Oracle Insurance Risk Management Services (Oracle RMS) has appointed Shawn LaPalm (pictured) as vice president of specialty program development, a new role focused on building insurance programs for the agribusiness and not-for-profit sectors.
The hire is another senior appointment for the Ontario brokerage since it took a strategic investment from private equity firm Abry Partners in July 2025.
LaPalm, who will be based in Belleville, Ontario, will develop niche programs and partnerships for clients across Canada. He brings 25 years of experience in commercial insurance. Public business records show he ran his own insurance agency in Peterborough, Ontario, from 2005, which operated under The Co-operators banner.
“His expertise in agriculture and not-for-profit specialty programs will allow Oracle RMS to deepen our capabilities in important and under-serviced markets,” said John Ferraro, CEO of Oracle RMS.
The firm said the role will act as a centre of excellence for specialty program development, creating scalable programs for the specific operational and financial exposures in each sector. LaPalm said he was looking forward to developing new specialty solutions for clients and partners across Canada.
Ferraro and Michael Di Nardo founded Oracle RMS in Concord, Ontario, in 2011 with four employees. By the time of the Abry deal, the firm said it served more than 60,000 customers through nearly 40 locations, with more than 300 staff. The acquisitions along the way included Spacca Insurance Brokers in 2023.
Abry, a Boston-based middle-market investor focused on insurance distribution, said the deal marked its entry into the Canadian market. Oracle’s founders kept significant equity and continue to run the business.
At the time, the partners said the investment would help scale resources for producers and branches.
Specialty programs are a common next step for PE-backed brokerages once acquisitions have built scale. A brokerage that designs coverage, underwriting criteria and pricing with insurers for a defined group can place that business more efficiently, earn better margins and hold onto clients more easily than one that places every risk individually.
Agribusiness and not-for-profits suit that model. Farm and agribusiness clients combine property, equipment, livestock and often processing or retail operations, much of which sits outside a standard commercial package. In many parts of Canada, it’s written by farm mutuals or specialist markets. Not-for-profits need a different mix of cover, including directors and officers liability, abuse and molestation coverage, volunteer accident and special events cover, often on tight budgets and with boards that have limited insurance expertise.
