STAMFORD, Conn. – The National MS Society, Connecticut Chapter, will honor XL Group’s Michael McGavick at the 36th Annual MS Dinner of Champions on Friday, November 14, at the Hilton Stamford Hotel in Stamford.
McGavick has been CEO of XL Group, PLC, since 2008. With McGavick as CEO, XL has built its premier position as the company, its clients, and partners look for solutions to complex risks.
In 2013, McGavick was named to the list of the top 100 Game Changers in the last hundred years of the insurance industry by Leaders Edge. Previously he has been recognized as the Bermuda Insurance Institute’s (Re)insurance Person of the Year, Review Magazine’s Industry Personality of the Year and Reactions Magazine’s Insurance CEO of the Year.
McGavick is currently the Chairman of the Geneva Association and the Association of Bermuda Insurers & Reinsurers. He is on the board of the Global Reinsurance Forum, the American Insurance Association, the Insurance Information Institute, the International Insurance Society, and Landesa, a global nonprofit focused on securing land rights for impoverished people.
From 2001 to 2005, McGavick was chairman, president and CEO of Safeco Corporation. Prior to joining Safeco, he spent six years with CNA Financial Corporation, where he held various senior positions, including president and CEO of the company's largest commercial insurance unit.
McGavick has been involved in a number of industry, political, public affairs and community service activities. He was a vice chairperson of the American Insurance Association and served as director of its Superfund Improvement Project. He is a former chief of staff in the United States Senate and ran for the US Senate in the State of Washington. McGavick was the founding chairperson of the Business Partnership for Early Learning. He was named the Puget Sound Business Journal's Executive of the Year in 2003 and was the 2005 winner of the prestigious Charles E. Odegaard award for his efforts in promoting diversity at the University of Washington. He also was recently named the St. John's University 2014 Insurance Leader of the Year.
The MS Dinner of Champions honors champions of the business and sports industry making a difference in their organizations and communities. Since the very first MS Dinner of Champions was held in 1978, which honored Howard Cosell, this event has continued to honor the most prominent business champions. Past honorees include Ernst & Young, IBM, Louis Dreyfus, Mutual of America, Pfizer and Xerox Corporation as well as both local and national sports figures Steve Young, Joe Namath, Frank Gifford, John Starks, Billie Jean King, Mary Lou Retton and Bobby Valentine.
The 2014 MS Dinner of Champions will feature a V.I.P. cocktail reception, a silent auction from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m., and a dinner with legends of the sports world, an awards ceremony and a unique live auction experience to follow.
For more information on the 36th Annual MS Dinner of Champions, contact Allison Ihm at 860.913.2550, ext. 606, or email allison.ihm@nmss.org.