Executive Team

 

Chairman

Barry Goldstein

Mr. Goldstein joined the Kingstone Insurance Company Board of Directors in 2005 and was elected as its Chairman in January 2006. In 2008 he was elected to serve as our Chief Investment Officer. Mr. Goldstein serves as Chairman of Kingstone Companies, Inc., parent of Kingstone Insurance Company. Mr. Goldstein received his B.A. and M.B.A. from State University of New York at Buffalo. Mr. Goldstein serves as a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council of the State University of New York at Buffalo.

President

Meryl Golden

Ms. Golden joined Kingstone in September of 2019 as the company’s Chief Operating Officer. In October of 2021, Ms. Golden was elected President.  

Ms. Golden brings over 25 years of insurance experience to Kingstone and will drive strategic priorities and accountability initiatives.  She was head of business development at Arity’s Insurance Solutions, and served in Northeast  Regional General Management positions at Liberty Mutual and Progressive Insurance.  Ms. Golden was also General Manager at Earnix, North America and Management Committee Advisor at Bridgewater Associates.  

Ms. Golden received her MBA from University of Chicago and Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the Wharton School – University of Pennsylvania.  She is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive).

 

SVP, Chief Actuary

Sarah Chen

Ms. Chen joined Kingstone in November of 2020 as the company’s Chief Actuary. Ms. Chen is responsible for the reserving, pricing, financial planning, financial reporting and analysis, reinsurance management, and product management functions of the company.

Ms. Chen brings more than a decade of experience in personal lines pricing, reserving and other actuarial responsibilities. Most recently, she was a Senior Pricing Manager at Homesite, a subsidiary of American Family, where she was responsible for ratemaking for their ~$2 billion homeowners, renters, and condo book. Previously she was an Actuarial Manager at Plymouth Rock, a northeast regional insurer focused on auto and home. Ms. Chen also worked at XL Insurance, the Hartford and Travelers in various actuarial roles.

Ms. Chen is a Fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society and a CFA charterholder. She has a M.S., Applied Mathematics from Brown University and a B.S., Mathematics from Tsinghua University in Beijing.

 

 

Vice President, Chief Financial Officer

Jennifer Gravelle 

Ms. Gravelle joined Kingstone in January 2023 as the company’s Vice President, Chief Financial Officer. Ms. Gravelle is responsible for managing Kingstone’s finance and accounting operations.

Ms. Gravelle brings 20+ years of leadership experience in the P&C insurance industry and expertise in coastal-focused property insurance. She most recently served as CFO of Slide Insurance, and previously served as CFO of both Allied Trust Insurance Company and Olympus Insurance Company, and as Controller at HomeWise Insurance Group.

Ms. Gravelle earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Champlain College.

 Secretary and General Counsel

Thomas G. Seccia, Jr.

Thom joined Kingstone Insurance Company in 2008 and serves as its Chief Administrative Officer, Chief Risk Officer, Corporate Secretary, General Counsel, and General Manager.  He also serves as a Director for Kingstone Insurance Company, Chairman of its Nominating Committee, and as a Director for the Underwriters Rating Board.  Furthermore, he serves as Assistant Secretary for Kingstone Companies, Inc. and is a member of the New York Insurance Association Legal Committee.

His prior employment includes 14 years with a New York-based property casualty insurance company, serving the company’s various regulatory, reinsurance, and risk management needs.  In addition, he spent four years litigating with insurance defense firms in New York City and on Long Island. 

Thom was born in Brooklyn, New York, and raised in Nassau County.  He is a graduate of Chaminade High School and received a BA from the University of Richmond in 1989.  He earned a JD from Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center in 2004.  He holds CPCU, AIC, AU, ARM, ARe, AIS, ARC, AIM, AIT, API, AAI, AMIM, and ACP insurance designations.  He was admitted to the NYS Bar and the USDC for the Eastern and Southern Districts of NY in 2004 and is a NYS Notary Public. 

Vice President,

Business Transformation and Experience

Shannon Matty-Provvisiero

Ms. Provvisiero joined Kingstone in 2009 and currently serves as Director and Vice President, Business Transformation, and Experience.  She previously served as VP, Marketing and Agency Relations, where she led the New York Marketing team and was responsible for growth, profitability, distribution, and producer relationships. Ms. Provvisiero was responsible for developing the Customer Service department at KICO, and successfully built a strong team focusing on increasing the customer experience through technology and improved products and relationships. Before being promoted to Vice President in 2016, Ms. Provvisiero served KICO as it's New York State Marketing and Customer Relations, Manager. She has taken the lead on many key company projects during her tenure with Kingstone.

Ms. Provvisiero has over 14 years of insurance industry experience holding various positions involving underwriting, claims, and sales on both the carrier and agency side. Ms. Provvisiero holds a Bachelor's degree from SUNY Old Westbury and maintains her P & C Broker and Agent license in multiple states throughout the northeast.

 

Vice President, Operations
Robert Jacobson

Mr. Jacobson joined Kingstone in February 2020 as the company’s Vice President of Operations. In his role as Vice President, Operations Mr. Jacobson will drive innovation and enhanced performance to the Underwriting, Customer Service, Billing and the Filing Services teams within Kingstone. He brings over 30 years of Insurance Industry experience to Kingstone. Previously, he was the Chief Underwriting Officer for AAA/The Auto Club Group and AVP, Zone Underwriting Manager for Safeco/Liberty Mutual. Mr. Jacobson received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Habitational Resources/Hotel & Restaurant Management from the University of Wisconsin – Stout. He holds insurance designations in Certified Insurance Counselor, Charter Insurance Operations Professional, Customer Experience and Analytics Professional and Lean Six Sigma Black Belt

Vice President, Chief Technology Officer

Sara Mikulski

Ms. Mikulski joined Kingstone in June 2022 as the company’s Vice President, Chief Technology Officer. Ms. Mikulski is responsible for managing our IT organization and accountable for the company’s systems and data strategy, IT security, infrastructure, development, support, and vendor management.

Ms. Mikulski brings 15+ years of experience in the IT arena, leading effective teams and enhancing IT operations. Most recently, she was the Deputy CIO at UPC Insurance, where she was responsible for the delivery of numerous projects aimed at consolidation of platforms and reduction of technical debt. She also held leadership and technical IT positions within the insurance industry at Esurance. Ms. Mikulski also worked at several other companies in various IT-focused roles.

Ms. Mikulski has a B.S. in Information Technology from University of Phoenix.



Senior Vice President, Chief Claims Officer 

Nigel Shepherd

Mr. Shepherd joined Kingstone in February 2021 as the company’s Senior Vice President, Chief Claims Officer. Mr. Shepherd is responsible for the company’s claims strategy and execution.

Mr. Shepherd brings 20+ years of experience in leading insurance claims organizations. Most recently, he was the VP, Head of National Casualty Claims at Pure Insurance Company, where he was responsible for the development of best practices, effective litigation and large loss management, and leadership of a team overseeing liability, homeowners, excess casualty and subrogation practices. Previously he was the EVP, Chief Claims Officer for Aegis Security and the EVP, Head of Claims & Operations for the NY Fair Plan. Mr. Shepherd also worked at Lanzko Consulting, Aspen Specialty, Alea Specialty, and Converium Reinsurance in various claims leadership roles.