Move Responds to Growth, Signals Firm's
Ongoing Commitment to Client Service Across All Categories
FORT
WORTH, Texas, June 27,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Higginbotham, the largest independent
insurance, financial and HR services firm headquartered in
Texas and one of the top firms in
the country, announced the promotion of long-time executive team
member and former Chief Operating Officer, Personal Insurance Mary
Russell to the position of President, Private Client Services.
This move marks the final division of the president title that
Higginbotham Chairman and CEO Rusty
Reid has held since 1989 into three separate division
titles, with Chris Rooker as
President, Business Insurance; Michael
Parks as President, Financial Services and Employee
Benefits; and Mary Russell as
President, Private Client Services.
"These are the three big umbrellas in our industry — business
insurance, personal or private client insurance, and financial
services and benefits," said Reid. "Higginbotham is proud to provide service in
each area. But we also provide service across areas for clients
with complex needs. That's a big part of our culture — that we'll
take care of you across any lines. To expand on that culture as we
grow, we needed top people to take the lead on each vertical while
also working together as a team across divisions. Chris, Michael,
and Mary already work together as Higginbotham board members, and I couldn't
have asked for better people to lead each division."
Reid first met Russell when they were early-career employees at
American General Fire & Casualty Company. After Reid moved to
Higginbotham and took over
management of the fledgling firm, he pursued Russell for two years
before she agreed to join him.
"I was Higginbotham employee
number 12 and Mary was number 15," Reid reminisced. "When there are
only 15 of you, and you're building a company from the ground up,
you wear a lot of hats. We got to know each other's abilities,
qualities, and values thoroughly — and Mary's qualities are
outstanding. Under her leadership, our personal insurance
department has grown tenfold, and many of the clients she engaged
in 1992 remain with us to this day."
In her new role as president, Russell will provide top executive
coordination while overseeing operations throughout the division,
leading a dedicated team that serves more than 44,000 individual
clients across the 17-state Higginbotham footprint.
"People ask me why I chose personal insurance over commercial or
benefits," Russell said. "I tell them it's because I love the
relationships we form with our clients. Some of my earliest clients
have children, and those children are now clients with children of
their own. We've been their trusted advisors this whole time,
walking side-by-side through life with them. It's a tremendous
responsibility, but it's also an amazing feeling."
Russell went on to explain that the same feeling of continuity
and renewal runs through her interactions with peers and teammates
at Higginbotham.
"It's a blessing to work with people like Rusty, Chris, and
Michael that I've known for so many years, but it's the new
generation coming up that energizes us. I've talked to young people
here who are already planning full careers at Higginbotham. That's a testament to the
culture we built. We're the largest independent agency in
Texas with partnerships around the
country, but we've retained that small-town, personal agency feel.
We truly are like a family here."
In 2013, Russell received Safeco's Personal Achievement Award
and was named Travelers' Personal Insurance Agent of the Year. In
2016, the Private Risk Management Association (PRMA) honored her
with the JoAnn Heltibridle Award,
which annually recognizes one insurance professional who stands for
passionate industry support and client service excellence. In 2019,
Russell was named a Great Woman of Texas by the Fort Worth Business Press.
Russell holds Certified Insurance Service Representative (CISR),
Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC), and Certified Private Risk and
Insurance Advisor (CPRIA) designations. In 2022, Russell earned a
Certified Advisor of Personal Insurance (CAPI) designation through
Chubb Personal Risk Services in partnership with the Wharton School
at the University of Pennsylvania.
ABOUT HIGGINBOTHAM
Higginbotham is a single source
solution for insurance, financial and HR/employee benefits
services. The employee-owned firm was established in 1948 and ranks
by revenue today as the nation's 21st largest independent insurance
brokerage. Based in Fort Worth,
Texas, Higginbotham serves
businesses and individuals through locations across the nation. The
firm specializes in tailoring programs to meet each client's unique
needs, and in standing by those programs with their Day Two
Services®, which provide proactive customer support through the
life of each policy.
Higginbotham is a values-driven
firm that strives to be family to employees, accountable to
clients, teammates to carriers, and generous to communities.
Visit higginbotham.com for more information.
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SOURCE Higginbotham