LifeMark Partners, Inc., one of the nation’s largest independent national insurance marketing organizations, today announced a new member to its board of directors: Douglas A. Mishkin, president and CEO of Algren Associates, Inc.
He will serve a four-year term.
“Insurance is in Douglas’ blood. He has been around this industry his entire life, and that kind of institutional knowledge is priceless. With a profound understanding of the insurance market and the many nuances of the industry, we are certain that Douglas will bring a sound voice and expert advice to the board,” said William Shelow, CLU, ChFC, CPCU, LLIF, president and chief executive officer, LifeMark Partners.
Mishkin is a third-generation insurance professional. Although he entered the family industry, he chose a different career path from his father and grandfather, who built one of the nation’s largest multi-line and insurance benefits firms. Mishkin started his career as an agent with MassMutual Financial Group and The Guardian Life Insurance Company. In 1993, he moved to the independent channel by joining Bufkin, Hefferon & Siegel, a brokerage general agency in Manhattan, as their brokerage manager. He joined Algren Associates, Inc., in 1997 and, in 2001, was named president of the firm. In 2006, he assumed the role of chief executive officer when Algren’s founder retired.
An active leader in the insurance industry, Mishkin served as chairman of the National Association of Independent Life Brokerage Agencies (NAILBA) in 2008, having previously served as a board member for seven years and as chair of its membership committee. In addition to his NAILBA involvement, Mishkin is currently an active member of SubCenters (where he currently serves on their board of directors), the Professional Life Advisors Network (PLAN), Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT), the Association for Advanced Life Underwriting (AALU), and TYGERS study group. In 2009, Mishkin was the recipient of the Stephen A. Kramer Humanitarian Award from the UJA-Federation of New York. He is also a former director of Life Happens, (formerly the Life & Health Insurance Foundation for Education–LIFE), a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping consumers make smart insurance decisions to safeguard their families’ financial future. He has sat on numerous insurance carrier field advisory councils including North American, Genworth, United of Omaha, ING and MetLife, helping strengthen and develop product lines and more effectively communicate with distribution partners.
Mishkin is frequently quoted and published in financial journals and publications and is an active speaker for national insurance and financial organizations. He has addressed international advisor forums from the Ukraine, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Western Europe. Mishkin is a graduate of Franklin & Marshall College in Pennsylvania, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in business management.
“Douglas has been a part of LifeMark Partners for years and previously served on our marketing committee. With his existing knowledge of LifeMark and vast industry perspective from his work with the TYGERS study group, we are fortunate to have him on the board. We are confident that his input will continue to enhance the strategies and resources LifeMark provides to its partner BGAs,” added Mark Rosen, chairman of the board.
LifeMark Partners also announced the addition of Robert B. Olterman, CFP, as the new vice president of Business Development and Marketing. Olterman will be responsible for the overall and day-to-day marketing activities with a focus on developing key initiatives to expand distribution opportunities and support resources for its BGA partners.
“Robert is just who we have been looking for; someone with experience in our business as well as extensive knowledge of the many sales channels available to us. His experience in point-of-sale and sales management as well as the various roles he has taken on will also provide him with a deep understanding of our distribution to provide innovative and effective services for our BGA Partners,” said William Shelow, CLU, ChFC, CPCU, LLIF, president and chief executive officer, LifeMark Partners.
For two decades, Olterman has worked in the financial services industry with the bulk of his experience specializing in life insurance at AIM Systems. During his time at AIM, he worked in various roles, learning the ins and outs of insurance distribution challenges and opportunities from the ground up in the following roles: Case design manager in 2000; vice president, agency operations manager in January 2001; regional director in June 2006; senior vice president, national sales manager in June 2008; and his most recent position of president in 2015.
As senior vice president and national sales manager at AIM, Olterman was the relationship manager for institutional clients and interacted with back-office staff to resolve case issues and improve the insurance placement process. As president, he was responsible for business strategy and managing relationships with the company’s institutional clients and insurance carriers. Over the course of his career, he has consistently been recognized for his ability to drive production and develop point-of-sale resources and relationships.
Olterman earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Furman University. He earned his Certified Financial Planner certification from Oglethorpe University in Atlanta.
“Throughout my career LifeMark has always maintained a stellar reputation, and now I am truly excited to have the chance to become part of this great organization and work with some of the best in the business to expand on existing resources and opportunities,” said Olterman. “Together we will continue to raise the bar, enabling and equipping our partners to tackle the evolving challenge of increasing life insurance distribution nationwide.”
LifeMark Partners exists to leverage partner, carrier and industry resources and expertise to enhance and expand life insurance distribution for the benefit of all stakeholders. As an independent insurance marketing organization, LifeMark is dedicated to the ongoing development and enhancement of BGA partner resources to help undeniably differentiate partner agencies from the competition. Affiliates benefit from some of the most robust service offerings in the market today, including expansive underwriting capabilities, advanced case design support, sales and product benchmarking tools, and turnkey sales and marketing systems. At its core, LifeMark Partners was founded as a study group more than 40 years ago and is celebrating more than 20 years as a leading IMO. This foundation provides a unique opportunity to form strategic alliances and share best practices for partners to grow their agencies together through regular training, networking and educational opportunities. With unparalleled partnership, expertise and access to these industry-leading resources, LifeMark Partners provides affiliates The strength of many. The power of one. To learn more about the qualifications necessary to become a LifeMark partner, visit www.LifeMarkPartners.com.
