01/24/11 - - Cleveland, OH -- Insurance Broadcasting in conjunction with the Insurance Media Association, is pleased to announce our 8th annual list of the "100 Most Powerful People In The Insurance Industry, North America" also referred to as "The Insurance Dream Team."

The premise is simple. What 100 people connected to the insurance industry in the U.S. would you put in a room to effect an outcome related to insurance?

Our thought is to include the people who control the most insurance industry resources (people, capital, intellectual knowledge, technology, etc.) or has the most influence on those resources; the person at the top.

Our methodology for measuring power is not to create a list of the CEO's of the 100 largest insurance companies. Nor does it recognize or account for past achievement, longevity, decide who is the most effective businessperson, determine who has been the most innovative, or choose who is on the fast-track to the top.

You either have ultimate authority over resources (power), or you don't.

We understand the subjectivity of this type of ranking, but stand by our premise. The people below are the 100 we think who have the most (collective) resources available to them and who would have the most ability (as a group) to successfully accomplish any goal or directive of the insurance industry. In a sense, it is an insurance industry "Dream Team" (www.insurancedreamteam.net).

In an industry as large and segmented as the insurance industry, 100 people is an incredibly small number of people to single out and recognize. We publish this list to provoke thinking and discussion, and to provide a better perspective on our industry.

As we mention each year, it is important to note that no one asked to be on the list, and many might even be a bit uncomfortable to be on a "power" list. The term "power" in today's society can make people uncomfortable, with words like leadership or stewardship preferred.

My personal belief is that the people on this list would be the first to give credit to others. Most likely they have worked hard and have great integrity and management skills, and the reason they have power is that they have been given that power by others because they are "trusted." That their power is a reflection of the confidence and faith others have in them, and their power is viewed by them as a guardianship, duty and charge to serve others.

We received many nominations of people with great credentials that we were just unable to fit onto a list of only 100. The difficulty is easily understood by asking yourself who you would remove from the list below to add your favorite. We also have categorized the names for specific niches of the insurance industry. The names are listed alphabetically within each category. No effort was made to rank the list as #1, #2, #3, etc.

Walter B. Podgurski, CEO, Insurance Broadcasting