Headquarters:
Winnipeg, MB, Canada
Year founded:
2001
Number of employees:
350
Phone:
1 866 788 3500
Email:
sales@payworks.ca
Website:
payworks.ca
LinkedIn:
linkedin.com/company/450070
Gorst & Compass Insurance is an independently owned full-service wholesale insurance operation. The company distributes specialty
insurance products through retail agency partners and works with over
100 insurance firms.
What makes Gorst & Compass different is its people, expertise and commitment to exceptional service to clients and business partners. The company writes business in all 50 US states and continues to expand its footprint. It offers solutions for property, casualty, personal and professional lines, transportation, garage, and workers’ compensation.
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IB Top Brokerages
Award Winner
SHIELDED INSURANCE BROKERS
Award Winner
GORST & COMPASS
Mike Heagerty
Chairman and CEO
Bryan Clark
President
Paul Laufer
Executive Vice President
Leadership
Mike Heagerty began his insurance career in 1972 and purchased Gorst & Compass in 1992. He is a past president of the California Insurance Wholesalers Association. He earned a BS in business management degree from California State University Northridge. He enjoys traveling, sports car racing, and being with family and friends.
Chairman and CEO
Mike Heagerty
Bryan Clark joined Gorst & Compass in 1997 and became president in 2015. He is current president and board member of the Wholesale & Specialty Insurance Association, board member and past president of the California Insurance Wholesale Association, and former board member of the AAMGA. He earned a BS degree in business management from San Diego State University and enjoys traveling with his family, playing golf, and being with friends.
President
Bryan Clark
Paul Laufer joined Gorst & Compass in 2007 and became executive vice president in 2017. He is a board member and past president of the California Insurance Wholesalers Association and Surplus Lines Association of California Legislative Committee Member. He earned a BA in speech communication from California State University Northridge and a professional designation in personal financial planning from the University of California Los Angeles. He enjoys all sports, including golf, surfing, and snowboarding, and most of all spending time with family and friends.
Executive Vice President
Paul Laufer
SPECIAL REPORT
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GORST & COMPASS
Chip Polhill
Chief Underwriting Officer
Bryan Clark
President
Mike Heagerty
Chairman and CEO
Leadership
Headquarters:
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Year founded:
1968
Number of employees:
60
Phone:
818 507 0900
Email:
mail@gorstcompass.com
Website:
gorstcompass.com
LinkedIn:
linkedin.com/company/gorstcompass
Derek Borisoff joined the firm over 25 years ago and serves as CEO of Monarch E&S. He held various positions with increasing authority throughout his career, starting his senior year at the University of Southern California as a NAPSLO intern. He spent the next decade working for an E&S firm, eventually owning part of the operation. At age 33, he took the helm of Los Angeles-based Monarch E&S Insurance Services and became its owner seven years later.
At Monarch, Derek operates more as a coach than as a CEO, something he knows well from his years competing in college sports and coaching a water polo team. His overall business philosophy is that success comes from supporting the people who support one’s business. Derek is an active sponsor of Young Brokers and Agents’ events such as the Young Agents Conference, I-Days, and other events organized by independent agent associations.
Derek has been married for 33 years to his wife, Kristi. They have three sons, all of whom have won multiple national championships in water polo at USC. All three are employed in the insurance industry. In 2017, Monarch partnered with Specialty Program Group and Derek’s role transformed to include strategic M&A and the company’s nationwide expansion.
Chief Executive Officer
Derek Borisoff
Yiana Stavrakis joined the firm in 2020 and serves as president of Monarch E&S. She is a significant contributor to the company’s national expansion and is instrumental in the ongoing growth and strategy of Monarch. Prior to joining Monarch, Yiana was chief sales officer for the Specialty Program Group, providing strategic sales and marketing guidance to acquired business partners. She began her insurance career with Metro Insurance Services, a real estate MGU, and steadily rose in both position and authority as she mastered underwriting and claims management.
In 2012, she joined Preferred Concepts as part of the Metro acquisition, providing operational support to the unit’s underwriting teams and carrier partners. Following Preferred Concepts, she joined the wholesale brokerage world via Amwins Group, where her role included developing strategic retailer and carrier relationships.
Yiana graduated summa cum laude from Rutgers Business School with a major in business management and a concentration in management information systems. She is a licensed property, casualty and surplus lines insurance professional and holds ASLI and CPCU designations. She is an IBANY board member as well as co-founder and past president of NAPSLO’s Next Generation. She received the NAPSLO Past President’s Award for outstanding committee work in 2010, the Steven R. Gross Under 40 Award in 2013, and IBANY’s First Emerging Leader Award in 2015. Most recently, Yiana was named one of Insurance Business America’s Hot 100, one of the 100 Women to Watch, and a finalist for Insurance Business America’s Woman of Distinction Award. She is a member of the Chief network.
President
Yiana Stavrakis
Stefanie serves as the personal lines leader of Monarch E&S. She joined the firm in 2002, beginning her career as the receptionist and working her way through underwriting to the position she is in today. Over the past 20 years, she has been successful in growing a large book of personal lines business, while also helping to expand Monarch’s personal lines products and regions. She has been a member of the IBA-BGP since 2008 and understands the importance of supporting Monarch’s retail agents.
Personal Lines Leader
Stefanie McLeod
SPECIAL REPORT
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For the second year running, Shielded Insurance Brokers has claimed the number-one spot among IB’s Top Brokerages. In 2020, it was record-setting growth that drove the company’s impressive success. This year, says managing director Stuart Brady, the key ingredient behind the win is the Shielded culture. Brady is proud of the shared vision for constant improvement across all aspects of the business. “We are thrilled to take out the win again, and it’s hats off to the team for their hard work over the past year,” he says.
