Meet Our Leadership Team
Our leadership team leverages decades of industry expertise to craft innovative solutions for the unique challenges of the life sciences sector. Their deep understanding of the space, combined with a commitment to excellence, ensures our clients are equipped to navigate risks and seize opportunities with confidence.
Emily Urban, J.D.
President
Emily Urban has more than 25 years of experience in the insurance industry, the last fifteen of which have exclusively involved the life sciences segment.
Before assuming the role of president, Ms. Urban served as the Global Field Officer, overseeing field operations, distribution, and strategic business development. Before joining Berkley Life Sciences, Ms. Urban held various management positions, including an Eastern Technology Zone Underwriting Manager. In addition, she was responsible for underwriting, profit, service, and talent management for the northeastern zone. Ms. Urban is a graduate of Columbia College, Columbia University, and she obtained her law degree from Suffolk Law School. She is admitted to practice in Massachusetts.
Melissa Powers
Senior Vice President, Chief Underwriting Officer
Melissa D. Powers has over 25 years of experience in the insurance industry, including almost 20 years of experience in underwriting life science business. Ms. Powers began her career as a broker at a global broking and risk management company and then worked as a specialty underwriter for a large commercial insurance carrier.
Prior to joining Berkley Life Sciences, Ms. Powers held positions of Senior Underwriter and Department Manager for life sciences accounts at a multinational insurance carrier in the Technology Insurance Specialty Division. Melissa graduated from Villanova University with a bachelor’s degree in Finance.
David Bryton, J.D.
Senior Vice President, Chief Claims Officer
David Bryton has over 20 years of experience in the insurance industry, both as a practicing lawyer and in-house claims professional. Mr. Bryton began his career in 1993, practicing law for several years with a Washington DC law firm where he specialized in surety law and commercial litigation. He later became Managing Claims Counsel for a major insurance company where he managed high exposure design professional and construction claims, as well as complex coverage matters. In 2013 Mr. Bryton joined Berkley Life Sciences and currently oversees all aspects of the company’s Claims Resolution Department. Mr. Bryton received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from SUNY Binghamton (now Binghamton University) and his J.D. from The George Washington University Law School, where he was a member of The George Washington Law Review.
Claire Pollard, SHRM-CP, PHR
Vice President, Human Resources & Operations
Claire Pollard has over 30 years of experience in the property and casualty insurance industry. Ms. Pollard began her career as an Operations Trainee with a major insurance carrier, where she subsequently held several management positions in their New Jersey, Manhattan, and Connecticut offices. During this time, Ms. Pollard also served as the Operations Integration Manager for the merger of two insurance carriers. In this capacity, she focused on implementing the successful integration of culture, systems, process, and organization. Prior to joining Berkley Life Sciences, Ms. Pollard was employed by life science manufacturing company where she managed operations for its specialty products and services. Ms. Pollard joined Berkley Life Sciences in 2009 and serves as the VP of Human Resources and Operations. She is a graduate of Drew University, where she received a Bachelor of Science degrees in Political Science and History.
Andrea Kanefsky
Vice President, Chief Financial Officer
Andrea Kanefsky brings over 30 years of expertise in the property and casualty insurance sector. Andie began her career at a specialty property and casualty insurance company, where she gained foundational experience in financial leadership and became the Chief Financial Officer. In 2013, she joined W. R. Berkley Corporation’s operating unit, Clermont Specialty Managers (now Berkley Luxury Group), as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. In 2016, she transitioned to W. R. Berkley Corporation’s headquarters, taking on the role of Vice President, Corporate Controller.
A graduate of Bucknell University, Andie earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and Business Management.
Lisa K. Krist
Vice President, Chief Customer Focus Officer
Lisa Krist brings over 30 years of insurance experience to her role as Berkley Life Sciences’ Chief Customer Focus Officer. Ms. Krist has been exclusively engaged in building and placing domestic and foreign insurance programs for life science firms for over 15 years. She has extensive experience in areas such as primary and excess Products Liability, Errors and Omissions Liability, online underwriting and quoting platforms, and insuring foreign clinical trials. Lisa’s additional roles within the organization, including International Underwriting, Product Development, and leading Field Underwriting, have well-positioned her as Customer Focus Officer, assisting her colleagues in meeting customer, broker, and insured needs.
Ms. Krist previously worked at multinational insurance carriers, holding numerous underwriting and management positions. In addition, she has experience as a broker from her role as a Technology Practice leader at an insurance agency in Tampa, FL. Ms. Krist graduated cum laude from Wake Forest University with a Bachelor of Arts in French Literature and earned an MBA from the University of Tampa.
