Richard Korman

ENR RiskReview

Richard Korman is managing senior editor of ENR.com, opinion editor of ENR magazine and editor of the ENR Risk Review, a newsletter devoted to construction-related risk, insurance, surety, regulatory compliance, ethics and law. He has helped shape the business coverage of ENR for more than two decades and has won three American Business Media journalism awards for his work on ENR and ENR.com. He is the author of a well-received biography of inventor Charles Goodyear, and his freelance writing has appeared in the New York Times, BusinessWeek and most recently, PSMag.com, the website of Pacific-Standard Magazine. He has two grown children, lives in the Hudson River Valley north of New York City and from time to time plays keyboards with what he claims is the loudest rock'n'roll cover band in the country, Skreech.

Jason LaMonica
XL Group

Jason LaMonica is the leader of XL’s Subcontractor Default Insurance profit center. Jason joined XL in April of 2011 to develop an SDI product offering that offers custom tailored solutions for the default risk management needs of large commercial contractors. Jason has built a strong team of SDI underwriting, claims and loss control specialists with in depth knowledge and experience to support this new product offering.

Prior to his current position with XL, Jason spent 14 years with Zurich North America, most recently as Regional Vice President of Commercial Markets. In that role, Jason oversaw underwriting operations in the Northeast Region. During his tenure at Zurich, Jason was responsible for multiple product lines, including Property, Casualty, Professional Liability and Subcontractor Default. Industry segments and underwriting groups Jason managed included Construction, Environmental, Middle Markets and Energy Casualty. He was also a member of Zurich’s Regional Leadership Team in the Northeast Region.

Jason’s professional career spans 20 years primarily focused in the underwriting management positions of Construction. He spent the first four years of his career with Reliance National as a Builders Risk (CAR/EAR) Underwriter in the Engineered Risk Division. Jason is a graduate of St. John’s University’s College of Insurance with a bachelor’s degree in Insurance.

Ed Littleton
Balfour Beatty Construction

Ed joined the company in 2006 as Vice President of Risk Management and is responsible for the overall design, management, and execution of risk management programs and initiatives for Balfour Beatty Construction Services US.

Ed began his career in 1985 with Arthur Andersen & Co., where he worked closely with construction industry clients. From there, he joined one of those clients as Vice President of Finance. In 1996, Ed moved from finance to risk management when he joined Willis, serving in various capacities including National Subguard Practice Leader, CFO of their National Construction Practice, and COO in the Carolinas. Ed further expanded his industry experience serving as Vice President of Risk Management for a Top 10 ENR contractor.

Ed holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Accounting from the University of South Carolina and earned his CPA in South Carolina. He has been involved in numerous industry leadership groups, including CFMA, IRMI, and AGC, and Ed serves as Chairman of AGC's Surety Bonding and Risk Management Forum steering committee.

Thomas Schleifer, Ph.D.
Del E. Webb School of Construction, Arizona State University

Tom Schleifer joined the construction industry at age 16 and brings more than 45 years of contracting and consulting experience to his presentation.  He has Bachelor of Science and Masters of Science degrees in construction management from East Carolina University, and a Ph.D., also in construction management, from Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, Scotland.   Dr. Schleifer’s experience includes serving as foreman, field superintendent, project manager, and vice president of a construction company which he owned with his brother.  From 1976 to 1986 he was the Founder and President of the largest international consultancy firm serving the contract surety industry.  During this period, he assisted in the resolution or salvage of hundreds of distressed or failed construction firms and projects.

This combination of practical, hands-on experience as a contractor and assisting financially distressed companies has given Dr. Schleifer a unique perspective on the causes of business failure and how to avoid them.  He wrote the book Construction Contractors’ Survival Guide which has been acclaimed by thousands of contractors and used as a text in numerous university graduate and undergraduate courses and for many years published  Schleifer’s Construction Forecast newsletter.  Dr. Schleifer, sometimes referred to as a “turn around” expert because of the number of companies that he has rescued from financial distress, advises contractors on organization, structure, and strategic planning while he also writes, lectures, and teaches.

The importance of education in the construction industry is one of Tom Schleifer’s favorite themes.  He is a former chairman of the continuing education committee of the Associated General Contractors of America and has lectured extensively at universities, professional and trade associations, and authored numerous articles and publications on construction and business management.  Dr. Schleifer has been listed in “Who’s Who in Finance and Industry” , “Who’s Who in America and “Who’s Who in the World.”  He was the first Eminent Scholar of the Del E. Webb School of Construction, Arizona State University in 1993 and currently serves part time as Visiting Eminent Scholar.

Books by Dr. Schleifer include: Construction Contractors’ Survival Guide, John Wiley and Sons; Glossary of Suretyship and Related Terms, CMA Press; Schleifer’s Construction Profit Series, video and audio tapes; Schleifer’s Construction Forecast newsletter.