Orlandi to Succeed Cheever as Pacific Life's General Counsel: Personnel Moves

Pacific Life has hired Jay Orlandi to succeed Sharon Cheever as its general counsel.

Cheever is retiring. She has been Pacific Life’s general counsel since 2008, and she has been working for the Newport Beach, California-based company since 1986. She started at Pacific Life as an assistant vice president in investment law.

Cheever is a past chair of the Association of Life Insurance Counsel.

Orlandi, who is set to take over as general counsel Nov. 2, has been the chief operating officer at Transamerica.

Orlandi recently served as the acting chief executive officer for the company’s individual solutions business. The business handles life insurance, long-term care insurance, fixed and variable annuities, and mutual funds.

Orlandi has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a law degree from Southwestern University.

In other personnel moves news:

Principal Financial Group, Des Moines, Iowa, has named Ken McCullum to be an executive vice president and chief risk officer.

McCullum, who has been the company’s chief actuary, will succeed Julia Lawler, who is planning to retire in November, after 36 years with Principal.

Lawler began her career with Principal as a commercial real estate representative. She has been the chief risk officer since 2018.

In related news, Dwight Soethout, vice president of finance for the Principal general account, will become Principal’s chief actuary.

McCullum has 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.

Soethout has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa. He is a fellow of the Society of Actuaries

OneAmerica, Indianapolis, has hired Susan Hennis to be chief underwriter for its life and financial services line.

Hennis previously was manager of underwriting quality at Country Financial.

She is president of the Midwestern Underwriting program committee and is on the Association of Home Office Underwriting education committee.

Hennis has a bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University. She holds the Chartered Life Underwriter and Fellow of the Life Management Institute professional designations.

Before working for Country Financial, she worked as a underwriter at Principal Financial.

Sendero Health Plans, Austin, Texas, has hired Dr. Mary Carol Jennings to be chief medical officer.

Jennings succeeds Dr. Robert Allison, who left Sendero to join the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and support the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Western Pacific Regional Office in the Philippines.

Jennings previously was director of reproductive and maternal health initiatives for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s International Vaccine Access Center. She also has been running a multi-country vaccine access program with the CDC.

Jennings continues to serve on the Johns Hopkins faculty.

Jennings has a bachelor’s degree from the College of William and Mary and a medical degree from the University of South Carolina. She competed a residency in general preventive medicine and public health at and received a master of public health degree from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

She’s board-certified preventive medicine physician with a special focus on communicable disease prevention and health equity.

Symetra Life Insurance Company, Bellevue, Washington, has hired Lori Black to be vice president, national voluntary practice lead.

She previously was vice president, strategic development, at YouDecide, a voluntary benefits outsourcing firm.

Black has a bachelor’s degree from Grove City College.

Before going to work for YouDecide, she was vice president, producer relations strategy and operations at Cigna Corp., and national voluntary benefits practice leader for North America at Buck Consultants.

Ms. Black earned a Bachelor of Science in mathematics and secondary education from Grove City College in Pennsylvania.

Lockton, Kansas City, Missouri, has hired Kelly Conway to be its chief people officer.

She previously was vice president of human resources at Stryker Corp., a medical technology company.

Conway has a bachelor’s degree from Northern Arizona University.

Sanctuary Wealth, Indianapolis, a financial advisory firm, has hired Kelly Tramontano to be its chief operating officer.

Tramontano previously was the chief executive officer and president of SWBC Investment Services in San Antonio, an arm of SWBC.

She has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Arkansas.

BeneBay, Tampa, Florida, a health plan management and quoting tool company company, has named Jay McLauchlin to be its chief executive officer.

McLauchlin previously was senior vice president, sales, at Wipro|HealthPlan Services.

McLauchlin has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia.

Maestro Health, Chicago, a benefit plan administrator, has hired Kathleen Sweitzer to be general counsel and Pete Murphy to be chief technology officer.

Sweitzer previously was the chief lawyer for the U.S. health solutions business at Aon.

She has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a law degree from California Western School of Law.

Murphy previously was the interim chief information officer at CareSource. He also has been the CIO at Cardinal Innovations and CTO at TIAA-CREF.

Murphy holds the Certified Information Systems Auditor and Certified Information Security Manager professional designations.

Petersen International Underwriters, Valencia, California, says Terie Garcia will celebrate her 35th year with the company in September. Garcia is the team leader in underwriting.

— Read Dawn Boitnott to Head Legal & General America Underwriting: Personnel Moves, on ThinkAdvisor.

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