Christopher Dorko, ARM, ARM-PE, CFPS, CHMM
Vice President, Risk Management Resources Officer
Christopher Dorko has over 27 years of experience in life sciences risk management working in the property and casualty insurance, pharmaceutical development and preparation, and medical device research and production industries. He began his career working for surgical medical device and pharmaceutical companies where Mr. Dorko’s responsibilities included site engineering, workplace safety, facility protection, and GMP compliance. During this time, he participated in multiple-design and construction projects for validated pharmaceutical and biologics manufacturing operations. Prior to joining Berkley Life Sciences, he was a Senior Life Sciences Loss Control Specialist with a major carrier where he performed multi-line exposure analysis and client risk services for a large and highly diverse life sciences book of business.
Mr. Dorko has been active in training underwriting and loss control staff in specific exposure identification and mitigation, developing and supporting engineering and underwriting exposure management guidelines, and providing risk management consultation to clients and brokers. He has extensive experience in loss mitigation for critical industry-specific operations including research facilities, biologics storage, biopharmaceutical, and process flow continuity planning. Mr. Dorko has authored several articles on life science facility loss prevention and disaster recovery planning, and he is a Professional Firefighter in New Jersey. He has a Bachelor of Science degree from Rutgers University and a Master of Science degree from New Jersey Institute of Technology, and an MPA with a focus on Organizational Crisis Management from the University of Colorado.
Holly Fettinger, CPCU, AU, API
Vice President, Segment CIO
Holly Fettinger has spent over 30 years spearheading strategic IT initiatives and leading technology transformations within the property and casualty insurance industry. Holly’s responsibility as Segment CIO spans five W.R. Berkley operating units allowing her to bring together an elite team of IT professionals to support the ever-changing technology landscape. Holly received her Bachelor’s Degree from Union College in Business Administration, and an M.B.A. focused on insurance and risk management from Walden University and holds the CPCU, AU and API designations.
Scott Burke, FCAS
Vice President, Actuarial Manager
Scott brings more than 19 years of P&C insurance experience to Berkley Life Sciences, focusing on commercial lines, including Workers’ Compensation, General Liability, Commercial Auto, Umbrella & Excess, and Commercial Property. He has led actuarial teams providing pricing and analytical services at several global insurance carriers, supporting business units including P&C Programs, Contract Binding, Alternative Markets, U.S. Primary Casualty, and Treaty Reinsurance.
Randy Culver, AU, AIS, CIC
Vice President, Property & Casualty Specialist
Randy Culver has over 30 years of experience working in the property and casualty segment. He was formerly a Commercial Lines Underwriting Specialist for a major insurance company. He began his career as an Operations Supervisor and subsequently an Operations Analyst where he designed and managed various automation projects, developed workflow solutions, and developed and implemented training programs. Mr. Culver also worked as a Business Analyst with an insurance software company where he helped companies identify and implement automation opportunities.
Phillip Skaggs, J.D.
Vice President & Chief Legal & Regulatory Affairs Officer
Phil brings over ten years of legal, coverage, and compliance experience as assistant counsel at Berkley Life Sciences. He began his career as a law clerk in the Chancery Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County in Chicago, where he drafted judicial orders and opinions for insurance coverage declaratory judgment actions. Phil later transitioned into a coverage counsel and litigation position at a national law firm, where he worked on a range of commercial property and casualty coverage disputes. Before joining Berkley Life Sciences, Phil was employed with the American Association of Insurance Services (AAIS), a national not-for-profit insurance advisory organization. At AAIS, Phil drafted coverage forms, managed compliance developments and filings, represented AAIS as a subject matter expert on specialty insurance programming, and advised company leadership on various corporate and legal matters.
Phil is a graduate of Virginia Tech and obtained his law degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law. He is admitted to practice in Illinois.
John Rogener
Vice President, Underwriting Manager
John Rogener has over ten years of insurance industry experience. He has a diverse background, beginning his career in medical sales and further cultivating his skills as a life sciences underwriter in various leadership positions. Most recently, John has spent time in the private equity space.
John received a bachelor’s degree in marketing and management from Siena College.
Paul Osuch
Director, Underwriting
Paul Osuch has over 30 years of experience in the property and casualty insurance industry including more than 15 years of underwriting in the life science segment. His experience includes positions in underwriting, risk management, and management while employed by major insurance carriers. In his current role with Berkley Life Sciences, Mr. Osuch is responsible for underwriting larger and more complex products liability placements. Mr. Osuch is a graduate of the University of Shippensburg, where he received his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration.
Kimberly Kayiwa, J.D.
Assistant Vice President, Claims
Kimberly Kayiwa has over 20 years of experience in the insurance industry, both as a practicing lawyer and in-house claims professional. Ms. Kayiwa began her career in 1999, practicing law for many years as a litigation attorney in drugs and devices, product liability, professional liability, and civil rights. She served as discovery counsel for multiple clients in mass tort and national litigation, engaged experts in various scientific fields, and counseled clients in regulatory and compliance issues.
