Chair
Senior Vice President, Chief Compliance Officer
Athene USA
Professional Bio
Megan Claypool is Senior Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer at Athene.
Megan has spent over 16 years in the insurance industry, in both legal and compliance roles. In her current role, she oversees compliance for Athene Holding and Athene’s United States life insurance business, which includes oversight of suitability, product compliance, complaint handling, agent business practices, market conduct, financial crime and training. Prior to joining Athene’s predecessor companies, Megan was in private legal practice. She earned both her undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Iowa.
Chair-Elect
Chief Compliance and Ethics Officer
Resolution Life US
Professional Bio
Chad Eslinger is the Chief Compliance and Ethics Officer of Resolution Life US and affiliate companies.
Chad is a member of the ACLI’s Market Conduct Committee and chairs the Anti-Money Laundering and Critical Infrastructure Task Force. Chad is a registered principal with SLD America Equities, holds various LOMA designations including AIRC™ Associate, Insurance Regulatory Compliance and FLMI™ Fellow, Life Management Institute.
Securian Financial
Professional Bio
Erich leads our corporate compliance department and provides
strategic guidance for our privacy program. He is accountable for
leading teams focused on information management, regulatory
compliance, ethics, business continuity management, and the
detection, investigation and prevention of fraud and other financial
crimes. Erich also co-chairs our Privacy Incident Response Program.
Experience:
Erich has been working in the financial services industry for more
than 15 years. He joined Securian Financial in 2008 as a litigation
attorney. He managed litigation matters and developed and
maintained our electronic discovery program until he moved into the
role of chief privacy officer in 2015. Erich was promoted to senior
director in 2019, and to second vice president in 2021.
Education:
• Juris Doctor, William Mitchell College of Law
• Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, Saint John’s University,
Collegeville, Minnesota
Registrations/Licenses:
• Fellow, Life Management Institute (FLMI)
Community:
Erich serves as a board member for Circus Juventas.
Primerica Life Insurance Company
Professional Bio
Vickie Bulger was elected to the CEFLI Board of Directors in June of 2020 and she is the Insurance Chief Compliance Officer for Primerica Life Insurance Company and its subsidiary National Benefit Life Insurance Company.
Ms. Bulger is also a Board Director for National Benefit Life. Ms. Bulger has over 30+ years of experience in the insurance industry. She has been with Primerica Life Insurance Company since 1988.
Ms. Bulger is active in the insurance industry and presently serves on the CEFLI Compliance and Ethics Committee, 2011-present. She has also served on the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) Market Conduct Committee, (2014-2023) and with the Insurance Regulatory Examiners Society Foundation (IRESF) as a Board of Director, (2019-present).
Ms. Bulger earned a Master of Public Administration degree from Georgia State University. She has also earned several insurance industry designations.
Protective Life
Professional Bio
Scott Creutzmann is Senior Vice President, Chief Compliance Officer, and Senior Counsel at Protective Life where he leads the Company’s compliance and ethics program(s).
Prior to joining Protective in April 2017, Scott was the Chief Compliance Officer for Ameriprise Financial, Inc.’s insurance segment (RiverSource Life Insurance Company and Ameriprise Auto and Home), and also led compliance teams for Ameriprise’s affiliated broker dealer (Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc.). Prior to being named CCO in 2011, Scott was Group Counsel for Ameriprise Auto and Home and RiverSource Life. In this role, he led a team that provided legal advice regarding product development, operations, corporate governance, litigation, regulatory matters (including holding company matters as well as market conduct examinations), contracts, litigation and distribution. Scott and his team also provided support for the Ameriprise Advisor Errors and Omissions program and the company’s captive insurance entities. Prior to joining Ameriprise, Scott held positions with progressing levels of responsibility as in-house counsel for Nationwide Insurance, Great West and State Farm.
Deloitte
Professional Bio
Craig is a Managing Director in Deloitte’s financial services practice.
Mr. Friedman has over 20 years of experience advising on regulatory and compliance projects. He specializes in advising insurance companies as well as asset managers on regulatory change and regulatory remediation projects (e.g., investigations, deficiency letters and enforcement actions) from state and federal regulators, including the SEC, FINRA and DOL, among others.
Craig’s regulatory change work consists of helping firms assess and transform current state compliance and supervision models, including the design and implementation of risk-based frameworks; the updating of policies and procedures; the streamlining of processes and controls; and the automation of activities and reporting with advanced analytics and artificial intelligence solutions. The scope of such work may be either end-to-end or in response to a specific regulatory change, such as assessment and redesign efforts in response to a new regulation.
