NAFA Annuity Distribution Summit Speakers
Keynote Speaker
Geoff Woods is the #1 bestselling author of The AI-Driven Leader, host of the AI-Driven Leader podcast, and Founder of AI Leadership and The AI-Driven Leadership Collective™, a highly vetted network of executives collaborating to harness AI to build better businesses and better lives.
As the former Chief Growth Officer of Jindal Steel & Power, Geoff’s strategic leadership helped the company grow its market cap from $750 million to over $12 billion in just four years. Prior to that, he co-founded the training and consulting company behind The ONE Thing, advising businesses ranging from $10 million to $60 billion in annual revenue.
The keynote speaker presentation is proudly sponsored by:
Featured Speakers
Captain David Marquet imagines a workplace where everyone engages and contributes their full intellectual capacity, a place where people are healthier and happier because they have more control over their work — a place where everyone is a leader. His compelling presentations deliver the powerful message that in highly effective organizations, leadership is not for the select few at the top.
David served in the US submarine force for 28 years, is the best-selling author of three books (Turn the Ship Around, Leadership is Language, and Distancing: How Great Leaders Reframe to Make Better Decisions), and now speaks to those who want to create empowering work environments that release the passion, initiative, and intellect of each person. His bold and highly effective framework is summarized as “give control, create leaders.”
Kelly McDonald is considered one of the nation’s top experts in diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), leadership, marketing and sales to people “not like you,” consumer trends, and leveraging the customer experience. A 4x bestselling author and renowned professional speaker, she has also been featured on CNBC, NNMoney.com and SiriusXM Radio, as well as in Forbes Magazine, BusinessWeek and Fast Company.
Kelly is also the founder of McDonald Marketing, which has twice been named one of the “Top Ad Agencies in the U.S.” by Advertising Age magazine and ranked as one of the fastest-growing independently-owned companies in the U.S. by Inc. Magazine.
Becky Ruby Swansburg spent her early career working in Congress and the White House, assisting government leaders with some of the most pressing issues facing our nation. Her work on tax policy and America’s savings habits turned her attention toward the urgent needs of today’s retirees. Becky brings her policy background and extensive communication knowledge as co-author of The New Holistic Retirement, The No-Compromise Retirement Plan, a book heralded across the industry as insightful, impactful and most of all – enjoyable to read.
Becky is currently CEO of Stonewood Financial, bringing more than a decade of experience in public relations and communication across a range of industries in the for-profit, non-profit and government sectors to her work. Prior to joining Stonewood, Becky headed communications for economic development organizations, U.S. Congressmen and government agencies, and has worked in the White House Press Office in Washington, D.C.
Speakers
Alan Assner is the AVP of individual annuities at The Standard, where he oversees actuarial, sales distribution, operations, service and strategy for the line of business. He has more than 25 years of experience in the industry, including extensive product development expertise. He is focused on identifying emerging market opportunities to support The Standard’s growth in the annuity marketplace. Previously, Alan was head of annuity and life product development at Brighthouse Financial and was responsible for spearheading product design and driving growth in both existing and untapped distribution channels.
Phil Brzenk, CFA, is global head of multi-asset Indices at S&P Dow Jones Indices (S&P DJI). His team is responsible for the product management of multi-asset, volatility and options indices, which cover a variety of outcome-oriented index solutions including managed volatility, asset allocation, retirement-focused, options strategies and liquid alternatives. Previously, Phil was a senior director in the Strategy Indices team, and has held various roles in other departments at S&P DJI including research and design, strategy index management, custom and development.
Jay Charles leads Luma’s annuity business as director of annuity products. He joined Luma in August of 2020 from Prudential Financial, where he led teams focused on developing and commercializing new strategic solutions for Prudential Annuities, including helping launch the carrier’s annuities on multiple fintech platforms. Previously, Jay served as vice president, commercial banking strategy at JP Morgan Chase & Co., where he managed projects focused on developing commercial banking growth strategies and improving operational efficiency and effectiveness, and as an associate for McKinsey & Co.
Wayne Chopus is president and CEO of the Insured Retirement Institute (IRI), the leading association for the entire supply chain of insured retirement strategies. Upon joining IRI in 2019, Wayne initiated a reorganization to amplify the association’s longstanding strengths and position it to take on new challenges. Under his leadership, IRI has advanced several critical advocacy objectives, including two major retirement security laws and a significant consumer protection regulation for financial advice professionals. Previously, Wayne rose to be a respected retirement income industry executive over nearly three decades with Prudential Financial and The Hartford.
