Risk Fair Speakers

Dave Anderson, 360 Solutions

Dave Anderson is an expert dealing with business risk and compliance needs. His extensive experience affords him the ability to assist his clients with practical real-life business solutions. Dave’s dynamic coaching style combined with clear-thinking and honest advice prompts businesses to explore solutions to improve on their bottom line. With over 15 years of professional experience in all aspects of EH&S as well as Human Resources, Dave is known as an expert in the industry. Dave has been responsible for all EH&S matters including OSHA, MSHA, EPA, DNR, ATF, DOT and other regulatory agency inspections - having over 20 unexpected inspections per year. Dave’s pro-active attitude on Accident Prevention and Leadership Training through understanding people, behaviors, and work place demands has put Anderson 360 Solutions at the top of the Industry. Dave earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Whitewater with a major in Occupational Safety and Health.

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Jennifer Barwinski, Kasdorf, Lewis & Sweitlik

Ms. Barwinski started with the firm in April 2004. She practices primarily in the area of insurance defense, focusing on worker's compensation and personal injury cases. She represents employers and insurance companies in litigated worker's compensation cases, and also offers advice pre-suit in these cases. Further, she defends penalty claims against employers in worker's compensation cases. She graduated from Marquette Law School in May 2004 with honors. During law school, Ms. Barwinski was a Managing Editor for the Marquette University Law School Intellectual Property Law Review. She also has interned for Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson.

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James C. Foster, M.D., M.P.H., Kenosha Occupational Medicine Clinic

Dr. Foster received his Master of Science in Biochemistry and Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Illinois - Champaign. He later received his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Illinois - Chicago and his Master of Public Health in Occupational Medicine from the Medical College of Wisconsin. Dr. Foster is a member of the American College of Occupational & Environmental Medicine and the American Industrial Hygiene Association. He is also a certified Medical Review Officer and the Chairman of the Board for Kenosha Health Services Corporation.

Patrick Gillick, Gillick, Wicht, Gillick & Graf

Patrick J. Gillick is a partner in the worker's compensation law firm of Gillick, Wicht, Gillick and Graf located at 6300 West Bluemound Road in Milwaukee. He has represented injured workers for over 30 years. He earned a B.A. in Philosophy and an M.A. in American Studies from St. Louis University. He is a graduate of the Marquette Law School. He has been included in "Best Lawyers in America" for the past 20 years. He has also been chosen to be a fellow in the American Bar Association's College of Worker's Compensation Lawyers. He has spoken to many groups throughout Wisconsin concerning worker's compensation issues. He plays the guitar and banjo and is fluent in French.

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D.J. Hennessy, M.D., Sensia Healthcare

Dr. Hennessy joined Sensia Healthcare in September 2011 and staffs the Franklin clinic. His undergraduate degree was in Biology from the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana and his MD degree was from Loyola-Stritch School of Medicine in Maywood, Illinois. He completed his Residencey in Internal Medicine from the Medical College of Wisconsin, and was privileged to practice general internal medicine, both inpatient and outpatient, for 2 years in Aurora, Illinois, and for 26 years in Menomonee Falls, where he also staffed the Emergency room and urgent care. He has enjoyed the opportunity to mentor medical students, and provide community education in public forums. He has a long standing interest in preventative health and wellness.

Nicole Hottmann, The ALARIS Group, Inc.

Nicole Hottmann is a Senior Account Executive with The ALARIS Group, Inc, a leading resource for insurance carriers, agencies, employers, and attorneys striving to maximize the recovery of the injured employee, yet minimize the financial impact. The ALARIS Group offers specialized case management services, as well as a suite of specialized consulting services. Mrs. Hottmann received her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and Marketing from the University of Wisconsin - Eau Claire. Mrs. Hottmann has been in the worker's compensation and insurance industry for over ten-years. Prior to working for ALARIS, Mrs. Hotmann was a worker's compensation claims handler for an insurance carrier in Wisconsin. She developed a thorough understanding of accident and initial investigation, the importance of early return to work, medical management intervention, and litigation and settlement negotiations within the dynamics of worker's compensation amongst the employer, injured employee and insurance carrier levels. In addition to her professional responsibilities, Mrs. Hottmann is happily married and has two-busy, young boys.

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Peter Jacobson, Wolf & Wolfe, Ltd.

