Universal Insurance fills vacated COO position after a year

US-based property and casualty insurer Universal Insurance Holdings has appointed Michael Poloskey to take on a new role as chief operating officer (COO).

Poloskey fills the COO role, which was vacated last summer when Steve Donaghy was named chief executive officer.

Poloskey has been the company’s vice president of underwriting since 2013. Prior to that, he served as vice president of Evolution Risk Advisors (formerly Universal Risk Advisors) since 2009. Over more than a decade, Poloskey has been a liaison between Evolution Risk Advisors and the in-house reinsurance intermediary Blue Atlantic Re, has overhauled operational workflows and the organisational structure in the underwriting department.

Donaghy said: “This move fits with the natural progression of our organisation in providing opportunities for advancement and creating a culture of operational excellence.”

Poloskey added: “I look forward to broadening the operational excellence culture we have instilled within our underwriting department the past several years, cross functionally throughout the organisation, in partnership with our executive leadership team.”