Kevin Croft
Kevin Croft, Distinguished EMC Associate Professor of Practice and Director of the Kelley Center for Insurance Innovation, teaches Finance, Risk Management and Insurance classes. Professor Croft began his career at the Principal Financial Group where he was involved in a diverse set of roles including insurance product pricing, financial statement preparation, reserve determination, developing asset liability management solutions, managing mutual funds, and investing non-affiliated insurance portfolios. Prior to joining Drake, Professor Croft served as senior vice president and head of structured products at American Equity where he co-led the investment team managing a $52 billion portfolio and oversaw growth in the structured products portfolio from $2.7 billion to $12.9 billion.
Nick Gerhart
Nick is responsible for proactively seeking out and developing opportunities to optimize company growth through innovation that is consistent with Homesteaders’ core values, purpose and vision. A proven change agent, strategist and executive leader, Gerhart previously served as Commissioner of the Iowa Insurance Division, where he transformed that department and increased the State of Iowa’s international prominence through his thought leadership and the creation of the Global Insurance Symposium held annually in Des Moines. He also previously served as Chief Administrative Officer for FBL Financial.
Mary Griffin
As a Vice President for Holmes Murphy, Mary is responsible for managing the insurance and risk management program for her clients. She ensures ongoing service of each client and oversees the overall service plan. Mary is also the primary resource for complex contract analysis, insurance coverage interpretation, risk exposure analysis, and financing . Her top priority is to deliver exceptional service that exceeds the clients expectations while working with the risk service teams to uphold Holmes Murphy’s commitments.
Mary works with clients not only around the county, but also globally. She works directly with international brokers and carriers to ensure comprehensive protection wherever their business ventures take them.
Mary graduated from the University of Hawaii with degrees in American History and Pre-law. In addition to her education, Mary has earned her Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) designation.
Prior to Holmes Murphy, Mary assumed various roles which greatly contribute to her knowledge and experience, including Director of Business Development and Senior Account Executive with Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services and various positions from claims, business analyst, and sales within Liberty Mutual Group.
Active in the community, Mary is a member of the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition. She also lends her talents to Habitat for Humanity and Invest DSM.
Jason Grinstead
Jason Grinstead is Director of Enterprise Risk Management at Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC), where he leads enterprise-wide efforts in risk identification, compliance, safety and risk mitigation.
Prior to DMACC, Jason held leadership roles leading cybersecurity and business continuity initiatives, managing large-scale technology modernization efforts, overseeing statewide data and analytics programs.
Jason holds an MBA from the University of St. Thomas, a Master of Business Analytics certificate from Iowa State University, and Project Management Professional (PMP).
Dana Hunt
Dana is a principal in PwC’s Life Actuarial Services and leads the Insurance Enterprise Risk Management practice. With a diverse background in the life insurance industry across a wide range of functional areas – from forecasting and planning to financial reporting, pricing and product management, Dana brings an integrated perspective to her clients. At PwC, Dana helps insurers develop and improve their risk management frameworks, and in this capacity works with all three lines of defense. She specializes in 1) implementation of effective model risk management and governance capabilities, including model validations; 2) development and assessment of stress testing and economic capital; and 3) review of ERM effectiveness.
She has over 30 years of experience working with US and global insurers and a long record managing large projects that drive meaningful organizational change. She understands the importance of stakeholder management and believes that useful analysis and active dialogue drive effective business decisions. Prior experience includes responsibility for individual life and annuity reinsurance pricing, leading life insurance pricing and product management, and managing financial reporting at both insurers and reinsurers.
Dana is a Fellow in the Society of Actuaries and a member of the American Academy of Actuaries; and has volunteered on various committees for both organizations throughout her career. Dana is also a Financial Risk Manager; a designation of the Global Association of Risk Professionals. She is a frequent industry speaker on risk management, actuarial, and governance topics. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Mississippi State University.
Barnes Kelley
Barnes, Associate General Counsel, is committed to serving the legal and insurance needs of The Weitz Company, a full-service construction company, general contractor, design-builder, and construction manager. By serving these needs, he supports its core purpose, to “Build a Better Way,” which includes delivering the highest levels of safety, integrity, and market leading innovation. Barnes previously worked for EMC Insurance in various roles over an eight-year career. Before that, he was an attorney in private practice with The Bradshaw Law Firm. Barnes is a graduate of Drake Law School, holds his Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (“CPCU”) designation and currently serves as Vice President of the Iowa Chapter of the CPCU Society.
