COMPANY LEADERS
Edmund J. Kelly
president and ceo
Before being chosen AAIS president in 2012, Ed had numerous years of executive experience in organizations that developed product platforms for property and liability lines.
Among other things, he served seven years as president and COO of an organization that developed one of the first programs allowing insurers to write wind-only coverage. He was also an executive for a specialty division of Royal Sun Alliance that developed and maintained an industry-leading professional liability program for architects and engineers.
Prior to his insurance career, Ed worked 11 years as a senior manager for Ernst & Young; he is a certified public accountant with bachelor's and master's degrees from DePaul University.
Joan Zerkovich
senior vice president of operations
Before coming to AAIS in 2012, Joan worked for several organizations in information technology positions, including more than eight years as CIO of ICAT Holdings LLC, a catastrophe insurance intermediary. Her work at ICAT earned Joan recognition in 2006 as one of the insurance industry’s “Elite 8” technology professionals by Insurance & Technology magazine.
Prior to her years at ICAT, Zerkovich spent more than 13 years in information technology positions with the University of California system. Her work there included projects that contributed to the initial public access to the Internet and to the digitalization of the university's library system.
Zerkovich has a bachelor's degree in biochemistry from the University of California-Davis, and an MBA with an emphasis in business information systems from CSU-Sacramento.
PERSONAL LINES
Deborah Summerlin, CPCU, ARP
vice president of personal lines
Debi has overall responsibility for product development and maintenance for most AAIS programs
She has advised countless affiliates on
the implementation and use of programs since coming to AAIS in 1979,
and has played a particularly prominent role in the development of
AAIS’s farm and agricultural programs.
Susan Luecke
assistant vice president of personal lines
Sue has been with AAIS since 1992, and since that time has been the principal developer of the AAIS Homeowners forms. Today, she also oversees most aspects of AAIS personal lines product development.
Sue has a bachelor’s degree from Illinois State University, and worked 15 years for the St. Paul Companies, an independent agency, and USF&G before coming to AAIS.
INLAND MARINE AND COMMERCIAL LINES
Robert Guevara
vice president of inland marine and commercial lines
Bob has been with AAIS since 1992, and
has 18 years of experience as an inland marine manager at the branch,
regional, and home office level for CNA and Zurich American.
During his years at AAIS, Bob has been the principal developer of the AAIS Commercial Output Program and the Inland Marine Guide.
Bob is also a member of the legislative and regulatory affairs
committee of the Inland Marine Underwriters Association (IMUA). He is a
graduate of Hillsdale College in Michigan.
Anthony Leist, CPCU
assistant vice president of commercial lines
Tony came to AAIS in 2007 after eight years at American Modern Insurance Group, where he managed numerous personal, commercial, and inland marine programs
Before that, Tony spent 25 years with The Midwestern Indemnity Company, now part of Liberty Mutual, where he rose progressively through several positions in claims, underwriting, product development, compliance, and training. Tony has a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Xavier University.
Sherry Taylor, CPCU, AFIS
manager of farm and agribusiness
Sherry is AAIS’s leading expert in the development of new agricultural liability forms and rating classifications. She has held numerous positions with agricultural carriers and agencies, and holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of Phoenix.
ACTUARIAL SERVICES
Anton Zalesky, FCAS, MAAA
chief actuary
Anton earned an undergraduate degree in mathematics from a university in his native Ukraine, and holds masters degrees in statistics and computer engineering from Wayne State University, Detroit, Mich.
Since graduating from Wayne State, Anton worked in actuarial research capacities for Auto Club Insurance Association, Dearborn, Mich.; COUNTRY Financial, Bloomington, Ill.; and The Travelers in Hartford, Conn, before joining AAIS in 2010. He is a fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society and a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries.
DATA SERVICES
Bill Bickerton
vice president of data analytics
Bill is a leading information technology professional who has managed major IT projects for large organizations throughout the U.S., Canada, and Europe. Since 2002, Bill has been the principal consultant for Elpin, Inc. of Denver, working with an extensive network of institutional clients as a senior level consultant in database and data warehouse management.
Before founding Elpin, Bill was chief information officer for Web FS, Boulder, Col., director and business unit manager of DMR Consulting Group, Denver, and senior principal and business unit manager for American Management Systems, Denver.
Janice Nieman, CPCU
director, data services
Janice has been with AAIS since 1988, and rose to become manager of AAIS commercial liability programs before joining the information services department to work with software vendors to facilitate the automation of AAIS programs. Janice holds a bachelor's degree in actuarial science from the University of Illinois-Urbana and an MBA from Northern Illinois University, DeKalb.
SALES
Don Parkes
vice president of sales
Don has more than 18 years’ experience in catastrophe risk management, most recently as vice president for insurance solutions for CoreLogic, a leading information and analytics firm.
Before joining CoreLogic in 2007, Parkes was senior vice president and chief risk officer at ICAT Holdings, LLC, a risk-bearing catastrophe risk entity based in Boulder, Col. He also spent six years as a vice president for Risk Management Solutions, Inc., one of the world's leading developers of catastrophe modeling applications.
Parkes earned his bachelor’s degree from Drexel University in Philadelphia with a double major in industrial engineering and finance.
Richard "Rick" Maka, AAI, AFIS, CRIS
director of marketing and strategic alliances
Rick joined AAIS in June 2004 after
working 12 years at Aon, where he rose to become senior vice president
of the financial and professional risk solutions division.
Prior to that, he worked as an
independent agent in the Chicago area, specializing in coverage for
financial institutions. He holds a bachelor's degree in business
administration from Loyola University of Chicago.
CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT
Truman Esmond
vice president of customer engagement
Truman came to AAIS in 2012 from Red Door Interactive, a firm that specializes in strategy and development of marketing communications campaigns and solutions across digital and traditional media.
Truman served as managing director and director of quality and continuous improvement at Red Door, after that firm acquired Breckenridge Communications, an applications development company Esmond founded and led for 12 years.
Kelly Grandy
director of member relations
Kelly is the principal contact for most
AAIS member companies regarding new affiliations, changes to existing
affiliations, and selections of services.
Before coming to AAIS in March 2011,
Kelly worked as a supply chain analyst for Avnet, a computer product
distributor based in Phoenix. Before that, she worked as marketing
segment specialist for Lucent Technologies in Naperville, Ill. Kelly
earned a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Illinois,
Urbana-Champaign.
Joseph S. Harrington, CPCU, ARP
director of corporate communications
Before coming to AAIS in 1994, Joe was a writer and editor for newspapers and business publications. While at AAIS, Joe has been active in the CPCU Society and served on a national committee advising The Institutes on changes to the CPCU curriculum.
He has a bachelor's degree from Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, Conn, and a master's degree from the University of Connecticut, Storrs