Meet the Xceedance Leadership Team

Arun Balakrishnan built his career around entrepreneurship and leadership. He has more than 15 years of experience launching and leading start-ups in the insurance sector. He is passionate about promoting innovation and transformation in the insurance industry, which he believes to be a key element of societies and economies.

Arun’s first foray into entrepreneurship was founding an online insurance aggregation start-up in India This experience was relevant for his next role, launching Indian insurance operations as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway India. He held this role until Berkshire Hathaway exited the Indian market in 2013. Arun viewed this change as an opportunity to dive more specifically into the industry, and in conjunction with two other Berkshire alums, co-founded Xceedance in 2013.  In 2015, he re-located the company’s headquarters to Boston, MA where he serves as the company’s Chairman & CEO. In addition to leading Xceedance he is also an active investor in start-ups either directly as an angel investor or as a limited partner in multiple venture capital firms.

Arun graduated with a bachelor’s degree in nautical sciences from Mumbai University and completed his master’s degree in business administration at the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad.

As the president of corporate services and group CFO and  at Xceedance, Amar Gomber oversees corporate functions, including human resources, learning and organization development, IT Support, information security, digital initiatives, strategic finance, treasury management, audit, compliance and risk management, corporate governance, and legal affairs. He ensures Xceedance adheres to the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct in all its operations and transactions.

Amar has worked with leading organizations in various sectors, such as manufacturing, FMCG, financial services, and IT. He has extensive experience managing financial operations, mergers and acquisitions, business restructuring, fundraising, investor relations, and regulatory compliance.

Amar has a strong finance, auditing, information systems, and business law background. He holds professional qualifications from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, the Institute of Company Secretaries of India, and the Information Systems Audit and Control Association. He has also completed the Chief Financial Officer Programme from IIM Calcutta.

Amar is passionate about innovation and technology and is building a strong foundation to help Xceedance deliver superior value to insurance organizations worldwide.

Manish Khetan is president – strategic accounts at Xceedance, with 15 years of experience in transforming insurance operations. He leads the North America business and is responsible for business growth and service delivery at Xceedance. He focuses on identifying growth drivers, business planning, capability development, client relations, organizational learning and development, and alternate channels of expansion, including partnerships and acquisitions.

Prior to helping start Xceedance, Manish was a founding team member at Berkshire Hathaway Insurance in India, leading operations, sales, and strategic partnerships. Over his career, he has built an intimate understanding of the insurance business and its various functional areas, through his deep-rooted relations with various senior executives of insurance and reinsurance companies.

Manish started his career as an operations and strategy consultant. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Technology from HBTI Kanpur and completed his MBA at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.

In his role as president, Americas, Travis MacMillian leads Xceedance activities and operations across North and South America. He has full accountability over all aspects of the business including client partnering, business development, and delivery. His focus is on expanding the company’s client base and corporate capabilities while placing clients at the center of everything Xceedance does.

An insurance expert with over 30 years focused on the property/casualty industry, Travis has strong acumen in underwriting, operations, marketing, business development, claims, reinsurance, analytics, and technology. He has extensive leadership and management experience in expanding, building, and running teams in insurance companies and at service providers to the industry.

Prior to joining Xceedance, Travis was the vice president of insurance at Genpact International. He has also served in leadership roles as a regional vice president at FirstBest Systems (now part of Guidewire), president and chief operations officer at Greater New York Mutual, and the vice president of commercial insurance and business development at OneBeacon Insurance Group. Travis began his insurance career as an underwriter trainee at Commercial Union.

Travis holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing with a minor in accounting from Woodbury University. He also attended the High Potential Management Development Program at CEDEP in Fontainebleau, France.

Amit leads all re/insurance services, platforms, and products across the India and Poland service centers for Xceedance. Amit has more than 17 years of technical and functional experience in the insurance and retail banking industries.

In previous roles at Xceedance, he led consulting services, technology delivery, product ideation, and global IT infrastructure management. Prior to helping launch Xceedance, Amit led the technology team for Berkshire Hathaway India. He was responsible for architecting and implementing the IT infrastructure for online sales, customer support, payment processing, digital marketing, and MIS.

With several years of technology and insurance experience at IBM and RBS, Amit executed strategic projects spanning several geographies and operating entities. He transformed a rating platform, implemented a Solvency II regime, and managed legacy claims management system replacements for flagship UK insurance brands such as Direct Line, Churchill, Tesco, Prudential, Green Flag, and NIG.

Amit graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology in Mumbai (IIT).

Abhay Agarwal is a vice president at Xceedance, with more than 10 years of experience in the field of risk management. Abhay is responsible for managing corporate audit and risk management for the Xceedance group. Prior to joining Xceedance, he worked with consulting firms like KPMG and Deloitte.

