Head of Agency & New Business Operations

Stage; Des Moines (IA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

KKR is seeking a Service Leader of Agency and New Business Experience to set priorities and lead a team in Des Moines, IA or Hartford, CT. You will drive exception-based service, optimize workflows, and partner with TPAs to ensure quality outcomes for new business issuance.

You will evolve from transaction processing toward smarter processes and technology-enabled service, while aligning sales activity with operational execution and delivering pipeline performance.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree, or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.
• 10+ years in insurance, financial services, or new business/agency operations, incl. 5+ years in a people leadership role.
• Experience managing vendor or TPA relationships and driving SLA performance.
• Working knowledge of automation and workflow tools (e.g., Pega), with insurance and regulatory knowledge relevant to new business issuance and agency operations.
• Preferred: experience leading operational transformation from manual/transactional processing toward exception-based, technology-enabled service models.
• Preferred: familiarity with sales operations, distribution, or agency management structures.
• Preferred: industry designations such as FLMI, LOMA, or ACS.

Responsibilities

• Lead daily new business and agency operations, delivering exception resolution quality, SLA attainment, issuance velocity, productivity, and customer outcomes.
• Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing team with clear performance expectations and accountability.
• Establish operating rhythms and drive corrective actions based on volumes, trends, and risks.
• Refine workflows with Domain, Product Owner, and Technology teams to focus on high-value cases.
• Partner with TPAs and vendor partners to ensure alignment with standards and experience levels.
• Resolve operational issues, firm complaints, and escalations with timely follow-through.
• Implement improvements to strengthen quality, reduce exceptions, and modernize processes.
• Collaborate with Sales Operations Support to reflect firm expectations and ownership across the team.

Skills

People leadership

Data-driven decision making

Vendor/TPA management

Insurance regulatory knowledge

Automation and workflow (Pega)

Operational transformation

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Tools

Pega

Job description

KKR is seeking a Service Leader of Agency and New Business Experience to set priorities and lead a team in Des Moines, IA or Hartford, CT. You will drive exception-based service, optimize workflows, and partner with TPAs to ensure quality outcomes for new business issuance.

You will evolve from transaction processing toward smarter processes and technology-enabled service, while aligning sales activity with operational execution and delivering pipeline performance.