Root Insurance has made two major changes to its executive team, naming a new chief financial officer and appointing a managing director to head the company’s capital markets and corporate development.
Daniel Rosenthal joins Root Insurance as the new chief financial officer, succeeding Cindy Powell. Powell will continue to serve as CFO until November 11, 2019, when Rosenthal’s appointment takes effect. Powell will then transition to a new role as senior executive vice-president of external affairs.
“Cindy has played a critical role in laying a strong foundation for Root. We are now at a point where we need someone who can focus full-time on managing our industry-leading growth. Cindy is the ideal person to further develop this function given her in-depth knowledge of insurance regulation. She has and will continue to be instrumental in our expansion plans,” explained Root Insurance co-founder and CEO Alex Timm.
Timm added that Root is thrilled to add Rosenthal to the team, noting that he has been a valuable member of the company’s board since its early days.
“I am excited about the opportunity to serve as Root’s CFO and join Alex and the Root team in continuing to create and execute on such an innovative vision. The company has made incredible progress in revolutionizing the car insurance industry to the benefit of drivers across the country,” said Rosenthal.
Rosenthal co-founded aviation finance company Milestone Aviation Group. The company was later acquired by GE Capital in 2015 for $1.8 billion. Rosenthal subsequently served as chairman, president, and CEO of Milestone. Prior to founding Milestone, he spent four years at NetJets, and worked as an attorney at Williams & Connolly LLP.
In addition to Rosenthal’s appointment, Root Insurance has brought in Lauren Norelli as managing director of capital markets and corporate development. She previously served as chief operating officer of Milestone. In 2014, she successfully led the dual track IPO and private sale process for Milestone, which led to the sale of the company. Norelli has also held a number of strategic and financial planning roles at Nike, Tiffany & Co., and Godiva Chocolatier. She first began her career in financial services as an investment banker with Deutsche Bank.
