VP, Agency & New Business Experience Leader

KKR; Hartford (CT); On-site; USD 160,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

KKR seeks a Service Leader for Agency and New Business Experience to set priorities, manage vendor partnerships, and drive team effectiveness. You will align sales strategy with operations to deliver pipeline performance from Hartford, CT or Des Moines, IA.

The role emphasizes exception intelligence, process improvement, and smarter use of technology. You will lead a high-performing team, optimize workflows, and oversee daily operations to ensure quality and timely issuance while elevating the

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.
• 10+ years in insurance, financial services, or new business/agency operations.
• 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 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 and service levels.
• Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing team with clear performance expectations and accountability.
• Establish operating rhythms to review volumes, trends, service levels, and risks; drive corrective actions.
• Monitor processing trends and refine workflows with Domain, Product Owner, and Technology teams.
• Partner with TPAs and vendor partners to ensure execution aligns with expectations.
• Lead resolution of operational issues, complaints, complex cases, and escalations with timely follow-through.
• Implement improvements to strengthen quality, reduce exceptions, and modernize processes and tools.
• Collaborate with Sales Operations Support to reflect firm expectations and reduce escalations.

Skills

People leadership

Vendor management

SLA performance

Data-driven performance

Automation knowledge

Pega

Regulatory knowledge

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Pega

Job description

KKR seeks a Service Leader for Agency and New Business Experience to set priorities, manage vendor partnerships, and drive team effectiveness. You will align sales strategy with operations to deliver pipeline performance from Hartford, CT or Des Moines, IA.

The role emphasizes exception intelligence, process improvement, and smarter use of technology. You will lead a high-performing team, optimize workflows, and oversee daily operations to ensure quality and timely issuance while elevating the