Jim Henderson (BS Accounting and Economics '69) serves as chairman and CEO of Orlando-based AssuredPartners, which boasts 7,500 employees, more than $1.3 billion in annual revenue and offices in North America and Europe.

He co-launched the company in 2011, and a decade later it ranked No. 5 in the nation among property/casualty agencies, according to the Insurance Journal's 2021 rankings. Also last year, Business Insurance ranked it the 11th largest broker of U.S. business.

And it's continuing to grow. In June, AssuredPartners announced an eighth acquisition this year – Gallivan Murphy Insurance Brokers Ltd in Ireland.

For Henderson, it continues a decades-long record of insurance-industry success. During 25 years at Brown & Brown Insurance, he worked as president, chief operating officer and vice chairman and helped to grow revenue about 15-fold, to $1 billion.

He began his career as a CPA in the audit and health-care practice at Ernst & Whinney, which merged with Arthur Young to become present-day EY. He also served as Ormond Reinsurance Group's CFO and treasurer.

Henderson learned about work as a young boy in Wakulla County. He would spend afternoons at his dad's timber business until he was 10, when his father died. The youngest of four children, he then found himself doing anything he could to help his mom.

He carried that lesson to FSU, where he worked full time while also going to school full time. Upon graduation, he rewarded himself with the purchase of a car that reflected the vibe of his beloved university – a burgundy Mercury Cougar. Though not quite garnet, it was his "Seminole car."

Throughout his career, Henderson has maintained staunch support of his alma mater, including as a member of the university Board of Trustees, on which he chairs the Finance and Business Committee.

He recently made a $500,000 gift to name the Jim Henderson/AssuredPartners Master's Classroom in Legacy Hall, the college's future home. That followed a $500,000 gift in 2019 to create the Jim Henderson/AsssuredPartners Classroom, also in Legacy Hall. Also, he and his wife, Carole, remain major financial supporters of FSU athletics.

Henderson also has served on various public, private and nonprofit boards, including those of Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, the Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers, the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, Ironshore Insurance Company, Hallmark Insurance Company, the Ronald McDonald House and Stetson University's School of Business Administration.

Since 2003, he has served on the board of trustees of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, which in 2012 named the Jim W. Henderson Administration and Welcome Center in his honor.