2021
TRAVIS BLACKFORD EVP – West Coast wholesale division HULL & COMPANY Specialty: Construction
Travis Blackford started his career with Hull & Company; by 2010, he had been promoted to Denver profit center leader. In 2020, Blackford was tapped to oversee the West Coast region, specializing in construction, product and excess liability placements. Blackford and his team write $30 million in annualized revenue while serving clients in 13 Western states. “I am blessed to work with so many talented teammates daily,” Blackford says. “Given the global headwinds we are facing professionally and personally, it has been inspiring to see how our work family has come together to be a source of strength and execution for each other, our carrier partners and our retail partners. We recognize our challenges are not unique to Hull, so we focus on the ‘controllables’ – our attitude and effort. We challenge ourselves in this virtual environment to improve our processes by 1% daily, weekly and quarterly. We believe in the power of marginal gains and understand that achieving great success is a consistent series of small wins.”
CHRISTA NADLER DANA KELLY Vice president WORLDWIDE FACILITIES Specialty: Workers’ compensation
A workers’ compensation broker specializing in hard-to-place risks, Dana Kelly entered the industry in 2009, launching his career at a Massachusetts-based regional wholesaler. “My first position was an account manager before I became a broker, starting my own book of business in 2014,” he says. “Joining Worldwide Facilities almost three years ago has really given me and our group a better opportunity to work with a broader list of markets and agents throughout the country.” Kelly enjoys the challenge of keeping up with the alwayschanging workers’ comp marketplace – monitoring rate fluctuations and underwriting changes and, of course, the effects of COVID-19 on the sector. “I am more aggressive and put forth a better effort than my competitors,” Kelly says. “My responsibility as a broker is to support the agent and insured in getting them the coverage they need and at the price that gets the deal done. I try to strive to find a solution for every account that comes in the door.”
Area executive vice president, property RISK PLACEMENT SERVICES Specialty: Property
At Risk Placement Services (RPS), Christa Nadler specializes in commercial property coverages for large, complex and hard-to-place risks. In addition to placing all risk coverage, she concentrates on stand-alone flood coverage and terrorism and active shooter coverage. She has established herself in the industry as a trusted expert in these classes. Nadler has spent her entire career in the property brokerage department at RPS. In the beginning, she assisted with a book of business worth more than $30 million, which she helped to grow in each of the three years she was in training. In 2009, Nadler began to develop her own book of business, which she has grown to more than $60 million in written premium. Her book has grown in each of her 11 years at RPS, often by double-digit percentages. “What differentiates me in the industry is my passion for the business,” Nadler says. “I truly love what I do and am excited about continuing to learn and grow in the industry. I bring that passion to every deal that I work on, whether it’s a small account or a large national schedule. I strongly believe that in order to best serve my clients, I have to have an expertise in coverage, and I like helping to win an account on coverage, not just price.”
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