internal
W. Robert Berkley, Jr.
President and Chief Executive Officer
Executive
10 yr
11 reports
W. R. Berkley Corporation ·WRB
Decentralized insurer run without a COO
Financials · Fortune #316 · Holding structure · 9K employees · Greenwich, Connecticut
View as of:
5
CEO span
↓ tighter than peers (avg 10)
2
Avg span
tight
3
Max depth
3 levels
7.4 yr
Avg tenure
stable vs FY2024
100%
Internal hires
↑ above industry avg
Consolidated financials FY2025 · period end 2025-12-31 · 10-K
Revenue
$14.7B
Net income
$1.8B
Total assets
$44.1B
Shares out
374M
Sourced from W. R. Berkley Corporation DEF 14A · filed 2026-04-22 ↗ View on SEC
Interactive org chart
W. R. Berkley Corporation organizational chart
Explore the executive structure, reporting layers, and scenario-ready operating model from public filings.
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Decentralized insurer run without a COO. This page maps W. R. Berkley’s lean corporate leadership, showing how multiple EVPs run finance, operations, investments, and governance under a holding‑company model, with analysis and peer comparison.
What to model
Use the chart to test org decisions, not just view reporting lines
Start with the public baseline, then use the scenario views and source-backed changes to ask what happens when leadership, span, or team ownership shifts.
Latest signal Operating model changed role as Executive leadership
Continued operation without a COO, reaffirmed in 2025 proxy disclosures (Apr 2026).
Source · See change logScenario views in the chart
- Add a Chief Operating Officer Introduce a COO to centralize operational oversight across insurance and reinsurance units, potentially improving coordination.
Atlas work this supports
- Connect Workday or UKG Get these analytics for YOUR org — tenure, span of control, headcount, automatically from your HRIS.
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- Plan a Reorg Use this as a starting point. Model scenarios, compare structures, present options to your board.
The people
Who's running this
6 executives identified as Named Executive Officers in the most recent SEC proxy. Bar length scales with tenure.
internal
Richard M. Baio
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Finance
9 yr
2 reports
internal
Lucille T. Sgaglione
Executive Vice President
Operations
7 yr
2 reports
internal
James G. Shiel
Executive Vice President, Investments
Investments
8 yr
1 reports
internal
Philip S. Welt
Executive Vice President and Secretary
Legal / Corporate Affairs
3 yr
1 reports
internal
William R. Berkley
Executive Chairman
Board / Executive
11 yr
0 reports
The pay
Executive compensation
From the most recent DEF 14A Summary Compensation Table. 3 named executive officers disclosed. Bar length scales with total compensation.
W. Robert Berkley, Jr. $16.8M
- Base salary
- $1.10M
- Bonus
- $3.85M
- Stock awards
- $11.18M
- Non-equity incentive
- $700K
- Fiscal year
- FY2025
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
William R. Berkley $17.0M
- Base salary
- $1.10M
- Bonus
- $3.85M
- Stock awards
- $11.18M
- Non-equity incentive
- $925K
- Fiscal year
- FY2025
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
Richard M. Baio $3.1M
- Base salary
- $742K
- Bonus
- $632K
- Stock awards
- $1.66M
- Non-equity incentive
- $94K
- Fiscal year
- FY2025
- Source
- SEC DEF 14A ↗
The skin in the game
Beneficial ownership
Insider stock holdings and the company's ownership requirements for executives and directors. Disclosed in the most recent DEF 14A.
Stock ownership requirements
5×Director cash retainer
Directors must own shares equal to five times the annual stipend.
The businesses
How W. R. Berkley Corporation divides the work
3 divisions report into the group CEO. Tile size scales with estimated headcount.
Insurance Operations
6K employees
Executive Vice President (Lucille T. Sgaglione)
Oversees underwriting, claims, and operations across Berkley’s decentralized insurance businesses.
Reinsurance & Monoline Excess
800 employees
President and CEO (W. Robert Berkley, Jr.)
Manages facultative and treaty reinsurance and monoline excess operations globally.
$1.5B rev FY2025
Investments
300 employees
Executive Vice President, Investments (James G. Shiel)
Responsible for investment strategy, portfolio management, and capital deployment.
The thesis
Why this org is unusual
W.
R. Berkley is notable for operating at global scale without a formal Chief Operating Officer. Instead, operational authority is distributed across multiple Executive Vice Presidents, reflecting the company’s long‑standing decentralized model. The CEO has a relatively small direct span, with finance, investments, operations, and corporate affairs each led independently.
This structure aligns with Berkley’s strategy of running dozens of semi‑autonomous insurance businesses supported by a lean corporate center. Corporate leaders focus on capital allocation, risk oversight, and talent rather than day‑to‑day underwriting decisions. The absence of a COO reduces hierarchy and preserves flexibility, but places greater coordination demands on the CEO and EVP layer.
- No Chief Operating Officer
- Highly decentralized operating model
The comparison
How W. R. Berkley Corporation stacks up
Compared with other large U.S. property‑and‑casualty insurers, W. R. Berkley is more decentralized and less operationally consolidated. Peers such as Chubb and Travelers employ clearer divisional or regional P&L leaders and often maintain a COO or equivalent role. Berkley’s model more closely resembles a …
C-suite size
Reporting depth
Avg C-suite tenure
Has COO / Has CAIO
W. R. Berkley Corporation — no COO — no CAIO
Chubb ✓ COO — no CAIO
Current signals
What changed recently
Recent governance updates include adding a new director while maintaining Berkley’s long‑standing COO‑less structure.
