Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the time span between Thomas Marra leaving The Hartford and joining Symetra.
Symetra Financial, with insurance operations in Windsor, has again tapped into the management expertise of The Hartford in a bid to build its insurance sales platform.
Steve Mezei, formerly Hartford Financial Service Group Inc.’s regional sales manager for the Greater New York City region, is Symetra Life Insurance’s new Northeastern group life and disability sales chief covering Connecticut and 13 other states.
Mezei, who will work from the Fairfield office, is one of three industry veterans Symetra recently recruited as part of its buildup of its group life business.
In June 2010, Thomas M. Marra, who had spent the last two years of his career at The Hartford as chief operating officer, was hired to run Bellevue, Wash.-based Symetra Financial as president and CEO.
Mezei spent more than five years at The Hartford. Before that, he held a variety of sales, underwriting and claims roles at Aetna.
In addition, newly hired Christopher Koettker will lead group life and disability income sales efforts in Symetra’s Western region.
Andrew McMillan, another ex-Aetna manager, will head up sales for Symetra’s group life and disability income business in the Eastern region, which stretches from Florida to Illinois.
Symetra Financial is a 2004 spin off from insurer Safeco and whose investors include billionaire Warren Buffett’s Berkshire-Hathaway Corp.
