Business Insurance magazine has selected two Bermuda-based executives on its list of among its list of "Women to Watch".

Bermudian Judy Gonsalves, of Ace Bermuda, where she is senior vice-president, Excess Liability Division, and XL Capital Ltd.'s global chief actuary Susan Cross were among 25 women honoured at an awards luncheon at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City yesterday.

Charged with managing Ace Bermuda's excess liability division since 2004, Judy Gonsalves was the first Bermudian woman to reach that level in the company's Bermuda-based insurance operations. She started her career with Ace 16 years ago as underwriting assistant in the same division.

To ensure the advancement of other employees, Ms Gonsalves has been responsible for the management and coordination of the underwriter trainee programme at Ace. She cultivates a learning culture through benchmarking, team building, strategic planning, learning exchanges, process improvement, and coaching.

She serves on the Ace USA Learning Council and the Liability Product Board and was a member of the original steering committee for the Ace Women's Forum. She is actively involved in the Ace Women's Forum Networking Committee in Bermuda.

Ms Cross is a member of XL's Senior Leadership Team and was appointed global chief actuary in March 2006. In this capacity, she is responsible for leading and overseeing all major actuarial functions for XL worldwide, including the establishment of unpaid loss and loss expense reserves, pricing benchmarks and related financial provisions.

In June 2007, she was instrumental in the development and launching of XL's global loss triangles for its global operations. This was a significant step in providing enhanced disclosure and transparency on loss reserves by a global re/insurer. She has made significant contributions to XL's enterprise risk management programme.

Ms Cross joined XL in February 1999 as senior vice-president and chief actuary of XL America Inc. in Stamford, Connecticut. She moved to Bermuda in April 2000 to join XL Re Bermuda and was promoted to chief actuarial officer of XL's Reinsurance segment in 2004.

Ms Cross has served as mentor to two female graduates of XL's Global Development Programme (GDP), a programme designed to support junior, high-potential employees within XL. She continues to serve as one of four GDP programme 'Champions' who work more broadly with GDP alumni to further their career development.

Criteria for nominations for the Business Insurance awards included recent professional achievements, influence on the marketplace and contributions to the advancement of women in business. The list was open to women leaders worldwide.

Commenting on making the Business Insurance list, Ms Cross said: "I'm honoured to be recognised by Business Insurance. XL's culture, supported by its core values of ethics, teamwork, excellence, development, and respect, fosters an environment that has allowed me to succeed. I am grateful for all the opportunities that the company has provided to me."