Mr. Jacobson joined The Law Office of Wolf & Wolfe, Ltd in August of 2000. He has been a licensed attorney in the state of Illinois since 2000 and in Indiana since 2001. He focuses his practice in the areas of workers' compensation defense, employer liability and civil litigation defense. Mr. Jacobson received his Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1997. He went on to her his juris doctor from DePaul University College of Law in 2000 and joined Wolf & Wolfe at that time. Since that time, he has had extensive trial experience before both the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission, as well as jury and bench trial experience in circuit court. Mr. Jacobson focuses his practice in the area of workers' compensation defense, employer liability defense and civil litigation defense. He has tried a multitude of cases before the Workers' Compensation Commission in venues throughout Illinois over the past decade. His professional affiliations include the Illinois State Bar Association, Chicago Bar Association and the Workers' Compensation Lawyers' Association. He is the author of The Child Online Protection Act: Taming the World "Wild" Web, DePaul Journal of Art and Entertainment Law, Spring 1999, Volume IX, Number 2.

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Jim Jones, United Heartland

Jim joined United Heartland in 2008 as a loss control consultant, and was promoted to regional loss control manager in 2010. Jim currently oversees seven consultants in southeast and north-central Wisconsin. With more than 20 years of loss control experience in the insurance industry, both on the agency and carrier side, Jim has a diverse background in all lines of insurance coverage. He has technical knowledge of many business types, including manufacturing, transportation, school districts, construction, retail, wholesale and health care. Jim graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with a Bachelor of Science in Education in Occupational Safety and Health in 1988. He earned his Certified Safety Professional designation in 2006, and is an OSHA-authorized instructor for General Industry and Construction. Jim has been actively involved with the American Society of Safety Engineers (past president 2008-2009), currently serves as vice-president of the Waukesha Area Safety Council, and has been a presenter at many regional safety conferences.

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Dave Kania, Kasdorf, Lewis & Sweitlik

Mr. Kania is a shareholder practicing in the worker's compensation section. He practices in all areas of workers compensation defense including primary compensation, bad faith and penalty claims against both the employer and/or the carrier. He works directly with employers worker's compensation insurers and third party administrators.

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Dave Kapitan, QBE

David has been employed at General Casualty since 2000 specializing in providing loss control services to large industry and construction accounts. His experience in insurance and loss control began in 1986. During his insurance career, he has worked extensively in multi-line loss control techniques with emphasis in Workers Compensation, General/Product Liability and Commercial Auto. He has experience in handling a wide variety of accounts including foreign/international account coordination and servicing. He has excelled in account management, specialized supervisory/employee training, "train the trainer" sessions and loss control service work. His educational background includes receiving a B.S. in Occupational Safety from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. He is a Certified Safety Professional (CSP) by examination. Other industry professional development courses completed have included the OSHA 500 and 501 programs. Prisms for Loss Control as well as a variety of company sponsored training sessions. He is an authorized OSHA 10/30 hour construction instructor. David is a past president of the Wisconsin Chapter of the American Society of Safety Engineers.

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Steve Kessel, MRA

In his almost 30 years in organizational/management development and human resources management, Steve Kessel has helped countless corporate leaders, line managers, and employees at all levels achieve organization success. Steve's training and development and human resources management leadership roles in the manufacturing, sales, service, and academic sectors have afforded him a unique perspective on the challenges faced by today's workers. He has particular expertise and specializes in the areas of management and supervisory development, human resources management, and adult education. He applies that expertise in situations ranging from one-on-one consultation to highly interactive and participant-driven classroom situations designed to capitalize on student experience and knowledge. Steve received his bachelor's degree in psychology and speech/communication from the University of Minnesota and he earned his master of arts in organizational communication from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. In addition, he holds numerous certifications from nationally recognized companies.

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Charlie Kilander, Integrated Risk Solutions, Inc.

Charlie has over 20 years of experience in the insurance industry both on the carrier side and the agency side including a large emphasis on Workers Compensation. He holds the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter and Associate in Risk Management designations. In his career, he has held positions in safety consulting, large risk account management, and sales production. He has been with Integrated Risk Solutions for the last 5 years in a large account management role.

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Andrea Koester, RD, CD, Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare

Andrea received her B.A. in Journalism from UW-Whitewater in Whitewater, Wisconsin in 2005, and her Post-Baccalaureate certificate in Dietetics from Mount Mary College, Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 2010. She has been working at Wheaton Franciscan St. Francis Hospital as a clinical dietitian since June 2010.

