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Michael Cavallaro joined ARC in 1992 and became an Officer and Partner at ARC Excess & Surplus in 2002. In 2021, he became the Chief Executive Officer of the Company and is responsible for managing the day to day operations of the organization, where ARC writes over $1 Billion in Premium and has over 200 employees with seven offices and focuses on the placement of Management & Professional Liability Insurance Products.
His duties include managing the company as well as managing a book of business with a team of brokers and administrative people that service accounts he is directly involved in producing. His focus is in dealing with relationships with brokers, insureds and insurance companies and other business partners and setting the direction for the company in terms of marketing and operations. He has been handling Management and Professional Liability in his 31 years at ARC and worked at AIG from 1985 to 1990 and then Gulf Insurance Company from 1990 to1992.
The singular emphasis on Management and Professional Liability with a heavy focus on D&O Insurance has allowed him to gain substantial experience and expertise in placing Management and Professional Liability Insurance and providing clients with valuable advice when making decisions regarding these lines of coverage. He has written various articles during his career including the following white papers: Directors and Officers Liability - What to Know, From a Broker's Perspective. A D&O Broker's Dilemma: Who Do We Represent? and Summary of the State of the Directors & Officers Insurance Marketplace.
From 2001 through 2004, he was the co-chair to the Professional Liability Underwriting Society (PLUS) D&O Liability and Insurance Issues Symposium, one of the most well-known and attended conferences regarding Directors and Officers Liability Insurance. From 2016 – 2017, he served as the Chairman of the Eastern Chapter of PLUS, and in 2018, won the PLUS Founders Award for outstanding contributions to PLUS.
Michael Cavallaro graduated with magna cum laude honors from City College of New York (CCNY), where he received a Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical Engineering) and a minor in Mathematics. Michael has received the Registered Professional Liability Underwriter (RPLU) designation granted by the Professional Liability Underwriting Society (PLUS).
John Gambale is Chief Distribution Officer, North America, for Allianz Commercial. Consolidating the North America distribution and marketing teams which aligns with the global Allianz Commercial Distribution model. With one team, John is empowered to bring the full capabilities of Allianz Commercial to our clients and distribution partners, across Mid-Corporate, Large Corporate & Specialty segments.
John joined Allianz in October 2023 as Regional Head of Distribution, Large Corporate where he focused growing this segment with strategic brokers and clients. John is based in the New York City office, reporting to Tracy Ryan, President & CEO, North America.
With 25 years of experience, John most recently served as President, Northeast Zone, at AIG where he led overall operations across all major Property, Casualty, Financial Lines and Specialty product lines. During his tenure with AIG, he held various leadership positions of increasing responsibility including Head of Professional Liability & Lexington Financial Lines Executive responsible for Cyber, Miscellaneous, Media, Accountants, Lawyers Malpractice, in the U.S., Canada, Bermuda, and E&S London market and Head of the Private/Non-Profit Management Liability Division responsible for domestic and multinational private and non-profit organizations in the U.S. and Canada.
John is the Chair of the Northeast Board of Directors for the Insurance Industry Charity Foundation (IICF). John graduated from the University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Science degree in Resource Economics and holds an M.B.A. from the Lubin School of Business at Pace University. In 2021, John received the Pace Downtown Gamechanger award for his contributions and impact on Downtown Manhattan over the past two decades.
Sarah is the Executive Vice President of Carrier Relations and Client Distribution at Jencap. In
her role, she is focused on growing and enhancing relationships with Jencap’s strategic carrier
partners and key retail broker clients.
Gavlick’s 30-year insurance career began at GenRe where she held various underwriting and
leadership roles before moving to Markel where she spent the past 19 years. Over that time,
she held leadership positions in their wholesale division including Regional President-Northeast
and Chief Territory Officer-East. Gavlick has been active on the Insurance Industry Charitable
Foundation board and was a recipient of Insurance Business America’s Elite Women 2022
award.
Nancy is a Two-time Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer, BIG 3 Head Coach, 2018 Champion and Two-time Coach of the year. Two- time Olympian, silver- medalist (1976 ).
Her coaching career has included the NBA, WNBA, NBA G League and the BIG 3, and at each step along the way she has broken barriers, elevated the profile of women in the game, and helped develop the current and next generation of basketball players. Under her leadership, the Team Power won the BIG 3 championship in 2018, making her the first female coach to win a title in a men’s pro league.
She helped the United States win medals at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal ( silver medal), the 1979 World Championships in Seoul ( gold medal ), 1975 and 1979 Pan American Games in Mexico (gold medal ) and Puerto Rico (silver medal) , and the gold medal in the 1979 Jones Cup in Taipei.
After winning consecutive AIAW National Championships and one WNIT Championship at Old Dominion University, Nancy was a three- time All American and two- time national player of the year in collegiate basketball for the Monarchs. She was the first pick in the first-ever women' s pro league, the Women’ s Basketball League (WBL), for the Dallas Diamonds in 1980. In 1985, the Diamonds won the championship in the WABA and Nancy was Player of the Year. She played for the Los Angeles Lakers in the Summer Pro League in 1981 for Pat Riley in preparation for her upcoming season with the Diamonds. In 1986 and 1987 , Nancy joined the USBL, becoming the first woman to play in a men's professional league, 1986 with the Springfield Fame and 1987 with the Long Island Knights. The Lieberman Award, presented by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, recognizes the top point guard in women’ s NCAA Division I college basketball for their floor leadership, playmaking, and winning mentality.
