Small Business Underwriting Team Lead (Western Zone)

Commercial Lines Small Business Underwriting Team Lead

Founded in 1848, Westfield is a global leader in property and casualty insurance, delivering superior risk insights and innovative solutions to customers through a diverse portfolio of insurance products. Westfield underwrites commercial, personal, surety, and specialty lines of coverage through a network of leading independent agents and brokers in the United States and specialty products through Lloyd's of London Syndicate 1200. As a mutual insurance company with more than 3,000 employees, Westfield has revenues in excess of $4 billion and more than $10 billion in assets.

Job Summary

The Commercial Lines Small Business Underwriting Team Lead is responsible for underwriting profitability, growth, and retention of new or renewal business within an assigned territory. The role monitors productivity, prioritization, balancing of workloads, and sound underwriting decisions of their team of underwriters. The role ensures alignment and collaboration with the Underwriting Operations Team and Territory Managers/Leaders, driving a culture of virtual teaming to ensure achievement of territory plans and targeted financial results.

Job Responsibilities

• Monitors performance of commercial lines staff in achieving established goals and participates in the development of branch strategy and business plans.
• Responsible for underwriting profitability growth and retention of new and renewal business, exercises underwriting authority, productivity, prioritization, balancing of workloads, and sound underwriting decisions of underwriters to achieve profit through quality risk selection and exposure control.
• Handles underwriting referrals exceeding the authority limits of their team members.
• Ensures individual authority grants for underwriters are established following a well-calibrated, objective, data-driven process.
• Collaborates with the Underwriting Operations Team and Territory Managers/Leaders, helping drive business development best practices in the underwriting environment, aligned to field operations.
• Partners with the QA underwriting function, utilizing findings to help develop underwriting acumen and decision making of the team.
• Works to increase the overall business and underwriting acumen of the team and its members through one-on-one interactions (e.g., reviewing underwriting decisions, answering questions, listening to phone calls).
• Performs talent management responsibilities including employee selection, performance management, coaching, and development, leading and navigating employee-related issues, employee morale and work environment.
• Manages priorities and workload distribution and removes barriers that impede progress.
• Completes all personnel, salary administration, and reporting duties.
• Remains current on industry topics, trends, methods (e.g., processes), best practices, etc. through research, industry events, networking, etc., and shares knowledge gained with others.
• Learns basic concepts of commercial insurance and understand department workflow and processes as well as leads and manages production and support staff.
• Provides underwriting insights that support superior product innovation, development, and maintenance.
• Manages and achieves personal book of business goals and oversees and implements regional strategies.
• Reviews and evaluates regions new and renewal business based upon company underwriting guidelines, competition, and geographic focus.
• Fields questions from underwriting team members and internal and external customers seeking guidance on specific premiums and processes.

Job Qualifications

• 5-8 years of Underwriting experience.
• Bachelor's degree in a related field and/or commensurate experience.

Location

• Hybrid- defined as working three or more days per week in the office if the employee's residence is within 50 miles of Westfield Center, OH; OR Remote-if the employee resides more than 50 miles from Westfield Center, OH.

Behavioral Competencies

• Directs work
• Collaborates
• Develops talent
• Customer focus
• Communicates effectively
• Ensures accountability
• Decision quality
• Business insight
• Nimble learning
• Builds effective teams
• Manages complexity

Technical Skills

• Property and Casualty Underwriting
• Compliance Management
• Risk Management
• Financial Controls
• Underwriting Strategy
• Customer Service Management
• Insurance Industry Knowledge
• Technical Documentation
• Commercial Lines Underwriting
• KPI Tracking
• Data Analysis and Reporting
• Account Management

This job description describes the general nature and level of work performed in this role. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, skills, responsibilities, knowledge, etc. These may be subject to change and additional functions may be assigned as needed by management.