What Makes Us Distinguished?
People. Performance. Long-Standing Relationships.
Pioneers and Innovators.
In our early history, we formed the first real estate purchasing group in the nation. Later on, we were one of the first in the industry to introduce our Broker Portal so brokers could submit, quote and bind online, making things much more efficient.
Today, we're following those pioneering and innovative firsts by investing in product development, technology and most importantly: people.
Reputation for Integrity.
Through thoughtful innovation, we foster growth and opportunity for our brokers, carriers, and employees alike, and our commitment goes far beyond the words we use in our communications.
For decades we’ve been demonstrating our trustworthiness and professionalism to every individual and company we’ve interacted with. And throughout that time, our reputation for integrity has remained unchallenged.
For You.
We’ll be there to continue to lead the industry with an innovative product offering, inspiring a culture that is rich with a tradition of improvement. We will continue to be there when you need us.
When you call, you’ll likely speak with someone you know by name, who has been with our organization for years. Clients, carrier partners, and employees agree that those are just a few of the reasons why we are Distinguished.
OUR CORE VALUES
ACHIEVEMENT.
We work with passion, persistence, and focus.
INTEGRITY.
We do the right thing, even when no one is looking.
INNOVATION.
We develop creative solutions for real problems.
RELATIONSHIPS.
We care deeply about the success of our colleagues, customers, partners, and communities.
Long-Standing Reliability
You rely on your partners to support and hopefully enhance your reputation. Rest assured, we understand this. It’s why we maintain stable, long-term relationships with all our partners. That trust has given us the power-of-the-pen, allowing us to be flexible.
Rely on Our
Expertise
Rely on our expertise to grow your business. We’ll support and guide you throughout the process as much or as little as you need. You’ll have access to sales and knowledge tools for you, your staff, and clients, ensuring you get the business with the right coverage.
We're Business Enablers
You’ll have the tools, technology and service infrastructure to enhance your business. From informing you about the latest news impacting your business through to responsive claims handling, you’ll be able to rely on a complete service experience for you and your clients.
Meet Our Leadership
Andy Potash
Founder and Chief Executive Officer
About
Prior to founding Distinguished Programs in 1995 and The Distinguished Social Ventures Foundation in 2012, Andy spent 28 years in the retail insurance brokerage industry in a variety of gopher, account management, production, new product design, and executive roles.
After serving as the company’s Chairman Emeritus in 2018, Andy returned to lead the company as the CEO. In this role, he will be working closely with senior management to grow the company’s program business, diversify its range of products and expertise, and expand its distribution to meet the needs of new and emerging markets.
Founder and
Chief Executive Officer
Andre Piazza
Chief Financial Officer
About
Andre has over thirty years of experience in finance, accounting and human resources and has been with Distinguished Programs since 1999. Prior to joining Distinguished Programs, Andre was a Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President of Finance for several publicly traded and privately held corporations. Prior to his corporate career, Andre practiced public accounting at several mid-size accounting firms for over 11 years specializing in audits and taxation. Andre has a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting and International Economics from St. Peters College. He has been a member of the New York Treasurers Group since 2001.
Chief Financial Officer
Erica Stoller
Chief Information Officer
About
Erica Stoller is the Chief Information Officer, responsible for supporting and driving business value through the use of data and technology. Since joining Distinguished in 2004, Erica has worked across the organization, assuming her current role as CIO in 2019. Her tenure and experience at Distinguished have allowed Erica to bring the business and technology together to drive transformational change. Erica received her BS in Applied Mathematics from Dartmouth College and an MS in Technology Management from Columbia University, where she wrote her master’s thesis on the Internet of Things (IoT) and the Insurance Industry.
Chief information officer
James Flynn
President of Programs
About
Prior to joining Distinguished Programs, James spent six years as an Officer in the US Navy, completing three deployments to the Middle East in support of Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom. James joined Distinguished Programs in 2012 and served in several management positions before assuming his current position 2017. As President and COO, he oversees strategic planning and execution, operations, and revenue-generating divisions. James is a 2005 graduate of the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD and received his MBA from the School of Management at Yale University.
President of programs
Karen Isaacs
Chief Talent Officer
About
Karen is the Chief Talent Officer, responsible for human resources and talent development across Distinguished and its subsidiaries. A relatively new member to the team, Karen joined in late 2019, bringing with her a great wealth of insurance industry experience to make Distinguished an employer of choice. Prior to joining Distinguished, Karen held senior human resource positions at JLT, Hamilton Insurance Group and AIG. She received her BS in Human Resources from Indiana University – Bloomington.
Chief Talent Officer
Mark Kissick
Chief Sales Officer
About
Mark Kissick is the Chief Sales Officer and Senior Partner of Distinguished Programs LLC, responsible for the strategic direction of distribution for all Distinguished Programs companies. Mark joined Distinguished Programs in 2017 as President and CEO of American Hole ’n One. Prior to that, Mark spent nearly 30 years in executive positions at Zurich Financial Services and York Risk Services Group, helping to drive strategy and business development. Using his deep experience in the insurance industry, Mark has delivered multimillion-dollar growth in revenue, earning, and market-share ratings. Mark received a BS in Finance from the University of Kansas and attended the Northwestern University J.L. Kellogg Executive Program.
Chief Sales Officer
Mike Roopnarine
RISK & COMPLIANCE OFFICER
About
Michael has over forty years of experience in insurance and came to us with a wealth of knowledge from the various positions held at an insurance company, retail and wholesale agencies. Michael joined Distinguished Programs in 1999 and served in several positions before assuming his current role as Risk and Compliance Officer. Michael received his CIC, CIOP, and CXAP insurance industry designations.
Risk & Compliance Officer
Rick Ruiz
PRESIDENT OF AMERICAN HOLE ‘N ONE AND GRAND PRIZE PROMOTIONS
About
Rick is the President of American Hole ‘n One and Grand Prize Promotions. Rick joined the company in 2017 as the Chief Sales Officer and was appointed in 2019 to take over the President position at the company. In his current role, he has the responsibility for the strategic direction, P&L, and all facets of operations for this division of Distinguished Programs. Prior to working with American Hole ‘n One, Rick spent over 20 years in executive positions with York Risk Services Group and Zurich Financial Services. He is a results-driven senior sales executive with an incredible ability to build, motivate and decisively lead teams with proven results in driving B2B growth and delivering multimillion-dollar growth in revenue, earnings, and market-share ratings.
President of American Hole ‘n One and Grand Prize Promotions
Join Our Team
We're looking for people to grow with us