Director, Personal Insurance, Underwriting Practices

The Hartford•Hartford, CT

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Hartford Personal Insurance is seeking an experienced leader to lead our Underwriting Practices Team. This leader will lead a team of 5 responsible for the guidelines, policies, and general practices of all underwriting across Auto, Home, and Personal Umbrella. A successful candidate will need to demonstrate a strong history of successful talent management, thought leadership in Underwriting contexts, and execution excellence.

Requirements

10+ years of Property & Casualty (P&C) Insurance Underwriting experience with a demonstrated track record of success in underwriting operations, portfolio management, risk assessment, profitability management, and agency/broker relationship development.
Candidates should possess deep industry knowledge and a strong understanding of underwriting principles, market trends, regulatory considerations, and business performance drivers.
3+ years of people leadership experience , including leading, coaching, mentoring, and developing underwriting professionals and/or cross-functional teams.
Proven ability to build high-performing teams, drive accountability, foster employee engagement, and create a culture focused on collaboration, execution, and continuous improvement.
Equivalent professional experience within Property & Casualty Insurance, Underwriting, Operations, or Leadership roles will also be considered.
Candidates with relevant industry certifications such as CPCU, AU, ARM, or similar professional designations are encouraged to apply, as these credentials demonstrate a commitment to continued professional development and expertise within the insurance industry.
Candidates should bring a strong understanding of product strategy, underwriting performance metrics, distribution channels, and customer needs within these segments.
Demonstrated record of delivering against strategic and operational objectives.
Proven ability to establish priorities, execute business plans, manage competing demands, and consistently achieve key performance, growth, profitability, and service objectives.
Strong change leadership and organizational transformation experience.
Ability to successfully lead teams through periods of change, influence stakeholders at multiple levels, drive adoption of new processes and technologies, and effectively communicate vision, expectations, and outcomes.
Ability to manage timelines, stakeholders, risks, and deliverables while ensuring successful execution and measurable business impact.
Exceptional communication, relationship-building, and influence skills , with the ability to partner effectively across underwriting, product, claims, operations, technology, and executive leadership teams to drive business results and strategic initiatives.
Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities , with the ability to leverage data, performance metrics, and market insights to make informed business decisions and identify opportunities for growth, efficiency, and continuous improvement.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's degree preferred, but not required , in Business, Finance, Risk Management, Insurance, Economics, or a related field.
Experience in Personal Lines and/or Small Commercial/Small Business Insurance preferred.
Project management experience preferred , including leading cross-functional initiatives, process improvement efforts, operational transformation projects, technology implementations, or business process redesign efforts.

Responsibilities

Direct Underwriting appetite, processes, and procedures to target annual financial plan goals.
Translate strategic plans into Underwriting Practices.
Respond to business needs to balance growth and profitability.
Consult with all levels of internal partners regarding underwriting policy and practice.
Evolve practices to reflect changing external environment.
Enable growth through targeted revisions to practices.
Develop strategy that guides Underwriting Practices, operational decisions, and underwriting perspective to underwriting team and internal partners.
Contribute to Invest agenda to achieve business unit goals.
Responsible for a high level of service to all customers, emphasizing customer centricity in all practices.
Ensure that underwriting practices and guidelines are understood and adhered to, specifically focusing on price, risk selection, mix of business, flow management and quality analysis.
Execution oversight for publishing of guidelines, managing regulatory requirements, and deployment of guidelines through internal systems.
Contribution to the development of appetite that guides all underwriting decisions.
Determine and ensure delivery of training and development based on individual and department needs.
Coach, develop and provide feedback to Underwriting Practices team members.
Performance management, coaching, and development for Underwriting Practices talent.
Establishes pipeline of talent to support the attraction, selection and development of high caliber, diverse talent from within and/or outside the organization.
Participates in creation of strategic staffing plans to support the profitable growth of the business while also providing development opportunities for employees.
Responsible for managing and developing direct reports as well as working closely with the leadership team to ensure completion of meaningful development opportunities for employees.
Executes on Employee Survey Action Items as a result of annual survey outcomes.