Technical Lead, Inland Marine

What We Do

Yesterday's insurance wasn't built for today's risk. We see it in the data and we feel it in the field. Emerging technology can reinvent how risk is priced and managed, faster and smarter, anchored in proven expertise. First-movers will define the next era of commercial risk management, and Shepherd is building it.

Shepherd is a technology-driven Managing General Underwriter (MGU) transforming commercial Property & Casualty insurance for high-hazard industries. Our mission is to make risk frictionless for the builders and operators shaping the physical world, protecting progress from concept through construction and into decades of operation.

We're building the fastest, smartest commercial risk platform, where underwriting expertise, data, and automation work together to deliver:

• Faster decisions

• Smarter, more accurate pricing

• Better risk outcomes

With Shepherd, safety, speed, and quality no longer trade off against one another. They compound. We're not just modernizing insurance products. We're building the risk infrastructure for the next generation of financial services, where technology, underwriting, and partnerships operate in harmony to support the world's most important industries and the progress they make possible.

Our Investors

In March 2026, Shepherd raised a $42M Series B — bringing total funding to over $60M — led by Intact Private Capital, the investment arm of one of the largest insurers in the world. Intact is not only our lead investor but also a carrier partner, a testament to the confidence the incumbent industry has in what we're building. Our investors:

• Intact Private Capital, led our Series B round

• Costanoa Ventures, led our Series A round

• Spark Capital, led our Seed round

• Susa Ventures, lead our Pre-Seed round

• Y Combinator

• And several others

Our Team

We're a team of technologists and insurance enthusiasts, bridging the two worlds together. Check out our About page to learn more.

Technical Lead, Inland Marine

Reports to: Head of Property

About the role

You are Shepherd's primary technical underwriting resource for Inland Marine. You own the guidelines and advisories underwriters work from, lead coverage form development, and review risks that exceed their authority. You also work with our capacity partners to resolve technical questions and support the underwriting team.

Reporting to the Head of Property, you help underwriters make sound decisions and document them clearly. Your work includes account review, training, and using portfolio results and Claims feedback to improve how we underwrite.

What you'll own

Referral authority & account review

• Review Inland Marine referrals involving TIV thresholds, catastrophe exposures such as wildfire and flood, structural or occupancy complexity, and other guideline triggers.

• Approve or decline referred risks within our delegated authority and document the rationale, terms, conditions, and pricing guidance. Escalate decisions that require approval from the Head of Property or a capacity partner.

• Review bound accounts before issuance to confirm completed form fields, coverage forms, limits, sublimits, and endorsements match the approved quote, binder, and documented approvals.

• Maintain a 24-hour turnaround standard on referrals and communicate any missing information or required carrier approvals promptly.

Underwriting guidelines & governance

• Own the development, maintenance, and communication of Inland Marine underwriting guidelines and technical advisories. Gather input from the relevant teams, coordinate required approvals, and keep current versions accessible to underwriters.

• Keep guidance on pricing, deductibles, waiting periods, referral triggers, and authority parameters consistent with approved appetite and carrier requirements.

• Oversee Inland Marine file audits with Compliance and other technical leads where standards overlap. Check documentation, pricing, and compliance, track corrective actions, and use recurring findings to improve guidance and training.

• Maintain individual underwriting authority statements and recommend changes to the Head of Property based on technical proficiency, audit results, and program requirements.

• Partner with Claims to incorporate loss trends and coverage issues into guidelines, forms, advisories, and training.

• Review portfolio trends with Actuarial, Data, and Claims, including loss experience, pricing, exposure concentrations, and recurring exceptions. Recommend underwriting changes to the Head of Property and follow through on approved actions.

Capacity partner & reinsurance support

• Act as the technical liaison between Inland Marine underwriters and existing capacity partners. Coordinate referrals, coverage questions, guideline interpretations, and required approvals.

• Support the Head of Property and capacity leadership with underwriting analyses, portfolio commentary, and technical materials for carrier and reinsurance discussions. Represent Shepherd's underwriting position on program performance, appetite, coverage wording, and program structure.

Training & technical development

• Develop and deliver Inland Marine onboarding, ongoing technical training, and certification assessments. Cover forms, authority, and underwriting judgment through practical account examples and lessons from referrals, audits, and Claims.

• Coach underwriters on file handling, referral quality, and documentation. Standardize referral templates and technical reference materials with other technical leads, while allowing for differences across programs.

Product & forms

• Lead the technical development and revision of Inland Marine coverage forms and endorsements. Translate underwriting intent into clear wording and coordinate review and required approvals with Claims, Compliance, and capacity partners.

• Maintain with Compliance the approved forms library and guidance on form use and attachment requirements. Track competitor forms and assess coverage gaps and differences.

• Work with Product, Engineering, and Data Science to build approved underwriting requirements into the platform, including referral, audit, and compliance workflows and form selection rules. Check that the implementation reflects the intended coverage and underwriting requirements.

About you

• 10+ years of Builders Risk, Inland Marine, or commercial construction underwriting experience, with meaningful authority on complex project-specific, Master Builders Risk, 100%, and quota share placements.

• Knowledge of technology platforms, jobsite sensors, or other tools used to reduce losses from common Inland Marine perils is a plus.

• Experience reviewing other underwriters' decisions as a referral point, technical authority, or underwriting manager.

• Strong command of Builders Risk forms, testing and mechanical breakdown, delay in completion, LEG3 / Cost of Making Good, structural work, waiting periods, periods of indemnity, Named Insured and Additional Insured distinctions, and how endorsements amend coverage.

• Experience developing or maintaining underwriting guidelines, advisories, authority statements, and audit programs. Experience drafting or revising coverage forms and endorsements and explaining technical requirements through training.

• Experience with insurtech or MGA platforms is a plus, along with an interest in helping build underwriting tools.

This is an onsite position in our New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles, or Dallas Fort Worth offices.

#LI-Onsite

How we work

Shepherd runs on four values. Here's what each one means in this seat.

• Think big, build big. We exist to protect progress and the industries that rely on it. The work here is aimed at a system that runs on its own, and the roadmap gets sequenced backward from that rather than forward from what's easy.

• Win together. We rise as one. We support each other, raise the bar, and celebrate collective success. As the first PM you set a standard the rest of the team inherits, and the milestones belong to the team rather than to product.

• Cross the aisle. Collaboration wins. We listen deeply, work across boundaries, and prioritize shared success over individual lanes. The best product calls here come from engineers who've sat with underwriters and underwriters who understand where the model breaks, and much of this job is listening closely enough on both sides to make that happen.

• Go get it. We act with urgency, move with confidence, take smart risks, and push forward with intention. Nobody hands you the roadmap, the data, or the meeting invite. You pull the failing runs, book the time with the underwriters, and decide what matters.

Benefits

Premium Healthcare
100% contribution to top-tier health, dental, and vision

Fertility benefits and family building support

️ Unlimited PTO
Flexibility to take the time off, recharge, and perform

Daily lunches, dinners, and snacks
We work together, and enjoy meals together too

️ SF, NYC, Dallas-Fort Worth, Chicago and LA Offices

Professional Development
Access to premium coaching, including leadership development

Competitive 401(k) Plan

Dog-friendly office
Plenty of dogs to play with and make friends with in the SF office