Sammons Financial
Professional Bio
Cyndi Hall serves as the Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer at Sammons Financial Group.
Cyndi earned a Juris Doctorate Degree from the University of Iowa School of Law and has more than 15 years of experience in the life and annuity insurance business. Ms. Hall has been a Compliance leader at Sammons Financial Group the last 8 years, serving as Chief Compliance Officer for the last 2 years.
Lincoln Financial Group
Professional Bio
Steve is Senior Vice President, Chief Ethics & Compliance Officer at Lincoln Financial Group, a Fortune 250 financial services company founded in 1905.
Steve is an experienced ethics and compliance leader with a reputation for building exceptional ethics and compliance programs. He is known for critical and strategic thinking, creativity, careful listening and practical problem solving, all of which have contributed to his success at building strong partnerships with business leaders and regulators.
In this role, Steve has ultimate accountability for the effectiveness of the compliance programs covering all company businesses and functions, which include Life Insurance, Annuities, Retirement Plans, and Group Protection, as well as registered broker-dealers and mutual funds. Prior to joining Lincoln, Steve worked at The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. for 12 years, including 6 years as Vice President, Corporate Chief Compliance Officer. Prior to becoming an ethics and compliance officer, Steve was an employment lawyer for 25 years, advising companies across the country and representing them in employment litigation.
Steve has been a frequent speaker at national and regional conferences on ethics and compliance. He serves on the Advisory Boards of the Hoffman Center for Business Ethics at Bentley University and the Center for Compliance and Ethics at the Temple University Beasley School of Law.
Symetra Financial Corporation
Professional Bio
Maureen Henderson is Symetra Life Insurance Company’s Senior Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer.
Prior to joining Symetra, Maureen spent more than 25 years of her career being an in house attorney and chief compliance officer with three major insurance companies The Hartford, Aviva USA and Global Atlantic Financial Group. During her tenure with these companies, Maureen built and implemented new compliance organizations based on managing risk with the business strategy.
Maureen also has substantial experience in all aspects of life insurance compliance and risk management including sales and distribution oversight, operations, product, and program development, third party administration due diligence, oversight and supervision.
Maureen is a founding and current board member for the Compliance Ethics Forum for Life Insurers (CEFLI), and serves on a number of committees for the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI). Maureen is also actively involved with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC); and the Insurance Regulatory Examiners Society (IRES).
Corebridge Financial
Professional Bio
Kyle Jennings serves as the Chief Compliance Officer for Corebridge Financial.
Allianz Life
Professional Bio
As Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer (CECO) for Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America (Allianz Life®) and Allianz Life Insurance Company of New York (Allianz Life® of NY), Steve Koslow is responsible for leading efforts to build and sustain a strong ethical culture and helping ensure the company meets regulatory and corporate expectations for market conduct.
Koslow leads the ethics and compliance programs for the insurance, wholesale broker-dealer, and investment advisory businesses.
Prior to joining Allianz Life, Koslow was CECO with CUNA Mutual Group and held leadership roles in compliance with PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he helped insurance companies formalize their ethics and compliance programs. He also held various attorney roles with MetLife and the law firms of Schiff, Hardin & Waite and Holland & Hart. Koslow earned a Bachelor of Science degree and a Master of Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He holds a Juris Doctor from Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago, IL.
Homesteaders Life Company
Professional Bio
Marla is Executive Vice President – General Counsel for Homesteaders Life Company, West Des Moines, Iowa.
She received her Juris Doctor degree from University of Iowa College of Law With Honors, and her undergraduate degree from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.
Prior to working as in-house counsel, Marla was engaged in the private practice of law in Washington State and Missouri for over 20 years concentrating on corporate law and tax matters before relocating back to Des Moines in early 2003 to join what was then known as the AmerUs Group (formerly known as Central Life Company and later known as Aviva USA) as a director in the Advanced Markets department, ultimately becoming Senior Vice President and Associate General Counsel in the legal department. Marla joined American Equity Investment Life Insurance Company (AEL) in June 2008 and was promoted to Chief Compliance Officer, Associate General Counsel. After the death of American Equity’s CEO, Wendy Carlson, in mid-2012, Marla left AEL to join Homesteaders Life Company. As EVP-General Counsel, Marla heads up both the Legal and the Compliance Departments at Homesteaders Life and is responsible for all compliance functions as well as General Counsel duties.
