Leadership Team

• Steven A. Edwards
  President Steve Edwards, President and Co-Founder of BGIA, is a successful insurance entrepreneur and philanthropist. A native of New Jersey, Mr. Edwards directs most of his charitable efforts toward changing the lives of children. He has been a generous contributor of time and talents to Save the Children, Operation Smile and many other worthy organizations. In recent years, he and an inspired group of N.J. leaders joined together to help create the New Jersey Hall of Fame. Mr. Edwards volunteers as the Foundation Boards President and the Executive Producer of the annual induction ceremony, a nationally recognized event. In 1994, he was honored by Israel Bonds as one of 10 extraordinary young people from North America for his contributions to the State of Israel. Mr. Edwards has been a featured guest on MY 9 “Real Talk”, News 12 “Power and Politics”, Verizon’s “Let’s Talk” and Comcast “Newsmakers”, and one of the businesses he helped to launch in 2002 was featured on the cover of N.J. Biz Magazine. Mr. Edwards is a former member of the Advisory Board of Directors of several community banks, and was formerly the Governors liaison to the Board of Trustees of the N.J. Public Entities Retirement System, Finance Chairman of the Union Township Board of Education and Vice Chairman of the Union County Planning Board. He has more than 25 years of experience in the public entity insurance sector and has represented more than 100 public entities. He is married to Pauline Stegenius and is a proud father of two daughters, Shira and Naomi.
• Kevin Larkin, CPCU
  Senior Vice President

  Kevin Larkin brings over 30 years of innovative marketing experience to BGIA, providing diverse risk management solutions for midsize and Fortune 1000 companies throughout his career. Mr. Larkin has advised numerous organizations by assessing and implementing strategies to mitigate loss and reduce the overall cost of risk. His background in management and consulting provides expertise in negotiating all areas of property and casualty placements. Mr. Larkin joined BGIA in May 2020 as Senior Vice President in the Public Entity Practice. He is a member of the American Institute for Chartered Property Casualty Underwriters and the New Jersey Society of CPCU's.

• Brian Erlandsen
  Vice President Brian Erlandsen has an extensive background in large-lines commercial insurance brokerage, marketing, underwriting, and account management. Prior to joining NIP Group / BGIA in 1996 he held senior account management positions, providing insurance and risk management services for private and public sector clients in New York and New Jersey. Mr. Erlandsen played an integral part in the development and success of the Garden State Municipal Joint Insurance Fund (GSMJIF) division of NIP Group Captive. During his six year tenure, GSMJIF membership grew from 14 to 31 municipalities.  Mr. Erlandsen contributed as Deputy Administrator to the Fund and as VP of Pool Underwriting. Mr. Erlandsen maintains the Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) professional designation.
• Stuart Migdon
  Managing Director Stuart Migdon began his career in public accounting. He obtained a Certified Public Accountant designation and entered the financial services industry in 1984, advising clients on insurance and financial matters. Since 1991, Mr. Migdon has specialized in health insurance and other related areas affecting both employers and employees. He joined BGIA in 1993 as the Director of Employee Benefits. Mr. Migdon graduated from Dowling College with a B.A. in Accounting.
• George Crosby
  Account Manager George Crosby has worked as an Account Executive with a regional insurance brokerage firm since his insurance career began in 2003. Mr. Crosby joined BGIA in 2012. His Account Management experience includes both medium and large corporate clients. Mr. Crosby holds the Chartered Property & Casualty (CPCU) and the Associate in Risk Management for Public Entities (ARM-P) professional designations. Mr. Crosby is a Municipal Excess Liability (MEL) Accredited Risk Manager. He graduated from the New Jersey Institute of Technology with a Bachelor's Degree in Business.
• Conrad G. Cyriax
  Senior Claims Consultant Conrad Cyriax has a wealth of claims management experience having served as a claims department leader at a major third party claims administrator for over 10 years. He has handled complex litigation issues in many industry segments that relate to the Public Entity arena. Mr. Cyriax practiced law with Thacher Proffitt & Wood in New York City, NY and with Riker, Danzig, Scherer, Hyland & Perretti in New Jersey. He also has an extensive insurance background, having been the Claims Manager for Alexander Howden (U.S.), Prudential Reinsurance.
• Denise Gigantino
  Employee Benefits Client Manager Denise Gigantino is a Client Manager for BGIA. She brings more than 20 years of experience in the employee benefits industry, specializing in large group insurance plans. She leads the employee benefits client management process, including plan design, marketing, enrollment, administration, claims and financial management. Prior to joining BGIA, she held positions of increasing responsibility in the employee benefits divisions of the Prudential Insurance Company of America.
• Tracey Murdoch
  Employee Benefits Client Manager Tracey Murdoch is a Client Manager for BGIA. She brings more than 20 years of experience in the employee benefits and financial services industry. She leads the employee benefits client management process, including plan design, marketing, enrollment, administration, claims and financial management. Prior to joining BGIA, she held positions of increasing responsibility in the employee benefits divisions of Wells Fargo Insurance USA, Inc.