Director, Underwriting - Professional Liability Programs

We are seeking an experienced Insurance/Reinsurance Underwriting Professional to help lead and grow a well-established Program Business Unit. This role is highly technical and market-facing, requiring expertise in relationship management, P&L oversight, professional liability lines, reinsurance, product development, and contract negotiations. The ideal candidate will be responsible for designing custom program solutions for agents seeking delegated authority, while managing P&L performance and driving program development.

Key Responsibilities:

• P&L Management: Own and manage the P&L for the program business unit, ensuring profitability and growth.

• Lines of Business: Deep understanding of professional liability lines, reinsurance, and program product development.

• Program/Product Development: Lead the creation of custom program solutions, working closely with agents and other stakeholders to create and tailor offerings to meet their specific needs.

• Relationship Management: Cultivate and strengthen relationships with agents, brokers, reinsurers, and other key stakeholders to support business growth.

• Contract Negotiations: Lead complex contract negotiations with agents and reinsurance partners, ensuring mutually beneficial agreements.

• Deal Management: Oversee all phases of deal management, from initial due diligence through to the ongoing management of the in-force book.

• Collaboration and Communication: Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including legal, compliance, claims, and underwriting support, to ensure alignment and timely execution of program strategies.

• Operational Excellence: Ensure timely, clear, and organized communication across stakeholders and maintain oversight of a high volume of deliverables, coordinating efforts to meet deadlines.

• Simultaneously, the role acts as a business partner to the program administrators and is responsible for aligning annual production to ensure budgets are on target. This role works closely with our Actuarial and Claims teams to ensure consistency in results.

• Drive the full due diligence process for each new prospect from planning to execution; delegate responsibilities to others to ensure the process is progressing in a timely manner.

• Actively participate in the performance of annual on-site and remote program audits.

• Review, analyze and summarize portfolio loss trends using claim and production data monthly.

• Use underwriting experience to objectively analyze actuarial reports and present findings and offer underwriting opinion and guidance.

• Maintain solid relationships with current and potential clients and prospects and ensure team members understand the importance of each relationship and what motivates them.

• Attend industry conferences.

• Anticipate requests and proactively supply information to clients and prospects; identify solutions that will help them meet their goals, and proactively present relevant ideas.

• Help lead the development of new products, including research, recommendation, and implementation of such products, as well as handle product enhancement requests as needed.

• Understand and help evaluate regulation driven requirements for state and product line regulations to ensure compliance.

• Manage underwriting referrals that exceed underwriter authorities.

• Perform a division self-review to ensure documentation process is aligned, as required.

• Develop an internal network of relationships to promote collaboration and a solutions-based approach for clients and prospects.

Education, Requirements & Competencies

• Bachelor's degree (B.A.) from four-year college or university, JD degree a plus

• 10+ years of underwriting or related experience.

• Experience as a Reinsurance Treaty Underwriter or Reinsurance management plus

• Must be knowledgeable of professional liability and multi-line coverages (general liability, excess, property, inland marine).

• Must have experience with policy wording review, claims portfolio evaluations and multidisciplinary portfolio management.

• Must be able to maintain and build long term relationships with business partners.

• Advanced knowledge of underwriting concepts and concerns as well as usage of admitted and surplus lines products.

• Underwriting environment is fast paced and requires excellent planning, organizational, analytical, decision making, and communication skills.

• Must have excellent written and verbal communication skills, the ability to multitask and react quickly to urgent requests.

• Requires proficiency in Excel and the ability to work with mathematical concepts such as probability and statistical inference.

Annual base salary range is $151,200 - $200,000. Individual compensation packages are based on a variety of factors that are unique to each candidate including location, skill set, experience, qualifications and education.

If you're a caring and customer focused individual who enjoys working with passionate team members, Coverys is the right company for you!