Insurance association hires new president and CEO

LISLE - The American Association of Insurance Services said Wednesday it named Werner E. Kruck as president and chief executive officer, effective Monday, June 26. Kruck has spent his entire career in leading roles within the insurance industry and has served on the AAIS board of directors since 2018.

Kruck succeeds Ed Kelly, who led AAIS for more than 11 years. His appointment comes after an extensive selection process by the AAIS board.

Kruck has more than 45 years of experience in new product development, channel marketing, technical underwriting, data and actuarial analysis, insurance pricing, and systems, AAIS said. He has held numerous management and executive positions in insurance and insurance-related companies, including Security First Managers, American Modern Insurance Group, Markel Corp. and American International Underwriters.

More recently, Kruck has served as a consultant to insurance and reinsurance companies, as well as private equity and investment firms.

"After a thorough search for a new CEO that identified a number of high-quality candidates, it became clear that no one is more qualified than Werner Kruck to lead AAIS going forward," said AAIS Chairman David Duclos. "His vast insurance background, his unique knowledge of the AAIS organization, and his commitment to its position in the market and strategy for the future make him the obvious choice."

Established in 1936, Lisle-based AAIS serves the property casualty insurance industry as its member-based advisory organization.