Zurich Canada has made three appointments, naming Donna Mulligan as head of a new middle market unit; Larbi Bouhlal as vice-president of middle market for Eastern Canada; and Jeff Kislasko as head of programs.
All three appointments are effective August 04, 2020.
In her new role, Mulligan will be responsible for spearheading Zurich Canada’s re-entry into the Canadian middle market. She will also help in the development of a package solution targeting specific industries and customer segments, the company said in a release. Mulligan brings over 20 years of industry experience, and most recently served as regional underwriting manager for Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty. She also held positions of increasing responsibility at Chubb and Travelers.
Mulligan will also join Zurich Canada’s executive committee as part of her appointment. She will report to Zurich Canada CEO Saad Mered.
Also joining Mulligan in the middle market unit is Larbi Bouhlal, who will serve as vice-president of middle market in Eastern Canada. The appointment marks Bouhlal’s return to Zurich; he previously served as a business development leader for the company from 2008 to 2016. He was most recently a branch manager at Allianz’s Montreal office. In his new role, he will be based in Montreal, and will report to Mulligan. Bouhlal will also work closely with Zurich Canada east region manager Eric Fournier.
Zurich Canada has hired Kislasko, meanwhile, to lead its programs business unit. He joins Zurich from Allianz, where he served as national programs underwriting manager. He will be based in Toronto and report to Zurich Canada head of specialty products Greg Irvine. Kislasko has 16 years of experience – 12 in the programs business.
Kislasko succeeds Jeff Burke, who will move on to lead Zurich Canada’s business development segment. Burke’s new role will include strategic development of alternative distribution channels and overseeing customer relationship management for large customers. He will report to Zurich Canada head of customer, distribution, marketing & regional management Alban Laloum, as well as to Greg Irvine.
“This move brings key leadership and experience to our team and will contribute to the expansion of the products and services we offer to the Canadian market,” commented Zurich Canada CEO Saad Mered on the appointments. “Combining the addition of these insurance industry veterans with the global presence and financial strength of Zurich is timely and positions us to serve Canadian businesses who continue to look for guidance in handling the ever emerging and evolving risks they face.”
