Honorable Mention

Brief or late-breaking items from Allianz, Great American Insurance Group and the Hueler Companies.

Allianz pursues ‘bots and machine learning’

Allianz, the world’s largest insurance company, has announced a partnership with Lemonade, “the insurance company powered by artificial intelligence and behavioral economics,” according to a release this week.

“Allianz is committed to staying at the cutting edge of insurance,” said Solmaz Altin, Chief Digital Officer at Allianz SE, in a statement. Details of the investment have not been disclosed.

“By replacing brokers and bureaucracy with bots and machine learning, Lemonade promises zero paperwork and instant everything,” the release said.

The Allianz Group serves 86 million retail and corporate customers in more than 70 countries. In 2016, over 140,000 employees worldwide achieved total revenues of 122.4 billion euros and an operating profit of 10.8 billion euros. Allianz provides property and health insurance, assistance services, credit insurance and global business insurance. As an investor, Allianz is active in debt, equity, infrastructure, real estate and renewable energy.

Lemonade Insurance Company is a licensed insurance carrier, offering homeowners and renters insurance. Lemonade is a Certified B-Corp whose underwriting profits go to nonprofits. 

Great American collects photos of retirement well-being

Great American Insurance Group said it received more than 500 submissions after it invited its annuity customers to submit photos of “what makes their lives great,” the insurer said in a release.

Many of the photos submitted during the six-month promotional campaign came from retirees, who captured moments that “range from cheering on grandkids at a soccer game and relaxing on the beach to exploring the Grand Canyon and hiking through waterfalls.”

“Our customers purchase an annuity for a variety of reasons,” said Donna Carrelli, vice president of Annuity Marketing Services at Great American. Some of the participants in the campaign told her how an annuity has helped them.

“For some, it’s about protecting and growing what they’ve already saved or taking advantage of tax deferral. For others, it’s about receiving guaranteed retirement income or leaving an inheritance for their heirs,” she said. 

Heffernan moves to Hueler from Fidelity

Elizabeth L. Heffernan has joined Hueler Income Solutions as Managing Director of Business Development responsible for growing overall business, creating new initiatives, and “ensuring a robust client-facing capability that advocates for and delivers personalized lifetime income to individuals,” according to a release.

At Fidelity Investments, Heffernan was most recently vice president of Investment Consulting, with prior roles in sales, marketing, employee education and product development in both retirement income and fixed return/stable value products.

Prior to joining Fidelity, Elizabeth worked in the employee benefits and compensation areas at Northwestern University and First Colonial Bankshares. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Iowa, holds NASD Series 6, 7, 63, and 24 licenses and is a Certified Employee Benefits Specialist and a Certified Financial Planner.

© 2017 RIJ Publishing LLC. All rights reserved.