Newsletter Sign-up

Vice President
Hilb Rogal & Hobbs
Amarillo, Texas

Alex L. Fairly draws across-the-board praise, but nowhere so much as on workers' compensation matters--an area of critical importance in the world of sports.

"Alex has been able to get outside the box on workers' comp, and as a result has made possible significant savings," says a client involved in minor league baseball venues as well as franchise hockey. "He has parlayed his successful techniques in the workers' comp area to other sports. On workers' comp, he's reduced costs that could have killed many sports entrepreneurs."

As a broker, Fairly is extremely personable and self-effacing, says the client. "He's not in it for himself. He always puts us No. 1. Plus, he has a tremendous amount of creativity."

In the past year, because of a downward trend in claims costs, premiums and collateral levels have been lowered. As a result, Fairly's professional sports clients' insurance and risk management costs have stabilized.

In 2006, Fairly and his group also entered the collegiate arena, and their clients in this realm are experiencing double-digit reductions in insurance premiums and claims costs.

A client at Major League Baseball says of Fairly: "He gets right at your issues, and he is tenacious in solving problems. He's very creative. He's a solutions-oriented broker. He's always willing to try new things."

Senior Vice President
Marsh
New York

Brett Borelli, senior vice president of Marsh's sports entertainment and media group, has a reputation as a "go-to" guy: somebody who is always available to field a question and come up with an answer.

For a February 2006 renewal, Borelli was his group's driving force behind successfully navigating Major League Baseball through the treacherous property marketplace.

With the property marketplace last winter dictating meaningful rate increases and significant restrictions on available catastrophic capacity, the challenge was to ensure a renewal program that was constructed in a way that it still passed muster with club owners.

By capitalizing on his long-standing relationships with the underwriting community, Borelli achieved that buy-in.

Highlights of the renewal included providing mandatory limits to address catastrophic events at multiple locations--including a very rare reinstatement option for California earthquake limits.

An earthquake affecting one California club would have no impact on coverage available for other California clubs.

In addition, despite significant upward pressure on pricing, the renewal remained competitively priced.

Managing Director
Marsh
Philadelphia

Dennis P. Donovan, managing director of Marsh's sports entertainment and media group, is seen by key clients as a field marshal highly skilled at deploying troops and tailoring strategies.

"Dennis is great at orchestrating things," says a client at Major League Baseball. "He's very passionate about sports. He has a vision for his practice and has a knack for getting things done."

Donovan's group was already the largest sports and events team going into 2006, but year-over-year growth was 17 percent, the retention level 92 percent. Significant new clients included five stadium and racetrack wrap-ups, future Olympics, one large amusement park, six sports venues (bringing the total to more than 300) and three new sports teams.

Another client says that Donovan's team approach has put his entire 40-plus group at the client's disposal on a 24-hour basis.

"They offer a spider web of coverage for the 36,000 sports events we put on all over the world," says the client. "The network stretches from local venue coverage for specific events to broader issues of coverage that we face. They have a great reporting structure that allows us to get questions answered in a hurry and in a very specific way."

Of Donovan, a client says: "He has excellent leverage with carriers and he can operate at the highest levels, both with carriers and at Marsh. This allows him and his group to cut through contracts swiftly. Also, Dennis is always very available."

Senior Vice President
Marsh
New York

Jennifer Behar has been a big slugger for her clients in the past year--especially one based in Louisville. That company, Hillerich & Bradsby, is widely known to sports enthusiasts young and old for one famous product: the Louisville Slugger baseball bat.

According to the company, Behar has been a definite cleanup hitter on insurance matters--first in getting the company's insurance affairs to major-league status and now in keeping them there.

"Jennifer knows brokerage inside and out," the client says. "We have had a lot of challenges, and she has always been there for us. In her polite way, if she has to, she'll say, 'Wait a minute, that doesn't make sense. Why don't we step back from the problem and look at our options.' "

Behar is known by clients for her ability to amiably and successfully deal with top executives at companies. She is known for having her fair share of brain power, but at the same time always being open to suggestions from any quarter.

In addition, says the client, "Jennifer is always good company. She is always thoughtful about putting together well-orchestrated meetings when I'm in New York, as well as arranging a nice lunch."

Senior Vice President
North America Practice Leader
Willis Sports Entertainment & Media
New York

By all accounts, Raymond A. Pomante has created a powerful force with his new team at Willis--both in terms of retention and bringing in new clients.

Pomante has more than fulfilled the charter set out for him when he switched from Marsh to Willis in the fall of 2004.

"Ray is very creative," says the chief financial officer of a high-profile sports franchise. "Our owner is very demanding, coming up with something new every month, and Ray is always ready to provide options to handle each new situation." This same CFO lauds him for being "always straight up" and "providing the highest level of service at all times."

Last year, a new Willis client was struggling with millions of dollars in loss reserves. Pomante's team, along with the client, implemented an aggressive action plan. As a result, 90 percent of the claims were either settled or dismissed over a 13-month period.

Says another client: "Ray is tremendously dedicated, and has exhibited an ability to solve complex problems. He is an excellent communicator, and a good strategic thinker. He has helped us with the roadmap for some complicated worker's comp situations."

A top official formerly from several major sports franchises says of Pomante: "He's very much a team player. He is always willing to come out to meetings wherever they're being held. He's fast on his feet and comes back with answers in a timely fashion."

Senior Vice President
Marsh
Philadelphia

For Robert E. Murphy, senior vice president for Marsh's sports entertainment group in Philadelphia, 2006 was a banner year.

Among other accomplishments, Murphy and associates successfully negotiated an audit provision for a National Football League franchise's workers' compensation program that resulted in $200,000 of savings for the client. Not only was this the first time such a provision was implemented in a NFL workers' comp program, but it also gave the team more money to spend under their salary cap.

Last year, Murphy developed a number of state-of-the-art risk management database programs, including one program to identify sources of large claims in the fitness industry.

Further, Murphy broadened coverage terms and conditions for several clients with respect to key exposures, such as business interruption and professional liability. Some of these improvements are considered to be first-time accomplishments in the industry.

One client says, "We look to Bob for specific information about the sports industry, but also for trend spotting--for giving us service on a higher-level basis."

Murphy is known as an exceptionally gifted communicator. "He has the ability to put things into clear language for somebody who doesn't deal with insurance every day," says another client.