Senior Underwriter

Shepherd

Los Angeles (CA)

On-site

USD 160,000 - 205,000

Full time

3 days ago

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Benefits offered by this job

Premium Healthcare

Unlimited PTO

Daily meals

Dog-friendly office

Professional Development

Competitive 401(k)

Office network in major cities

Job summary

Shepherd is hiring a senior commercial underwriter to drive pricing, coverage and terms for new business and renewals across high-hazard industries. You will develop target accounts, negotiate with partners, and lead marketing and producer management efforts with a client-centric approach.

You should bring 5+ years in underwriting, strong risk analysis, and excellent communication skills. This onsite role will operate across major U.S. offices and requires a degree or equivalent experience.

Qualifications

Minimum 5+ years in commercial underwriting (construction, casualty, builder's risk preferred).
Able to handle ambiguity and manage multiple tasks simultaneously.
Strong interpersonal, verbal and written communication, and high emotional intelligence.

Responsibilities

Develop and negotiate price, coverage, terms for new business and renewals.
Identify target accounts that fit Shepherd's underwriting appetite.
Market, producer management, and new business development responsibilities.
Negotiate with internal and external partners to close deals.
Demonstrate success in marketing, producer management, and deal closure.

Skills

Underwriting

Sales & Marketing

Negotiation

Risk analysis

Client management

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience

Job description

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

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.

About You

We are looking for a motivated and eager individual who's passionate about the future of construction and eager to do the best work of their career.

You would be a dream candidate if…

You have a minimum of 5+ years of previous experience in the commercial underwriting space (Construction, Casualty, and/or Builder's Risk experience preferred)
You aren't afraid of ambiguity
You have a strong work ethic, are self-motivated, and have the ability to manage multiple tasks/projects simultaneously
You have exceptional interpersonal skills (verbal and written) and a high EQ
You have strong sales and marketing skills and are able to position accounts and close deals
Underwriting duties will include developing and negotiating price, coverage, terms and conditions for all new business and renewals while actively identifying target accounts that fit Shepherd's underwriting appetite
Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience

About the Role

Shepherd's underwriting approach will be client-centric with a heavy emphasis on an efficient process. Our goal will be to leverage our technology and data to make quick, informed, underwriting decisions tailored to our client's specific needs.

Candidates must be able to demonstrate success in marketing, producer management, new business development, and the ability to successfully negotiate on all levels with both internal and external partners.
Teamwork, communication, and negotiation skills are required.
Solid background in risk analysis and experience with construction and/or casualty underwriting.
Knowledge and proficiency with compliance, coverage, products and pricing strategies.
Be adaptable and creative in a fast paced startup environment

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

How We Work

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