Gallagher’s three new hires – Josh Heron, Sarah Alexander, and Michael Hambleton – join the company’s Queensland Corporate division. Collectively, the three bring roughly 80 years of experience in insurance broking, risk advisory, and client management across both domestic and international markets. Heron, appointed as manager, corporate, has spent 14 years working across Australian retail broking and the London wholesale market. His client history spans the mining, life sciences, travel and lifestyle, timber, retail, and local government sectors.
Alexander takes on the account manager role with 26 years in the industry behind her. Her career has covered education, aged care, healthcare, manufacturing, not-for-profit, and retail sectors, and she has worked in both personal injury claims and insurance broking. Hambleton, joining as client manager, brings 38 years of experience to the role. He has worked with some of Queensland’s largest organisations across local government, manufacturing, healthcare, education, transport, and charitable and religious organisations, and has previously held positions at major international broking firms.
Paul Harvey, managing director, corporate & specialisms at Gallagher, addressed the rationale behind the appointments. “We are delighted to welcome Josh, Sarah, and Michael to Gallagher. Each brings deep technical expertise, strong market relationships, and a proven track record of delivering exceptional outcomes for clients,” Harvey said. He described Queensland as a continuing priority for the company: “Queensland remains an important growth market for Gallagher, and these appointments further strengthen our ability to provide strategic advice, risk insights, and tailored insurance solutions for corporate clients across the state.”
Harvey also framed the hires against a backdrop of rising risk complexity facing corporate clients. “As organisations face increasingly complex and evolving risks, the value of experienced advisers who understand both the insurance market and their clients’ strategic objectives has never been greater. These appointments reinforce our commitment to helping clients face their future with confidence,” Harvey said.
At Market Lane Insurance Group, Bobby Major has been appointed head of ML Specialty, stepping up from a business development role he held within the same organisation. Major spent three years on Market Lane’s Partnerships & Engagement team as a business development manager covering Australia and New Zealand, where his work centred on broker relationships and regional growth activity.
ML Specialty operates as a distinct unit within Market Lane, with a focus on niche insurance products tied to emerging and evolving exposures. Its current offerings include Product Contamination and SME Product Recall products, both backed by separate binders and structured to serve different parts of the food and beverage industry. Market Lane’s announcement pointed to Major’s existing knowledge of the business and his established broker network as factors in the decision, though no growth targets or forward timelines were disclosed. No statements from Major or other Market Lane representatives were included in the company’s announcement.
