Michelle Wiltgen National Interstate Insurance Company Assistant Vice President & National Marketing Manager
Michelle . Wiltgen @ natl . com National Interstate Insurance Company , founded in 1989 and headquartered in Richfield , OH is a member of the Great American Insurance Group and offers insurance products and services specifically focused on the transportation industry . As a leading specialty property and casualty insurance holding company , National Interstate offers more than 30 different insurance products , including traditional insurance and innovative alternative risk transfer ( ART ) programs for commercial companies and insurance for specialty vehicle owners including passenger transportation , moving and storage and truck transportation .
Michelle Wiltgen is Assistant Vice President & National Marketing Manager for National Interstate Insurance Company ’ s Passenger Transportation Division . She joined the company in 1991 when the company was less than two years old . With 37 years of insurance experience , 30 of them with National Interstate , she is the company ’ s longest tenured employee and has been a part of National Interstate ’ s success of becoming an industry leader as it grew from 23 to over 700 employees . This may not have been the business she thought she ’ d be involved in for her entire career but she can ’ t imagine not being part of the motorcoach industry . She resides in Estero , Florida with her husband Dann Wiltgen who retired from Prevost .
Growing up in a small town outside of Cleveland , Ohio , in a family of four older brothers , didn ’ t offer many opportunities or female role models for me to look up to with respect to a career . It was the late Seventies and the prevailing attitude was that women would get married and have children just like their mothers had done . There were no family discussions of college visits or talk of what college I would attend . I realized at a very early age that if I wanted a career I would need to get an advanced education and I would be the one paying for that . During my senior year of high school I was hired by a local insurance company called Progressive Insurance . I worked there during the day and attended classes at Cleveland State University at night . That was my schedule and routine for the next four plus years until I
graduated in 1989 earning a BA in Management & Labor Relations – Human Resource Management . Armed with a degree in Human Resource Management I naturally thought HR would be the field I would go into but with five years of insurance experience remaining in the insurance field made the most sense and I believed would provide me with the most rewarding opportunities .
Not long after graduating from college I received a call from a former Progressive colleague and friend who had recently left Progressive to become an executive of a newly formed insurance company called National Interstate . He wanted me to interview at this “ startup ” company as a Marketing Representative . When I asked what they insured he replied “ buses ”. I remember thinking how odd that was but decided to find out more and attended the interview . I left a company with thousands of employees to work for a company with only 23 employees and never looked back . Today , I can ’ t imagine not being part of the National Interstate family and the bus industry .
As one of the first female officers of National Interstate I always felt it was important to lead by example . I wanted other women to see that it is possible to be successful , regardless of your title or family background , in a male dominated business . Though hard work , dedication and commitment you can be rewarded with success . Along with being the face of National Interstate to the bus industry , I try to be a resource to other women in the industry . Whether you are a National Interstate customer or not , I will always take your call and try to answer questions or direct you to someone who can .
Joining Women in Buses was an easy decision . The organization , formed by the ABA , is a progressive organization focused on promoting and recognizing the efforts of women in the industry . It gives women the opportunity to network , learn , mentor and be recognized for their strength , dedication and expertise . I hope my involvement speaks to women who may not feel comfortable to come forward and that this will encourage them to be a part of something great .
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