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Terry Konell, Safety Risk Control Consultant

Terry is an effective Independent Safety Consultant, Certified Safety Professional (CSP), and Navy Safety Specialist (NEC 9571). With a diverse background in risk management, safety and environmental health; he has the ability to evaluate risk and exposures in a wide variety of industry to provide realistic cost effective solutions of protecting workers and preventing injury that meet federal and industry guidelines. Competent, educated, well versed and have a vast working knowledge in a wide variety of exposures to include: steam, diesel, gas turbine, nuclear, wind, and hydroelectric power generation systems including all associated machinery. Additionally, he has experience in heavy manufacturing, foundries, forgers, die casters, property management, car dealerships, service industries, warehousing, municipalities, government contractors, owners, general contractors, design developers, commercial and residential roofers, and other trades in the construction field all containing varying but distinctive risk. Terry holds a bachelors degree in Occupational Safety and Health from Columbia Southern University, Certified Safety Professional #21621, and maintains proficiency in the safety field by attending various safety and health related courses.

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Dave Leix, Accident Fund

Dave Leix is currently a field WorkSafe Consultant for Accident Fund Insurance Company of America. Dave is responsible for providing safety and health training, and safety consultation services to Accident Fund's Wisconsin customers. Dave also assists the Accident Fund underwriters in their book of business' selection, pricing and improvement of risk. Dave has thirty plus years of professional safety and health consulting and managerial experience to a wide variety of customers and clients. Twenty-four years of progressively responsible IL, IA and WI customer field service consulting experience with Liberty Mutual Group. Emphasis has been with construction and industrial operations and clients. He has developed, directed and managed customer and agency loss control services provided by Wisconsin and Minnesota based field Loss Control Consultants while serving as Wisconsin Loss Control Manager for Fremont Compensation Insurance Group. Dave has served on the Executive Board for the local SE Wisconsin ASSE Chapter, most recently as Past President.

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Terry Maves, RPh, United Healthcare

Terry has been a community and pharmacy leader in Northeast Wisconsin for over 30 years.  He is the Pharmacy Director for United Healthcare in Wisconsin and formerly the Director of Pharmaceutical Services at Touchpoint Healthplan , which was named the Number One Health Plan in the Nation in 2002 and 2003. This honor is based on the National Committee for Quality Assurances (NCQA) report regarding the delivery of preventative care and managing chronic diseases, as reflected by the results of the HEDIS Effectiveness Care measures. Terry has recognized the pharmacist’s ability to intervene on the patient’s behalf to improve patient therapies.  He helped create the Everyone Teaching Compliance (ETC) program, which helps health care providers coordinate care to improve medication utilization for 16 disease states. This program earned Terry recognition as the Innovative Pharmacist of the Year in 2000 for the State of Wisconsin. Along with increasing pharmacist’s involvement in the delivery of health care, Terry created and implemented a cognitive reimbursement program for pharmacists which has become the basis for part of the Medication Therapy Management (MTM) program being developed in Wisconsin. In addition to being a leader in patient consultation and education, Terry’s role as a well-known preceptor, public speaker, and professional has demonstrated his commitment to the field of pharmacy.

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Brady McLaughlin, ASP, ARM, Liberty Mutual Group

Brady McLaughlin is currently Consultant II for Loss Control Advisory Services at Liberty Mutual. He is responsible for providing field loss control to Commercial Markets customers, producers, other consultants and service directors in the Midwest Region.

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Kathy McNulty, The ALARIS Group, Inc.

Kathy McNulty is a Case Manager Supervisor with The ALARIS Group, Inc., a leading resource for insurance carriers, employers, agencies, and attorneys striving to maximize the recovery of the injured employee-yet minimize the financial impact. The ALARIS Group, Inc. offers specialized case management services, as well as a suite of specialized consulting services.

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Judge Sherman Mitchell, Department of Workforce Development

Sherman C. Mitchell is an Attorney and Administrative Law Judge in the Milwaukee Hearings Office of the Worker's Compensation Division of the Department of Workforce Development for the State of Wisconsin. Judge Mitchell has presided over hundreds of Unemployment Compensation hearings and thousands of Worker's Compensation hearings in his twenty-eight years as an ALJ in the Department of Workforce Development, and is a multiple recipient of the Outstanding Performance Award. He has lectured on Worker's Compensation on radio programs; at schools and universities; employment training sessions, including the popular DWD Labor Law Clinics; and legal seminars, including those sponsored by the State Bar of Wisconsin, Wisconsin Association of African-American Lawyers, and Wisconsin Academy of Trial Lawyers.

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Attorney William Sachse, Peterson, Johnson, & Murray, S.C.