Abhay has experience and specialization in delivering multiple solutions such as internal audit, risk assessment, business process reviews, risk and control matrices. Skilled in analytics, he has worked across industries, including financial services, information technology, oil and gas, media and e-commerce. Abhay is a Chartered Accountant by profession.

Outside of work Abhay likes to travel, play table tennis, and listen music.

Devin Amidon has over 15 years of experience within the P&C industry. He’s managed multiple teams within the organization and has been primarily focused on technology support in North America over the last 3 years.

In his prior role at Xceedance, Devin was a software developer that supported multiple policy administrations systems. He led the development of new product lines for a carrier on a modern policy system and was a part of the ongoing support of a legacy system for multiple insurance carriers. Devin is focused on continuing to expand our technology capabilities within North America and driving technological innovation within the insurance industry.

Devin is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts where he studied information technology and computer sciences.

Puneet Bajpai serves as SVP of risk intelligence & data sciences at Xceedance. In this role, he is responsible for providing industry solutions using data sciences and risk research expertise. Puneet brings more than 15 years of work experience with reinsurers, brokers, and vendor model companies to the role.

Puneet joined Xceedance as VP for catastrophe modeling and exposure management to establish the company’s catastrophe engineering and research division. Prior to joining Xceedance, Puneet was part of the Swiss Re India R&D team working on the development of natural catastrophe models and providing technical support to underwriters and clients. Throughout his career he has worked with AIR Worldwide in Boston, Aon in Bangalore, and Flagstone Re in Hyderabad.

Puneet completed his master’s degree in civil engineering at Johns Hopkins University in 2006, and earned his bachelor’s degree from IIT Roorkee, India.

Madhu Balakrishnan is an experienced marketing and communications professional with over 15 years of experience leading creative teams across B2B and B2C businesses. Skilled in building go-to-market (GTM) strategies, Madhu’s core focus at Xceedance is building a brand-to-demand strategy that helps accentuate the Xceedance brand in global insurance markets.

Madhu comes from a strong entrepreneurial background with expertise in diverse marketing techniques. From helping build an online sales channel for commercial insurance policies to running customer engagement strategies for a card gaming company, he has helped many start-ups in the online space.

In his spare time, you’ll find him deep in the woods trying to find his golf balls or cooking a delightful meal for his family.

Betsy Branagan has over 30 years of experience in traditional actuarial roles of reserving and pricing as well as expertise in leadership, strategy, data management, and organizational change.  She has held leadership positions in a number of primary insurance companies where she has managed loss reserving and pricing functions, participated in acquisition due diligence activities, led the integration of data from acquired entities, and implemented new reserving and pricing tools and processes.  Betsy has also served as appointed Actuary for a number of entities.

Betsy’s background of working in primary companies has given her first-hand experience in the issues that are often faced by companies looking for consulting assistance.  Her perspective is invaluable in driving real value for clients.

Betsy is a Fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society, a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries, and holds the designation of Agribusiness and Farm Insurance Specialist.  She has a master’s degree in business administration from Indiana State University’s Kelley School of Business and a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Clark University.

When not working, Betsy can be found playing with her grandson, hiking in the woods, traveling, or enjoying one of her many fiber hobbies.

Jason Caravella joined Xceedance Claims and Management Services, LLC, the Xceedance third-party administrator subsidiary, as the VP of claims TPA operations in June 2021. In his role, Jason has oversight of the claims and quality assurance teams, servicing multiple lines of business for clients across the globe.

Jason has over 20 years of experience in claims management for both personal and commercial carriers. He has held various leadership positions at Progressive, Assurance America, Personable, Star & Shield, and Embark General. He has spent the last half of his career establishing new claims organizations and rehabilitating existing ones. Jason was able to deliver first-in-class results by establishing systems, processes, and analytics focused on service and efficiency.

He holds an environmental/earth science degree from Edinboro University and has relevant, functional knowledge of claims management, analytics, and operations.

Vipin Chopra is responsible for spearheading the global IT, security, and digital initiatives portfolio at Xceedance. Vipin brings over 23 years of diversified experience across industries and continents leading various global, large, and complex IT operations, cloud, IT infrastructure, security, and enterprise level digital transformation services portfolios. He has extensive experience in establishing cyber, information security, business continuity, and technology risk management practices for multiple organizations.

Prior to joining Xceedance, Vipin served various technology leadership roles as global IT & security leader at Infosys, as well as being responsible for multiple large transformational programs. He has also been deputy chief technology officer at UAE Exchange (UAE), where he led various large global tech transformation and delivery assignments. His responsibilities included building, operating, transforming, governing, and improving IT, digital, cyber, and information security posture across the globe.

