Don Balla

Don Balla is a Senior Vice President and Partner of Alera Group Pittsburgh and has more than 27 years of experience in the insurance and financial services industry. Don has oversight of Sales & Marketing for the Western Pennsylvania marketplace.  Prior to selling his agency to Alera Group in 2017, He most recently served as Managing Principal of the Employee Benefits Division of Simpson & McCrady, LLC.  Under his leadership, Simpson & McCrady grew into a multi-line insurance advisory firm providing benefits, property and casualty, and risk management services. Balla earned his Bachelor of Administration degree in Business Administration and Economics from Grove City College.  Balla is currently serving on industry advisory boards for insurance companies.  Additionally, he serves/advises many charitable organizations.

Susan Campbell

Susan Campbell is the VP, Client Experiences for the Alera Group Pittsburgh office.  Susan has been in the insurance industry for almost 30 years with a focus in client management.    At Alera Group, she assists clients with:

• Finding creative strategies to control employee benefit costs;
• Compliance issues;
• Utilizing Alera Group tools and services;
• Promoting wellness strategies;
• Everyday HR challenges regarding their benefits, and;
• Providing updates on health care reform.

Campbell earned her Bachelor of Arts in Communications with a concentration in Business from Mt. St. Joseph University in Cincinnati, Ohio. In addition, she has her Managed Health Professional (MHP) designation from America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), Group Benefits Disability Specialist designation and is licensed in Health and Accident, Life and Fixed Annuities.

Kandy Dudek

Kandy Dudek is VP, Finance & Administration of Alera Group Pittsburgh and is responsible for financial reporting and other internal business workflow. Prior to focusing solely in this role, her other duties also included supporting clients as a Senior Account Executive. Kandy has 14 years of service with our agency and more than 25 years of administration, project management, and financial reporting experience.

Tina Hapanowicz

Tina is the Managing Partner of Alera Group Pittsburgh and has provided expertise in insurance benefits for more than 30 years. Her current role is to provide local corporate oversight of business matters and, along with local leadership, setting the strategic direction and growth for Western Pennsylvania. Prior to the formation of Alera Group, Tina was president of Coury Health Services, Inc. She worked with clients to understand their culture and business needs, then facilitated the development of the strategies required to improve the health and productivity of their workforce while allowing the employer to focus on their core business. As an original founding partner of Alera Group, she will continue to focus on our mission with emphasis on maintaining the mindset for quality customer experience and provide unlimited resources through collaboration to ensure delivered excellence and build long term relationships with our clients. Hapanowicz earned her Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pittsburgh. She currently participates in the Alera’s Women’s Leadership Council and has sat on several carrier advisory boards in the past.

Marcie Popek

Marcie is VP, Employee Benefits & Market Insights of Alera Group Pittsburgh. Marcie has 20 years of diverse employee benefits experience.  Prior to joining Alera Group, Marcie served at a national consulting firm as Senior Vice President to large and national accounts in the Washington DC marketplace.  Marcie has previously been with two national carriers giving her unique experiences in customer service, sales, underwriting, clinical management, complex renewals, cost containment, network contracting and pharmacy management. These experiences have prepared her to work with businesses to analyze their company’s benefit structure, gain an understanding of their problems and strategize for solutions. Marcie is a member of the Society for Human Resources (SHRM) and Twice Past President of the National Association of Health Underwriters, Pittsburgh Chapter (NAHU). She has served as a Board of Director for over 15 years on the Slippery Rock University Alumni Association. Currently she is serving on various committees.

Robert J. “Tino” Rionda III

Tino is the President of ARMS Insurance Group LLC an Alera Group Company. His roles and responsibilities include overseeing general business operations, maintaining relationships with our carrier partners, recruiting new broker partners, and ensuring that ARMS continues to offer our broker partners the resources needed to remain competitive in the insurance industry. Tino joined ARMS in 2007 and gained his industry experience by serving various roles at the agency before becoming President in 2014. Tino also possesses experience in the field, having sold and implemented individual medical, group medical, and group ancillary products for ARMS' broker partners. Tino enjoys spending his free time with his wife, Candace, and daughter, Cameron or doing anything active. Running, training, golfing...you name it. Tino is also an avid racquetball player and will accept any challenge for a match! Tino holds a B.S. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from The Pennsylvania State University. Tino also holds active Life, Accident and Health Insurance licenses.

Kevin Sweeney

Kevin is a Senior Vice President and Partner of Alera Group Pittsburgh. His role is to assist in the development, growth, and execution of the company’s strategic plan. Kevin has been servicing employer groups since 1996 in Western Pennsylvania.  Kevin is an advocate for his customers, lobbying for them on both the state and federal level throughout his career. This expertise has placed him on multiple producer advisory boards, forums and focus groups and volunteer organizations. He has extensive background in the fiscal needs of plan performance, funding strategies and benefit solutions for mid, large and national accounts. Kevin is a graduate of Duquesne University and lives in Wexford with his wife and three children.