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Award Winner
GORST & COMPASS
Delayne Sartison, QC
Founding and Managing Partner
Bryan Clark
President
Mike Heagerty
Chairman and CEO
Leadership
Headquarters:
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Year founded:
1968
Number of employees:
60
Phone:
818 507 0900
Email:
mail@gorstcompass.com
Website:
gorstcompass.com
LinkedIn:
linkedin.com/company
/gorstcompass
SPECIAL REPORT
Home
Bio
Mike Heagerty began his insurance career in 1972 and purchased Gorst & Compass in 1992. He is a past president of the California Insurance Wholesalers Association. He earned a BS in business management degree from California State University Northridge. He enjoys traveling, sports car racing, and being with family and friends.
Chairman and CEO
Mike Heagerty
Bryan Clark joined Gorst & Compass in 1997 and became president in 2015. He is current president and board member of the Wholesale & Specialty Insurance Association, board member and past president of the California Insurance Wholesale Association, and former board member of the AAMGA. He earned a BS degree in business management from San Diego State University and enjoys traveling with his family, playing golf, and being with friends.
President
Bryan Clark
Chip Polhill began his insurance career in 1986 as an underwriter for Marine Office of America Corp/ Continental Insurance. He joined Gorst & Compass in 1993 and became chief underwriting officer in 2018. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Alabama and a master’s degree in international business administration from the American Graduate School, Arizona State University. Chip enjoys scuba diving, paddle boarding in the Pacific, and spending time with family.
Chief Underwriting Officer
Chip Polhill
For the second year running, Shielded Insurance Brokers has claimed the number-one spot among IB’s Top Brokerages. In 2020, it was record-setting growth that drove the company’s impressive success. This year, says managing director Stuart Brady, the key ingredient behind the win is the Shielded culture. Brady is proud of the shared vision for constant improvement across all aspects of the business. “We are thrilled to take out the win again, and it’s hats off to the team for their hard work over the past year,” he says.
Chip Polhill
Chief Underwriting Officer
Chip Polhill began his insurance career in 1986 as an underwriter for Marine Office of America Corp/ Continental Insurance. He joined Gorst & Compass in 1993 and became chief underwriting officer in 2018. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Alabama and a master’s degree in international business administration from the American Graduate School, Arizona State University. Chip enjoys scuba diving, paddle boarding in the Pacific, and spending time with family.
Chief Underwriting Officer
Chip Polhill
Paul Laufer
Executive Vice President
A third-generation insurance professional, Devon Borisoff joined the industry in 2011 after graduating from the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California. Since then, he has worked as a marketing representative for USLI, spent over a year as a North American property broker at Lloyd’s of London, and interned for over two years with various carriers in Scottsdale, AZ.
Devon joined Monarch E&S in 2017 as a senior underwriter specializing in both binding and brokerage business, while also acting as their VP of carrier relations. Recently, he has taken over as VP commercial lines leader for Monarch’s West Coast operations.
Commercial Lines Leader
Devon Borisoff
Paul Laufer
Executive Vice President
Paul Laufer joined Gorst & Compass in 2007 and became executive vice president in 2017. He is a board member and past president of the California Insurance Wholesalers Association and Surplus Lines Association of California Legislative Committee Member. He earned a BA in speech communication from California State University Northridge and a professional designation in personal financial planning from the University of California Los Angeles. He enjoys all sports, including golf, surfing, and snowboarding, and most of all spending time with family and friends.
Executive Vice President
Paul Laufer
Delayne Sartison, QC
Founding and Managing Partner
Delayne is a managing and founding partner at Roper Greyell. A trusted advisor, negotiator and advocate, she advises employers on all aspects of management-side labour, employment and human rights issues in the workplace. Delayne is a creative and focused lawyer who efficiently and effectively applies her vast experience to address a wide variety of workplace law challenges facing both public and private organizations. She is particularly known for her experience in health sector labour relations, and advising on the application of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to collective agreements and collective bargaining.
Founding and Managing Partner
Delayne Sartison, QC
Delayne Sartison, QC
Founding and Managing Partner
Delayne is a managing and founding partner at Roper Greyell. A trusted advisor, negotiator and advocate, she advises employers on all aspects of management-side labour, employment and human rights issues in the workplace. Delayne is a creative and focused lawyer who efficiently and effectively applies her vast experience to address a wide variety of workplace law challenges facing both public and private organizations. She is particularly known for her experience in health sector labour relations, and advising on the application of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to collective agreements and collective bargaining.
Founding and Managing Partner
Delayne Sartison, QC
Chip Polhill
Chief Underwriting Officer
Delayne is a managing and founding partner at Roper Greyell. A trusted advisor, negotiator and advocate, she advises employers on all aspects of management-side labour, employment and human rights issues in the workplace. Delayne is a creative and focused lawyer who efficiently and effectively applies her vast experience to address a wide variety of workplace law challenges facing both public and private organizations. She is particularly known for her experience in health sector labour relations, and advising on the application of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to collective agreements and collective bargaining.
Founding and Managing Partner
Delayne Sartison, QC
LinkedIn:
linkedin.com/company/gorstcompass
Website:
gorstcompass.com
Email:
mail@gorstcompass.com
Phone:
818 507 0900
Number of employees:
60
Year founded:
1968
Headquarters:
Los Angeles, CA, USA