Vipin holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering along with various relevant technology and leadership certifications. During his free time, Vipin likes to read technology whitepapers, play chess, and spend time with family and his kids.

Isabelle Clausner is VP, client executive – EMEA at Xceedance. She joined the company in March 2022.

With 25 years of experience in Paris, London, and Milan, Isabelle’s background is a mix of clients and insurers. She worked for AIG Europe as head of client and broker engagement. Previously, she headed up client and distribution for Generali Global Corporate & Commercial (GC&C). Prior to joining GC&C, she worked for Zurich in Paris as a client relationship manager and as head of underwriting services for major accounts. Before joining Zurich, Isabelle was in charge of managing the general liability, motor, and workers compensation programs for the Deutsche Post DHL Group, based in London. She started her career spending 10 years with AIG in various roles, including client relationship management functions both in Paris and London.

Isabelle speaks fluent French, English, and Italian, and she has a masters degree in insurance and risk management. Recently she graduated from the EDHEC “Advanced Management Programme.” She enjoys traveling, practicing various sports, and is a certified yoga instructor.

Justin Davies is tasked with building the Xceedance brand and expanding the team within the EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) region. His interactions with clients focus on adding value to their business through services, products, and partner offerings.

Justin has more than 25 years of financial services and insurance experience with a background in exposure management, CAT modeling, spatial analytics, and geocoding. He joined Xceedance from Xuber, where he was director of the business unit that developed and launched the Xposure software platform.

Prior to Xuber, Justin spent more than five years at EQECAT, where he ran the client-facing side of the business for the U.K. and Asia Pacific region. He was also at Pitney Bowes for three years, where he managed the U.K. and Ireland financial services team for the spatial analytics product lines.

Lauren FitzHarris is a results-oriented business leader with 20+ years of extensive client management, project implementation, product management, and operational execution experience within the insurance and information technology segments. In her current role as AVP, client partner, Lauren is responsible for client relationship management focused on commercial and specialty insurance in the Americas.

Prior to joining Xceedance, Lauren worked for LexisNexis Risk Solutions where she was a senior manager, implementation. While there, she provided consulting, project management, and industry expertise to optimize business processes for insurance clients across multiple lines of business. Prior to LexisNexis, Lauren was a casualty claims manager for Nationwide Insurance.

Lauren graduated from The University of Georgia with a B.A. in political science and was a member of the women’s rugby team. Outside of work, she volunteers as a youth basketball coach and spends time reading historical fiction and playing tennis.

Peter is the Americas leader for personal lines and oversees all client engagements and the Xceedance product offering within the sector. His responsibilities include collaboration with the claims, delivery, and business development teams to enhance client value and accelerate innovation.

Peter’s professional background encompasses 25 years in the insurance industry, largely focused on personal lines. Prior to joining Xceedance, he was senior vice president of broker development at PURE Insurance, a high-net-worth personal lines specialist insurer. His career also includes a significant tenure of 15 years at Chubb, where he was involved in underwriting and sales and held various leadership roles. Additionally, Peter has experience in agency operations, demonstrated through his five years as a New York-based senior executive at Frenkel & Company (now EPIC), an international insurance broker.

Peter is a licensed insurance broker and holds a bachelor’s degree in government from Franklin & Marshall College.

Shibabrata Ghosh (Shibu) is responsible for the insurance operations and credit controls at Xceedance.

Shibu brings 23 years of industry experience in areas of insurance operations, underwriting, credit controls and catastrophic modelling. Prior to joining Xceedance, he worked for Verisk and Genpact where he led operations and transformation initiatives for multiple strategic clients across geographies. His areas of interest are driving digital process transformation, technology interventions, and efficiencies across our operations function.

Shibu has an undergraduate degree in engineering and a post-graduation degree in business administration. He is also a certified project management professional from Project Management Institute in the U.S. and APMG in the UK.

Kaushik Gohain oversees delivery teams supporting key accounts globally across all Xceedance capabilities. With over 20 years of industry experience, Kaushik is a seasoned professional in the insurance sector. His expertise includes setting up, transitioning, and managing large-scale global accounts, focusing on service delivery, customer service, people leadership, and risk management.

Kaushik’s career highlights include significant roles at Genpact as a Service Delivery Leader and his previous tenure at Xceedance from 2015 to 2022. His leadership has been instrumental in successfully managing complex, multinational client engagements across North America, the UK, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Australia.

Kaushik holds a Postgraduate degree in Business Administration from the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies in Mumbai, India.

As a client partner at Xceedance, Taylor is at the forefront of deploying innovative solutions, ensuring the enduring success of our insurance partners.

