[Hiring] Manager, Underwriting - Life @Nationwide

Role Description

Nationwide is seeking an experienced people leader to step into a critical Life Underwriting leadership role supporting traditional & fluidless underwriting processes. This is an opportunity to lead a team of underwriting professionals responsible for delivering strong service, sound risk assessment, and a consistent partner experience across the business.

The ideal external candidate will bring a blend of deep life underwriting knowledge, proven people leadership, and the ability to lead through change. We are looking for a leader who can develop talent, elevate performance, create accountability, and foster collaboration across a geographically dispersed team.

This role is especially well suited for candidates who have led underwriting teams in complex environments and who can balance day-to-day operational leadership with longer-term team development. Experience leading varied levels of underwriting talent, from early-career analysts to more tenured specialists and consultants, will be important in this position.

This role is eligible for fully remote work.

This role does not qualify for employer-sponsored work authorization. Nationwide does not participate in the Stem OPT Extension program.

Key Responsibilities

• Leads and provides oversight to team roles and responsibilities while creating a highly engaged culture.
• Handles performance of customer satisfaction, interaction quality, and relationships.
• Establishes practices for quality, production standards, relationship management, and compliance guidelines.
• Participates in, sponsors, or owns major projects, leading activities and staff.
• Hires qualified and highly engaged underwriters.
• Drives a culture of coaching and feedback for personal and professional guidance.
• Owns service relationships requiring a high level of technical expertise.
• Supervises activities to ensure clients are served timely and meets/exceeds quality standards.
• Handles the implementation of all enacted state and federal regulations for products and procedures.
• Uses outside-in approach and services as the "voice of the customer" in driving improvement opportunities.
• Manages expenses to the established budget and finds opportunities to streamline processes.
• Receives customer concerns from field and sales partners to renegotiate underwriting decisions.
• Handles up to $10,000,000 for life and up to $1,000,000 sign off for morbidity underwriting.
• May perform other responsibilities as assigned.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience preferred.
• EKG Certification preferred.
• FLMI and FALU certifications preferred.
• Participation in, or attainment of, professional/technical studies or designation such as the Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) and Fellow of Life Management Institute (FLMI).
• Obtainment of AALU designation.

Requirements

• Ten years of life underwriting experience.
• Five years of leadership experience in a formal or informal capacity.
• Validated technical underwriting ability to receive, evaluate, and underwrite on a medical or non-medical basis.
• Extensive knowledge of life underwriting principles and practices, including basic contract law.
• In-depth knowledge of anatomy, physiology, pathology, medical and non-medical risks related to life insurance.
• Strong communication skills and ability to present externally.
• Ability to negotiate skillfully in difficult situations.

Benefits

• Medical/dental/vision.
• Life insurance, short and long term disability coverage.
• Paid time off with a minimum of 18 days paid time off each full calendar year.
• Nine paid holidays.
• 8 hours of Lifetime paid time off.
• 8 hours of Unity Day paid time off.
• 401(k) with company match.
• Company-paid pension plan.
• Business casual attire.