William R. Sachse, Jr., is a shareholder at Peterson, Johnson, & Murray, S.C., a state-wide civil litigation firm where he defends employers and insurers in worker's compensation litigation. Mr. Sachse obtained his law degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1982.

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John Seidl, FMCSA

John M. Seidl began his employment with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Wisconsin Division in June, 2005. John was the Valedictorian of his FMCSA Academy class that graduated in October 2005. Prior to his employment with FMCSA, he was a Wisconsin State Patrol Inspector from July 1996 to June 2005. He worked at the Racine and Kenosha Weigh/Enforcement facilities. He was also a school bus and human service vehicle Inspector during his employment on the State Patrol. As a Safety Investigator, John conducts compliance reviews at assigned companies in the State of Wisconsin. Most of his work is conducted in the Southeastern portion of the state. He is also a member of the National Drug/Alcohol Technical Advisory Group and the National EOBR implementation team that are instrumental in moving compliance in these areas forward on a national level.

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John Steiner, KEVA Engineering

Specialized in transportation accident reconstruction including the extraction and analysis of data from Event Data Recorders. Conducted rapid response to major transportation accidents. Expert in documenting vehicle damage and roadway physical evidence.

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Derek Theisen, Integrated Risk Solutions, Inc.

Derek Theisen is a graduate of UW-Whitewater where he achieved a B.S. in the field of Occupational Safety with emphasis on Construction Safety. He has several years of Loss Control experience on both the carrier and agency side working with a wide variety of customers. Most recently Derek has worked on Integrated Risk Solution's OCIP team on the Hwy. 41 Project in Oshkosh and Green Bay where he assisted the Project Director Manager on a sight specific safety program. Derek is now working as Integrated Risk Solution's dedicated Risk Control Consultant.

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Risk Fair Topics

Accident Reconstruction for the Transportation Industry / New Transportation Technology Loss Prevention Options

Because an accident involving a heavy truck can have numerous significant consequences, it is of the utmost importance to gain an understanding of the facts surrounding each such incident.  It is, in turn, crucial to properly document all of the scientific evidence from the accident.  Scene crash evidence consists of things such as tire marks, scrapes and gouges, but these elements are transient in nature.  If not documented quickly, it can be lost forever.  Further, physical vehicle evidence is no longer limited to crush and mechanical damage; new technologies such as Heavy Vehicle Event Data Recorders or “blackboxes” are now more prevalent than ever on commercial vehicles.  A cohesive approach to documenting all of the evidence requires a team of professionals.  It can be accomplished by forming a rapid response team, comprised of engineers and legal counsel, to secure and document the vehicle(s), the driver(s), the environmental conditions and any other related evidence from the accident.  We will discuss not just the proper documentation of classic physical evidence, but also the proper documentation of new technologies such as HVEDR data from engine Electronic Control Modules (ECM).  We will also discuss the legal issues of protecting your work product, evidence preservation, and evidentiary admissibility.

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Administrative Law Judge & Attorney Panel

Why do so many decisions from the Department of Workforce Development seem to defy our logic as employers? What can we do to make Wisconsin's law more favorable? Explore recent case law and long-standing worker's compensation practices from all sides of the debate with prominent defense and applicant's attorneys and a seasoned administrative law judge.

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Behavioral Based Safety

What and why employees do what they do can significantly increase a company's insurance costs if unsafe behaviors exist. This course will give employers basic knowledge on behavioral based safety approaches and ways to improve behaviors to make your company a safer place of employment.

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Changes in Experience Modification Calculation

How does your Workers Compensation Experience Modification impact your business? What, if anything, can you do about it? This session will be a discussion of the WC Experience Modification including the components that go into the calculation, methods for controlling those components, the impact of the Mod on your bottom line, and the impact to you on pending changes for the Experience Modification calculations.

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Cumulative Trauma

Some of the most misunderstood worker's compensation claims - and too frequently conceded - are those involving cumulative trauma. Are you able to effectively respond to a claim for carpal tunnel syndrome, medical epicondylitis or a ganglion cyst? Get the facts about disorders that are commonly claimed as work injuries and find out how to distinguish between those you owe and those you don't.

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Diet is a 4-Letter-Word

Low carbohydrate, high carbohydrate, low protein, high protein, low fat, high fat. This session reviews healthy ways to manage your weight by improving lifestyle habits such as behavior modification tips, smart shopping guidelines, and ideas for making healthy menu selections when eating out.