With an extensive background spanning over two decades in the Property and Casualty (P&C) industry, Taylor brings a wealth of experience, particularly from her time in the Excess and Surplus (E&S) sector. Her career has seen her excel in various capacities, including underwriting, wholesale production, and numerous operational roles. This diverse experience enables Taylor to adeptly steer strategic initiatives to transform, realign, and modernize insurance functions and operations for our clients.

Taylor’s professional journey includes pivotal roles at notable organizations such as Colony Insurance, All Risks LTD, and Solartis, LLC. She is a proud alumnus of Saint Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Indiana, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree.

Karan Kapoor oversees the strategic finance function at Xceedance.

A strategic thinker, Karan supports the company’s growth initiatives, driving the company’s financial performance and shareholder value. He has nearly 12 years of rich global experience in managing various facets of finance including planning and budgeting, business partnering, cost management, mergers and acquisitions, fundraising, financial accounting, and reporting across diverse industries, including manufacturing, e-commerce, and IT.

Karan has a bachelor of commerce degree (Hons.) from Delhi University and is a Chartered Accountant.

Sachin Kulkarni leads the Xceedance business development and account management teams in North America and Bermuda. His interactions with clients focus on building trusted relationships and adding value to insurance organizations through services and products.

Sachin has more than 20 years of experience in technology and operations across insurance, distribution/supply chain, and other service industries in multiple geographies. His experience encompasses all aspects of IT delivery. Sachin has held roles as global head of IT architecture at Westcon and head of IT strategy for the U.S. and Canada at Marsh. He led delivery activities for all Marsh global applications, including business intelligence, financial systems, client and market applications, and sales and marketing.

Sachin received his B.S. in Computer Science from the University of Pune, India, and completed graduate studies at Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey, U.S. He is a registered volunteer with Taproot Foundation and presently volunteers with Girl Rising.

Sandeep Kumar is a chartered accountant, company secretary, and finance MBA with 16 years of experience in spearheading the entire gamut of financial accounting and reporting, audits, internal financial controls and compliance, SOX, secretarial compliance, banking and treasury, planning and budgeting, ERP implementation, and taxation matters. He slso served as a board member/ independent director with large organizations with a proven track record of executing business strategies, change management, process efficiency, and bottom-line improvement.

Ashish Lall is a seasoned professional with a proven track record of delivering customer success, operations management, project management, client management, and front office and back office services for P&C insurers. In his current role at Xceedance he is responsible for strategic account/client management, client delivery with a focus on efficiency, automation, and supporting clients to grow by providing a multitude of services around the life cycle of a policy and other needs of an insurance organization.

Prior to his current role, Ashish was responsible for spearheading automation and transformation programs for key clients, identifying solutions that help customers, and project management for key client and Xceedance initiatives.

Prior to joining Xceedance, Ashish spent about 6 years in the U.S. P&C commercial insurance market focused on submission clearance, underwriting support, and policy issuance. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree (with honors) in history from Delhi University and is PMP certified and holds a certificate in digital transformation by IIT Bombay

When not at work, Ashish loves Arsenal football and frequently explores world history.

James Maddiona joined Xceedance in June 2021 as the global head of claims and manages the company’s Third-Party Administrator subsidiary, Xceedance Claims and Management Services, LLC. He is responsible for delivering technical and administrative oversight over the claims and quality assurance teams, servicing multiple lines of business globally for our clients.

Prior to joining Xceedance, James spent 25 years at AIG, where he managed claim professionals specializing in mitigating high-severity bodily injury and property damage exposures in the excess and surplus casualty lines space. James is particularly skilled at hiring/retaining talent and building diverse teams to services client’s needs. His belief is that the team is built as a true extension of the client, aligned with the culture and skillsets desired to excel at any job function.

James received his Bachelor of Science in Business Management from St. John’s University. He is adjuster licensed in 34 states.

Brett Maxedon joined Xceedance Claims and Management Services, LLC, the Xceedance third-party administrator subsidiary, as VP, claims operations in February 2022. In his role, Brett oversees several TPA operation capabilities including FNOL, payment processes, adjuster tools, and compliance.

Brett was previously with AIG for over 20 years in several roles leading teams responsible for supporting claims in numerous operational capacities including compliance, operational risk, TPA management, shared services, and IT.  He held various leadership positions at AIG, most recently as VP of claims operations and systems, whereh he led a team providing claims system user support for over 2,000 on the North American claims team.

Brett holds both bachelor of arts and MBA degrees from the University of Texas – Dallas.

Rachita leads the underwriting services team at Xceedance. She has been in the insurance industry for over 18 years and has extensive experience working across various underwriting functions including pricing and product development across multiple geographies.