Cindy Khin, CPCU, AIC, ARM, CCMP
Life Sciences Casualty Resolution Director
Cindy Khin is an expert in claims and litigation management with more than 25 years of experience managing and directing high exposure litigation, pharmaceutical and medical device product liability litigation and professional liability litigation. Ms. Khin has consistently placed a premium on delivering exceptional results while providing high-quality service and expertise to the Life Sciences and now brings this knowledge and expertise to Berkley Life Sciences. Most recently, Ms. Khin served as the Chief Claims Officer for a national insurance carrier. In this capacity, she was responsible for pharmaceutical and medical device claim investigation and settlement oversight, defense counsel selection, litigation management, trial preparation/supervision, claim reserve audits and assessments. Her specialties include general litigation management, negotiation, mediation and litigation management for mass torts and class actions.
Ms. Khin holds the Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) designations from the American Institute for Chartered Property Casualty Underwriters (the Institutes), Associate in Claims, Associate in Risk Management and certificates in Claims Law from the Institutes, as well as designations in Supervisory Management and General Insurance. Ms. Khin has taught CPCU classes in the Washington, DC area and is a frequent lecturer presenting on claims and litigation management topics before a variety of audiences.
Jennifer Widmer, CIC, CRM, CPCU
Senior Vice President, Chief Underwriting Officer
Jennifer Widmer has over 20 years of experience in underwriting property and casualty insurance for risks across the U.S. Prior to joining Berkley Life Sciences, Ms. Widmer worked on middle market business with a national insurance carrier, specializing in private equity business and structuring loss sensitive programs. She also worked in product development as the line of business manager for auto and property insurance with a multinational insurance carrier. She started her career with a major insurance company’s underwriting leadership development training program working on accounts of all sizes from small BOPs to large risk management programs. Over her career, Jennifer has earned her Certified Insurance Counselor, Certified Risk Manager, and Chartered Property Casualty Underwriters designations. Ms. Widmer holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Marketing and Public Relations from Illinois State University and an MBA in Organizational Leadership from Norwich University.
Sena Kumar
Assistant Vice President, Territory Manager
Sena is a production-oriented underwriter with over ten years of experience working in the financial services industry. She specializes in underwriting product and professional liability, including E&O, and commercial lines for large accounts requiring extensive risk management within the life science and healthcare verticals. Before joining Berkley Life Sciences, Sena worked at a major carrier managing a large book of life science business, focused primarily on southeastern territories. In addition to the insurance industry, Sena has a background in marketing and business development.
Sena is a graduate of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a bachelor’s degree in Women’s Studies.
John Swain
Assistant Vice President, Claims
John Swain has over 23 years of experience in the property and casualty insurance industry. John started his career working for one of the world’s largest third-party claims administrators where he held various positions including Senior Claims Representative and Supervisor. In these roles, he investigated and resolved litigated auto, general liability, and product claims. He also served as a Claims Branch Manager for a staff responsible for handling auto, general liability, and product claims for a Fortune 100 company. Prior to working at Berkley, he was a Senior Account Executive with a third party administrator where he managed the oversight of workers’ compensation, auto, and general liability claims. He is a graduate of Winona State University and holds a Bachelor of Science degree.
Andy Herbert
Assistant Vice President, Claims Manager - Workers’ Compensation
Andy Herbert has over 34 years of experience in the property and casualty industry, focusing solely on Workers Compensation. He began his career at several major insurance companies where he held various positions including field investigator, court negotiator and claims supervisor of the New Jersey Workers Compensation claims unit. He also supervised the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern Workers Compensation teams. Prior to working at Berkley Life Sciences, Mr. Herbert worked as a Senior Claim Officer of a multi-national insurance company, where he supervised the New Jersey Workers Compensation unit. He also spent five years in their Workers Compensation Special Investigative Unit. He is a graduate of Shippensburg University where he received a Bachelor of Science in Business Management.
Erica Smith
Assistant Vice President, Operations Manager
Erica Smith has over 14 years of experience in the insurance industry. Specializing in operations, she was instrumental in developing and implementing Berkley Life Sciences’ policy issuance and servicing processes following the establishment of the company in 2007. Since then, she has managed a team of operations specialists and has been at the forefront of designing, migrating, and testing key insurance operating systems. Erica is frequently called upon to design workflows to ensure the accuracy and efficiency of many of the company’s most important services and applications.
Erica graduated from The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College in Philadelphia, PA, with an Associate Degree in Culinary Arts.
Maria-Cristina Smith
Assistant Vice President, Products & Professional Liability Specialist
Maria-Cristina (MC) Smith has over 13 years of insurance industry experience, having held underwriting roles of increasing seniority in several Property & Casualty (P&C) departments. Prior to joining Berkley Life Sciences, MC worked at two global insurance carriers in various divisions, including Major Accounts Umbrella, Middle Market Multinational, Major Accounts Multinational, and most recently, Middle Market Life Sciences, where she underwrote multiline P&C. MC has a BA from Princeton University in Comparative Literature, and an MS degree in Global Affairs with a concentration in International Business from New York University.