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Driver Behavior Data: CSA, EOBR's, PSP, On-Board Monitoring Technologies / What to Expect in a CSA Intervention from a Serious Crash or a Basic Alert Status

John will cover what to expect in a CSA Intervention for an SMS Basic that is in alert status, what to prepare for in a focused compliance review, what the potential follow-on actions could be and what a motor carrier can do to improve. John will also discuss the various technologies that are available to inspectors on roadside inspections and during on site focused compliance reviews and identify ways for Motor Carriers to utilize the various technologies to predict, manage and monitor driver behavior. There will also be an update on the hours of service and rule changes.

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Driver Selection Guidelines & Human Factors in Crash Data

When hiring new drivers it is important to look at key pieces of information provided to employers during the recruiting process. This course will educate employers on identifying both positives and negatives of a candidate in an effort to help find the best driver for the job. The course will also cover how human factors discovered through crash data can help management focus training to prevent reoccurrence.

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Effective Safety Committees

Employees are a company's greatest asset and can be a tremendous source of information when determining how to make your operations safer. Safety committees is that forum where employees discuss safety related challenges and how to resolve them. This course will give attendees knowledge on how an effective safety committee works and ways to improve your existing committee.

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Effective Worksite Wellness for the Aging Workforce

Your workforce is aging... These employees are an asset, as they are experienced, dependable and skilled - and more costly to employ. Their general health status affects productivity, worker's compensation costs, and your health care insurance costs. Consider criteria for designing and implementing effective wellness programs for your aging employees.

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Four Critical Programs to Maximize Your Return on Investment & Mitigate Your Exposure

Learn how to implement and successfully maintain the proper programs to assist employees with their medical concerns, whether occupational/non-occupational, decrease your Workers Compensation pay-out in both indemnity and medical benefits and positively achieve a more healthy workforce. These programs include: 24/7 Nurse Care Line, Transitional Return to Work, Occupational Health Services and Medical Case Management.

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How to Develop a Catastrophe Plan (Round Table)

Do you have a plan in place to protect your people and assets in the event of a catastrophe? Learn the steps you should take today to make sure your business survives and stays competitive if disaster strikes tomorrow.

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Illinois Workers Compensation Practicing Under the New Act

The Illinois legislature passed a new worker's compensation act this year that included several attempts at reform. Discuss the new provisions in the law, and find out if changes like treatment with select physicians and fact-based permanent partial disability ratings are all they are cracked up to be.

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Making Them Want to Stay! Retaining Employees with a Culture of Best Practices

In this session we will explore the concept of Employee Engagement and the "signs" that indicate the presence of lack of the engagement. We'll look at some data that shows us the level of engagement in corporate America (not all that encouraging, by the way!) But, most important, we will focus on the behaviors that leaders can exhibit to create Engagement in those who they lead. So, get ready to start thinking about how YOU, as a leader, create an environment that encourages: A sense of pride in the organization; Significance and linkage; A good job fit; Trust, integrity and credibility in leadership; A supportive culture; An emotional connection with leadership; and Employee development. You will walk away with one good idea you can put into practice immediately!

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Return-to-Work: A One-Day Objective

Learn how to effectively manage the med only and loss time claim. RTW planning do's and dont's. Communication with MD's. Use of TM. Use of CM. Using JA's. How to maintain employee engagement when they are off. Transitional Duty. Communication with employees.

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State of Prescription Drugs - What is the Future of Prescriptions?

Terry will go over the State of Rx as an industry, as of now and in the future. Also how we, as consumers of health care, need to be prepared for changes in the industry and how to hopefully save money.

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Top 5 Workers Compensation Injuries to Fight and Why

The liberal construction of Wisconsin's worker's compensation syste makes employer victories hard to come by, but some cases deserve an all-out defense. Discover which claims experienced attorneys are most confident trying and how you can develop facts that lead to a win.

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Top 10 Things to do in a Property Claim/Catastrophe Planning

It's easy to panic when your business suffers major property damage like a fire or flood, but these experts confront such catastrophes every day. Learn what you can do in the first hours o fa claim to minimize down time, maximize your cost recovery and keep your business from skipping a beat.

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Update to NFPA 70-E

This standard addresses electrical safety-related work practices for employee workplaces that are necessary for the practical safeguarding of employees relative to the hazards associated with electrical energy. In the newest 2012 edition of the standard, there are several revisions that employers must be aware of. This course will educate attendees on those revisions and how it will affect them.

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Workers Compensation Compensability Game

A series of real-life examples of exotic worker's compensation scenarios will be presented. The audience will choose whether each is compensable or not. Attorney Sachse will then disclose the correct answer and discuss the reasons for it.

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