She is currently responsible for developing and growing the underwriting capability by executing strategies, products, and new solutions for existing and new clients and driving client success. She leads a team of analysts who review, analyze, and collate data required by the actuaries and underwriters for pricing accounts; perform portfolio analysis; conduct underwriting audits and provide underwriters with product design, implementation and, testing support.

She is a certified Charted Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) and Associate in Reinsurance (ARe), and holds a postgraduate in applied operational research and an undergraduate in statistics from University of Delhi.

Binu Nair is a commerce and travel management graduate with 20+ years proven experience in facilities management, portfolio management, workplace design and solutions, general administration, capacity planning and strategy, change and transition management, lease management, procurement, logistics, BCP, office security, and HSE.

Outside of work, he enjoys holidaying, playing cricket and football, and watching movies.

Madhup Narula leads digital initiatives at Xceedance, bringing a wealth of technical expertise to drive innovation and enhance the organization’s technology landscape. He is dedicated to harnessing the power of technology to create value-driven solutions and propel digital transformation.

With over 24 years of experience, Madhup has built a robust foundation in technology delivery, IT strategy, solution architecture, program management, and product development. His hands-on approach to technology leadership emphasizes using advanced methodologies and tools to streamline operations and deliver impactful results.

Before joining Xceedance, Madhup held critical roles at industry-leading organizations including WNS, Evalueserve, Steria India Ltd, NIIT Technologies Ltd, and Sapient. In these positions, he was instrumental in implementing scalable solutions, managing complex technology programs, and fostering digital transformation initiatives.

Madhup holds a master’s degree in computer applications and technical certifications, including Project Management Professional (PMP), Certified ScrumMaster (CSM), and Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer (MCSD).

Praveen leads the Xceedance technology and digital practice worldwide, driving insurtech innovation and accelerating digital return on investment for clients. He provides advisory-led delivery leveraging his strong domain expertise across the insurance lifecycle, customer segments, and product lines.

He joined Xceedance with three decades of diversified experience through his work with Indian and multi-national corporations. Praveen previously served at Coforge as the vertical delivery head and P&L leader for insurance. Before that, he was with Computer Sciences Corp (CSC), now known as DXC Technology, as the director of global sourcing and a general manager in the P&C insurance vertical.

Michael Parcelli, MS, CPCU, ARM, CRIS, PMP, LSSGB, has held senior roles for four decades in underwriting, claims, and technology within both insurance carriers and distribution channels. He has managed divisions in both brokerage and MGA environments. Michael leverages a technology-centric approach to address business challenges, driving profitable growth and operational excellence for insurance organizations. His extensive underwriting expertise and deep technical understanding of automation enable him to deliver holistic, future-ready solutions across the insurance lifecycle.

Husain Parvez is part of the data and analytics team and he leads data engineering services at Xceedance. As part of this role, he focuses on enabling the right data architecture and landscape that can provide timely insights as well as provide the right platform to enable ML and AI use cases in the global insurance market. He brings 20+ years of rich experience in the areas of consulting, solutioning, presales, and delivery predominantly focusing on enabling data and analytics capability for customers across the globe.

Prior to joining Xceedance, Husain served in various capacities in companies including Patni Computers, Wipro, HCL, and Capgemini. In those roles he helped customers build data warehouses/data lakes and analytics landscape to derive insights from data.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering and masters degree in business administration with a concentration in management and strategy.

Outside of work, Husain loves to spend time with family and friends as well as reading and exploring new subjects.

Amit Patil is part of the corporate development team at Xceedance where he focuses on M&As, partnerships, and analyst relations for the Xceedance group. As part of this role, he is always on the lookout for new partnerships and ways to expand Xceedance offerings and is responsible for managing the M&A pipeline, conducting due diligence checks on target entities, integration of acquired entities, and banker interactions. He brings 10+ years of (re)insurance industry experience. Prior to this role, Amit played a key role in establishing the underwriting and acturial services teams at Xceedance and was involved in risk selection, underwriting, pricing, operations, and quality control of large and small commercial risk especially in the P&C market.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering and a master’s degree in business administration with a concentration in finance and has completed his CPCU (Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter) designation.

Suresh Pokhriyal is responsible for managing claims delivery at Xceedance. Suresh brings 20 years of experience in re/insurance markets and has supported operations for multiple insurance organizations.

Prior to joining Xceedance, Suresh served as senior manager at Genpact, where he oversaw the insurance operations division for a global insurance firm. His responsibilities included supporting the end-to-end claims delivery for various clients in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Africa. He also led reengineering projects in establishing effective operating models for a large insurance carrier in South Africa.

Suresh holds a master’s degree in commerce and is a certified Lean Six Sigma green belt.