Her on-court accomplishments have allowed her to make an impact in the community with Nancy Lieberman Charities. Her Charity has allowed her to change the lives of children in urban neighborhoods through Educational College Scholarships, Mentorship, Basketball Camps and Clinics, and Racial and Social Justice Lecture programs. Those programs include building 140 “Dream Courts” which we call pop-up classrooms that have provided over five million children in communities the opportunity to have a safe place to enjoy healthy activities, build relationships with local law enforcement and take part in community engagement.
Mark is an industry veteran with over 35 years of experience. He serves as Brown & Brown’s North American Retail Brokerage Leader. He is the lead liaison to the global carrier and intermediary community where he is responsible for communicating the needs of Brown & Brown and its customers, assisting in developing overall strategy and negotiating contracts.
Throughout his career, he has had extensive involvement in mentoring programs and professional development training. Mark serves on several Carrier and Intermediary Broker Advisory Councils, is a member of the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation’s (IICF) Northeast Board and is a frequent contributor to industry publications.
Mark earned his MBA from the Isenberg School of Management, University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Massachusetts, and his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing and Management from Fordham University in the Bronx, New York
JillAllison Opell is a partner and insurance lawyer with Foley & Lardner LLP. JillAllison represents insurers and insurance-related entities in all lines of business, including accident, life and health, property and casualty, surplus lines, travel and reinsurance. JillAllison also represents private equity funds and other sponsors acquiring and divesting insurers and/or insurance-related entities.
JillAllison’s regulatory experience includes advising clients on Holding Company Act issues including acquisitions, intercompany agreements and investment laws, as well as compliance, licensing and Affordable Care Act issues. She has counselled private equity funds, insurers, reinsurers, producers and other insurance industry professionals, helping to achieve compliance, obtain transaction approval and develop new products. Always monitoring and analyzing the latest regulatory developments, she assists clients with state legislative updates and regulatory investigations.
JillAllison was recognized for Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business in the practice area of Insurance: Transactional & Regulatory (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024).
Jeffrey (Jeff) Rubin is Executive Vice President of HUB Healthcare Solutions and Client Advisory at HUB International Northeast, headquartered in Manhattan. With over 35 years of broad experience in the insurance industry, Jeff has developed deep expertise across multiple sectors.
He currently leads HUB Healthcare Solutions, serving a wide range of healthcare organizations including Skilled Nursing, Assisted Living, Home Health, and Allied Healthcare providers.
Jeff began his tenure at HUB Northeast (formerly Kaye Group) in 1992 following the acquisition of Amalgamated Programs Corp., a New York City-based commercial insurance brokerage where he was President.
He has been recognized in the Insurance Business America Hall of Fame and is a frequent speaker on insurance-related topics.
A. Morris “Mo” Tooker is president of The Hartford. He directly oversees The Hartford’s property and casualty businesses, which include Small Business, Middle & Large Business, Global Specialty and Personal Insurance, as well as Enterprise Sales and Distribution and Risk Services.
Tooker is a property and casualty industry veteran with more than three decades of insurance and reinsurance experience. He joined The Hartford in 2015 as chief underwriting officer and has served in a variety of roles since then. Prior to joining The Hartford, Tooker served as president of General Reinsurance Corporation, where he was responsible for the company's global P&C reinsurance business and garnered 12 years of international experience working from the United Kingdom.
Tooker is involved in a number of nonprofit and industry organizations. He is the chair of the board of trustees for the Earthplace organization. He is also a member of the board of directors for The Maurice R. Greenberg School of Risk Management, Insurance and Actuarial Science at St. John’s University and The Institutes.
Tooker holds bachelor's degrees in economics and environmental studies from Middlebury College.
Bernie Williams is a former professional baseball player, four-time World Series champion, and accomplished jazz guitarist. Born on September 13, 1968, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Williams spent his entire 16-season Major League Baseball career (1991–2006) with the New York Yankees. Known for his calm demeanor, clutch hitting, and graceful play in center field, Bernie was a cornerstone of the Yankees dynasty during the late 1990s and early 2000s.
A five-time All-Star and four-time Gold Glove Award winner, Williams earned the 1998 American League batting title and remains one of the most beloved players in Yankees history. He was known for his postseason prowess, holding several franchise playoff records in hits, home runs, and RBIs.
Off the field, Williams is a classically trained musician who pursued his passion for music after baseball. He earned a degree from the Manhattan School of Music and released multiple jazz albums, including the Grammy-nominated Moving Forward.
Bernie also advocates for music education and youth arts programs across the United States.
Williams’ rare combination of athletic excellence and artistic achievement has made him a respected figure both in sports and the arts. His number 51 was retired by the Yankees in 2015, cementing his legacy in baseball history.
IICF’s financial support has helped Freedom House provide housing and wrap around recovery support to mothers recovering from addiction. “The Family Afterward” is one of a rare few programs ensuring that mothers and children remain together and that women who have lost temporary custody of their children to foster care as a result of their addiction can reunite with them in this residential program. The impact of IICF’s support has been profound in returning children to their mother’s arms! These contributions have enabled us to serve families in need that would otherwise have to be turned away due to lack of funding and are helping mothers transition to total self-sufficiency, independently raising, nurturing and supporting their children upon graduation from the program. IICF funds help Freedom House to save lives, reunite families, and provide prevention for the next generation.
