Umihiko Saito, MBA
Managing Partner
Umi was born and raised in Tokyo, Japan. He graduated from Southern Utah University with BS in Chemistry and THE Ohio State University with MBA. While working as Chemical Engineer for PPG Industries, Inc. Automotive Coatings Division, he worked with Honda of America, Mfg. that lead him to settle in Columbus, OH for over a decade.
Umi began his career with New York Life in 2006 as an agent in the Columbus General Office. He qualified for Executive Council* four consecutive times prior to joining the management team in 2011 as a Partner. Umi achieved the NYL Career Commitment Award in 2013 and 2014. He also received the recognition of Top 50 Partner in 2015 and 2016 before being promoted to Senior Partner in 2017.
Executive Council is A New York Life recognition program based on annual production
Timothy Clark, MBA
Partner
Timothy Clark is a graduate from Dallas Baptist University, and acquired his MBA from Amberton University in Texas. Tim joined New York Life as an agent in 2018, after 3 years he chose to join Management and came through the Associate Partner program, and obtained promotion to Partner In October 2022.
Karen A. Stevens, MBA, LUTCF
Sales Development Manager
Karen joined New York Life in January of 2008 as an agent in the Columbus, Ohio office. Karen received numerous awards including Premier Centurion and Premier President Council Agent. Karen accepted the position as a Sales Development Manager in May of 2012, and moved to South Jersey until February of 2016, when she returned to Ohio as the Sales Development Manager for the Toledo General Office
Christie Stiffler, ACS, ALMI, FLMI
Field Service Operations Manager
Christie Stiffler has taken on the role of the Field Service Operations Manager in the Toledo General Office.
Christie joined New York Life in 1997 in the Northern Ohio office as a service representative. She was promoted to Office Coordinator in 2014. Christie has contributed to Field Service in many ways, including partnering with Cleveland Service Center colleagues on various business initiatives, facilitating the region’s ‘Management Collaboration’ group, and sharing her subject matter expertise to support new business modernization efforts.
Christie has earned the ACS, ALMI, FLMI designations from Life Office Management Association.
Mary Ferguson
Director of Agency Standards
Mary comes to us from the Cleveland Service Center where she has served as Manager in Annuity New Business and for the last three years as Manager and Principal in New Accounts and Transfers for NYLIFE Securities. Before coming to New York Life, Mary was an Operations Director for AIG, covering Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. She has spent most of her career working in life insurance for a large independent brokerage agency in many roles including agent.