Retirement Industry People Moves

The Standard Hires Regional Vice President in Retirement Plans

Kevin White

Kevin White has joined The Standard as a regional vice president in retirement plans. In this role, he will collaborate with advisers, plan sponsors and third-party administrators in Tennessee and Mississippi.

White has 30 years of experience in the retirement plan and financial services industry, serving previously as regional sales director, client relationship manager and sales consultant.

“Kevin is truly committed to always doing the right thing and I’m thrilled for him to join our team,” said Jack Woolnough, divisional vice president of retirement plan sales at The Standard, in a press release. “His strategic skillset and range of experience building mutually beneficial relationships will be an asset to our partners.”

Thomason to Lead Allianz Defined Contribution Distribution Team

Ben Thomason

Allianz Life Insurance Co. of North America announced it has hired Ben Thomason to lead its expanding defined contribution distribution team.

Thomason will be responsible for the distribution strategy, business development and distributor relationships of the company’s DC business. Allianz Life first entered the market for employer-sponsored plans with its Allianz Lifetime Income+ Annuity in November 2022.

Most recently, Thomason led sales at iJoin, which provides recordkeepers with an integrated experience to support the enrollment, education, financial planning and advice needs of the plans and participants they serve. Thomason worked with industry partners to use iJoin’s platform, managed account, participant engagement and analytics capabilities. Allianz Lifetime Income+ is also available through iJoin’s network of recordkeepers.

Prior to iJoin, Thomason was at Vestwell Holdings and Goldman Sachs. He also has experience in DC and workplace retirement revenue at Securian Financial Group, J.P. Morgan and Fidelity Investments.

Mutual of America Financial Taps Severin as President and Chief Operating Officer

Brian Severin

Brian Severin has been appointed president and COO of Mutual of America, which specializes in providing retirement services and investments to organizations and individuals.

He will continue to report to John R. Greed, chairman and chief executive officer, who previously also held the title of president.

In his new role, Severin will oversee the company’s daily operations, which include revenue growth, sales, marketing, finance, administrative operations, technology, human resources and actuarial. He will also continue to lead the executive of the company’s long-term strategic plan initiatives.

Severin has more than 25 years of experience in the financial services industry, including extensive expertise in DC retirement plan sales and marketing. He also had held various leadership roles at Mutual of America, most recently as senior executive vice president and chief marketing officer.

TIAA Hires New Head of Consultant Relations

Jason Key

Jason Key joined TIAA as the head of consultant relations on May 28, according to an announcement this week. Key is based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and reports to Ben Lewis, executive vice president and head of institution strategic sales.

As head of consultant relations, Key is responsible for leading the consultant team in driving growth, while strengthening relationships with consultants and advisers.

Key also has “extensive experience” with general account and stable value products and has led successful sales efforts into the government and health care markets, according to TIAA. He has spent the last 22 years at Lincoln Financial, where he most recently served as head of consultant relations for the past decade.

Throughout his tenure, he held various positions in business development, client support and has worked with individual participants. 

Key is a board member and president of the retirement provider college for the Retirement Advisor Council, a member of the National Association of Plan Advisors and the SPARK Institute.

Sequoia Financial Hires Chief Strategy and Partnerships Officer

Chris Thom

Sequoia Financial Group LLC announced it hired Chris Thom as chief strategy and partnerships officer. Thom is a member of the executive committee, reporting to Tom Haught, CEO and founder of Sequoia.

“Chris is a well-rounded leader with experience building and managing referral partnerships with professional services firms. We are excited to have him on our leadership team, where he will be instrumental in guiding our strategy, partnerships and marketing initiatives,” Haught stated in a press release.

In the newly created role, Thom is responsible for leading efforts to build upon Sequoia’s current strategic business partnerships. Sequoia is also an active member of the custodial referral programs of Fidelity and Schwab. Thom will lead brand strategy for the firm and oversee Sequoia’s marketing efforts.

Thom has more than 20 years of wealth management experience and previously served as partner, director of business development and head of wealth services at RWA Wealth Partners. Prior to that role, he was a divisional vice president of the wealth planning group at Edelman Financial Engines, senior vice president at Schwab Wealth Advisory and director of wealth management for USAA.