InsHER

In this episode, I interview Rajni Kapur, CEO of one of California’s largest independently owned insurance agencies, All Solutions Insurance. We discuss her inspiring path from CPA to insurance leader. Rajni opens up about the resilience required to launch her agency in 2003 while navigating the complexities of new motherhood, explaining how those early years shaped her leadership philosophy. She...

In this episode, I interview Rachel Druckenmiller, Keynote Speaker + Founder, UNMUTED, and former Director of Well-Being and Employee Engagement at a benefits consulting firm. Rachel opens up about her unexpected 13-year journey in the insurance industry, which began as a simple summer administrative role and evolved into pioneering an award-winning corporate wellness initiative from scratch. Faci...

In this episode, I interview Natina Berry, Senior Underwriter at Freberg Environmental, with over 20 years of expertise in commercial insurance and strategic account management. Natina shares her fascinating career journey with me, which began with a specialized training program through The Hartford. Beyond her corporate role, Natina discusses her extensive leadership in the industry, including se...

In this episode, I interview Sarah Abrams, Executive Vice President at RT ProExec and the new voice behind The D&O Diary. Sarah shares how she went from practicing law as a coverage attorney in Chicago to handling complex professional liability claims, moving into underwriting, and ultimately stepping into one of the most respected thought leadership platforms in the D&O space. Along the w...

In this episode, I interview Jamie Behymer, Director of Diversity, Inclusion, and Young Agents at the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (Big "I"), to discuss the future of talent, leadership, and inclusion in the insurance industry. Jamie shares how her father's long career in insurance first introduced her to the profession and how that experience ultimately led her to a role...

In this episode, I interview Monica Adwani, who talks about unexpected career paths, entrepreneurship, and the importance of building an insurance industry that truly reflects the communities it serves. Monica shares how she found insurance by accident after losing her IT job, only to discover an industry that would ultimately shape her career. From learning insurance at the Liberty Mutual Researc...

In this episode, I interview Cristina Varner, SVP and Life Science Practice Leader – West Region at Lockton, for a candid conversation about advocacy, leadership, and what it really means for women to take up space in the workplace. Cristina shares her unexpected path into insurance after originally pursuing fashion merchandising, and how she became known as an “activist” for speaking up about equ...

In this special Mother’s Day episode, I interview Emma Corcoran, Founder of EC Consulting LLC. We share an honest conversation about career growth, motherhood, and redefining success on your own terms. Emma shares how her insurance journey began through an internship at Selective Insurance and evolved into launching her own consulting business, a decision shaped not just by professional ambition,...

In this episode, I interview Linda Liu, CEO of LiftHERCareer. We talk about her unique career journey, starting as a receptionist in an insurance agency to working in IT consulting, global education, and ultimately founding LiftHER Career. Each chapter of Linda’s career built toward a clear purpose: helping young people, especially those from underrepresented backgrounds, successfully navigate the...

This special episode was recorded live in New York City as the opening to Women at the Top: Reaching the Apex in Work and Life, presented by Tyson & Mendes’ Women’s Initiative. In collaboration with InsHER, National Managing Partner Cayce Lynch and Partner, Head of Growth & Client Engagement Ashley Fetyko (both of Tyson & Mendes), and hosts of The Normal Mess, graciously invited me to...

In this episode, I had the chance to do something a little different, and really special, by hosting my first-ever mother-son conversation with Legia and Lukas Oswald. Legia, founder and CEO of Out of Pocket EXP, has spent years in the insurance and temporary housing space, and together with her son Lukas, they’ve built a business focused on improving how additional living expense claims are handl...

In this episode, I interview Maria Trapenasso, SVP and National Practice Leader of Talent Solutions at NFP, whose career journey brings such a unique and important perspective to our industry. Maria started in HR before transitioning into insurance sales, even earning her health and life license so she could work directly with individuals. Her dual lens, understanding both employee needs and busin...

In this episode, I interview Chelsy Bell Carpenter, a leadership strategist whose work sits at the intersection of high performance and humanity. Chelsy’s journey into insurance started in marketing, but quickly evolved as she became deeply connected to the human side of claims and the real impact of loss on people’s lives. From there, she stepped into claims adjusting and even helped build out cl...