Scott Jean
Scott joined EMC Insurance Companies as an intern in 1991 before starting his career there as an Actuary. He was promoted to Vice President and Chief Executive Officer in March 2020. Reporting to him are EMC’s three Executive Vice Presidents and Field Operations. Scott received a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Iowa State University and is a Fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society (FCAS) and a member of the American Academy of Actuaries (MAAA). He and his wife, Natausha, have five children and live in West Des Moines, IA. He enjoys spending time with his family, golfing and running.
Matt Junge
Matt Junge leads Swiss Re’s property treaty underwriting for the United States market. In this role, he is responsible for treaty underwriting strategy and portfolio steering, as well as leading a team of reinsurance underwriters, actuaries and catastrophe modelers who are responsible for Swiss Re’s property treaty reinsurance portfolio across the United States. He has served in a variety of property and casualty underwriting roles with Swiss Re for the last 16 years, including leading flood and parametric product development from 2018 – 2022. He is a strong advocate for closing the natural catastrophe protection gap. Matt is a graduate of Drake University and holds his Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) designation.
Ken McCullum
Ken McCullum is executive vice president, chief risk officer, and head of the general account for Principal Financial Group. He leads the company’s enterprise risk management strategy and provides executive oversight of the insurance general account. Across these responsibilities, he guides enterprise risk priorities while directing asset-liability strategy and capital deployment to help identify and manage risk supporting long-term value for customers, employees, shareholders, and the communities Principal serves.
McCullum joined Principal in April 2015 as vice president and chief actuary. He was named senior vice president and chief risk officer in September 2020 and promoted to executive vice president and chief risk officer in March 2023.
Prior to joining Principal, McCullum served as executive vice president at Delaware Life Insurance Company, where he led business development and in-force management. Earlier, he held senior leadership roles at Sun Life, including oversight of its life and annuity businesses, and played a key role in the transaction that formed Delaware Life through the sale of Sun Life’s closed blocks to investors affiliated with Guggenheim Partners. He began his career at The Hartford, where he spent 15 years in several leadership roles, including leading the institutional investment products division and serving as chief actuary of the legacy holdings division.
McCullum earned a bachelor’s degree from Ball State University. He is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries and a member of the American Academy of Actuaries. He currently serves as chairman of the board of the Principal Charity Classic, as a director of Principal Funds, a member of Drake University Board of Trustees, and a Board member of By Degrees Foundation.
Chris Murphy
As Vice President of Innovative Technology at Holmes Murphy, Chris Murphy leads efforts to evaluate, implement, and scale emerging technologies across the organization, with a focus on artificial intelligence, innovation, and responsible technology adoption. Drawing on more than 24 years of insurance carrier and broker experience, Chris works closely with business and technology leaders to identify practical applications of emerging technology that improve client service, operational efficiency, and business outcomes. He has earned his Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU), Certified Risk Manager (CRM), Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC), and Associate in Insurance Artificial Intelligence (AIAI) professional designations. Chris is actively involved in the Iowa CPCU Society Chapter, Iowa Insurance Hall of Fame, and the Insure Your Future program, helping introduce students and young professionals to careers in insurance and risk management.
Caitlin Navratil
Caitlin Navratil is an Intelligence Analyst with FBI Omaha, providing intelligence and operational support for National Security matters across Iowa and Nebraska. Caitlin has written intelligence products and provided threat briefings to inform FBI decision makers, the US Intelligence Community, law enforcement, and the private sector.
Doug Ommen
Doug Ommen is serving in his third four-year term as Iowa’s appointed insurance commissioner. Commissioner Ommen was first appointed by Governor Terry Branstad in January 2017 and has now been reappointed twice by Governor Kim Reynolds. His current term runs through May 2029.
Ommen has recently been appointed to serve among the National Association of Insurance Commissioners as the chair of the Life Insurance and Annuities (A) Committee. Ommen previously chaired the A Committee for the two years of 2018 and 2019. Ommen is a firm believer that common sense regulation, aligned with the free market, will best protect consumers and provide affordable insurance coverage.
Ommen also serves as the Director of the Iowa Department of Insurance & Financial Services, coordinating the Insurance Division’s regulatory responsibilities with the Iowa Division of Banking and the Iowa Division of Credit Unions. One of his priorities has been the department’s outreach efforts on financial literacy, insurance education and investor protection in our schools,and more broadly, to all Iowans.
During his years of public service, Ommen has previously served as the Missouri Insurance Director. Ommen’s dedication and desire to serve the public began in seeking justice for victims of fraud in the Missouri Attorney General’s Office, where as an assistant attorney general and then as chief counsel, he led the fight to protect consumers over many years.
