The Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based company, with local offices in Overland Park, has received the honor for the second consecutive year. In addition to premium writing and growth, Cretcher Heartland associates and clients cite Old Republic Surety’s overall high service levels, strong relationships, responsiveness, professionalism, staff continuity and commercial surety support as factors leading to the 2011 distinction.

Erle Benton, Cretcher Heartland Bond Manager, said, “We are fortunate to have great relationships and exceptional service from all of our key surety partners, but during the last two years, Old Republic Surety has continued to exceed our expectations. Day after day, they provide the very best level of service we could ask for.”

Cretcher Heartland’s Surety Partner of the Year award was established in 2007 and past winners include Zurich N.A., CNA Surety/Western Surety, United Fire & Casualty Company, and Merchants Bonding Company.

Congratulations to Old Republic Surety, and to everyone on their high-performing service team!

L to R: Margaret Carey, ORSC Commercial Surety Manager; Mike Sanders, ORSC Vice President; Sam Perschau, ORSC General Manager–Midwest Region; Gerry Leach, ORSC President; Erle Benton, CH Bond Manager; Omar Guerra, ORSC Kansas City Bond Manager

If you’re not on our email list, sign up now! (We won’t clog your inbox with too-frequent mailings and we do not sell or share names on our subscription list.) In addition to the occasional greeting, you’ll receive timely newsletters, invitations to our exclusive client seminars and alerts on important regulatory and legal issues.

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See also: as reported by the Kansas City Business Journal: Ex-Chief’s insurance agency sells to Cretcher Heartland

CRETCHER HEARTLAND ACQUIRES
SCOTLAND GROUP

Deal enhances Kansas City and Wichita presence,
loss prevention services

Overland Park, KS – January 9, 2012 – Cretcher Heartland, a rapidly-growing insurance, risk management and employee benefits agency, has announced that it has acquired The Scotland Group, a commercial insurance agency operating in the Kansas City and Wichita markets. The transaction closed in October, 2011 and terms were not disclosed.

The Scotland Group was founded in 2009 and grew to $4 million in annual sales volume. Former Scotland principals Tim Sinclair and Kendall Gammon have both joined Cretcher Heartland; Sinclair will continue to be based in Wichita and Gammon, along with other former Scotland Group staff, has moved to Cretcher Heartland’s Overland Park offices.

Steve Nicholson, Cretcher Heartland CEO, said “We consider more than just revenue in an acquisition, and The Scotland Group and Cretcher Heartland shared a common vision, attitude and approach. It’s definitely a win-win partnership.”

Scotland Group principal and Rose Hill, Kansas native Kendall Gammon is a well-known figure in the area, having played 7 years for the Kansas City Chiefs during his 15-year NFL career. Gammon is also known for his insightful reporting and commentary on the KC Chiefs for various local sports broadcasting outlets.

According to Kendall Gammon, “While The Scotland Group had been remarkably successful in a short amount of time, we were anxious to grow our business to the next level. This partnership enabled us to fast-track our goals. After 15 years in professional football, I appreciate a culture of excellence and in Cretcher Heartland we found like-minded people who want to win and strive to be the best.”

Gammon continued, “This is a very meaningful and important step for us—a game-changer in terms of the enhanced support and resources we can offer to our clients.”

According to Chandler, “I’m looking forward to an active involvement with the YPO. It’s a great opportunity to gain insights from a network of peers and share my decision-making processes with other young business leaders from a cross section of industries.”

Congratulations, Chandler!

Steve Nicholson, Cretcher Heartland CEO notes, “We’re proud that median tenure here is 12.5 years, almost triple that of other U.S. companies in the private sector. Their committed service means we can continue to deliver market-leading knowledge and experience, not to mention rewarding long-term relationships, both inside and outside of our organization.”

Thank you and congratulations to these Cretcher Heartland associates!

5+ years of Service

(with Steve Nicholson and Chandler Cullor) Paul Cohen, Theresa Bebout, Kelly Miller, Paige Hohmann, Martha Bennett, Cyndi Ulett, Dennis Mosier, Jodi Gehrs, Angela Alvarez, Steve Sopinski, Erle Benton,  Guinn Buck, Jackie Honomichl, Adam Gildemeister, Marge Dunn, Carolyn Aten, Valerie Swinney  (Not pictured: Jill Grundy)

10+ Years of Service

Debbie Clark, Bob Zeller, Steve Nicholson, Joe Spiess, Wilma Mallon, Nicole Blaylock, Kelly Watson, Kevin Williams, Randy Sinclair, Christina Stewart, Chandler Cullor, Teresa Zeller, Lynne Ornduff,  (Not pictured: Paul Black, Rex Sweetwood, Jim Wilkinson)

15+ Years of Service

(with Steve Nicholson and Chandler Cullor) Alice Apprill, Tom Hogan, Tom Quick, Cindy Bennett, Carroll Sinclair, Rebecca Speake, Cris Snooks, Evelyn McGaughey, Bob Frankovic, Ron Woelk (Not pictured: Shari Gilliam)

20+ Years of Service

Doris Harper, Linda Minson (with Steve Nicholson and Chandler Cullor)

25+ Years of Service

Mark Nauser, Chris Romine, George Donnelly, Pattie Ransom (with Steve Nicholson and Chandler Cullor)

30+ Years of Service

Susie Young (with Steve Nicholson and Chandler Cullor)

35+ Years of Service

Diana Jackson (with Steve Nicholson and Chandler Cullor)

The new site is part of our continuing commitment to excellent client service, including an ever-growing menu of web-based technologies that deliver enhanced, expanded services when and where you need it.

And as always, we welcome your ideas and feedback as we continue to expand and improve this site. Thanks for visiting!

To be considered for future job openings, please send your resume at any time to resume@cretcherheartland.com

A new partnership means forward-thinking
retirement planning for clients.

Dear Clients and Associates,

Cretcher Heartland is pleased to announce our equity partnership in Two West Capital Advisors. This move will provide expanded value to our clients with innovative retirement planning options that increase efficiency while reducing costs.

As our organization has grown we have increased our focus on better ways to help clients navigate the complex and rapidly-changing world of 401(k) accounts and retirement planning. Ultimately, we concluded that our clients would benefit most if we partnered with a firm that shared our vision and beliefs as well as the goals of our clients…which we have accomplished.

Our organization has known the principals of Two West, Ryan Rink and Marko Ungashick, for several years and have spent a considerable amount of time and due diligence researching their business model. We believe it is the most unique and refreshing approach to the 401(k) industry we have found. We’re enthusiastic that now we can offer you the exclusive opportunity to access a forward-thinking, one-of-a-kind 401(k) experience that has significant impact “from the boardroom to the breakroom.”

Our continuing commitment is to offer timely, innovative solutions to all of your business challenges. We hope you’ll take the opportunity to meet the members of our retirement planning team and learn more about their exciting vision of what the future of the industry holds.

For more information, please contact your Cretcher Heartland representative or Two West directly; to arrange a consultation, please click here to schedule an appointment at your convenience.

And as always, both of us are always ready to hear your feedback and ideas!

Sincerely,

Steve Nicholson, CEO