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Insurance Business America names 96 2026 Rising Stars under age 40
The 2026 class, average age 33.6, includes winners from 22 states, with California leading at 15 honorees.
Insurance Business America has unveiled its 2026 Rising Stars, recognizing 96 high-performing insurance professionals aged 40 and under across the United States.
The annual program, now in its 12th year, spotlights candidates for industry expertise, career achievement, leadership, and a commitment to building long-term careers in insurance. The 2026 cohort has an average age of 33.6, spans ages 23 to 40, and includes professionals with roughly six to 15 years of insurance experience.
The honorees come from 22 states, with California leading with 15 recipients, followed by New York with 14, Florida with nine, and Texas with eight. The group is made up of 42 women and 54 men, with representation across areas including brokerage, underwriting, employee benefits, claims, insurtech, reinsurance, and marketing.
The report highlights that while technical knowledge remains essential, it says the fastest-advancing professionals also stand out for empathy, commercial awareness, initiative, and the ability to develop others. Brett Carter of The Jacobson Group said technical competence is expected, and that what differentiates future leaders is initiative, learning agility, and the ability to influence others.