JAMES KIRRANE

69 Bay 11th Street * Brooklyn, NY 11228

jk8e5dac@westpost.net * (718) 331-1450 * Cell: (917) 602-8599
* Operations Management * Business Development * Key Account Manage
ment
Accomplished executive offering more than 25 years experience in insurance and f
inancial operations and sales management. Results-oriented, decisive leader, wit
h proven success in establishing a lasting presence in new markets, identifying
growth opportunities, and initiating strong business alliances. Exceptional inte
rpersonal skills; able to foster teamwork and goal achievement in employees at a
ll levels. Spearheaded numerous initiatives to improve service delivery, data in
tegrity, and development of new distribution channels for existing products, con
tributing significantly to company's revenue and profitability.
CORE COMPETENCIES
Business Operations - Key Account Management - Strategic Sales Planning - Cha
nge Management - Technology Integration - Project Management - Budget Administ
ration - Training & Development - Alliance / Partner Relations
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
SAVINGS BANK LIFE INSURANCE - New York, NY 11/2008 - Present
Key Account Management - Identifying business opportunities in the bank and brok
erage general agent marketplace. Working with key accounts to revitalize busines
s and strengthen company relationship.
Consultant
Working with the New Business Development Team to identifying banks, broker deal
ers and general agents to distribute SBLI / SUSA product line. Responsibilities
include working with key accounts to provide support and strengthen company rela
tionship. The design and implementation of new programs to distribute products.
Introduction and training of new representative to sell and distribute current
products. Developed business plans for Business Development Managers as a tool
to manage accounts and define success. Currently working with a number of area
s of the company including Marketing and Sales, Underwriting and IT to identify
processes where opportunities for improvements can increase sales and or operati
onal efficiencies. Redesigned the training and planning process for new financi
al institution relationships. Contributed in the development of a number of revi
sed processes to improve communications and increase sales with existing clients
.
Results 2010 sales 112% of Plan for Policy Count, 129% of Plan for Premium
INDEPENDENT FINANCIAL MARKETING GROUP - Purchase, NY 12/1996 - 8/2008
Responsible for operations and support for all life insurance and annuity produc
t sales and processing for insurance division of full-service financial services
firm serving banks, credit unions, and financial institutions.
Senior Vice President
Accountable for all aspects in the insurance division including: annuity process
ing, life insurance case management, field services, call center management, and
key account management. Supervised five direct reports (Director of Field Servi
ces, President of IFS Agencies, Director of Data Integrity, Manager of Table Mai
ntenance, and Director of New Business, Vice President of Administration and Fac
ilities), overseeing 80 employees, including licensed product specialists and ne
w business representatives. Managed all planning, operational, and administrativ
e processes for division. Created new systems, processes, and departments to sup
port company growth and expansion into new service areas, including design and r
ollout of life insurance training modules for retail banking clients. Conceived
Field Services Unit to provide single-source support for field force support tea
m. Supervise call center providing sales support for more than 2,500 registered
representatives. Negotiate contracts and manage relationships with key insurance
carriers and mutual fund providers, including Allstate, AIG, New York Life, Pru
dential, Oppenheimer, MS, Putnam, and Principal Mutual. Coordinate planning and
execution of 5-6 company-sponsored meetings and events annually for 25-300 parti
cipants, including administration of $4M in vendor contributions. Evaluate and m
aintain division's disaster recovery plans. Administer $7M budget.
Key Achievements:
Designed and managed annuity new business processing department accountable for
more than 50K transactions representing $1.7Billon in sales; established and ach
ieved quality ratios in excess of 98% for transactions.
Launched life insurance division from inception in 1998 and grew division to mor
e than $100M in sales by 2006.
Secured more than $5M annually in financial support from insurance carriers.
Contributed to development and beta testing of straight-through processing proje
ct, a technology initiative designed to reduce the number of nonconforming appli
cations generated while simultaneously increasing the efficiency of sales repres
entatives.
Led data integrity project to improve quality of information gathered and mainta
ined in company database.
Collaborated with the compliance division to create new accounts department in 2
006 to review accounts and apply suitability standards.
Facilitated conversions of new financial institutions to IFS securities, includi
ng personally coordinating the conversion process for two large clients, success
fully meeting all internal and external deadlines.
AMERICAN MAYFLOWER LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY - New York, NY 1/1988 - 12/1996
Vice President, Field Services
Led staff of 16 employees within Internal Sales, Licensing, and Marketing Suppor
t departments to provide field sales support for 125 general agents and key bank
clients. Trained home office staff on new products, including product education
, sales techniques, and regulatory compliance issues. Conducted more than 50 pre
sentations each year for groups of 25 to 300 employees and/or agents. Gathered a
necdotal data and made recommendations to improve services, products, and field
support tactics. Created sales collateral and sales procedures.
Key Achievements:
Instrumental in planning and execution of company strategic plan to target banks
and financial institutions for product sales. Challenged to drive rapid growth
through development of new sales/product distribution channels.
Successfully grew financial services firm's banking relationships to provide mor
e than 30% of all new business, generating $8-10M in new revenue annually.
EDUCATION AND CREDENTIALS
PACE UNIVERSITY - New York, New York
Undergraduate Studies in Marketing
Licensed New York State Life Insurance Agent
Series 6 and 26 Registrations