Ommen obtained his law degree in 1985 from the Saint Louis University School of Law and is licensed to practice law in both Iowa and Missouri. Commissioner Ommen and Sharon, his wife of 44 years, are the proud parents of two children and seven grandchildren. The grandparents and family can be found many weekends on basketball courts or at their wooded acreage with fishing poles in hand.
Erin Osier
As an Account Executive for our Property Casualty division, Erin assists clients with the procurement and monitoring of their risk management portfolios. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington and an MBA from the University of Colorado. With over 23 years in the industry, she has vast experience as an underwriter, captive consultant, and carrier relationship manager. Active in the industry, Erin serves on insurance carrier agency advisory boards, has been a member of the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) Iowa Chapter since 2007, serving in various positions, including President in 2015. She has also earned her Associate in Risk Management (ARM) and Certified Risk Manager (CRM) designations and participates in BrokerTech Ventures.
Elisabeth Sandersfeld
Elisabeth joined Merchants Bonding Company in 2023, after serving as Chief Financial Officer for three operating units of W.R. Berkley Corporation. Elisabeth was Chief Financial Officer at GuideOne Insurance until 2021, after more than a decade in various strategy, innovation and finance roles at Thrivent Financial in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Elisabeth began her career at Ernst & Young, working in both Des Moines and Minneapolis.
Elisabeth is a frequent speaker at industry events, including the Global Insurance Symposium, ISCPA Insurance Industry Conference, and AICPA CFO Conference. Her areas of expertise include strategy, governance, finance, innovation, leadership, and risk management.
She earned her B.A. at Luther College in Accounting, Economics and Spanish and obtained a Master of Business Administration degree in Strategy and Finance from the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota. She holds a certificate in Board Governance and Leadership from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Elisabeth is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA), and a certified Mutual Insurance Director (MID). She is a member of the ISCPA and AICPA, and is active in the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC), Surety and Fidelity Association of America (SFAA) and Women in Surety (WIS).
Troy Spoonemore
Troy serves as Senior Vice President and Chief Underwriting & Risk Officer for GuideOne Insurance, where he leads enterprise underwriting strategy, risk management, governance, and capital protection initiatives. With more than 30 years of insurance industry experience, Troy has held executive leadership roles spanning underwriting, enterprise risk management, claims, operations, technology, and business transformation. He works closely with boards, regulators, and rating agencies to strengthen organizational resilience while supporting sustainable growth and financial performance.
Prior to his current role, Troy led GuideOne’s Technology & Innovation Strategy function and previously served as Vice President of Claims Operations, giving him a unique cross-functional perspective on how organizations identify, assess, and manage risk across the enterprise. His experience includes enterprise transformation, governance, analytics, operational modernization, and aligning risk strategy with business objectives.
As a risk executive, Troy is passionate about helping organizations navigate uncertainty, make informed decisions, and build long-term resilience. He brings a practical leadership perspective on enterprise risk management, underwriting discipline, organizational effectiveness, and the evolving role of the Chief Risk Officer in today’s complex business environment.
Jim Steele
Jim Steele is the Environmental, Health and Safety Director at Airlite Plastics Company in Omaha, NE, where he has led EHS strategy across multiple facilities in the US and Canada since 2011. He holds a degree in Industrial Safety Engineering and has over 30 years of experience building health and safety programs across manufacturing, healthcare, construction, and ethanol processing.
Jim’s background includes service as a Special Government Employee with OSHA, supporting the agency’s Voluntary Protection Program, and several years in OSHA’s Consultation Program, where he completed roughly 700 hours of training through the OSHA Training Institute. He has been a certified OSHA outreach trainer and spent six years as an Adjunct Instructor at the University of Nebraska at Kearney.
Under his leadership, Airlite Plastics has driven its Experience Modification Rate from 1.10 in 2011 to the low 0.80’s every year since 2015. He has repeated this track record at prior employers, including guiding a construction firm and two manufacturing plants to OSHA VPP “Star” status.
Jim joins the panel as a Non-Insurance Company CRO perspective, drawing on three decades of hands-on risk reduction in manufacturing and construction environments.
Dusan Stojanovic
Dusan Stojanovic has 25 years of banking industry experience, most recently with the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines where he served for 12 years, mainly in the roles of Chief Risk Officer and Chief Operating Officer. FHLB Des Moines is among the largest of 11 federally chartered, wholesale banking cooperatives, serving 1300+ financial institution members – commercial banks, savings institutions, insurance companies, and credit unions headquartered in 13 states and three U.S. territories.
