Guardian Strengthens Sales Team with 6 New Regional Practice Leaders to Support Increasing Voluntary Business

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America (Guardian), one of the nation’s largest mutual life insurers and a leading provider of employee benefits, recently bolstered the ranks of its Group Benefits sales team, hiring six new leaders with proven track records of success in the voluntary benefits market. These Regional Practice Leaders are the latest in a series of new hires to the Group Benefits Sales management team in 2012, supporting the continued growth of Guardian’s $890 million Voluntary Benefits business.

“These new appointments add an invaluable amount of industry experience and leadership to Guardian Group Benefits and will further support our sales team as our voluntary benefits business continues to expand”

“These new appointments add an invaluable amount of industry experience and leadership to Guardian Group Benefits and will further support our sales team as our voluntary benefits business continues to expand,” said Michael Martocci, 2^nd Vice President, Worksite Markets for Guardian. “These appointments are the latest in what has been a year of growth for Guardian Group Benefits, particularly in the voluntary benefits market. Now, as we prepare for the next significant evolution in our industry - health care reform – and how that will effect traditional employee benefit offerings in the future, we continue to expand our leadership team and prepare for the accelerated growth we are anticipating in the market.”

The new Regional Practice Leaders will work side by side with Guardian sales teams to educate and train sales representatives and brokers in the products and processes unique to the market and be the "go to" worksite benefits subject matter expert for Guardian Group Sales, further positioning the voluntary business for accelerated growth.

Regional Practice Leaders

Lars Borssen joins Guardian as Regional Practice Leader, Worksite Markets - North Division, serving Boston, Hartford, Upstate NY and Pittsburgh regional offices. Borssen comes from UNUM and has 10 years of experience in the Worksite/Voluntary Benefits and Financial Services industries, with extensive knowledge of brokerage sales and sales operations.

Alan Crawford has joined as Regional Practice Leader, Worksite Markets - East Division, supporting New York City Metro and Mid-Atlantic regions. He brings more than 24 years of experience to this new post including leadership and management positions with USI and American Fidelity.

Jerry Horton has taken the position of Regional Practice Leader, Worksite Markets - West Division, supporting Texas, Oklahoma and Missouri Valley. Horton has 15 years of Worksite and Voluntary Benefits Experience, most recently serving as a leading Senior Manager with Assurant.

Kevin McNamara has joined as Regional Practice Leader, Worksite Markets - North Division, supporting Great Lakes, Michigan, Ohio Valley and Cleveland with more than 12 years of experience in the Worksite/Voluntary Benefits market. McNamara most recently led Innotech/Willis’ client services division.

Joe Quintana has been appointed Regional Practice Leader, Worksite Markets - West Division, supporting the Pacific Southwest, Pacific Northwest and Mountain West. Quintana brings 19 years of Worksite and Voluntary Benefits industry experience as a company leading Territory Manager with Colonial Life.

Timothy Weeden will serve as Regional Practice Leader, Worksite Markets - East Division, supporting Georgia/Carolina's, Charlotte, Florida and the Southern region. Most recently with Colonial life and much of his career spent with AIG Benefit Solutions, he brings 19 years experience to the job with a proven track record for successful development of voluntary benefits' sales representatives.

About Guardian

A mutual insurer founded in 1860, The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America and its subsidiaries are committed to protecting individuals, business owners and their employees with life, disability income, dental insurance products, and offer funding vehicles for 401(k) plans, annuities and other financial products. Guardian operates one of the largest dental networks in the United States, and protects more than six million employees and their families at 115,000 companies. The company has approximately 5,000 employees in the United States and a network of over 3,000 financial representatives in more than 80 agencies nationwide.

For more information about Guardian, please visit: www.GuardianLife.com