Leadership Timeline
Year-over-year executive structure based on SEC proxy and annual filings.
FY2025
DEF 14A filed 2026-04-22
- CEO
- W. Robert Berkley, Jr.
- CEO span
- 5
- C-suite
- 6
- Avg tenure
- 7.4 yr
Leadership continuity with no COO and long‑tenured executives.
Named executive officers (6)
- W. Robert Berkley, Jr. - President and CEO since 2015
- William R. Berkley - Executive Chairman since 2015
- Richard M. Baio - EVP, CFO since 2016
- Lucille T. Sgaglione - EVP since 2018
- Philip S. Welt - EVP, Secretary since 2023
- James G. Shiel - EVP, Investments since 2017
FY2024
DEF 14A filed 2025-04-25
- CEO
- W. Robert Berkley, Jr.
- CEO span
- 5
- C-suite
- 6
- Avg tenure
- 7.1 yr
Stable executive team; continued decentralized structure.
Named executive officers (6)
- W. Robert Berkley, Jr. - President and CEO since 2015
- William R. Berkley - Executive Chairman since 2015
- Richard M. Baio - EVP, CFO since 2016
- Lucille T. Sgaglione - EVP since 2018
- Philip S. Welt - EVP, Secretary since 2023
- James G. Shiel - EVP, Investments since 2017
FY2023
DEF 14A filed 2024-04-19
- CEO
- W. Robert Berkley, Jr.
- CEO span
- 4
- C-suite
- 5
- Avg tenure
- 6.8 yr
Slightly smaller executive team prior to addition of EVP Secretary.
Named executive officers (5)
- W. Robert Berkley, Jr. - President and CEO since 2015
- William R. Berkley - Executive Chairman since 2015
- Richard M. Baio - EVP, CFO since 2016
- Lucille T. Sgaglione - EVP since 2018
- James G. Shiel - EVP, Investments since 2017
Year-over-year changes
Addition of an EVP Secretary modestly expanded the CEO’s span while preserving structure.
- CEO span: 4 → 5
- C-suite size: 5 → 6
- Avg tenure: 6.8 → 7.1 yr
- new Philip S. Welt - EVP, Secretary (DEF 14A filed Apr 25, 2025)
No material executive turnover; leadership continuity maintained.
The board
Board of directors
10 directors. 8 of 10 independent (80%). Source: most recent DEF 14A.
W. Robert Berkley, Jr.
Inside
President and CEO, W. R. Berkley Corporation
William R. Berkley
Chair Inside
Executive Chairman, W. R. Berkley Corporation
Christopher L. Augostini
Independent
EVP and Enterprise COO, Emory University and Emory Healthcare
Ronald E. Blaylock
Independent
Founder and Managing Partner, GenNx360 Capital Partners
Also on: Pfizer Inc., CarMax, Inc.
Mary C. Farrell
Independent
Chair, Howard Gilman Foundation
María Luisa Ferré
Independent
CEO, FRG, LLC
Also on: Popular, Inc.
Marie A. Mattson
Independent
Secretary of the University, Georgetown University
Daniel L. Mosley
Independent
Partner, BDT & MSD Partners
Robert A. Rusbuldt
Independent
President, Rusbuldt & Associates
Jonathan Talisman
Independent
Founder and Managing Partner, Capitol Tax Partners
The board, organized
Board committees
3 standing committees. Audit and Compensation must be 100% independent under SEC rules; the rest vary.
Audit Committee
100% independent 11 mtgs/yr
- Christopher L. Augostini Chair
- María Luisa Ferré
- Marie A. Mattson
- Jonathan Talisman
Compensation Committee
100% independent 5 mtgs/yr
- Mary C. Farrell Chair
- Ronald E. Blaylock
- Daniel L. Mosley
- Robert A. Rusbuldt
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
100% independent 2 mtgs/yr
- Mary C. Farrell
- Ronald E. Blaylock
- Daniel L. Mosley
- Robert A. Rusbuldt
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the CEO of W. R. Berkley?
W. Robert Berkley, Jr. has served as President and CEO since October 2015.
What type of organizational structure does W. R. Berkley use?
The company operates a decentralized holding‑company structure with many autonomous insurance units.
How many direct reports does W. R. Berkley’s CEO have?
The CEO has five primary direct reports at the executive level.
How has W. R. Berkley’s leadership changed recently?
Recent changes have focused on board refreshment, including adding a new director in 2025, rather than executive turnover.
Does W. R. Berkley have a COO?
No. W. R. Berkley operates without a Chief Operating Officer, distributing operational authority across multiple EVPs.
Sources
- DEF 14A filed Apr 22, 2026
- Company Proxy Statement, Apr 2026
- SEC EDGAR: W. R. Berkley Corporation DEF 14A Proxy Statement
- SEC EDGAR: W. R. Berkley Corporation 10-K Annual Report
Reference
Cite this page
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APA 7th
Creately. (2026). W. R. Berkley Corporation organizational structure. Creately. Retrieved , from https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/wr-berkley/MLA 9th
"W. R. Berkley Corporation Organizational Structure." Creately, April 1, 2026, https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/wr-berkley/. Accessed .Chicago 17
Creately. "W. R. Berkley Corporation Organizational Structure." Last modified April 1, 2026. https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/wr-berkley/.Original SEC source View on SEC ↗
W. R. Berkley Corporation. DEF 14A. Filed 2026-04-22. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/11544/000119312526170583/d82252ddef14a.htmPermanent URL: https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/wr-berkley/ · last updated 2026-04-01