Mateusz Polak is VP of operations in Europe. At Xceedance Poland, he is responsible for developing a multi-client environment, strong insurance domain capabilities, and operational resilience. He brings 20+ years of industry experience to the role.

Prior to Xceedance, Mateusz held various management roles in insurance and banking. Working for global organizations, he led teams responsible for underwriting, sales, and product management. He had the privilege to be a part of a team establishing a new insurance company from scratch where he could develop his entrepreneurial skills.

Mateusz holds a masters degree in finance and banking from the University of Economics in Kraków, Poland.

If not at work, you will find him travelling or spending time actively doing his favorite sports like skiing, kite surfing, sailing, or riding a bike.

Amit Ranjan is the chief administrative officer at Xceedance. He is responsible for corporate services, including human resources, learning and development, facilities, IT infrastructure and security, and client onboarding and transition. He is also responsible for new strategic initiatives within the organization.

With more than 20 years of diversified experience, Amit has strong knowledge of various disciplines in the insurance industry. He has cross-functional expertise, including capability development, client relationship management, building centers of excellence, leading successful operations, and directing diverse workforces. Through his analytical and operational expertise, Amit brings steadfast leadership focused on driving innovation and delivering superior value for clients.

Amit has worked with leading organizations such as RMS, GE Insurance, Flagstone Re, and Starstone, supporting clients in the Americas and across multiple geographies. He has an M.Tech degree from IIT Roorkee.

Akshay Relan is a seasoned technology and customer-focused executive with over 15 years of experience in the insurance industry. As vice president at Xceedance, Akshay is responsible for driving innovation and transforming customer service operations.

Akshay is a proven leader with a talent for building and managing high-performing teams. He has extensive expertise in artificial intelligence, cloud computing, cybersecurity, project management, enterprise architecture, data analytics, and infrastructure management. Under his leadership, Xceedance has implemented numerous solutions that have improved operational efficiency, reduced costs, and enhanced customer satisfaction and experience.

Akshay frequently speaks at industry events and conferences. He is passionate about advancing the insurance industry and is always looking for new and innovative ways to meet the evolving needs of customers.

Akshay holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering and an MBA in information technology. Akshay is also a PMP and ITIL certified executive.

Shalini Rikhi has 29 years of experience working with global organizations in diverse industries. Currently, Shalini is leading key client initiatives as the VP of global program management services.

Prior to joining management consulting, Shalini has been employed by various Fortune 500 organizations. Over the 29-year time span, Shalini has successfully stood up project management offices, led multi-vendor/client portfolio complex program implementations, managed large revenue-generating project portfolios, and has led several programs/projects from inception to successful completion. Shalini has also led a client-centric model-based account management support for several organizations.

When not working, Shalini is an avid traveler and teaches yoga for non-profit organizations.

Marc leads the claims business at Xceedance, bringing 20 years of operations and technology leadership experience across the insurance, software, and supply chain distribution industries. He spent the last 13 years leading various U.S. and global teams across claims, operations, analytics, and technology at AIG — and most recently for its digital commercial insurance carrier, Blackboard Insurance. Marc was responsible for technology and process improvements, innovation, and solutions designed to benefit global claims professionals, brokers, and key carrier stakeholders who relied on diverse data and digital tools to offer responsive claims services to policyholders.

Throughout his career in the insurance industry, Marc also worked with insurtech providers and in-house technology teams to deliver operational transformation, drive automation opportunities, build modern claims technology platforms, and develop mobile solutions for policyholders. For seven years prior to entering the insurance industry, Marc held various consulting and operations management roles with Silicon Valley startups and Fortune 1000 technology companies.

Marc completed his MBA at NYU’s Stern School of Business and undergraduate studies at Boston University’s School of Management.

Nancy Sabate is a client partner, responsible for developing and expanding the current client base of customers, including fostering and managing client relationships. She also takes part in mentoring the up-and-coming pipeline of future leaders at Xceedance.

Nancy has 25+ years of combined insurance industry expertise and management consulting experience within the areas of finance and accounting.  Prior to joining Xceedance, Nancy held executive consulting roles at Genpact and Infosys where she partnered with multiple clients across industries to identify and execute enterprise-wide transformation initiatives encompassing service delivery, digitization, and optimization of finance and business operations. Prior to her consulting stint, Nancy worked for CNA Insurance in Chicago for 20 years where she held various leadership roles in finance and actuarial.  At CNA, Nancy was exposed to and immersed in the insurance regulatory intricacies that bolstered and solidified her finance and accounting expertise.

In her spare time, Nancy loves spending time with her family and her daily walks on the beach.

Hitesh Sablok is a corporate commercial lawyer with 15 years of experience and has worked across both law firm and in-house roles. He has a wide range of experience across sectors, including cross-border commercial transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and strategic alliances and has had the opportunity to work on the entire life cycle of such transactions (both from a legal and a commercial perspective).

