Leadership & Governance

Our executive team is comprised of passionate business leaders with years of insurance industry expertise. They are dedicated to delivering top-quality service to our agency partners and clients, and supporting career growth and opportunities for our talented professional staff. Meet our executive leaders.

Chairman of the Board

John L. Lumelleau

John Lumelleau served as the CEO of Lockton Companies, Inc. for 17 years. During that time, the company expanded dramatically around the globe and became the largest privately held independent insurance broker in the world. Now as the Orchid Insurance Chairman of the Board, he works closely with Orchid’s CEO, Steve Carlsen, along with our owner, TowerBrook Capital Partners, in leading the continued evolution of Orchid’s strategic vision.

Vice-Chairman of the Board and Co-founder

Bradford R. Emmons

Mr. Emmons was named Vice-Chairman of Orchid’s Board of Directors in April 2021 after serving as President since 2008 and CEO since 2017. Under his leadership, Orchid became one of the largest privately held insurance intermediaries specializing in underwriting property insurance that today manages over $70 billion of insured values. Highlights of company milestones during Mr. Emmons’ tenure include: (i) private equity transactions in 2014 to Gryphon Investors and a subsequent recapitalization sale to TowerBrook Capital Partners; (ii) transformative growth in the form of three acquisitions, formation of new business verticals; and (iii) product and geographic expansion.

Mr. Emmons also has retail insurance brokerage experience as a Chief Executive Officer and board member before leading the company through a sale to a strategic acquirer. Today, Mr. Emmons provides professional advisory services to industry entrepreneurs like himself.

CEO & Board Member

Steve Carlsen

Steve Carlsen was named Chief Executive Officer following his tenure as Chairman of the Board, which he served from 2017-2019 and as a Board member since 2014. He has a lifetime of insurance experience, having served as the Chief Underwriter, Vice President, COO, Director, and President of various underwriting and consulting companies. Steve began his 40-year career in the reinsurance business at Swiss Re and NAC Re. As Chief Underwriting Officer – North America for CAT Limited, he was part of the first wave, in 1994, of Bermuda-based catastrophe reinsurers. In 2001, Steve partnered with Ken LeStrange to co-found Endurance Specialty, where he served as Chief Underwriter and COO. He remained a director of Endurance until the company’s sale to Sompo in 2017. Steve reconnected with Ken when Orchid first transitioned to private equity ownership under Gryphon Investors, becoming a director in 2014. He assumed the Executive Chairman role in 2017 and worked with Brad Emmons on the sale to our current owners, TowerBrook Capital Partners. He remains Chair of the company’s Underwriting Committee.

Board Member

Bill Babcock

Bill Babcock joined Orchid’s Board in 2019 and serves as the Chairman of the Audit and Risk Committee.  He also serves on the Board and Audit Committee of Endurance U.S. Holdings Corp.  Mr. Babcock spent the majority of his 30-year career in the insurance and reinsurance industry, most recently as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of PartnerRe, a leading global reinsurer listed on the NYSE.  He also served in senior accounting and finance roles at Endurance Specialty Holdings, Ltd, and as a senior underwriter at Zurich Re.  Bill began his career as an auditor at KPMG and worked in the firm’s capital markets advisory group.  He holds a CPA license in NC.

Board Member

Jonathan Bilzin

In addition to being a board member at Orchid Insurance, Mr. Bilzin is Co-President, Managing Director, Co-Chair of Portfolio Committee, and a member of the Management Committee at TowerBrook Capital Partners. Mr. Bilzin was previously a Managing Director at Soros Private Equity. Prior to that, Mr. Bilzin was a member of the Principal Investment Area and Real Estate Principal Investment Area of Goldman Sachs in New York. Mr. Bilzin earned his B.B.A. from the University of Michigan and received his M.B.A. from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Board Member

Alex Earls

In addition to being a board member at Orchid Insurance, Mr. Earls serves as Head of the Business Services Group at Gryphon Investors and is responsible for sourcing, analyzing, executing, and monitoring investments. Mr. Earls earned his B.A., Government, from Harvard College.

Board Member

Anna Ewing

Anna Ewing joined Orchid’s Board in March 2019. She is also a Board member of Financeware LLC, a Non-Executive Director at RIMES, and previously was a Non-Executive Director with NEX Group plc. Prior to this, Anna was the CIO of Nasdaq and has established multiple industry-leading business units at CIBC and Merrill Lynch. In addition to her work in technology, Anna supports women entrepreneurs as a mentor and angel investor with Astia Angels; serves on the New York Hall of Science, Board of Trustees to support STEM education for K-12 students; and is a Board member of the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center in San Francisco.

Board Member

Glenn Miller

In addition to being a board member at Orchid Insurance, Mr. Miller is a Managing Director and General Counsel North America at TowerBrook Capital Partners. Before joining TowerBrook Capital Partners in July 2006, Mr. Miller worked as an Associate in the New York office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. He earned his B.A. from Washington and Lee University and received his J.D. from Northwestern University School of Law.

Board Member

David Winokur

In addition to being a board member at Orchid Insurance, Mr. Winokur is a Managing Director of TowerBrook Capital Partners. Previously, Mr. Winokur was an Investment Professional at Aquiline Capital Partners, a middle-market financial and business services focused private equity firm. Prior to that, he was an Analyst in the Financial Institutions Group at BlackRock. Mr. Winokur earned his B.B.A from the Goizueta Business School at Emory University.

CEO & Board Member

Steve Carlsen

Steve Carlsen was named Chief Executive Officer following his tenure as Chairman of the Board, which he served from 2017-2019 and as a Board member since 2014. He has a lifetime of insurance experience, having served as the Chief Underwriter, Vice President, COO, Director, and President of various underwriting and consulting companies. Steve began his 40-year career in the reinsurance business at Swiss Re and NAC Re. As Chief Underwriting Officer – North America for CAT Limited, he was part of the first wave, in 1994, of Bermuda-based catastrophe reinsurers. In 2001, Steve partnered with Ken LeStrange to co-found Endurance Specialty, where he served as Chief Underwriter and COO. He remained a director of Endurance until the company’s sale to Sompo in 2017. Steve reconnected with Ken when Orchid first transitioned to private equity ownership under Gryphon Investors, becoming a director in 2014. He assumed the Executive Chairman role in 2017 and worked with Brad Emmons on the sale to our current owners, TowerBrook Capital Partners. He remains Chair of the company’s Underwriting Committee.

President & Chief Operating Officer

Katherine P. Cody

After three decades in the insurance industry, Kathy Cody joined Orchid Insurance, as Chief Operating Officer in August 2019. She was promoted to President in January 2021. As an accomplished executive, Kathy previously served as Chief Operating Officer, Personal Lines, for Farmers Insurance Group. During her 10 years at Farmers, Kathy led Personal Lines Underwriting, Finance, Analytics, Operations, and Strategy Execution teams as well as serving as Chief Financial Officer for the life business and led operational finance for Zurich Global Life North America. Prior to Farmers Insurance Group, Kathy worked for The Phoenix Companies, Inc. in various executive roles and began her career with PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Ms. Cody is a member of the American Society of Certified Public Accountants and a member of the Whitman Advisory Council for the Martin J. Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University.

Ms. Cody graduated with a B.S. in Accounting from Syracuse University.

Chief Underwriting Officer

Ross Bowie

Ross Bowie was promoted to Chief Underwriting Officer in September 2021 after serving as Head of Personal Lines since June 2020. His career has spanned the management of Product, Marketing, Underwriting, and Sales teams. Prior to Orchid, Ross was Senior Vice President at Bankers Insurance Group, where he oversaw both personal and commercial lines as well as the development of new products in Texas, Louisiana, Florida, and South Carolina.

His previous roles included sales, product development, and underwriting at ASI/Progressive. Mr. Bowie, who serves out of Orchid’s Tampa offices, earned a Bachelor of Science in Economics at the University of Saint Thomas, in St. Paul, Minn.

Vice President Human Resources

Jehane Myers

Jehane Myers joined Orchid Underwriters Insurance, LLC, after serving as director of Human Resources at Bridgevine, Inc. She previously served as a civil engineer at the Texas Department of Transportation, Jacobs Carter & Burgess, Inc. and Kimley-Horn and Associates, Inc. Ms. Myers holds an MBA in Management from Amberton University and a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Louisiana Tech University. She is the HR Florida District Director for District 6, a member of the Career Development Committee for WSIA, and a board member of Mentoring Families and Kids of Jacksonville, Fla.

Chief Financial Officer

Michael Garamoni

Michael Garamoni joined Orchid Insurance in 2020, after serving as Vice President of Global Finance at Ryan Specialty Group, LLC, where he also had roles as Vice President of Corporate Finance, Assistant Controller, Director of Finance, and Manager of Accounting. Mr. Garamoni also served at PricewaterhouseCoopers as a Senior Assurance Associate. He received both master’s and bachelor’s degrees at Miami University.

Chief Information Officer

Carey Smith

Carey B. Smith, who oversees Orchid’s information and computer technologies, has more than 25 years of experience as a strategist and digital disruptor. Prior to Orchid, he served as Chief Information Technology Officer at Constellation, Inc., and at BlueCross BlueShield Minnesota and Ameriprise Financial. He earned a B.S. in Business Administration at Montana State University and has been nationally recognized among the “10 Best CTOs of 2020,” by Industry Era, and regionally by Twin Cities as a “CIO of the Year ORBIE Award Finalist 2020.

Head of Specialty High Net Worth

Charlie Graham

Charlie Graham, a seasoned insurance executive with a deep understanding of the coverage needs of affluent individuals and their families, is head of Specialty High Net Worth at Orchid Insurance. With more than three decades insurance industry experience, she has been instrumental in helping establish Orchid as a valuable partner to leading carriers, such as Chubb, AIG, National General Premier, and Vault. Prior to joining Orchid, Graham entered the high-net-worth space as an account manager with Platinum Partners, a New England-based wholesale brokerage firm which was acquired by Orchid in 2015. Graham, who earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Georgia, began her insurance career as an underwriter at Commercial Union in Atlanta.