Mercer HR Services names COO

NORWOOD, Mass.--Michael Sternklar, a veteran benefit outsourcing consultant, has joined Mercer HR Services, the human resources outsourcing unit of Mercer Human Resource Consulting, as chief operating officer and head of Americas.

Mr. Sternklar, 46, has about 25 years of experience in the HR outsourcing field. Most recently, he was an executive vp with Fidelity Investments' human resources and outsourcing division, while between 1983 and 2002 he was an outsourcing consultant with Unifi Network, a division of PricewaterhouseCoopers L.L.P. and predecessor company Kwasha Lipton.

Mr. Sternklar, who will be based in Mercer HR Services' Norwood, Mass., headquarters, succeeds Paul Zurlo, who recently resigned to pursue an opportunity in the private equity field.