MPI has a new leader following the unceremonious departure of the Crown corporation’s former CEO.
The new interim president and chief executive officer of Manitoba Public Insurance is now Marnie Kacher, appointed by MPI’s board of directors to take over the role immediately, the board announced in an unexpected statement Sunday afternoon.
“Effectively (sic) immediately, (former CEO) Mr. Eric Herbelin is no longer employed with Manitoba Public Insurance,” board of directors chairman Ward Keith stated.
ETHAN CAIRNS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES
In a statement Sunday afternoon from the Manitoba Public Insurance board of directors, president and CEO Eric Herbelin was no longer with the Crown corporation. Marnie Kacher, who was vice president and chief operating officer at MPI, will be the interim president and CEO.
The board is recruiting for a permanent president and CEO.
Herbelin’s recent salary increases and travel time received public attention after they were detailed in a Free Press report earlier this month. Last week, MPI’s former board chairman resigned. Michael Sullivan, a dentist in Portage la Prairie, was appointed to the board in 2019 and didn’t explain why he resigned. His resignation came after Herbelin’s pay increases and travel expenses were made public.
Herbelin received a three per cent raise last year and spent 38 business days travelling, with MPI’s executive travel expenses adding up to more than $88,000 in 2022-23. Non-executive MPI employees, meanwhile, were under a two-year wage freeze and have been trying to negotiate a new contract.
In a statement Sunday that didn’t mention Herbelin by name, Manitoba Justice Minister Kelvin Goertzen thanked Kacher for taking on the interim role.
“MPI is an important Crown corporation and I want to thank Marnie Kacher for taking on this new leadership role as it transitions from the former president and CEO,” Goertzen stated. “With more than a decade of experience as a senior leader at MPI, most recently serving as vice-president of operations and chief operating officer, she is well suited to provide leadership to the corporation at this important time.”
Opposition politicians responded to Sunday’s announcement, calling for stability at the publicly funded auto insurer.
“We can only hope that MPI gets the stability it needs right now, from the top to the bottom,” Manitoba Liberal Party Leader Dougald Lamont stated, saying the leadership shuffle comes at a time when “the company is under pressure from the government to change everything at once.”
“The PCs alternate between bad micromanagement and neglect. They used MPI as a piggy bank during the pandemic then turned a blind eye while the corporation abused its monopoly power to squeeze brokers and collision shops,” Lamont stated.
In a statement attributed to NDP justice critic Matt Wiebe, MLA for Concordia, the NDP called out the timing of the announcement as an example of the government trying to bury its “mismanagement” of MPI on a long weekend. Wiebe urged the government to call MPI to committee for questioning.
“The PCs mismanagement of MPI is costing Manitobans more money in autopac bills. Not only has the cost of Project Nova increased by $200 million, they’re giving a $12-million contract to McKinsey, a private consulting firm that by the governments own internal records can’t even get the job done right. Now that there’s a new CEO the PCs need to call the MPI committee so Manitobans can finally get some answers.”
In April, as minister responsible for MPI, Goertzen ordered a third-party, external review of MPI. When he announced the review, Goertzen said he’d learned about developments at MPI “in ways that ministers would rather not.”
But in an interview the next day, Herbelin insisted he had frequent and transparent communication with the minister.
“We provide all the transparency that is required in the course of affairs and we answer all the questions that the minister and the department may have,” Herbelin said April 5. He said he would co-operate fully with the third-party review.
The board of directors described Kacher as “well-respected” by MPI’s staff.
“Ms. Kacher has 12 years of experience with MPI, most recently serving as Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. In this role, she has had broad oversight of MPI’s Operations division, including all four of its lines of business. She is well respected by staff and stakeholders, and brings a welcome perspective on how MPI can continue to deliver value for the benefit of all Manitobans,” the statement from Keith reads.
katie.may@winnipegfreepress.com
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2023-05-22 00:09:13Z
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