Munich Re America hires from Assurant amid management reshuffle

The reinsurer has appointed Cathy Smith as chief risk and underwriting officer of Munich Re America Services, and Kamalesh Jha as senior vice president, chief underwriting officer for American Modern.

Previously, Smith served as senior vice president and chief underwriting officer at American Modern, a role she had held since 2017. Jha was previously a senior vice president at Assurant.

In her new role, Smith will oversee regional underwriting and pricing, as well as integrated risk management for the Munich Re US P&C Companies which consists of Munich Reinsurance America, American Modern, HSB, and the Munich Re Specialty Insurance operations. She will be based in Princeton, New Jersey, and report to Tony Kuczinski, president and chief executive officer, Munich Re US Holding.

Jha will succeed Smith, responsible for execution of the American Modern product and underwriting strategy. He will also become a member of the executive management board of American Modern. He will be based in Amelia, Ohio, and report to Andreas Kleiner, president and chief executive officer, American Modern.

Jha joins American Modern with more than 20 years of experience in technology and insurance. Prior to joining the company, he held several executive roles at various insurance organisations.

“Both Cathy and Kam bring valuable expertise and leadership skills to their new roles. They demonstrate the strong and deep bench strength of our Munich Re US P&C Companies," said Kuczinski. “Cathy is an accomplished insurance professional and a strategic thinker with a deep understanding of our organization. Her extensive expertise and leadership experience will provide real value toward the accomplishment of our strategic goals. Cathy will be an asset as a member of my management team, and I look forward to working with her in her new role.”

Kleiner added: “We are excited to have Kam join our leadership team at American Modern. He is an innovative thinker that brings a wealth of industry experience and leadership to American Modern, as well as his depth of knowledge in developing and producing cutting-edge insurance solutions. His skill set and industry experience will reinforce our continued commitment to our customers.”