Senior Underwriting Manager: Hospitality | Gauteng

The Recruitment Council; Gauteng; On-site; ZAR 1,200,000 - 1,800,000; Full time

Job summary

The Recruitment Council represents a prominent holding company in South Africa's financial services and short-term insurance sectors. The Senior Underwriting Manager: Hospitality will lead strategic direction across the Specialist Hospitality line, driving long-term strategy, expanding market share, and maximizing profitability while maintaining governance and risk controls.

The role requires extensive leadership, budgeting, and cross-functional collaboration to guide major accounts nationwide

Qualifications

• University first degree (Bachelor's degree or equivalent).
• 10–15 years of deep expertise in relevant field.
• 6–10 years managerial experience in planning and organizing resources within policy frameworks.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen in decision-making and budgeting.
• Strategic planning expertise with ability to execute multi-faceted plans.
• Sales and market analysis experience with coordination of campaigns.
• Executive communication and reporting to diverse stakeholders.
• Ability to solve complex problems with systematic thinking.
• Execution and process optimization capabilities.
• Team leadership and cross-functional collaboration with diverse teams.
• Resilience and organizational savviness in changing markets.

Responsibilities

• Strategic Leadership & Direction: Set and communicate the functional strategy aligned with organizational mission, vision, and values, motivating a diverse workforce to meet business goals.
• Functional Strategy Formation: Formulate and execute business area strategies that account for emerging mega-trends, complex industry challenges, and broader corporate objectives.
• Financial Management & Budgeting: Establish and oversee business area budgets to maintain disciplined cost management aligned with overarching strategy.
• Sales & Account Development: Create and execute relationship management strategies for major, complex customer accounts at national and local levels.
• Product & Service Development: Oversee the development and delivery of specialist products and services, directing the product roadmap and managing project backlogs.
• Organizational Risk & Compliance: Lead risk management and control processes, ensuring full compliance with external regulatory codes and internal governance policies to protect company reputation.
• Market & Customer Insight: Drive voice-of-the-customer initiatives, research, and analysis to uncover customer trends, segment requirements, and evolving market expectations.
• Marketing Oversight: Guide the development and delivery of marketing initiatives tailored to the Specialist Hospitality offering.
• Customer Focus & Cross-Functional Collaboration: Champion internal and external collaboration across departments to optimize service delivery and enhance client relationships.
• Capability Building: Identify capability gaps, prioritise talent development initiatives, and mentor team members across the organization.
• Performance Management: Establish clear performance objectives for direct reports, track progress against annual business targets, and implement corrective measures where needed.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Budgeting & financial analysis

Sales & account development

Executive communication

Team leadership

Problem solving

Cross-functional collaboration

Risk & compliance awareness

Market insights

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

Our client is a prominent holding company encompassing several of South Africa's leading financial service providers and short-term insurers. Driven by customer-focused innovation and technology, our client brings together a diverse team of thinkers and doers committed to pioneering service excellence in the financial services sector.

The Senior Underwriting Manager: Hospitality is responsible for delivering strategic leadership and oversight across the Specialist Hospitality line of business. This critical role will lead the end-to-end execution of long-term business strategy, expand market share, grow the Specialist Hospitality book of business, and maximize sustainable profitability while maintaining strong operational and financial performance.

Key Responsibilities:

• Strategic Leadership & Direction: Set and communicate the functional strategy aligned with organizational mission, vision, and values, motivating a diverse workforce to meet business goals.

• Functional Strategy Formation: Formulate and execute business area strategies that account for emerging mega-trends, complex industry challenges, and broader corporate objectives.

• Financial Management & Budgeting: Establish and oversee business area budgets to maintain disciplined cost management aligned with overarching strategy.

• Sales & Account Development: Create and execute relationship management strategies for major, complex customer accounts at national and local levels.

• Product & Service Development: Oversee the development and delivery of specialist products and services, directing the product roadmap and managing project backlogs.

• Organizational Risk & Compliance: Lead risk management and control processes, ensuring full compliance with external regulatory codes and internal governance policies to protect company reputation.

• Market & Customer Insight: Drive voice-of-the-customer initiatives, research, and analysis to uncover customer trends, segment requirements, and evolving market expectations.

• Marketing Oversight: Guide the development and delivery of marketing initiatives tailored to the Specialist Hospitality offering.

• Customer Focus & Cross-Functional Collaboration: Champion internal and external collaboration across departments to optimize service delivery and enhance client relationships.

• Capability Building: Identify capability gaps, prioritise talent development initiatives, and mentor team members across the organization.

• Performance Management: Establish clear performance objectives for direct reports, track progress against annual business targets, and implement corrective measures where needed.

Requirements:

• Education: University first degree (Bachelor's degree or equivalent).

• General Experience: 10 to 15 years of deep expertise and proven professional competence within a relevant field.

• Managerial Experience: 6 to 10 years of experience managing, planning, and organizing resources within established policy frameworks.

• Commercial & Financial Acumen: Strong capability in commercial decision-making, financial analysis, budgeting, and performance measurement.

• Strategic Planning: Comprehensive expertise in independently designing and executing multi-faceted strategic plans.

• Sales & Market Analysis: Proven track record in customer research, data analysis, and coordinating high-impact sales campaigns.

• Executive Communication & Reporting: Ability to draft lucid reports and deliver compelling presentations to diverse executive stakeholders.

• Navigating Complexity: Skilled at solving complex, ambiguous problems through systematic thinking and analytical insights.

• Execution & Process Optimization: Disciplined in prioritizing initiatives, aligning cross-functional workflows, and continuously optimizing operational processes.

• Team Leadership & Collaboration: Proven capability in building high-performing, diverse teams, fostering trust, and establishing collaborative cross-boundary partnerships.

• Resilience & Organizational Savvy: Composed under pressure, adept at maneuvering organizational dynamics, and resilient in managing market changes or operational hurdles.