Director of Underwriting

Job Description: Underwriter Manager

Job Title: Underwriter Manager

Location: Glen Allen, VA

Reports to: Chief Counsel

Department: Operations, Underwriting

FLSA Status: Salary/Exempt

Job Purpose:

The Manager Underwriter (UM) is a key member of the executive leadership team and has enterprise accountability for underwriting strategy, governance, pricing discipline, and portfolio performance. The UM translates company strategy into underwriting appetite, guidelines, and authority frameworks to drive profitable growth across market cycles, in close partnership with Claims, Actuarial/Pricing, Finance, Legal/Compliance, Operations, and Distribution partners.

Our team is dedicated to delivering high-quality service, upholding underwriting integrity, and fostering continuous improvement through collaboration and efficiency. At Virtue, we combine analytical rigor with a strong service ethic to help our clients protect what matters most.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Financial Ownership and Performance

• Drive profitable underwriting by balancing appetite, pricing, terms, and risk selection across both programs.
• Maintain expense discipline across underwriting operations to support strong combined results and scalable margins.

2. Carrier Partnership and Distribution Strategy

• Serve as a primary underwriting leader to carrier partners, maintaining a credible underwriting posture and strong marketplace distribution approach for both programs.
• Serve as a primary underwriting leader to carrier partners, maintaining a credible underwriting posture and strong marketplace distribution approach for both programs.
• Lead regular carrier touchpoints (performance reviews, appetite and guidelines updates, pipeline strategy, and action plans).
• Partner with carriers on product stability, underwriting rules, and growth initiatives aligned with profitability.

3. Agent and Market Relationship Management

• Work closely with agents and distribution partners to maintain The Company's marketplace reputation, consistency, and product stability.
• Reinforce underwriting clarity and responsiveness to support long-term broker relationships while protecting profitability.
• Represent The Company externally as an underwriting leader at industry meetings and key partner discussions, as needed.

4. Underwriting governance and execution

• Maintain underwriting appetite, guidelines, authority levels, and referral standards.
• Ensure file quality, documentation standards, compliance with carrier and internal requirements, and consistent underwriting decisions.
• Identify portfolio trends and risk concentrations and implement course corrections quickly.

5. Team Leadership and Staffing

• Develop and execute staffing plans that match the needs of the Environmental and General Liability portfolios, including scale-up plans tied to growth and service expectations.
• Partner with HR to hire, onboard, and retain the right underwriting talent to support both

6. P&L Oversight

• Coach and develop the underwriting team, driving accountability, underwriting consistency, and performance.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline or equivalent experience.
• 10+ years of underwriting experience, ideally in specialty Environmental and General Liability program business, including leadership responsibility.
• Proven P&L ownership or strong financial accountability in underwriting leadership roles
• Deep understanding of distribution dynamics and partner management (carriers, brokers, agents)
• Demonstrated success setting underwriting strategy, authority frameworks, and underwriting governance.
• Strong communication and influence skills; comfortable presenting to partners and senior audiences.
• Ability to travel up to 2x a month to NY as needed.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Experience underwriting Environmental and General Liability risks, partnering closely with in-house claims authority and wholesale carrier partners to support strong outcomes.
• Underwriting designations (examples: CPCU, AU, ARM, RPLU).
• Experience leading underwriting audits, pricing review processes, and product or form work streams.
• Experience in delegated authority or program management models.
• Deep understanding of distribution dynamics and partner management (carriers, brokers, agents)
• Strong leadership, judgment, and decision-making with a track record of profitable growth

Working Conditions

• Primarily office-based with potential for hybrid flexibility depending on business needs.
• Prolonged periods of sitting and computer use.
• May require occasional extended hours during renewal periods or peak workloads.
• Must be able to pull or lift up to 15 pounds occasionally.