Willis Names Harrington to Lead Employee Benefits Within M and A Practice

New York, NY  (CompNewsNetwork) - Willis Group Holdings Limited (NYSE: WSH), the global insurance broker, announced today that Donald G. Harrington has joined the company as Leader of the Employee Benefits unit of Willis’s national Mergers and Acquisition Practice, and Senior Vice President, Willis of New York, Inc.  The appointment of Harrington, which is effective immediately, represents the latest move to further strengthen the company’s M&A business.

 Harrington will report to Mark Rusas, Willis's M&A Practice Leader, and Executive Vice President, Willis of New York, Inc. Harrington’s responsibilities will include overseeing the management and operations of the Employee Benefit component of Willis’ transactional and operational management services to the firm’s private-equity clients.

"The addition of Don to our team builds on the expertise we dedicate to providing comprehensive risk and insurance diligence for each transaction via our strategic business units," said Mark Rusas.  "Don’s top-notch experience, Employee Benefit transactional expertise, and deep knowledge of the global private-equity industry will further enable Willis to differentiate its deliverable, and enhance our efforts to fill the value gap for our private-equity clients," Rusas added.

In the last two years, Willis has added 15 members to its dedicated M&A practice to better serve the Private Equity and Venture Capital Community. "M&A continues to be an area where our firm enjoys significant growth, including triple- and double-digit increases in the last two years, respectively. We plan to continue this pace of investment as the team continues to deliver the results that attract and retain clients," said Don Bailey, CEO of Willis North America.

Coupled with his legal background, Harrington brings 10 years of Employee Benefit Expertise and 12 years of transactional experience in the area of private equity. Before joining Willis, Harrington was a Senior Vice President of Aon Consulting’s private-equity services. Previously, he was a senior counsel at a large national law firm after completing a judicial clerkship with a New Jersey appellate judge.     

Willis Group Holdings Limited is a leading global insurance broker, developing and delivering professional insurance, reinsurance, risk management, financial and human resource consulting and actuarial services to corporations, public entities and institutions around the world.  Willis has more than 300 offices in some 100 countries, with a global team of approximately 16,000 Associates serving clients in some 190 countries.  Additional information on Willis may be found at www.willis.com.

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