What are your employee benefits peers, clients, competitors up to? Here's a sampling of news that crossed our inbox, from new hires, to partnerships, mergers & acquisitions, promotions, agreements and more:

Willis Towers Watson announced the appointment of Catherine Hartmann as Rewards practice leader for North America. In this role, Hartmann will be responsible for the growth of the broad-based Rewards practice. She is based out of the company's Irvine, CA, office.

TIAA announced that Chowan University, based in Murfreesboro, North Carolina, has selected the financial services provider to be the sole recordkeeper of its 403(b) retirement plan, which includes approximately $20 million in assets.

The Standard announced the hiring of Joseph Simmons, CFA, as stable value sales director. This new position was created to support The Standard's growing product base of stable value funds.

Savoy announced that Scott C. Overholt joined the company as Vice President, Consumer and Senior Markets. Overholt will be responsible for advancing marketing, sales and retention strategies in the Medicare and Individual markets and will also oversee Savoy's Delaware-based contact center and the MySavoyBenefits.com website.

The Plan Sponsor Council of America (PSCA) has launched its first annual Health Savings Accounts (HSA) benchmarking survey to better understand how these programs are designed and administered. The survey is sponsored by Empower and Optum and is looking for plan sponsors to participate before the March 8 deadline. Participating plan sponsors will receive a copy of the full results. Advisors and providers that successfully refer clients to the survey also will receive a free copy of the survey report. Information at research@psca.org

Lockton announced the hiring of employee benefits consultant JoAnn Lau in the Bellvue, Washington office. Lau joins Lockton's growing team on the heels of Brad Cillian, human capital entrepreneur and employee benefits practice leader in the Mountain West. She is part of the Mountain West series, which includes offices in Denver, Phoenix, and Las Vegas.

Hub International Limited announced it acquired the assets of TRG Group Benefits and Pensions Inc., headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The firm customizes employee benefits, pension and retirement plans for businesses and not-for-profit organizations. Rob Taylor, Managing Director of TRG, will join Hub.

Hub International Limited announced it acquired the assets of Sheridan Road Financial LLC and certain of its affiliates. Sheridan Road manages more than $14 billion in assets and services of more than 300,000 individuals through its retirement plan and wealth management practices. Founder and CEO of Sheridan Road, Daniel Bryant, and Managing Partner, Jim O'Shaughnessy, will join Hub Midwest. Sheridan Road's advisors will be part of Hub International Investment Services Inc., member FINRA/SIPC, and a subsidiary of Hub. They will also maintain their broker-dealer affiliation with LPL.

EPIC Holdings announced the closing of EPIC's acquisition of Integro Holdings Inc. (substantially all of the U.S. operations of Integro Group Holdings). In December 2018 it announced an agreement to acquire Integro Holdings Inc. Integro USA is led by Marc Kunney, President of North America Operations. The acquisition will add over 400 team members working across 22 US locations.

CUNA Mutual Group announced that its account management, wholesalers and sales management team have obtained their Behavioral Financial Advisor (BFATM) designation after completing a rigorous course of study and training, offered through a partnership between Think2Perform and Kaplan Financial.

Cone Health's tele-ICU, called eLink, is now using Yorktel's Univago HE as its video platform, the companies announced.The solution has been integrated into Cone Health's virtual care service and is now operational. Cone Health's virtual care service, eLink, has been serving patients for 12 years, was the first tele-ICU in North Carolina, and supports over 1,000 calls per week providing expanded care for critically ill patients in five different locations in the Cone Health network.

Cognoa announced that Cambia Health Solutions is incorporating Cognoa's evidence-based platform within its subsidiary health plans. Cognoa provides support for employees caring for children older than one, offering guidance and personalized resources. Through Cambia, employers will be able to offer Cognoa to their employees to support parents with common parenting challenges and the developmental health of their children.

Cetera welcomes Jeannie Finkel as Chief Human Resources Officer for the organization, overseeing all aspects of human resources, including culture, employee engagement, organizational design, and talent management.

Carson Group announced it has hired retirement planning expert Jamie Hopkins as the Vice President of Private Client Services and Director of Retirement Research. As Director of Retirement Research, he will continue to be an additional resource to partner firms and the consumers they serve.

Callan announced the promotion of Anna West to senior vice president, ESG practice leader. West will collaborate with Callan's fund sponsor consultants to provide education and perspective on current ESG trends, issues, and considerations to clients as well as to the broader investment community.

United Benefit Advisors welcomes Bernard Health to its community of Partners. Bernard Health provides strategic health benefits advice to employers and licenses its proprietary HR and benefits administration platform, BerniePortal, to brokers around the country. Bernard Health is one of the newest Partners to join the network of independent employee benefits advisory firms that serve employers of all sizes across the United States, Canada, England, and Ireland.

AlphaPoint announced Scott Grayson as its new SVP & Head of Enterprise Sales. Grayson will be responsible for sourcing and onboarding businesses seeking software that automates the generation of digital assets, including real estate backed tokens, debt-backed tokens, and equity-backed tokens.

Employee benefits newsmakers: Human Interest, Zenefits, Thrive Global

Benefits industry newsmakers: Wink, Carillon Tower Advisors, BPAS

Instant Insights /

Benefits newsmakers: Callan, AlphaPoint, Hub International, Sheridan Road, TIAA

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