Meeker Sharkey Hires New Insurance Brokers, Bolsters Staff for Growth

CRANFORD, NJ (Sept 29, 2007) – Meeker Sharkey announces the hire of two new Vice Presidents and a new Benefits Account Manager as part of their driving focus to expand their product offerings and presence in New Jersey. Long-time insurance luminary Tom Sharkey, Sr. announced the new hires as part of their aggressive growth strategy and re-launch into the insurance market as an independently-owned brokerage.

“Our new additions to Meeker Sharkey each bring a wealth of experience that immediately enhances our ability to grow business opportunities and meet the needs of a rapidly growing client and partner base,” said Sharkey, the Chairman of Meeker Sharkey Associates. “We are very proud to welcome these talented insurance professionals to our team.”

Meeker Sharkey’s new additions to their team include:

• Suzanne Pennell – Acting as new Vice President & Client Executive of Group Benefits at Meeker Sharkey Associates, Ms. Pennell will be responsible for the company’s day to day serving of large group accounts, carrier relationship management, marketing and the training of new hires. She brings years of expertise in employee training and account management to Meeker Sharkey. Prior to joining recently, Ms. Pennell was with Frenkel Benefits, LLC of New York as a Vice President, and also spent parts of her career managing large accounts for Compain Anderson Azar and Home Life Insurance.

• Scott Sterner – As the new Vice President & Client Executive of Property Casualty, Mr. Sterner brings years of experience in managing multi-million dollar accounts with such companies as Wells Fargo Insurance Services and Allied Coverage Corporation. His responsibilities at Meeker Sharkey include new business development, marketing, client relationships and daily client servicing.

• Donna Dodd – Ms. Dodd joins Meeker Sharkey as the new Benefits Account Executive in charge of developing client relationships, daily client servicing, account renewal marketing and carrier relationship management. She has worked for many years with insurance both health and P&C related through a Master Broker Agency, Banc of America Corporate insurance Agency and Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey.

About Meeker Sharkey
For over 100 years, Meeker Sharkey was a leading commercial and consumer focused insurance broker, serving leading national and international clients. With the Sharkey family at the helm, Meeker Sharkey rose to become one of the largest U.S.-based risk management, insurance and employee benefits companies until its sale to Summit Bancorp of Princeton, N.J. in January of 2000. Today, Tom Sharkey, Sr. has re-launched the new Meeker Sharkey, continuing the family tradition of dedicated agents, high-quality client experiences, personal attention and customized commercial risk management and benefit strategies for mid-market companies in the Tri-State region.
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