Prior to joining the FHLB, Mr. Stojanovic was a bank supervisor in various capacities with the Federal Reserve System, as well as the Vice Governor for Bank Supervision with the National Bank of Serbia.
Rob TeKolste
Rob TeKolste is president of Sammons Financial Group. He is also a member of the Midland National and North American Boards of Directors.
Rob oversees the company’s five core business units — the Life Insurance Group, Sammons Independent Annuity Group, Sammons Institutional Group, Corporate Markets, and Sammons Wealth Management — as well as Corporate Development and Operations.
Rob joined Sammons Financial Group in 1999 and has since moved throughout the leadership ranks heading multiple areas from marketing, sales and distribution, shared services, and most recently President of Sammons Independent Annuity Group. With over 30 years of experience in the life insurance market, he has continually worked to achieve aggressive growth goals by identifying market needs, implementing sales programs, and building teams of innovators.
Rob serves on the Principal Charity Classic board, which raises money for children’s charities in Iowa. He is active with the American Council of Life Insurers, a prior board member of LIMRA/LOMA, and Past President of the Federation of Iowa Insurers. Rob received a Bachelor of Science in business administration and management from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, and holds the Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) designation.
Robb Ullrich
Robb Ullrich is a Managing Director in the Assurance practice of Ernst & Young LLP, specializing in Technology Risk. He has over sixteen years of experience in providing IT assurance, service organization control (SOC) reporting, and advisory services to a broad range of large and middle-market and privately held clients in primarily the insurance, financial services, technology, and healthcare industries.
Robb serves as engagement executive in the execution of multiple annual service organization controls (SOC) examinations and supports multiple annual integrated financial audits for large and middle-market clients. Robb leads the development of project plans, including scope, budget, and allocation of resources; provides supervision and guidance on approach, testing, knowledge transfer, and training of internal staff, senior, and manager associates; performs quality review of team fieldwork; deliver performance feedback to all levels of team members; and communicates project results and identified deficiencies to upper-level client management.
Robb has experience in evaluating business processes (both automated and IT-dependent processes), alignment to cyber security frameworks, AI risk management frameworks, and IT processes (e.g., system development, change management, logical and physical access, and IT operations), across both SOC 1 and SOC 2 system boundaries. Robb also has experience with a wide variety of mainframe systems, distributed systems, and SaaS solutions. He is also currently focused on AI activation and enablement within EY and with clients.
Travis Vander Linden
Travis Vander Linden is an Assistant Director of Technology Risk Management at Principal Financial Group, responsible for building the firm’s Technology Risk program including over a decade of experience in enterprise, cyber, and technology risk management disciplines. He holds an MBA from the University of Iowa (with certificates in Leadership and Business Analytics), a bachelor’s degree in Finance and Real Estate from the University of Northern Iowa, and holds the Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC) designation from ISACA.
Steve Walsh
Steve Walsh, CPA, is the VP – Enterprise Risk Officer at EMC Insurance. In this role, he takes a proactive and strategic approach to navigating uncertainty and strengthening organizational resilience. His oversight spans enterprise risk management, third party risk management, business continuity, and procurement, with a focus on aligning analysis of risk with EMC’s strategy and business objectives to drive informed decision making and long-term value. Steve has over 20 years of experience, spending the last 12 years at EMC Insurance serving in roles including head of investor relations prior to its publicly-traded holding company’s going private transaction, AVP Strategic Research and Analysis Manager, and has spent the last four years in his current role. Prior to his time at EMC, he served in various SEC financial reporting and audit roles. Steve received his B.S.B.A in accounting from Creighton University.
Rebecca Young
Rebecca Young is the Chief Risk & Audit Officer at F&G leading teams responsible for risk management, internal controls, and internal audit. She is a risk and controls expert and has over 25 years of experience in the financial services industry. She is a collaborative partner and is known for successfully meeting critical enterprise needs, developing new strategies, and effectively leading teams through change. Prior to F&G, Rebecca served as the Head of Internal Controls at American Equity where she was responsible for building an in-house internal controls team. She was also an Audit Director at Wells Fargo with responsibility for the Chief Accounting Officer organization and data management. Her career includes Transamerica as a Controller and Ernst & Young as a Senior Manager serving insurance clients. Rebecca’s enjoys spending time volunteering for not-for-profit boards including the Des Moines Symphony, where she is the President of the Board of Trustees, and Meals from the Heartland. She is a Certified Public Accountant.