In this episode, I interview Kim Cathey, Release Manager at RGA, whose career journey is anything but linear, and exactly the kind of story that reminds me there’s no one “right” path into this industry. From a high school internship at a State Farm agent’s office to roles across fashion, banking, aerospace, and ultimately insurance, Kim has built her career through curiosity, adaptability, and co...

In this episode, I interview Alexis Simmons, a Senior Builder’s Risk Underwriter at Axis Capital. Over the past decade, Alexis has built her career across organizations such as Liberty Mutual and The Hartford, and today she leads with both technical expertise and heart, managing her book of business and partnering closely with brokers. But what I’ve always admired most about Alexis is how she show...

In this episode, I interview three incredible women: Yolanda Austin, Katie Hughes, and Candace Duncan. Each of them has built a unique path in insurance, from claims to data and AI governance to industry standards, but the common thread is community. We talked about our involvement in the Women in Insurance Initiative and how it’s created a space where women can connect across roles, companies, an...

In this episode, I interview Sharné Liebenberg, founder of Unrisked, a boutique risk consultancy based in Johannesburg, whose path into insurance is anything but traditional. With a background in journalism, Sharné brings a unique lens to underwriting, one rooted in curiosity, empathy, and a deep commitment to understanding people before assessing their risk. We talked about how that perspective h...

In this episode, I interview Marla Carangi, Director of Sales and Partnerships at Embark Safety, to talk about a critical area of risk management: fleet safety. Marla shares how Embark Safety uses near-real-time driver record monitoring to help companies identify risk before it turns into an accident, supporting more than 400,000 drivers across 1,000+ organizations. We explore the origin story beh...

In this episode, I interview Tracie Thompson, Global Leader of Strategic Accounts at Cytora, whose career journey  spans the globe. From her start in Australia to senior leadership roles across Europe, the UK, and the U.S., Tracie brings a powerful perspective shaped by decades in the industry, including time with AIG and Aon. We talked about how her work in crisis management and climate risk has...

In this episode, I interview Danielle Rohr, AVP and broker at Wholesure, to talk about her dynamic path into transportation insurance and the leadership mindset that has fueled her growth. Danielle shared how she went from a background in theater and writing to building a successful wholesale career specializing in cargo and stock throughput, a transition sparked in part by her husband’s early enc...

In this episode, I interview Lindsey DiGangi, Vice President of Field Operations and Marketing at Pennsylvania Lumberman's Mutual Insurance Company to talk about her leadership journey and what it really looks like to grow a career from the inside out. Lindsey shared how a single risk management class in college sparked her interest in insurance, which eventually led her to an internship and then...

In this episode, I interview Jennifer (Jen) Marino, Chief Marketing Officer at MSIG USA, to talk about her impressive career journey and the evolving role of marketing in insurance. Jen shared how she transitioned from consumer products into financial services, bringing with her a sharp focus on data, customer experience, and brand strategy. We explored how she’s used data-driven insights to move...

In this episode, I interview Marya Propis, Executive Vice President of Retail Distribution at RT Specialty, to continue an important conversation she had recently sparked alongside Leanne Berry through RT’s WOW (Women Opportunity Winning) program and APIW, Inc. The engagement from that virtual event was buzzing, proof that ageism in our industry, especially for women, deserves more space. We unpac...

In this episode, I interview Layna Thompson, Founding Head of Customer Success and Growth at PowerBroker.ai, to talk about how insurance can modernize without losing its humanity. With nearly two decades of industry experience, Layna brings a refreshingly grounded perspective on AI and automation, emphasizing that talent has never been the issue, it’s the amount of time insurance professionals spe...

In this episode, I interview Kaiza Molina, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer at StretchDollar. Kaiza discusses how we think about health insurance and why it so often feels overwhelming, emotional, and inaccessible. She shares how many people equate choice with risk, questioning whether coverage is “good” or even legitimate, and how much of her work is rooted in myth-busting and helping peopl...