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The Head of Underwriting Risk manages volatility for Markel in the US and Bermuda and is a member of the Office of the CUO US/Bermuda team. At Markel, we believe in a disciplined underwriting approach that balances opportunity with long-term sustainability. The Head of Underwriting Risk plays a critical leadership role in ensuring that our underwriting practices align with our enterprise risk appetite, supports profitable growth, and reflects our commitment to thoughtful risk selection. This role will lead the development and oversight of underwriting risk frameworks across Markel in the US/Bermuda partnering closely with underwriting, actuarial, finance, and ERM teams. The role collaborates with the Chief Underwriting Officer for US/Bermuda, US Wholesale and Specialty, and the Presidents within Programs & Solutions to measure, control, and mitigate these risks to keep volatility within specified parameters.
Key Responsibilities
Duties and Accountabilities
- Lead deterministic scenario analyses across all portfolios to assess the impact of macroeconomic, geopolitical, climate, litigation, and technological risks
- Monitor underwriting risk exposures across portfolios, identifying emerging, systemic and individual risk concentrations. Develop and implement consistency in the underwriting approach to address these risks across US & Bermuda.
- Oversee stress testing, scenario analysis, and portfolio reviews to assess risk-adjusted performance
- Define and maintain underwriting risk appetite statements and tolerances, aligned with enterprise risk and capital frameworks in coordination with the CUO, US & Bermuda.
- Take actions to measure, control and mitigate these risks to ensure volatility remains within appetite
- These actions may include modelling, scenarios, exclusions, aggregate limits and reinsurance
- Partner with Catastrophe Management, Risk Management/Loss Control, Underwriting, Actuarial, Product & Regulatory Services, Ceded Reinsurance, Finance, Operations and Corporate Teams to quantify potential impacts and inform underwriting strategy
- Promote a culture of risk awareness and reporting across Markel US & Bermuda’s underwriting divisions
- Continuously improve Markel’s best practices in underwriting risk management, using developments both within and outside the insurance industry
Skills, knowledge and experience
The successful candidate will:
- Demonstrate a high level of curiosity, a desire to think beyond the expected and an ability to challenge accepted norms
- Possess sufficient specialty insurance knowledge to assimilate the outputs from catastrophe models, scenarios analyses and understand the key features of Markel US/Bermuda products and reinsurance treaties
- Be able to work across departments, disciplines and territories with sufficient convening authority
- Have a track record of effective and persuasive communication in large and small groups and at all levels of an organization
Qualifications
- Minimum 15+ years of underwriting experience or strong analytics experience, with a strong technical background.
- Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree or professional certifications preferred.
- Strong analytical, strategic, and communication skills.
- Experience with expense management and performance metrics.
#LI-Hybrid
#LI-SY
US Work Authorization
US Work Authorization required. Markel does not provide visa sponsorship for this position, now or in the future.
Pay information:
Markel Group (NYSE – MKL) a fortune 500 company with over 60 offices in 20+ countries, is a holding company for insurance, reinsurance, specialist advisory and investment operations around the world.
We’re all about people | We win together | We strive for better
We enjoy the everyday | We think further
In keeping with the values of the Markel Style, we strive to support our employees in living their lives to the fullest at home and at work.
All full-time employees have the option to select from multiple health, dental and vision insurance plan options and optional life, disability, and AD&D insurance.
We also offer a 401(k) with employer match contributions, an Employee Stock Purchase Plan, PTO, corporate holidays and floating holidays, parental leave.
Are you ready to play your part?
Choose ‘Apply Now’ to fill out our short application, so that we can find out more about you.
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Markel is aware of employment-related scams where scammers will impersonate recruiters by sending fake job offers to those actively seeking employment in order to steal personal information. Frequently, the scammer will reach out to individuals who have posted their resume online. These "job offers" include convincing offer letters and frequently ask for confidential personal information. Therefore, for your safety, please note that:
Markel is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate or allow discrimination on the basis of any protected characteristic. This includes race; color; sex; religion; creed; national origin or place of birth; ancestry; age; disability; affectional or sexual orientation; gender expression or identity; genetic information, sickle cell trait, or atypical hereditary cellular or blood trait; refusal to submit to genetic tests or make genetic test results available; medical condition; citizenship status; pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions; marital status, civil union status, domestic partnership status, familial status, or family responsibilities; military or veteran status, including unfavorable discharge from military service; personal appearance, height, or weight; matriculation or political affiliation; expunged juvenile records; arrest and court records where prohibited by applicable law; status as a victim of domestic or sexual violence; public assistance status; order of protection status; status as a smoker or nonsmoker; membership or activity in local commissions; the use or nonuse of lawful products off employer premises during non-work hours; declining to attend meetings or participate in communications about religious or political matters; or any other classification protected by applicable law.
Should you require any accommodation through the application process, please send an e-mail to the rarecruiting@markel.com.
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