WASHINGTON, Jan. 21, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers, in partnership with CNA, jointly announced today that CNA will elevate its commitment to The Council's Partners in Excellence program through the corporate support of The Council's Leadership Academy.

The Council's Leadership Academy consists of learn-by-doing talent development programs that cater to CIAB member firms' rapidly evolving leadership needs. The Academy also includes instructor-led workshops, webinars and online tools and resources. A virtual academy is slated to begin later this year.

"By making such a substantial investment in leadership development for agents and brokers, CNA is showing a strong, long-term commitment to their distribution channel," said Council President/CEO Ken A. Crerar. "We're excited about the many opportunities for collaboration we'll have with CNA thanks to this partnership, and I'm confident that our members will benefit greatly from CNA's contributions to the Academy."

"Our support of The Council's Leadership Academy is a demonstration of our strong commitment to independent agents," said Thomas F. Motamed, chairman and chief executive officer for CNA. "We are excited about the opportunity to support independent agents through this sponsorship of the Leadership Academy, which will allow the industry to attract, foster and develop talent in new and innovative ways."

Launched in 2015, the Academy's mission is to provide industry-specific, competency driven, talent development resources for CIAB members, with a special focus on developing a leadership pipeline to enable perpetuation, recruiting and hiring talent, and developing talent that supports growth. The Academy is led by The Council's Senior Vice President of Leadership & Management Resources, Elizabeth McDaid.

"Everyone knows that the impending talent crisis will hit our industry hard," said Bill D. Henry, 2016 Council Chairman and CEO of MHBT MMA of Dallas, Texas. "CNA's support of the Academy allows The Council to create the curricula our industry needs to build future leaders and to strengthen the current leaders in the agent and broker community." 

For more information, visit www.ciab.com/leadershipacademy.  

About CNA

Serving businesses and professionals since 1897, CNA is the country's eighth largest commercial insurance writer and the 14th largest property and casualty company. CNA's insurance products include standard commercial lines, specialty lines, surety, marine, and other property and casualty coverages. CNA's services include risk management, information services, underwriting, risk control and claims administration. For more information, please visit CNA at www.cna.com. "CNA" is a service mark registered by CNA Financial Corporation with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Certain CNA Financial Corporation subsidiaries use the "CNA" service mark in connection with insurance underwriting and claims activities.

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About The Council

The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers is the premier association for the top regional, national and international commercial insurance and employee benefits intermediaries worldwide. Council members are market leaders who annually place 85 percent of U.S. commercial property/casualty insurance premiums and administer billions of dollars in employee benefits accounts. With expansive international reach, The Council fosters industry wide relationships around the globe by engaging lawmakers, regulators and stakeholders to promote the interests of its members and the valuable role they play in the mitigation of risk for their clients. Founded in 1913, The Council is based in Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.ciab.com or follow on Twitter @TheCIAB.

Contacts:
Brianne Spellane
CIAB, Director of Marketing & Communications
202.662.4303
brianne.spellane@ciab.com

Brandon Davis
CNA, Media Relations Manager
312.822.5167
brandon.davis@cna.com

SOURCE CNA; CIAB