Selective Insurance Group late Thursday announced John Marchioni, who has served as the company’s president and chief operating officer since 2013, was unanimously elected by the Selective board of directors as its next chief executive officer, effective Feb. 1, 2020.

Marchioni will succeed Gregory Murphy, who is retiring as CEO after serving in the position since 1999. Murphy, chairman of the Selective board since 2000, will assume the newly created role of executive chairman of the Selective board upon his retirement.

“On behalf of the board of directors, it is our privilege to announce the unanimous election of John Marchioni as the next chief executive officer of Selective,” said Murphy. “In his more than 21 years at Selective, John has worked across all areas of our operations and has proven to be a thoughtful and strategic executive with a deep understanding of our industry and how to profitably grow our business.”

Murphy continued, “It has been my honor to serve as Selective’s CEO for the past 20 years and to have worked alongside a remarkable team that continues to keep the company on an exciting growth trajectory. The board has spent considerable time over the past several years preparing for a thoughtful succession process, and I firmly believe that now is the right time to initiate this leadership transition.”

Since Murphy became CEO in 1999, Selective and its employees, along with its “ivy league” independent insurance agent partners, have achieved significant financial and business success with attaining total shareholder return of 1,081 percent; increased market capitalization by more than 6.5 times, from $555 million to $4.3 billion; tripled net premiums written, from $750 million to $2.5 billion; top-performing financial performance with non-GAAP operating return on equity averaging 11.6 percent and 11.4 percent over the past three and five years, respectively; successfully offering securities in public and private markets, most recently issuing $300 million of 30-year senior notes at 5.375 percent; and expanding commercial lines operations from 16 to 27 states and entered the excess and surplus lines marketplace.

Additionally, under Murphy the company implemented commercial lines predictive modeling, now in the third generation; enhanced safety management efforts with new tools and resources to detect and prevent safety issues; strengthened organizational and leadership capabilities, enabling the attainment of Selective’s challenging business goals; made diversity and inclusion an organizational and business imperative and elevated customer experience focus to build loyalty through proactive customer communications that help manage risks; self-service and digital policy offerings; and value-added services and innovative technologies.

“In his 20 years as CEO, Greg Murphy has created substantial value for our shareholders, developed Selective into the premier independent agency carrier, and instilled an unsurpassed corporate commitment to providing our insureds with exceptional customer experiences,” said J. Brian Thebault, Selective’s lead independent director. “We are confident that, having worked side by side with John for many years, Greg’s accomplishments in making Selective what it is today will endure under John’s leadership as we enter the next phase of growth and success.”