Katherine Dease is chief technology and innovation officer for the Insured Retirement Institute (IRI). She is responsible for driving the industry forward alongside the CEO, the Board and IRI member firms. She oversees all aspects of operations and technology, and works with all divisions of IRI. Katherine has 23 years of product management and business development experience within the financial services industry. Before joining IRI, she held leadership positions at Hexure (formerly Insurance Technologies) and Ebix.
Chuck DiVencenzo joined NAFA in 2019 as its president and CEO, overseeing the association’s efforts to promote and expand the utilization of fixed and fixed index annuity products through independent distribution. His work on advocacy at the state and federal levels, thought leadership, consumer education efforts and commitment to industry best practices have aided product acceptance and industry growth. Previously, he held positions with Allianz Life and The Hartford, as well as Edward Jones, M&T Bank and National Benefits Group, developing relationships across the industry that help propel his vision for the association forward.
Mitch Finch is director of administration for Gradient Financial Group. He joined Gradient in February 2021 as part of their technology division focusing on increasing producer adoption of Gradient’s proprietary technology suite and the industry integrations they have implemented in their organization. Since moving into the administration role, he has been driving operational excellence on all Gradient administrative teams by focusing on the combined strength of people, process and technology. Prior to his time at Gradient, he served as a senior account representative with Allianz Life concentrating on enhancing the producer experience in their New York annuity business.
Carrie Freeburg is SVP of product and marketing at SILAC® where she is responsible for innovative product development, inforce management and edgy marketing that sets SILAC apart from its peers. She takes pride in turning an intangible insurance product into something that the policyholder can understand. Prior to joining SILAC, Carrie worked as a consultant in annuity and life insurance product development. She has developed over 60 products at 10 different insurance carriers, many of which have been top industry sellers and are still on the market today. Much of her success is tied to her understanding of distribution.
John Hurley serves as chief distribution officer at Ibexis. In his role, he is responsible for retail sales and marketing efforts along with the management and development of distribution partnerships. John has over 18 years of experience in annuity distribution. Prior to joining Ibexis, he started with the Hartford Annuities and most recently Global Atlantic. During his time at Global Atlantic, John was head of internal sales. He also worked as vice president of national account management, primarily focused on leading the effort to partner with national IMOs to drive sales at independent broker dealers. John has a bachelor’s degree from Pennsylvania State University in State College, Pa.
Danette L. Kennedy, JD, is senior vice president of agency and business development at Brokers International, an Integrity company. Danette’s extensive experience in financial services includes working with IMOs and insurance carriers in areas of marketing and sales strategies, agent training, legal and compliance matters, and business development. Danette is currently serving her second year as the Iowa Corporate Light the Night Walk Chair for Blood Cancer United, formerly Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
David Levenson, DBA, FSA, CFA, is president and CEO for LIMRA and LOMA. In this capacity, he is responsible for leading one of the world’s largest associations of life insurance and financial services companies, representing 700 member organizations across 70 countries. Previously, David was a principal at Edward Jones and served on its management committee from 2015-2018. He was responsible for all products distributed through its network of 17,000 advisors in the U.S. and Canada. Prior to 2012, he serves as president of wealth management at The Hartford Financial Services Group, responsible for the firm’s individual annuity, individual life, mutual fund and retirement plan businesses. He also served as president and CEO of Hartford Life, KK in Tokyo, where he was responsible for leading the largest annuity provider in Japan.
Ryan Lex leverages more than two decades of financial-services sales and distribution experience to lead Talcott’s marketing and distribution strategy as the company enters the retail annuity market. His journey includes leadership roles at Ibexis Life & Annuity, Athene USA, Genworth Financial and Hartford Life — experiences he draws on to share practical lessons and advice for the next generation of industry leaders.
Rich Macari is the head of insurance and bank index solutions at Nasdaq Global Indexes, focused on broadening Nasdaq’s insurance and banking solutions portfolio. His background is rooted in the asset management world. Prior to joining Nasdaq, Rich began his career at Legg Mason, holding various roles across their sales organization, and furthered his expertise at Franklin Templeton by leading the expansion of their index-linked Insurance solutions business. Since joining Nasdaq in September 2023, Rich has spearheaded investment and sales initiatives across the insurance and bank space, through partnerships with insurance carrier FIA and RILA lineups and bank structured product offerings.