At Xceedance, Hitesh heads the legal and compliance capability and is responsible for overseeing the delivery of legal services to assess and manage risk and accomplish corporate goals.

He received his bachelor of law (honours) degree in 2008 from India and completed his Berkeley Executive Program in Management from Haas School of Business, University of California in November 2019.

Hitesh has featured in the Forbes Legal Power List in both 2021 and 2022 as one of the “Top General Counsels” and he received the Global Lex-Falcon Award 2022. He has also been recognized as “Best Leading Lawyers 2022” by World Intellectual Property Forum.

Monalisa Samal leads global data & risk analytics services at Xceedance. She brings 17 years of corporate experience in analytics, consulting, and leadership with expertise in risk management, portfolio strategies, consulting, and analytics and strives to be a partner to drive client success.

Prior to joining Xceedance, Monalisa worked at RMS in various capacities, including delivery manager, product consultant, and new solutions and innovations leader, serving clients in Asia, Europe, and North America. Her other corporate experiences include working as a fraud risk manager, group leader, and cat modeling specialist for insurance and financial sector companies. In those roles, she was instrumental in setting up new capabilities handling portfolio, pricing, and analytics.

Monalisa earned a master’s degree in Finance and Control and an undergraduate degree in Business Analytics and Intelligence from IIMB. She is a certified Catastrophe Risk Consultant and a fellow of the Insurance Institute of India.

Brian Schmidt is a 20-year insurance industry professional with a career spanning primary insurance, reinsurance, data & analytics, and consulting.  He holds several professional designations including CPCU, CIC, and ASLI.  Brian holds both undergraduate and master’s degrees in business from the University of Cincinnati and serves in several non-profit roles including secretary of the Cincinnati CPCU Society Chapter, and vice-chair of the Underwriting Interest Group for the International CPCU Society.  In his role with Xceedance Brian serves as client partner for key clients around the globe.  He and his teams work to support client insurance operations across the policy life cycle by providing people, process, and technology expertise.

Brian and his family live in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Brian enjoys running, CrossFit, and SCUBA diving as well as being outside whenever possible.

David Schwartz currently serves as vice president of business development, mutual insurance, at Xceedance.  In this capacity, David is responsible for business development and client relationship management in North America.  David works with insurance company clients to create more efficient processes, transform operations with technology, and optimize service and protection for policyholders.  David has over 30 years of marketing and business development experience in the property and casualty industry.  He served as senior vice president of strategic marketing for AIG Risk Management.  After his 20-year tenure at AIG, David assumed senior marketing leadership roles at major insurance carriers including Hanover Insurance Group and XL Insurance.  David earned his J.D. degree from New York Law School and his bachelor of arts degree from The State University of New York, University at Albany.

Jarno Seegers is an experienced and enthusiastic business development professional who works closely with insurers across London and throughout EMEA.

Jarno believes that operational efficiencies can be found by structuring the workforce and enabling each employee to focus on those tasks that match their skillsets best, and this is where Xceedance can help insurers. Besides working closely with our clients, he regularly attends market events and keeps his network open and active: always available for a good conversation.

Prior to Xceedance, Jarno spent time at Pegasystems and SpatialKey. Before that, he was at Pitney Bowes for 17 years, where he worked in pre-sales and sales. Jarno holds a degree in Applied Mathematics from the University of Enschede in the Netherlands, but this was a long time ago!

In his role as VP of business development, claims, Ryan Stokes’ focus is on growing the TPA/claims solutions with new partners and exploring new markets. Additionally, Ryan has extensive knowledge and expertise in the property and casualty insurance industry, specifically in claims management, valuation, and loss adjustment services. He has a thorough understanding of the claims process and can provide insight and guidance to clients on the best strategies and practices to optimize their operations.

Ryan brings over 15 years of experience in the claims industry. He owned top-performing appraisal franchises in Philadelphia and Erie, PA and has spent most of his career growing relationships within the claims industry.

Throughout his career, Ryan has been committed to providing exceptional customer service and delivering innovative solutions that help clients achieve their goals. He has a proven track record of building successful partnerships and driving growth. He is always looking for opportunities to expand his knowledge and network while exploring new markets and is dedicated to staying up to date on industry trends and best practices.

He is passionate about helping clients with all stages of their claims handling. He takes pride in his role as VP of business development at Xceedance.

Anish Suri leads the finance & accounting services team at Xceedance. He has been in the industry for over 20 years and has extensive experience working across various finance functions including regulatory, state fillings, taxation, and audit services across multiple geographies.

