UP CLOSE: KEVIN J. TIERNEY
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NEW JOB TITLE: Westbrook, Maine-based vp and general counsel for Westbrook-based Disability Reinsurance Management Services Inc.
PREVIOUS POSITION: Founder of the Falmouth, Maine-based Law Offices of Kevin J. Tierney, Esq., a private practice focusing on arbitration and mediation of reinsurance disputes.
GOALS FOR NEW POSITION: As is the case with all functional areas within our organization, the Disability RMS Legal & Compliance team works to help our clients achieve their business goals. Our primary goal is to ensure that our strategic partners receive the appropriate compliance support services required to successfully manage their books of business within the reinsurance regulatory framework.
CHALLENGES FACING THE INDUSTRY: Employee benefit costs have seen double-digit increases over the last decade and employers struggle to manage their budgets while providing critical employee benefits, including disability insurance. Educating employers and employees about the critical role disability insurance plays in protecting an individual's most important asset, the employee's income stream, remains a challenge.
WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE ABOUT THE INDUSTRY: Over my 30 years in the life and disability insurance business, state insurance departments have taken a number of steps to improve the efficiency of various insurance regulatory processes. With both governmental and private sector budgets likely to come under increasing stress for the foreseeable future, I would like to see continued efforts by both companies and regulators to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the regulatory process.
FIRST EXPERIENCE IN THE JOB MARKET: I cut my teeth as an entry level lawyer for Union Mutual Life Insurance Co. (now UNUM), handling a wide range of life and disability insurance issues.
OUTSIDE THE INDUSTRY, A DREAM JOB: I would own an art gallery overlooking the ocean on the coast of Maine. I have always enjoyed working with artistically creative people.
