Bruce Rowlands, President
Prior to establishing the Rowlands+Barranca Agency in 1996, Bruce Rowlands worked in health insurance sales for Empire BlueCross BlueShield. Bruce has served as a consultant, overseeing the Health Insurance Division of a large insurance company serving 25 northeastern states. Prior to that he formed and later became Vice President of the Employee Benefits Division of a large independent insurance agency. Bruce has also testified on behalf of the commercial insurance industry regarding proposed legislative actions in several states and is a member of the Professional Insurance Agents of New York. Bruce is a native of Albany, and resides with his wife and two daughters in Delmar.

Michael Barranca, Executive Vice President
Michael Barranca began his career as an actuarial analyst for Empire BlueCross BlueShield, becoming the manager of the Group Underwriting Department. He subsequently served as Director of Finance and Actuarial Services of BlueShield of Northeastern New York; and, later, as Manager of Employee Benefits for a large independent insurance agency in the Capital District. In 1996, he brought his expertise and experience in the fields of rate negotiation and benefit analysis to R+B. Michael is a native of Albany, and resides in Delmar with his wife and three children.

Account Executives

Sandy DenBesten, Assistant Vice President of Sales
Sandy DenBesten possesses 13 years of experience in sales and service in the health insurance industry. Before coming to Rowlands + Barranca, she served as a marketing representative for Blue Shield of Northeastern New York. Licensed in life, accident and health, Ms. DenBesten is also a licensed broker. She’s also a member of PIA, the Capital Region Human Resource Association and the New York State Society for Human Resource Management.

Michael Dombrowski, Senior Account Executive
Michael Dombrowski began his insurance career 14 years ago with New York Life and NYLIFE Securities, where he spent time as both an Agent and as a Sales Manager.  Prior to joining Rowlands + Barranca, Mike was a Senior Human Resource Consultant with Paychex.  There, Mike served his client's needs by assisting them in their overall strategic planning of Human Resources.

Philip Lupe, Senior Account Executive
Philip Lupe brings to the Rowlands + Barranca Agency over 10 years of experience in sales and service.  Phil has spent his career working with clients in the financial and insurance industry.  His most recent experience comes from TIAA-CREF, a non-profit organization that provides investments and insurance to millions of
employees in education and medicine.  Phil also has a
strong background in employee and HR relations.

Our Account Executive Team’s main responsibilities include servicing R+B clients through:

• Keeping clients informed and up-to-date on current marketing issues and proposed regulation
• Following up on all claims and administration issues
• Drafting benefit comparison and recommending new plan offerings
• Timely delivery of renewals

Additional Staff
Greg Guidetti, Senior Group Marketing Analyst

Kelly Zurakowski, Group Marketing Analyst

Lauren Seward, Group Marketing Analyst

Support Services

Judi Burkhard, Vice President Client Services
Judi Burkhard brings nearly 25 years experience in call center management and customer service to Rowlands + Barranca. A key member of the R+B team, Judi is primarily responsible for:

• Ensuring an exceptional level of service is delivered to all clients
• Maintaining excellent working conditions at R+B
• Monitoring daily operation of office staff
  
  

Steven Piccolino, Director of Information Technology
Steven Piccolino blends experience in financial services and information technology to provide innovative solutions for R+B clients. His main responsibilities include:

• Designing and implementing a user-friendly employee benefits web interface
• Researching and implementing new software and information systems to improve internal efficiency
  
  

Additional Staff
Amy Hudson, FSA & Group Billing Administrator
Katie Kiley, FSA & Group Billing Administrator
Erin Lupe, Project Specialist

Sarah Mayer, Enrollment Specialist

Rebecca McCanta, Service Support Specialist
Lindsey Meagher, FSA & Group Billing Administrator
Patti Rowlands, Director of Finance

Nancy Sainato, Administrative Assistant