He is currently responsible for developing and growing the finance capability by executing strategies, products, and new solutions for existing and new clients and driving client success. He leads regional teams with the responsibility of finalizing financial statements for multiple global clients covering both GAAP and STAT Standards.

He is a Licensed Certified Public Accountant from AICPA and holds a masters degree in finance.

Prashant Tekchandani is responsible for the underwriting, operations, finance and accounting, and claims teams at Xceedance. Prashant brings 18 years of experience in re/insurance markets and has supported operations for multiple insurance organizations.

Prior to joining Xceedance, Prashant served as assistant vice president at Genpact, where he oversaw the reinsurance operations division for a global insurance firm. His responsibilities included supporting the accounting, reporting, and operations functions for clients in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Africa. He also led reengineering projects in accounts payable, accounts receivable, and travel and expense processes at a major insurance company.

Prashant holds a bachelor’s degree in insurance and is a certified Lean Six Sigma black belt. He is certified by TARN (The Accounts Receivable Network) as an accounts receivable manager and maintains certification from the Insurance Institute of India for property/casualty insurance claims.

Prakash Toppo is the executive vice president and chief people officer for the Xceedance Group. In this role he leads the people function globally.

Prakash comes with over two decades of HR leadership experience across multiple industries. Within the offshoring and outsourcing industry, he has led HR teams across Daksh, Aegis, Barclays, BlackRock, and Mercer. During this experience, he enabled their start-up while driving and leading hyper-growth and organizational transformation initiatives like acquisitions, consolidations, and integration.

In his last role, Prakash was the HR leader for global services delivery at Mercer. He led HR for this unit, housing over 5,000 team members that spanned ten countries and supported their health, wealth, and career businesses.

Prakash holds an MBA from IIM, Kolkata, and B. Tech from IIT, Kharagpur. Outside of work, Prakash loves to spend time with family – his wife Nupur, his kids, Reuben and Sophie, and two cats. He also likes to spend his time outdoors on sports or holidaying; indoors, he enjoys solving crosswords or chilling!

Parul Varghese brings over 20 years of learning & development experience working with cross-cultural teams to her role at Xceedance. She started her journey with L&D, with time expanded to Talent Management, OD and other HR functions. She is the college topper during her insurance major from the University of Delhi and 5th Rank holder in the EDHRM course from XLRI, Jamshedpur. On the professional development front, Parul has multiple professional certifications under her belt, including a Green Belt, MBTI, PAPI, Transactional Analysis 101, Design Thinking, LOMA L1, and AINS.

Her core strengths lie in designing, implementing, and evaluating innovative interventions to attract, develop, motivate, and retain employees across levels. A balanced professional, with EQ on her side, she is also proud of her strong stakeholder and people management skills, problem solving, out of the box thinking, impeccable execution, and strong networking skills. She brings a vast experience of working across 18+ industries, as an employee and consultant. She is a winning combination of strategy and execution.

Parul in her current role manages the Learning and Diversity functions for the group. The role is much broader than it appears, swinging more towards change management and OD. Her role cuts across the organization, focusing on building and strengthening the employee value proposition.

Prateek Vijayvergia leads the technology team at Xceedance and spearheads large-scale transformation programs across insurance functions such as underwriting, catastrophe modeling, policy service, and claims for re/insurers worldwide. He brings more than 16 years of proven property/casualty insurance domain experience in managing enterprise technology, data science, automation and insurtech initiatives.

With specialization in advancing strategic technology-driven initiatives for insurance industry participants, Prateek has successfully delivered numerous projects, including new business launch, customer-centric platform design, post-merger and separation IT consolidation, legacy platform overhaul, and geo-specific regulatory compliance.

Prior to Xceedance, Prateek worked at organizations such as IBM, RBS, and Syntel, and was responsible for the design and delivery of major digital transformation programs.

As Chief of Staff, Katey Walker brings 25+ years of leadership and expertise in the property/casualty insurance industry to Xceedance. In this role, she works closely with the executive team to drive strategic initiatives and ensure operational alignment.

Katey’s career spans top executive roles at major consulting and insurance firms, including Aon and Willis Towers Watson, where she demonstrated her ability to lead diverse teams and deliver significant growth and innovation. Her background in actuarial science has equipped her with a technical edge, particularly in implementing predictive models and fostering innovation across personal, commercial, and specialty lines of business. Additionally, she has been instrumental in mergers and acquisitions, data integration, and enhancing collaboration across critical functions such as claims, underwriting, finance, and strategic planning.

Known for her data-driven decision-making and strategic insight, Katey consistently delivers results that improve business performance. Throughout her career, she has overseen teams of up to 200 people, driving product and business development efforts that have led to double-digit growth.

Katey holds a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Management from Purdue University.