Branch Hires Pratiksha Patel As First Chief People Officer

Patel Brings More Than 20 Years of Diversified People & Talent Engagement Experience

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Nov. 17, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Branch®, a full-stack insurance company that uses data, technology, and automation to make home and auto insurance completely frictionless, today announced the hiring of Pratiksha Patel as the company's first Chief People Officer. Patel joins the team with more than two decades of experience across diverse global industry leaders including L'Oreal and McKinsey & Company as well as high-growth disruptors including CB Insights and Gilt.

"Pratiksha is an incredible addition to the Branch culture, something we've been intentional about creating since day one," said Branch co-founder and CTO Joe Emison. "Her warmth, experience, and eagerness to help evolve the Branch environment and People functions are already felt by the team and we couldn't be more thrilled to have her."

Most recently, Patel served as the Senior VP of People at CB Insights, where she counseled leaders on change management, built a data-driven talent acquisition function, and embedded values-driven, equitable, and inclusive practices into People programs. She has also served as a talent expert for McKinsey & Company to transform and improve customer outcomes, organizational velocity, and talent engagement. In addition, Patel serves as an advisor to PeopleTech Partners, an early-stage advisory and investment group that leverages the insights of current People leaders operating in top-tier businesses to accelerate the growth of companies in their portfolio.

"What's particularly great about Branch is the high alignment between the communal origin of insurance and what it takes to foster an environment that is an amazing place to grow and have an impact," shared Patel. "I am looking forward to continuing to build Branch as a place to do our best work together and realize our mission."

Through her diverse experiences, Patel has focused on cultural cohesion, raising the bar, and evolving programs that resonate with progressive ways of working and drivers of employee engagement. Even more uniquely, her experience has included close collaboration with global teams and office-based, hybrid, and distributed models. Patel's wide-ranging skill set across the People function will be immensely valuable to Branch's culture-driven, remote-first model.

Branch has a deep commitment to culture, driven by its mission to make insurance less expensive so more people can be insured, and was named one of Glassdoor's Best Places to Work in 2022. As Branch works to become nationally available in the coming months, the company continues to hire across all areas of the business. Learn more about Branch and its open positions at Branch.com.

Branch is home and auto insurance that's simple to buy and built for savings. Through its revolutionary instant-bind capability, Branch removes all of the friction associated with getting covered, helping consumers bundle their home and auto with ease. Branch is a Public Benefits Corporation and manages a reciprocal exchange, an organization in which the policyholders are the actual owners of the policy premiums. The structure is built to align incentives and provide members with as much savings as possible. Branch further provides its members with access to a number of community-based products – which help members save even more by leveraging the power of their networks.

Branch was launched in 2019 by insurance veteran Steve Lekas and tech entrepreneur Joe Emison, and is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. Branch is underwritten by the Branch Insurance Exchange, Everspan Insurance Company, and General Security National Insurance Company (GSNIC). To learn more, visit Branch.com.

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SOURCE Branch Insurance