Stephane Mattatia is managing director, global head of index client solutions at MSCI. He is part of MSCI’s Coverage leadership team. In this role, he works together with research and coverage to refine, create and grow innovative indexes, for both thematic and structured product needs, and drive leadership in the industry. Stephane joined MSCI in July 2018 as head of index for EMEA and global head of thematic index. He focused on driving index growth in EMEA and launched the MSCI thematic offering. Previously, Stephane was with Societe Generale CIB where he held numerous positions over a 12-year period.
Kevin Mechtley serves as vice president, business development and chief innovation officer for North American, where he is dually focused on new product innovation and strategic relationship building. He leverages nearly 20 years of annuity industry experience to lead new product ideation processes, oversee competitive intelligence and work with annuity group leadership to prioritize business development opportunities. Previously, Kevin was part of North American’s legal team where he led the government affairs unit. He is also the current vice chairman of NAFA’s board of directors.
Aaron Murphy has been instrumental in shaping Nationwide Insurance’s strategic direction and financial outcomes since July 2019 in his role as the spearhead of variable annuity product development. His portfolio, which encompasses traditional variable annuities and registered indexed linked annuities, represents an impressive $70 billion in assets. Aaron’s role is multifaceted, involving product innovation, development, and the management of profitability and risk associated with Nationwide’s variable annuity product line. His journey at Nationwide began in 1998, where he gained a comprehensive understanding of the business from the Annuity Operation’s organization. Over the past 15 years, he has honed his focus on driving business success through the development and management of product
Branislav Nikolic is an established thought leader specializing in annuities and retirement income planning. He joined The Index Standard after a decade at Cannex Financial Exchanges, where as vice president of research he was instrumental in extending Cannex’s strong presence in the retirement income space. Branislav holds a Masters degree in probability and financial engineering and a PhD in applied mathematics from York University in Toronto, where he is also a lecturer in finance and mathematics. Branislav holds the designation of Financial Risk Manager (FRM). He is a research fellow of Alliance for Lifetime Income (ALI) and is currently serving on the board of National Association for Fixed Annuities (NAFA). He is a prolific author for business and trade publications and a frequent speaker at insurance seminars.
Pratik Pareek is head of insurance coverage and sales within the Goldman Sachs equities business in FICC and equities. He was previously head of the Financial Institutions Group strats team in the Investment Banking Division, and was responsible for cross-asset financing and derivative solutions for insurance companies and banks. Pratik joined Goldman Sachs as an associate in 2012 and was named managing director in 2019. Pratik previously worked at Citigroup as an ABS research analyst. He earned a BTech in Electrical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi in 2008 and a master’s degree in Financial Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley in 2012.
Arron Price is COO of Financial Independence Group (FIG), where he is responsible for the overall business operations of the company and oversees the technology, operations, onboarding, commissions and business support units within FIG. Arron began his career at FIG over a decade ago as a software developer. Through building upon FIG’s technical infrastructure and proprietary platforms, he fell in love with the business as well as the immense opportunity for evolution within the industry. In 2015, Arron assumed the role of director of software engineering, charged with leading and growing cross-functional agile teams aimed at revolutionizing the strategies and tools that support FIG’s financial professionals. Through that time, he found his passion in driving collaboration to empower teams to innovative results through opinion-sharing and teamwork – a core value that resonates throughout all of FIG’s departments and teams.
Jason Smith is a retirement income specialist at Ash Brokerage, bringing nearly 20 years of financial services experience to his role. He specializes in retirement planning, annuities and Social Security strategies, guiding clients toward secure and confident retirements. Jason previously held key positions as regional vice president at InSource, senior marketing consultant at Dressander and financial advisor at Smith Barney. A Central Connecticut State University graduate, Jason was recently inducted into the university’s Hall of Fame for his standout basketball achievements, including multiple NCAA Tournament appearances. Holding Series 7 and RICP designations, he co-hosts the Between Branches podcast, offering valuable insights for bank financial advisors.
David Wolfe is General Counsel for Advisors Excel, one of the nation’s largest independent marketing organizations, located in Topeka, Kansas. He also oversees the legal affairs of Advisors Excel’s affiliated SEC Registered Investment Adviser, AE Wealth Management, and other affiliated businesses. In this role, Dave routinely deals with issues concerning the distribution and marketing of insurance and other financial products. Dave is also highly involved in regulatory matters, and state and federal issues concerning sales and advice relating to insurance and financial products. Dave is Chairman of NAFA’s Board of Directors and previously chaired its Government and Legal Affairs Committee.