership roles that included group chief actuary, chief risk analytics officer, and insurance segment chief risk officer. Before that, he held managerial positions at the Financial Services Authority, XL Capital, and EY.

Group Chief Underwriting Officer

Dan Draper

Kimi leads the Estate Planning and Wealth Protection team and is a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. She understands the complex and delicate nature of family estate planning, the technical requirements around probate and estate administration, and the importance of preserving wealth for future generations. Her advice is accurate, commercial, strategic and tailored to each situation.

Partner

Kimi Shah

Partner

Kimi Shah

Partner

Kimi Shah

Sarah M Stewart

Associate Vice President, Leasing and Call Centre Operations

Karen Bannister, CM

Vice President, Marketing

Dave Longbottom

Chief Technology Officer

Alex Ventura

Head of Marketing

Damian Palovick

Senior Vice President of Underwriting AXA XL – Delegated Authority Programs, North America

Dr. Mary Lavoie

Head of Risk Management and Senior Vice President AXA XL – Delegated Authority Programs, North America

Mark Bernacki

Chief Underwriting Officer

Ryan Armijo

Chief Operating Officer, Underwriting Division

Bob Petrilli

President, Underwriting Division

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Medal

Small business

Brokers’ Pick – Professional liability

Broker's Pick – Personal Accident and Illness Insurance

Turnaround time – claims

BDM support

Broker communication, training and development

Overall service level

BDM support

Medal

Overall service level

Broker communication, training and development

BDM support

Turnaround time – claims

Broker's Pick – Personal Accident and Illness Insurance

Brokers’ Pick – Professional liability

Small business

Medal

Overall service level

Broker communication, training and development

BDM support

Turnaround time – claims

Broker's Pick – Personal Accident and Illness Insurance

Brokers’ Pick – Professional liability

Small business

“We value technical expertise, fact-based and data-driven analysis, communication, and collaboration”

Francine Minervini, Arch Insurance

“We value technical expertise, fact-based and data-driven analysis, communication, and collaboration”

Francine Minervini, Arch Insurance

“We value technical expertise, fact-based and data-driven analysis, communication, and collaboration”

Francine Minervini, Arch Insurance

collaboration communication inclusiveness authenticity

It embodies these along with a finely tuned skillset, enabling it to stand out in the industry.

technical excellence portfolio management data analytics focusing on communication collaboration

These factors are actively and routinely reaffirmed by senior vice president and chief technical claims officer Francine Minervini. She says, “We value technical expertise, fact-based and data-driven analysis, communication, and collaboration. Our process incorporates communication throughout the life of the claim and encourages communication with insureds, brokers, claims management, and our underwriters and actuaries.” Eager to develop and become better, Arch has a raft of future plans to boost its offerings amid the rapid pace of technological change. “We are in the midst of a system transformation that will modernize our claims system; we are also working with Strategic Analytics to introduce AI into the claims mail process,” shares Shiva Altadonna, senior vice president, claims shared services. “As a starting point, it will allow us to identify and route First Notice of Loss even faster to our claims professionals for handling and give quicker peace of mind to our customers that we are fanatical about responsiveness.”

“It’s our willingness to consider unique circumstances and offer innovative solutions where other carriers may not,” says Christine Schneider, senior vice president, casualty claims. “Also, strategically executing on opportunities based on market conditions has continuously supported Arch’s growth.” Leadership encourages all segments of the business to be bold, take calculated risks, celebrate accomplishments, and learn from mistakes. The focus is placed on the goals of each initiative, along with the necessary specific strategies. A key factor in Arch’s success has been the implementation of a new claims system that interlinks with the firm’s ‘North Star’ of placing employees in a position where they can add value on a daily basis. Senior vice president, financial and specialty claims Brian Kristiansen says, “We segment claims by line of business and hire employees with experience in those lines. We provide them with additional training and mentoring to ensure the continued development of expertise in those lines.” Another driver of Arch’s market-leading performance is its investment in data analytics and data transformation, increasing its ability to utilize business intelligence to improve product offerings and the abilities of its claims department, with a strong emphasis on claims handling and claims excellence. In addition, the firm continuously seeks feedback from the broker community on any areas where they would like to see potential improvement, particularly in claims service. Arch Claims specifically has done considerable work around communication with brokers over the past year, including an extensive survey to solicit feedback on the claims experience. Schneider says, “Through their commentary, we strive to be able to build even more trusting, respectful, and responsive relationships with all of our partners.” The claims department underscores the importance of: