Our Executive Team

Kenneth J. Ross, President and CEO

Ken Ross joined Pinnacol Assurance in September 2005 as president and CEO. Ross is charged with building on Pinnacol's operational performance and financial strength. The company serves approximately 55,000 Colorado businesses. In May 2011, Pinnacol returned $41 million to its policyholders in the form of a general dividend. With that declaration, the company has returned more than $435 million in general dividends to Colorado's business community over the past seven years.

Ross came to Pinnacol from the New York State Insurance Fund (NYSIF), the largest workers' compensation insurance provider in New York state with 188,000 policyholders. He joined NYSIF in 1995 as deputy executive director and chief operating officer, and he was promoted to executive director and CEO in 2001. In this role, Ross led NYSIF through a significant financial and customer-service turnaround—similar to Pinnacol's transformation in recent years.

Ross' leadership capabilities were also highlighted in the wake of September 11, just three months after his appointment as NYSIF's CEO. Located seven blocks from the World Trade Center, NYSIF's Lower Manhattan headquarters were non-operational for three weeks after the terrorist attacks. Ross sent teams into the field to search for missing NYSIF employees and redeployed staff to offices around the state to avoid any disruption of service to policyholders or injured workers.

Prior to joining NYSIF, Ross spent nine years as a senior associate with the law firm of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan, specializing in commercial insurance and real estate litigation. From 1978 to 1986, he was director of operations for New York City's Criminal Justice Agency, where he managed operations and instituted reforms in the city’s criminal-justice system.

Ross earned his bachelor's degree in political science from Boston University in 1972 and his law degree in 1986 from Fordham University, where he received the American Jurisprudence Award for excellence in bankruptcy law. He's a member of the New York County Lawyer's Association and the Fordham Law alumni association, and he also serves as past president of the American Association of State Compensation Insurance Funds (AASCIF), the primary trade association for state-affiliated workers' compensation insurance providers. Ross is a vice president of The American Society of Workers' Comp Professionals, Inc (AMCOMP).

In 2003, the New York Claim Association honored Ross with its "Man of the Year" award for leadership following September 11 and for the humanitarian and professional standards he brings to the industry. In 2004, The American Society of Workers' Compensation Professionals presented Ross with its "Legends Award," citing his wealth of knowledge and outstanding leadership skills.

Ross is married to Amy Gibson Ross and has three children. He's an avid sports fan and enjoys numerous outdoor activities, including golf, kayaking, and gardening.

Don M. Collins, Vice President of Communications and Chief Marketing Officer

With more than 25 years of industry experience, Don Collins joined Pinnacol Assurance in January 2001. As chief marketing officer and vice president of communications, Collins’ areas of responsibility include agent programs, advertising, product and market development and communications.

Prior to joining Pinnacol, Collins was president and CEO of Acordia of Colorado. Before that, he was executive vice president at Hamilton Dorsey Alston in Atlanta. His achievements include the creation of an exclusive insurance product for the motor sports industry; leading the due diligence and negotiation process of acquiring and merging five insurance agencies; and founding a captive insurance company in Bermuda for asbestos abatement contractors. Additionally, he co-founded Conseco Risk Management in Carmel, Ind., which was recognized as one of the nation’s fastest-growing and largest independent property and casualty insurance agencies. In 2010, Collins helped create the inaugural Risk Management and Insurance Program at the University of Colorado Denver Business School.

Collins is the chairman of the advisory council for the Risk Management and Insurance Program at the University of Colorado Denver Business School. He also serves on the University of Colorado Denver Business School’s Board of Advisors. In addition, Collins serves on the board of directors for the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation, the Denver Sports Commission and the Boys and Girls Club of Metro Denver. He is a past chair of the Pinnacol Foundation’s board of directors and has served on numerous advisory councils. Collins was in the first class of agents to receive a Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) designation. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at El Paso with a double major in business and teaching.

Collins has four children and enjoys outdoor activities including golf, running and fly fishing.

Robert Norris, Vice President of Strategic Development and Chief Information Officer

As chief information officer, Robert Norris oversees the development and implementation of strategies to use information technology to increase the competitiveness of Pinnacol Assurance. His responsibilities include working to increase the efficiency of core business processes, enabling rapid business change, supporting strategic analysis and decision-making via information tools, empowering employees with personal productivity tools, maintaining a reliable communications infrastructure, and ensuring the security of Pinnacol's systems and data. Norris also oversees corporate-wide strategic planning, project management, business continuity planning, and a variety of organizational development initiatives.

Norris came to Pinnacol in 1997 from State Fund Mutual Insurance Company in Minneapolis where he was vice president of information services for five years. Prior to that position, Norris held a variety of positions in the development and marketing of software to the insurance, manufacturing, education, and military sectors.

Norris graduated summa cum laude from Regis University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He is a member of the CIO Executive Council and the Society for Information Management. He enjoys downhill skiing, waterskiing, hiking, camping, and traveling. 

Daniel F. O'Neil, Vice President of Business Operations and General Counsel

Daniel O’Neil joined Pinnacol Assurance in 2006 as general counsel. In 2010, he was named vice president of business operations and general counsel. As vice president of business operations, O’Neil is responsible for all business operations and direct sales delivered through Pinnacol’s multidisciplinary teams of claims representatives, nurses, underwriters, safety consultants, return-to-work specialists and auditors, all of whom are configured around and dedicated to unique market segments. Each of these teams is arranged as a profit center and is headed by a business director. As Pinnacol’s general counsel, O’Neil oversees the company’s legal, medical payment, medical operations and corporate compliance teams; and he plays an active role in the company’s efforts in the legislative and regulatory arenas. He is also responsible for the company’s quality improvement programs, its statewide network of healthcare providers (SelectNet), and its fraud investigation unit.

Prior to joining Pinnacol, O’Neil was a litigation attorney with Zurich North America, handling workers’ compensation and general defense litigation. Before that, he worked as a plaintiff’s attorney, handling workers’ compensation claims, and as a business attorney for small companies.

O’Neil is a member of the American Bar Association, the Colorado Bar Association, and the Denver Bar Association. He has a bachelor’s degree from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, with a double major in economics and history. He earned his law degree at Capital University Law School in Columbus, Ohio, and also holds a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Colorado at Denver.

Married and the father of three children, O’Neil enjoys reading, running, skiing, and golfing, as well as coaching his sons’ soccer teams. He and his family live in Evergreen, Colo.

Carole B. Sumption, Vice President of Corporate Resources

A veteran human resources executive, Carole Sumption oversees Pinnacol’s most valuable asset—its employees—with an eye toward developing the best talent from within and outside the company and ensuring that employees are engaged and have the tools and resources they need to be successful. Carole heads up Pinnacol’s Human Resources, Learning and Development, Safety and Security, Facilities and Corporate Services functions and serves as the Chair of the Pinnacol Foundation scholarship program. Carole is also an Executive sponsor of the Green Team, the Diversity Task Force, the Gainsharing Task Force and Pinnacol’s Everyday Wellness program.

Prior to joining Pinnacol in 2008, Sumption served as vice president of relationship management with OppenheimerFunds, Inc., where she developed and implemented the “Leaders in Development Program” to ensure a pipeline of “ready now” supervisors. She also served as vice president of human resources with Policy Studies Inc. and First Data Corporation. During her tenure as senior vice president of human resources and corporate services with Synovus Financial Corporation—a company with more than 10,000 employees—Synovus received first place in Fortune magazine’s ranking of “100 Best Companies to Work For.”

Sumption holds a master’s degree in counseling and human resource management from the University of Bridgeport, as well as a bachelor’s degree in studio art and biology from the University of New Hampshire. She is a member of the Rocky Mountain Human Resources Planning Society and CXO Networking, a human resources executive group.

Sumption, her husband, and her teenage daughter enjoy skiing, horseback riding, hiking, and snowmobiling.

Jeff Tetrick, Chief Financial Officer

Jeff Tetrick came to Pinnacol Assurance in 1989 as chief financial officer after amassing 17 years of experience in accounting and financial operations in the insurance industry. His responsibilities at Pinnacol include overseeing financial reporting, business planning and enterprise risks, audits, investments, and actuarial functions.

Tetrick began his career in the Minneapolis office of Ernst & Young, a public accounting firm with client focus on life insurance, and then spent four years as vice president of group operations for Capitol Life Insurance in Denver. He followed that with four years as senior vice president at Preferred Benefit Services, an administrator of group employee benefits in Denver. For three years immediately preceding his employment at Pinnacol, Tetrick was controller at Denver's Health Care United, an IPA model nonprofit health maintenance organization.

Tetrick received his MBA from the University of Denver and is a certified public accountant. His bachelor's degree is in accounting from Southwest Minnesota State University. He has earned the ACCREDITED INVESTMENT FIDUCIARY™ (or AIF®) professional designation, awarded by the Center for Fiduciary Studies. He serves on the board of directors for the Colorado Business Committee for the Arts, Integrated Benefits Institute (IBI), and the Pinnacol Foundation.

Tetrick is a member of the Insurance Accounting Statistical Association and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. A Denver resident for more than 30 years, Tetrick is married and has four children. His hobbies include fishing, hiking, skiing, reading and golf.