Director, Underwriting

Overview Frontdoor and its family of brands are on a mission to make life easier for every homeowner through innovative technology and quality customer service. With over 55 years of experience, we are the leading provider of home warranties in the United States, handling approximately 3.8 million service requests for more than 2.1 million members through a network of approximately 17,000 qualified and independent service contractors. We also offer new home builder warranty solutions, which deliver value to both builders and homeowners through a suite of builder warranty products and support services. Our customizable home warranties are annual service plan agreements that cover the repair or replacement for breakdowns due to normal wear and tear of major components. We cover up to 29 home systems and appliances, including electrical, plumbing, HVAC systems, water heaters, refrigerators, dishwashers and ranges/ovens/cooktops, as well as optional coverages for pools, spas and pumps. Our home warranties provide peace of mind, budget protection, convenience, repair expertise and service guarantee. Our non-warranty services provide homeowners greater value through replacement and upgrade programs, as well as other home maintenance offerings. Our 2-10 new home builder warranty solutions offer flexible builder‑backed and insurance‑backed warranty options covering workmanship, home distribution systems and structural components. Frontdoor family of brands include American Home Shield, HSA, OneGuard, Landmark and 2-10 HBW brands. For more information about Frontdoor, Inc., please visit frontdoorhome.com. Responsibilities Summary: (Virtual/Remote Role) The Director of Underwriting is a senior people leader responsible for the end‑to‑end risk, eligibility, and contract integrity of the New Home warranty portfolio. This role oversees Builder Underwriting, Enrollment Underwriting, and Contract Management, ensuring disciplined risk selection while supporting scalable growth and an exceptional builder experience. The ideal leader demonstrates exceptional organizational skills and a strong work ethic, excelling at team management in collaborative settings. This leader works closely with Sales, Legal, Claims, Engineering, Actuarial, Product, and Finance to ensure underwriting decisions are aligned with business strategies, regulatory standards, and long‑term portfolio performance. Set and own underwriting strategy across builder and home enrollment, balancing growth, risk, and retention of our insurance‑backed products. Establish, maintain, and evolve underwriting guidelines, eligibility standards, and exception frameworks in partnership with Risk, Legal, and Actuarial. Actively participate in underwriting exception, risk, or review committees, providing executive‑level judgment on complex or non‑standard submissions. Monitor portfolio performance, underwriting trends, builder concentration, and emerging risks; translate insights into actionable policy or process changes. Lead the Builder Underwriting team responsible for evaluating builder applicants, including financial strength, operational capability, construction practices, geographic risk, and historical performance. Ensure consistent, defensible builder approval and renewal decisions that align with underwriting guidelines and enterprise risk tolerance. Partner with Sales to provide clear guidance on builder eligibility, program fit, and contract considerations—without compromising underwriting discipline. Drive continuous improvement in builder onboarding timelines, transparency, and decision quality. Lead Enrollment Underwriting, responsible for reviewing and processing enrolled homes to ensure compliance with program rules, documentation standards, and state‑specific requirements. Establish controls and quality checks that minimize downstream claims risk, rework, and enrollment defects. Align enrollment underwriting processes with Sales, Customer Success, and Warranty Administration to support scalable volume growth and a friction‑light builder experience. Build and lead a Contract Management function serving as the key point of accountability for builder contracts across underwriting, legal, and operational workflows. Own the full lifecycle of builder agreements, including contract templates, execution, renewals, amendments, and term tracking. Partner closely with Legal to ensure contracts reflect underwriting intent, risk positioning, regulatory compliance, and operational feasibility. Drive standardization, documentation accuracy, and contract data integrity to support scale, audits, and portfolio analysis. Directly lead and develop underwriting managers and team leads across Builder Underwriting, Enrollment Underwriting, and Contract Management. Build a high‑performing, accountable underwriting culture grounded in sound judgment, consistency, and customer‑centric decision‑making. Define clear performance metrics, service‑level expectations, and quality standards across all underwriting functions. Assess and enhance tools, workflows, documentation, and reporting to improve efficiency and reduce friction as volume scales. Serve as the underwriting authority and thought partner for executive leadership, Sales, Claims, Engineering, Product, Actuarial, and Finance. Support pricing studies, program design, and underwriting inputs tied to loss experience, mix shifts, and external market dynamics. Represent underwriting perspectives in builder escalations, strategic partnerships, and program evolution discussions. Support and enhance the builder warranty programs through collaboration with third party actuaries, auditors, reinsurers, and regulators. May assume other duties as assigned. Qualifications Required Skills Demonstrated expertise in underwriting policy development, exception management, and portfolio oversight Strong business judgment with the ability to balance risk discipline with commercial objectives Deep understanding of underwriting and risk management practices with the proven ability to ensure compliance with all program underwriting requirements Exceptional written and verbal communication skills with the ability to apply problem solving skills to complex situations Highly proficient in reading and interpreting contract language, statutes, regulations, and technical information Proven ability to identify process gaps and lead required change efforts Decisive, analytical, and comfortable making high‑impact risk decisions Strong communicator who can translate underwriting rationale to technical and non‑technical audiences Builder‑centric mindset grounded in clarity, fairness, and consistency Adept at influencing without authority and navigating cross‑functional ambiguity Continuous‑improvement oriented, with a bias toward building durable, scalable solutions Able to build a high‑performing, accountable underwriting culture grounded in sound judgment, consistency, and customer‑centric decision‑making Preferred Skills Experience in builder warranties, construction risk, property insurance, or adjacent B2B risk models Experience partnering closely with Legal on contract development and lifecycle management Knowledge of residential and commercial codes and standards Proven success scaling underwriting operations in high‑volume, multi‑state environments Physical Role Requirements Be seated at a computer intermittently for up to eight hours a day. Move up to 10 pounds occasionally, by lifting, carrying, pushing, pulling, or otherwise repositioning objects. Sitting for long periods of time while using office equipment such as computers and phones. Repetitive motions using hands and digits; such as movement of wrists, hands and fingers while picking, pinching and typing during your normal working environment. Minimum Education, Licensure and Professional Certification requirements Bachelor’s degree required in Architecture, Geotechnical, Structural Engineering, Business, Finance, Risk Management, Insurance or related field. Professional certifications such as ARM and similar certifications preferred, with strong consideration for applicants with a CPCU designation. Minimum Experience required 7+ years of progressive underwriting or risk management experience required within insurance, warranty, construction, or regulated financial services; architecture or engineering management experience and new home claims experience preferred. 5+ years of people leadership experience managing underwriting or risk‑focused teams. Travel Travel is required Other/State Specific This role pays between $166,320/Yr - $180,000/Yr and your actual base pay will depend on your skills, qualifications, responsibilities, experience, and location. At Frontdoor certain roles are eligible for additional rewards and incentives. Speak directly to your recruiter to learn more. Our approach to benefits is holistic, and includes health, wellbeing and financial components including insurance for medical/pharmacy, dental, vision, life, and disability, weight loss and smoking cessation programs, matching 401(k) and ability to participate in our employee stock purchase plan. Job Locations US ID 2026-4057 Category General and Operations Managers Type Full Time Company 2-10 Home Buyers Warranty Corporation #J-18808-Ljbffr