Marla obtained her CLU designation in 2004 and ChFC designation in 2005. She is a member of the Iowa State Bar Association, and the Missouri State Bar Association. She holds FINRA Series 7, 24, 63 and 65 licenses (currently inactive). She has been a CEFLI Board member since 2012 and is a frequent speaker at CEFLI and other industry events. She is also a two-time member of the Board of Directors of the Des Moines Metro Opera.
Faegre Drinker
Professional Bio
Timothy J. O’Driscoll counsels insurance industry clients on a broad range of litigation and regulatory matters.
A seasoned litigator, Tim defends insurance companies in high-stakes coverage and extra-contractual disputes in state and federal courts across the country, involving life, long-term care, annuity and property and casualty policies. He has successfully resolved numerous complex cases, winning jury trials, dispositive pretrial motions, arbitrations and appeals and securing favorable settlements.
Tim also advises insurer clients on regulatory issues and compliance, and regularly speaks to organizations across the country on topics including cost of insurance, structured settlement annuities, the secondary life insurance market, unclaimed property, insolvency and emerging underwriting issues.
Oceanview Life and Annuity Company
Professional Bio
Pete serves as the Chief Compliance Officer of Oceanview Life and Annuity Company.
Pete began his career in insurance at a large multi-national insurer in 1984, where he held a variety of leadership positions in compliance and operations. He completed that segment of his career as a Compliance Director in the International Insurance Division. Since, Pete has since served as a Chief Compliance Officer for multiple broker dealers, two large insurance and annuity distribution organizations, and one of the largest Fraternal Benefit Organizations, as well as multiple tenures as a senior member of an insurance compliance consultancy. He is currently the Chief Compliance Officer for Oceanview Life and Annuity Company.
Pete graduated summa cum laude from Delaware Valley College with a BS in Business Administration, completed his business graduate studies at Fairleigh Dickinson University, and is currently enrolled in a doctoral program studying clinical psychology. Pete lives in Pennsylvania and has seven children and nine grandchildren.
CNO Financial Group
Professional Bio
Nancy Sweet is Vice President, Chief Compliance Officer and Deputy General Counsel of CNO Services, LLC, a subsidiary of CNO Financial Group, Inc. (CNO).
CNO subsidiary companies include Bankers Life and Casualty, Colonial Penn Life Insurance Company, Washington National Life Insurance Company, Bankers Life Securities, Inc. and Bankers Life Advisory Services, Inc. In her various roles at CNO, Nancy has led teams of attorneys and compliance professionals responsible for supporting annuity suitability, distribution compliance, product development, advertising and regulatory filing, marketing, market conduct exams, insurance operations and claims support, code of conduct, whistleblower hotline and privacy. During her tenure, Nancy led the implementation of the annuity suitability program and was lead counsel supporting the creation and stand-up of a new retail broker dealer and an investment advisor firm. Currently, legal and compliance staff for the broker dealer and investment advisor report to Nancy. Previous to her roles at CNO, Nancy served in various counsel positions for small and medium-sized insurance companies.
She is a proud graduate of Butler University with a BS in Business Administration and Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law. In her free time, Nancy enjoys coaching youth volleyball, watching Butler basketball, and spending time travelling with her family.
TIAA
Professional Bio
Wayne Smiley is the Chief Compliance Officer at TIAA-CREF Life Insurance Company.
Wayne provides subject matter expertise for Insurance Compliance matters, and he is the Chief Compliance Officer for TIAA-CREF Life Insurance Company and the TIAA Insurance Agency.
Wayne has 30 years of experience in the financial services industry, primarily focused on Insurance matters. His experience includes broad-based compliance, legal, risk management, claims, reinsurance and litigation management work.
Wayne joined TIAA in July of 2006. Immediately preceding TIAA, he was an Assistant Vice President at Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance Company, where he was the Chief Compliance Officer, Chief Privacy Officer and, for a year on an interim basis, the Chief Risk Officer. Wayne’s primary function was leading the company’s Corporate Compliance Program, which also included maintaining compliance oversight of its foreign subsidiaries.
Prior to his tenure at Fidelity & Guaranty Life Insurance Company, Wayne held various compliance management and operations-level positions at Legal & General America, United States Fidelity & Guaranty Company, Royal Insurance Company, and the Travelers Corporation.
Wayne has served on a number of industry committees and associations, having been most active with the Compliance and Ethics Forum for Life Insurers (“CEFLI”), where he is a current member of CEFLI’s Board of Directors, the American Council of Life Insurer’s Compliance and Legal Section – where he previously served as Section Secretary and Vice President – and the Association of Insurance Compliance Professionals (“AICP”).
Wayne holds a B.A. from the University of Alabama, and a J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law.