Board of Advisors

Alan R. Badanes previously co-led Swiss Re's U.S. Life Reinsurance business and was a Member of Swiss Re’s Americas Management Team. At Swiss Re, he worked in London, Zurich, and New York with clients across the globe in the Property-Casualty and Life & Health industries. Prior to joining Swiss Re, Badanes was a Managing Director at JPMorgan Chase in the Investment Banking Department, where he was a leader in innovative financing solutions.

Badanes obtained his bachelor's degree in history from the University of Cincinnati.

Thomas Cassady has responsibility for 22 offices in the Midwest that include 150 salespeople, 500 service associates and over $1.5 billion in premium. He entered the insurance field shortly after graduating from the University of Cincinnati in 1976 with a bachelor's degree in history. He founded Queen City Insurance, which he sold to USI in 1999. 

Cassady was a trustee of the Independent Insurance Agents of Ohio, and a member and past president of the Cincinnati Insurance Board.

David Eslick is chairman & CEO of Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC, a business unit of Marsh Inc. dedicated to serving the insurance needs of small to mid-sized U.S. companies. He has nearly 30 years of experience in the insurance industry. Prior to joining Marsh, he was chairman, president and CEO of USI Holdings and led their rapid expansion to become the ninth-largest insurance brokerage in the U.S., negotiating and completing more than 50 acquisitions in the process.

Eslick earned his MBA from Xavier University.

Gary Gruber began his career in 1977 as an accountant trainee after graduating from the University of Cincinnati College of Business. He advanced his way through various leadership levels and was named the 17th President and Chief Operating Officer of the Great American Insurance Company in 2017, with responsibilities for all aspects of the operations of Great American Insurance Company and its affiliates. Gruber retired in April 2022 after a nearly 45-year career with the Great American Insurance Group. 

He is active in the community, serving on the Board of Trustees of Mount St. Mary’s Seminary & School of Theology, Boards of St. Xavier High School, Cancer Family Care, the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum, and Living Arrangements for the Developmentally Disabled.

Laurence Jones co-founded RiskVersity in 2015 and CyberSure in 2021. He brings more than 20 years of experience in accounting, risk management, finance and business operations. He is responsible for client management, risk audits, insurance program management, cyber liability, strategic relationships for client resources and talent resources.

Jones earned bachelor’s degrees in accounting and finance from the University of Cincinnati.

Brandon Kramer is the Chief Human Resources Officer for the Midwest at USI Insurance. In this role, he oversees the implementation of the human capital strategy for Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana and Michigan. Kramer began his career in banking, where he led local and national sales teams before transitioning to human resources, where he supported strategic initiatives in the risk and audit divisions.

Kramer holds a bachelor’s degree from the Lindner College of Business and a master’s degree in organizational leadership from Mount St. Joseph University.

Carrie Little joined Great American in 2004 as a Business Analyst. In 2006, she transitioned to the company’s leadership development program and was placed within the Specialty Human Services Division. During her tenure within Specialty Human Services, Little held various leadership roles of increasing responsibility and now serves as Divisional Group President. In this role, she oversees the Accident & Health, Surety Bonds, Public Sector, Excess Liability and Innovative Markets divisions, as well as Great American’s Loss Control services. 

Little earned bachelor's degrees in finance and marketing from Miami University and her MBA in finance from Xavier University.

Frank Nutter is the former President of the Reinsurance Association of America. He currently serves on the Advisory Board of the Center for Health and the Global Environment, an adjunct to the Harvard University School of Public Health, the Advisory Board of the OECD’s International Network for the Financial Management of Large-Scale Disasters, and the RAND Center on Catastrophic Risk Management and Compensation. Additionally, he served on the Board of Directors of the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the Worker’s Compensation Research Institute, the Council of the American Meteorological Society, and the Board of the University Center for Atmospheric Research.

Nutter has a juris doctorate from the Georgetown University Law Center and a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Cincinnati. He was an officer in the U.S. Navy and is a Vietnam veteran.

Erick D. Schmidt is the CEO of McGohan Brabender. He has over 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry and possesses a wealth of knowledge concerning employee benefits, trends in healthcare and issues impacting rising healthcare costs. Prior to joining McGohan Brabender, Schmidt held sales and marketing roles with Community Mutual Insurance Company in Cincinnati, and served in a management capacity with Rush Prudential Health Plans in Chicago.

Schmidt obtained bachelor's degrees in finance and real estate from the University of Cincinnati.

Wilbert F. Schwartz, CFA, earned a bachelor's in accounting and an MBA in marketing from the University of Cincinnati, and an Advanced Management Program degree from Harvard Graduate School of Business. In his professional career, Schwartz served as President & CEO of several major corporations, including IBM, Prudential, Grubb & Ellis and The Executive Life of California Trusts.

Steven J. Valerius, FLMI®, CPA, is the former president of the Individual Division of Ameritas. He also served in various other management capacities since joining the company in 1986. He is an MDRT Foundation trustee, having served as board liaison on the Grants Committee and on LIMRA’s Strategic Marketing Issues Committee. 

Valerius earned his bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Cincinnati.

Joshua Wallace joined Western & Southern Financial Group in 2005 as an actuary. He became Assistant Vice President of Product Management & Development in 2013. Wallace earned his bachelor's in mathematics from Michigan State University.