Preferred Mutual Announces Three New Appointments
Michele Graham Appointed Senior Vice President, Chief Customer Officer
Michele Graham was recently appointed Senior Vice President, Chief Customer Officer for Preferred Mutual Insurance Company. She is responsible for establishing an enterprise agent and customer-centric culture that delivers exceptional experiences through knowledgeable, supportive, and friendly people as well as processes and technology that simplify doing business with Preferred Mutual. Graham plays a strategic role in driving strategies that market our brand and continuously advance our impact to our local communities.
She has held various positions of increasing responsibility in various disciplines at Preferred Mutual including personal lines rating, agency interface, business analysis, project management, product development, shared services, and customer experience. Graham has a bachelor’s degree in Business Management and Economics from Empire State College and holds numerous certifications and designations including but not limited to her Property & Casualty Agent’s License, Project Management Professional (PMP), Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU), and Lean Six Sigma Black Belt (LSSBB).
Michael DeHetre Appointed Senior Vice President, Chief Underwriting Officer
Mr. DeHetre is responsible for providing leadership and strategic vision to the underwriting team, to product development initiatives, and to the company’s ongoing growth and profitability initiatives. Additionally, as a member of the Senior Executive Team, he oversees the continued implementation of Preferred Mutual’s strategic plan, with the focus on the strategic objective to Advance Small Commercial Business and Product.
He brings 29 years of experience in the property and casualty insurance field, with a concentration in Commercial Lines Underwriting. He honed his underwriting and leadership expertise at The Travelers Companies, Acadia Insurance Company, Hartford Financial Services Group, RTW, Inc., USF & G Insurance, and most recently, W.R. Berkley where he was the Chief Underwriting Officer for the Life Sciences division.
Mr. DeHetre earned a M.B.A. at the University of Connecticut and a B.S. in General Business at the University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland. He holds the following certifications: Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (Instructor), Certified Insurance Counselor, Certified Risk Manager, and Instructor in the Certified Insurance Service Representative (CISR) program in Commercial Property, Commercial Casualty, and Elements of Risk Management. DeHetre also received the Hartford Chairman’s Award.
Michelle Raue Appointed Senior Vice President, Chief Claims Officer
Ms. Raue joined Preferred Mutual in August 2020 as Senior Vice President of Claims. During her tenure, she has leveraged data and analytics to measure and drive performance efficiencies as well as implement innovative claim handling strategies to improve both the customer experience and reduce indemnity costs.
She has over 30-years of experience in the Property and Casualty Insurance industry. Her extensive claims background, contemporary vision of the future, and proven track record for driving continuous process and performance improvements, have enabled her to lead teams which exceed expectations and deliver an innovative and differentiated claims experience for the organization, its agents, and policyholders.
Ms. Raue earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of South Alabama and holds an Associates in Claims designation (AIC).
Source: Preferred Mutual
