After 20 years at The Hanover Insurance Group, John “Jack” Roche will retire as president and CEO at the end of the year. "I will retire at the end of the year with tremendous pride in all our organization has accomplished," Roche said in a Wednesday announcement from the firm. "The company is in a strong financial position and has the exceptional talent needed to drive our business forward.” Roche joined Worcester’s largest publicly traded company in 2006 and was named its leader in 2017. He frequently appeared on WBJ’s Power 100 list of the most influential professionals in Central Massachusetts, including this year.Richard “Dick” Lavey has been named CEO-elect by the board of directors. Lavey is currently chief operating officer of Hanover Insurance and president of Hanover Agency Markets, the firm's main personal and commercial insurance division.“Having worked closely with Dick for more than two decades, I have complete confidence in his leadership and his ability to guide our company forward,” Roche said.Lavey joined Hanover in 2004. He is a graduate of The College of Holy Cross in Worcester and obtained an MBA from Harvard Business School. He has previously served as the firm’s chief marketing officer and chief growth innovation officer.Richard Lavey, chief operating officer at The Hanover Insurance Group PHOTO COURTESY OF THE HANOVER INSURANCE GROUPHanover achieved record earnings under Roche’s leadership. In 2025, the company generated $6.6 billion in revenue, up from $4.3 billion when he took over in 2017. The company’s net income in 2025 was $663 million."He has driven progress in every dimension of the company, not the least of which is working closely with the board and with Dick to ensure that we have an exceptional CEO to elevate the company to its next level,” Hanover Board Chair Cynthia Egan said in a statement.Hanover’s stock price sat at $207 per share on the New York Stock Exchange as of Thursday morning, up about 15.7% since the beginning of the year. The stock price is virtually unchanged since the announcement of the CEO succession plan on Wednesday afternoon.Eric Casey is the managing editor at Worcester Business Journal, who primarily covers the real estate and banking & finance industries.
