ATLANTA | WWW.WSIA.ORG
LEADERSHIP DEFINED:
Q&A WITH WSIA PRESIDENT
JACQUE SCHAENDORF
WHEN THE ANNOUNCEMENT WAS
MADE THAT YOU’D BEEN ELECTED
PRESIDENT DURING THE SPRING SUMMIT
IN PHOENIX, THERE WAS A SURGE OF
ENTHUSIASM FROM THOSE IN THE
AUDIENCE, A PALPABLE FEELING
SHARED THAT THIS IS SOMEONE WHO’S
KNOWN FOR GETTING THINGS DONE,
WHO IS WELL LIKED AND EXTREMELY
CAPABLE, AND IS DESERVING OF THE
ROLE. I’D LOVE YOUR THOUGHTS ON
THAT, AND WHAT WAS GOING THROUGH
YOUR MIND AT THAT MOMENT.
At that moment, when the current WSIA
President, Corinne Jones, passed the gavel to me
I turned to look at the audience and thought,
YOU’VE BEEN A KEY PLAYER WORKING
WITH THE FORMER NAPSLO FOR MANY
YEARS, AND NOW YOU’RE CHART-
“Wow, what an extreme honor to have the
opportunity to be in this room with so many
current and superstar legends in this industry.”
Presidents of NAPSLO and AAMGA, and
various association members, respectively.
The WSIA Merger Committee had out-
standing leadership also, and I cannot say
enough about the work of the WSIA Staff led
by Brady Kelley, to make it happen so smooth-
ly and so seamlessly. The breadth and depth
of the work over the timeframe where WSIA
became operational was completely almost
another full-time job, particularly for the staff.
From a professional standpoint, knowing
that we could bring two already outstanding
industry associations together to form WSIA
to forge an even stronger organization for our
membership and the industry could not be
a more rewarding achievement as I reflect
upon the experience. Personally, I think about
how much fun this industry is, what a great
purpose we serve and how lucky I have been
to be a part of it.
I am such a fan of those that established, built
and continue to advance the Excess & Surplus
lines sector of the insurance industry.
ING THE COURSE FOR WSIA AS ITS
PRESIDENT. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN
TO YOU, BOTH ON A PERSONAL AND
PROFESSIONAL LEVEL?
TAKE US BACK. HOW DID YOU GET INTO
THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY?
Long-term relationships are such an important part of what makes our industry unique. To
see so many of the people that I have developed
great friendships with and respect so much,
many of whom served in the same leadership
capacity that I was stepping into was just such a
great moment. It was surreal, and very special.
There have been several key players that I’ve
been so fortunate to work with throughout
the experience with NAPSLO and now WSIA.
Charting the course for WSIA was a process
that included a significant amount of plan-
ning and included so many key insights and
historical perspectives from the Executive
I joined the insurance industry by pure chance
and luck. I played college sports and when
I graduated from Hope College in Holland,
Mich., I moved to Chicago for work. I started
my insurance career at Alexander & Alexander
Committees, Boards of Directors and Past
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CONTINUED ON PAGE 6
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