Director, Corporate Underwriting

Economical is part of Definity, which includes some of Canada’s most long-standing and innovative insurance brands, including Economical Insurance, Sonnet Insurance, Family Insurance Solutions, and Petline Insurance. Our ambition is to be one of Canada’s leading and most innovative property and casualty insurers. We can’t do that without our people, so we embrace and encourage a culture that’s collaborative, ambitious, rewarding, and empowering.

We offer a flexible, hybrid work experience where employees work from the office and virtually depending on the type of work they are doing and who they are working with. Bring your true self and be a part of our journey. It’s better here.

Reporting to the AVP, Product and Underwriting, the Director, Corporate Underwriting (Auto & Property) is responsible for leading the technical aspects of Personal Insurance Product and Underwriting area for both automobile and property lines of business. The Director is accountable for developing and building out the foundations for underwriting decisions making across all PI teams. Leading a small team of technical specialists, the Director will be responsible for bringing and underwriting lens to interactions between various teams, including the operational teams, claims, governance, and risk management. This role is also responsible for providing underwriting oversight and direction to the operations teams.

 

What can you expect in this role?

• Deliver on the Personal Insurance business strategy as it relates to product and underwriting for property and automobile for all Definity companies. 
• Develop and enhance underwriting and risk appetite philosophies in line with Company and market conditions. 
• Develop and implement controls and strategies to support profitable growth, enhance underwriting quality and mitigate against risks.
• Ensure underwriting decisions adhere to underwriting philosophy and maintain the integrity of the portfolio strategy, practices, and governance. 
• Oversee technical underwriting reviews and turn learnings into remediation actions to improve data quality and systems controls to improve risk selection. 
• Further advance underwriting licensing framework to create an appropriate delegated authority model supported by a robust audit process. 
• Oversee the underwriting participation in large loss committees, coverage conversations and create an effective interaction model with various stakeholders. 
• Provide high-level expertise and guidance on technical insurance matters for various stakeholders.
• Work with other teams within Chief Underwriting Office to solve business problems such as: retention, growth, profitability, competitive positioning, and product development.
• Develop technical underwriting framework to support referrals and exception handling to improve quality of the book and optimize retention. 
• Actively participate in the research and monitoring of the industry, market, and competitors to identify opportunities and threats as well as areas for improvement in operations.

As the successful candidate you will ensure the team is providing appropriate level service and support to our internal partners.  This requires an innovative approach to instructional design, facilitation, knowledge management and quality monitoring priorities. 

What do you bring to the role?

• University Degree in a relevant discipline;
• FCIP or actively pursuing FCIP is an asset
• 7 to 10 years of relevant full-time personal insurance underwriting or related industry experience 
• Prior leadership experience required with an ability to lead and manage a team in a busy and changing environment while fostering positive performance and engagement.  
• Excellent communication skills (written/oral) required with the ability to foster positive relationships 
• Helps build and maintain a culture of high performance and sustained profitable growth by promoting and supporting an environment that encourages productivity, collaboration, teamwork, and a high level of professionalism. 
• People Management & Development including; Ensures team is staffed with appropriate skills and a capacity to deliver on mandates, Demonstrates strong leadership competencies, and supports and is an advocate for change 
• Ability to manage stakeholders through collaboration and cooperation at various levels across the organization 
• Strong organizational skills with the ability to prioritize multiple projects
• Advanced decision-making skills 
• Excellent analytical and problem solving with the ability to select and implement best solution
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft Office suite of products  

 

 

 

 

Interested in this role, but don't meet every requirement? We encourage you to apply! We know from experience that a candidate doesn't need 100% of the qualifications listed to bring incredible value to our team. We're actively seeking diverse backgrounds and perspectives to help us make insurance better. At Definity, inclusion, diversity, and equity aren't just "nice to have" — they're essential to our success.

What's in it for you?

• Hybrid work schedule for most roles
• Company share ownership program
• Pension and savings programs, with company-matched RRSP contributions
• Paid volunteer days and company matching on charitable donations
• Educational resources, tuition assistance, and paid time off to study for exams
• Focus on inclusion with employee groups, support for gender affirmation surgery, access to BIPOC counsellors, access to programs for working parents
• Wellness and recognition programs
• Discounts on products and services

Actual salary for the role may vary depending on work location of the successful candidate and other factors including but not limited to, skills, education, experience, working conditions and the local labour market.  In addition to base pay, eligible employees may participate in various incentive plans which are paid out at the discretion of the company and subject to individual and company performance.

Go ahead and expect a lot — you deserve it.
It's better here — but don't take our word for it. Definity was named by Great Place to Work® as one of the Best Workplaces™ in Canada for women, for youth, and for inclusion.

Our inclusive work environment welcomes diversity and supports accessibility. If you require accommodation at any time during the recruitment process, please let us know by contacting [email protected].

Background checks
This role requires successful clearance of background checks (including criminal checks and leadership references).

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