Colonial Life Appoints 3 New Managers For Southeast

By Cyril Tuohy

InsuranceNewsNet

Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Co., a major player in the disability, critical illness, life, long-term care and voluntary benefits marketplace, has appointed three new territory managers in the Southeast.

T.J. McInnis, of Tallahassee, Fla., has been named territory sales manager for the north Florida territory, and Mark Sward has been named territory sales manager for the south Florida territory. Sward will be based in Sunrise, Fla.

A third manager, Jesse Davis, has been named territory manager for the Georgia territory. Davis will be based in Kennesaw.

All three managers, who have been recognized by the company for their sales activity, will be responsible for building sales teams in their respective territories, the company said.

McInnis joined the company in 2011 as a district general agent responsible for developing sales teams in a new sales district. Sward joined Colonial in 1989 as sales representative in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and was subsequently promoted to management positions. Davis, who has 17 years of experience in the industry, was hired in 2011 as a district general manager in north Florida.

Columbia, S.C.-based Colonial, a subsidiary of Unum, operates in 49 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Florida and Georgia represent among the most important sales territories for the company, which has more than 3 million policies in force and more than 6,000 active Colonial-contracted agents and brokers.

The voluntary benefits space is growing, with sales for 2012 up 6.6 percent over 2011 and total new business premium exceeding $6 billion, according to Eastbridge Consulting’s annual U.S. Worksite/Voluntary Sales Report.

Particularly among small to midsize companies, there’s ample room for growth in the disability and voluntary benefits market, according to an analysis by Eastbridge.

Voluntary benefits are attractive to employers because they lower taxable company payrolls, and employees who elect coverage do so by paying 100 percent of the premium so there’s little out-of-pocket spending by the company.

Cyril Tuohy is a writer based in Pennsylvania. He has covered the financial services industry for more than 15 years. He can be reached at Cyril.Tuohy@innfeedback.com.

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Cyril Tuohy is a writer based in Pennsylvania. He has covered the financial services industry for more than 15 years. He can be reached at cyril.tuohy@innfeedback.com.