December's Select Employee (2021)
Berkley Select welcomes you to get to know our Professional Liability Vice President, Al Roberts, who joined us in June 2021 with an impressive 23 year background in the insurance industry.
“I enjoy what I do and the people that make this profession fun and interesting. Our leadership has a clear vision for the future and we care about our corporate culture, which makes Berkley Select a great place to work.”
Welcome to Berkley Select, Al! Given your veteran experience in commercial insurance, what is it about this industry that has kept you tenured all these years?
Like many insurance professionals, I sort of stumbled into this career. I found a paid summer internship through a competitor, Fireman’s Fund, which lead to a job upon graduation from Northern Illinois University. I always wanted to go to law school, but wanted to work full time while attending night classes. At the time, I was enrolled at The John Marshall Law School – I was deep into underwriting lawyers professional liability and enjoyed it. After a brief stint in private practice at a mid-size law firm in Chicago, I went back into underwriting and the rest is history. My insurance experience spans working at an MGA and multiple carriers specializing in professional liability. I have proudly served on the Professional Liability Underwriting Society’s (PLUS) Midwest Steering Committee and I have been a guest speaker as well as a moderator at several industry events. I enjoy what I do and the people that make this profession fun and interesting.
What caught your eye about Berkley Select that drove you to the company earlier this year?
Berkley Select is an underwriting company that is respected as a financially strong and stable carrier. What I like about underwriting is that there is a sense of pride in digging into risks and figuring out ways to creatively address exposures. Everyone at Berkley Select is a true professional and is passionately interested in the business they underwrite. Our leadership has a clear vision for the future and we care about the corporate culture, which makes Berkley Select a great place to work.
Berkley Select will be hitting a milestone 30th anniversary in 2022. Can you tell us more about what’s in store?
We are in the early stages of planning different campaigns throughout 2022, which include appreciation events and coming together to celebrate 30 years of being in business. This is an exciting opportunity to celebrate our strong and consistent presence in professional lines as well as a chance to recognize our loyal producer partners, many who have been with us for those 30 years. Stay tuned as we will feature many components of the celebration on our LinkedIn page.
What are some of your interests outside of Berkley Select?
I enjoy spending time with my wife of twenty years and my two teenagers, Alexis and AJ. Everyone who knows me well accepts my quirky automotive addiction. Whether new or classic, I am into just about anything with four wheels. I think I have continuously attended the Chicago Auto Show since I was in grade school. As a life-long Chicagoan, I only get to enjoy my hobby for about six months out of the year, but when the sun is shining there is a good chance I am behind the wheel of one of my toys. Here I am with my son, AJ and my 1974 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia.
