Underwriter Reinsurance-Credit & Surety North America

Axis Capital; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 150,000 - 185,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a skilled Surety Underwriter to join their dynamic team. This pivotal role involves underwriting and pricing treaties, ensuring profitability, and collaborating with internal actuaries. The ideal candidate will have over five years of experience in surety underwriting, with advanced financial and credit analysis skills. You will play a crucial role in shaping the North America Surety Reinsurance portfolio, making strategic recommendations that influence the acceptance of deals. If you thrive in a fast-paced environment and are ready to make a significant impact, this opportunity is perfect for you.

Benefits

Medical Plans

Health and Wellness Programs

Retirement Plans

Tuition Reimbursement

Paid Vacation

Qualifications

• 5+ years of surety underwriting experience required.
• Strong financial and credit analysis skills essential.

Responsibilities

• Underwrite and price treaties while ensuring profitability.
• Conduct annual audits and create comprehensive reports.

Skills

Surety Underwriting

Financial Analysis

Credit Analysis

Negotiation Skills

Communication Skills

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Advanced Financial Analysis Knowledge

Job description

This is your opportunity to join AXIS Capital - a trusted global provider of specialty lines insurance and reinsurance. We stand apart for our outstanding client service, intelligent risk taking, and superior risk-adjusted returns for our shareholders. We also proudly maintain an entrepreneurial, disciplined, and ethical corporate culture. As a member of AXIS, you join a team that is among the best in the industry.

At AXIS, we believe that we are only as strong as our people. We strive to create an inclusive and welcoming culture where employees of all backgrounds and from all walks of life feel comfortable and empowered to be themselves. This means that we bring our whole selves to work.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion or creed, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin or ancestry, citizenship, physical or mental disability, age, marital status, civil union status, family or parental status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Accommodation is available upon request for candidates taking part in the selection process.

How does this role contribute to our collective success?

This role is pivotal in shaping the future of our North America Surety Reinsurance portfolio. By meticulously selecting and monitoring the profitability of cedents, you ensure that every decision drives AXIS towards greater financial strength. Collaborating closely with the Head of the department, you'll underwrite, price, and facilitate the seamless booking of each treaty, making a tangible impact on our operations.

Your expertise will shine as you audit cedent underwriting files, uncovering insights and drafting comprehensive findings. You'll underwrite special acceptances and provide strategic recommendations, influencing the acceptance or declination of individual deals. Your contributions will be instrumental in steering our portfolio towards sustained success and profitability.

What will you do in this role?

1. Role entails the commingling of economic, construction, and service industry knowledge and trends in combination with credit analysis skills to form an opinion on a cedent's surety portfolio.
2. Review reinsurance contract treaty wording for adherence to industry and AXIS standards, consult with internal legal staff on outliers, and negotiate with brokers and clients to achieve an acceptable outcome.
3. Perform annual underwriting file audits of cedent's portfolio, review cedent's credit files and analysis, look for consistency and detail in their risk selection.
4. Reach an overall assessment and create a report of findings. Look for trends over time.
5. Collaborate with internal actuaries to achieve acceptable treaty pricing relative to each treaty's risk profile.
6. Create underwriting rationale to recommend treaty participation levels based upon pricing data, treaty profit history, cedent's portfolio makeup, and risk characteristics.
7. Ability to prioritize tasks in a fast and shifting environment during four high activity seasons.
8. Upon conclusion of each treaty renewal, work with underwriting assistants to verify accuracy of treaty detail, pricing, and deal terms in our underwriting systems.

You may also be required to take on additional duties, responsibilities, and activities appropriate to the nature of this role.

About You:

We encourage you to bring your own experience and expertise to the table, so while there are some qualifications and experiences, we need you to have, we are open to discussing how your individual knowledge might lend itself to fulfilling this role and help us achieve our goals.

What you need to have:

• 5 or more years of primary surety underwriting experience in either contract or commercial surety underwriting.
• Advanced knowledge and concepts of financial and credit analysis skills.
  Excellent written, verbal, and communication skills.
• Ability to present ideas and thoughts in a clear manner to clients and AXIS underwriting staff.
• Excellent negotiation skills that achieve acceptable outcomes for all parties (broker, cedent, AXIS).
• Intermediate to advanced financial and credit analysis skills, understanding of accounting and cash flow analysis.
• Strong grasp of Percentage of Completion accounting, job profit analysis/trending, and construction management controls.
• Communication skills are of paramount importance; clarity, being concise, and definitive in broker communications is vital.
• Comfortable in high-stress negotiations, ability to make sound arguments based upon underwriting and actuarial pricing outputs.

What we prefer you to have:

• Prior knowledge of surety claims practices.
• Prior surety reinsurance experience or trade credit, political risk underwriting.

Role Factors:

In this role, you will typically be required to:

Ability and willingness to travel extensively is necessary

Be in the office 3 days per week

What we offer:

For this position, we currently expect to offer a base salary in the range of 175k to 215k (NY), 140k to 170k (GA), 150k to 185k (IL). Your salary offer will be based on an assessment of a variety of factors including your specific experience and work location.

In addition, you will be offered competitive target incentive compensation, with awards based on overall corporate and individual performance. On top of this, you will be eligible for a comprehensive and competitive benefits package which includes medical plans for you and your family, health and wellness programs, retirement plans, tuition reimbursement, paid vacation, and much more.

Where this role is based in the United States of America, this role is Exempt for FLSA purposes.