Risk Manager

Barnhart Crane & Rigging•Memphis, TN

25d

About The Position

The Risk Manager owns the strategy and execution of Barnhart’s risk program, including insurance structure and placement, claims and third-party liability, risk financing, and risk mitigation. Working with the Senior Transactions Counsel, this position forms one part of Barnhart’s legal and risk function and partners with Branch Managers, Safety, Operations, and Finance as a hands-on advisor and analyst. The role helps branches prevent losses, respond effectively to incidents, and understand the cost of risk in their businesses. The Risk Manager works closely with and under the direction of the SVP Risk Management and Administration to identify, assess, and mitigate enterprise-wide risk, and provides data-driven recommendations to leadership. The position serves as the primary risk and insurance resource for branch and regional leadership. It advises on job planning and pursuits, insurance requirements, coverage gaps, subcontractor and third-party exposures, equipment and cargo risk, and site conditions. The role manages insured and third-party claims, works with Safety and Operations on incident response and loss prevention, owns insurance program structure and renewals, supports contractual risk transfer, and develops analytics and reporting on claims, loss trends, reserves, forecasts, and total cost of risk. Success means branches view Risk Management as a practical partner; claims are resolved efficiently; loss data informs prevention; the insurance program is well structured and represented in the market; and leadership has a clear, data-driven view of Barnhart’s total cost of risk. Barnhart describes its purpose as serving employees, communities, and others; specializes in lifting, heavy rigging, and heavy transport; has over 60 U.S. branch locations; and emphasizes a collaborative “One TEAM” culture grounded in safety, servant leadership, quality service, innovation, continuous improvement, fairness, and profit with a purpose.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Risk Management, Business, Finance, Insurance, Legal Studies, or a related field.
Experience managing workers’ compensation, auto liability, general liability, property, cargo, and excess liability claims.
Experience managing third-party liability claims, including bodily injury and property damage.
Experience working with insurance carriers, TPAs, brokers, and legal counsel.
Experience with contractual insurance and risk-transfer requirements.
Strong analytical and reporting experience.
Servant leadership orientation and genuine interest in helping branches succeed.
Ability to explain insurance and risk concepts in plain language to field and operations audiences.
Strong negotiation and relationship-management skills.
Advanced ability to analyze statistical claims and financial data.
Ability to interpret insurance policies and coverage language.
Ability to prioritize and handle multiple functions accurately and with attention to detail.
Executive-level presentation skills.
Project management capabilities.
Proficiency with claims management systems, Excel, and reporting tools.

Nice To Haves

5–10 years of progressively responsible experience in risk management, risk assessment, insurance, claims, or a related field.
Juris Doctor (JD).
ARM, CRM, CPCU, RIMS-CRMP, or similar professional designation.
Experience in construction, heavy lift, crane, transportation, logistics, rigging, or industrial services industries.
Experience supporting a decentralized, multi-location organization.
Experience with captives, large deductible programs, or alternative risk financing structures.

Responsibilities

Serve as the primary risk and insurance resource for branch and regional leadership, providing accessible, practical, timely guidance.
Help branches understand loss experience and cost of risk, and advise on actions to improve results in coordination with Safety.
Advise early during job planning and pursuits on insurance requirements, coverage gaps, subcontractor and third-party exposures, equipment and cargo risks, and relevant site conditions.
Partner with Safety to build field risk literacy, including evidence preservation, claim-reporting timelines, subcontractor insurance verification, and immediate incident response practices.
Visit branches and job sites to understand operations and ensure risk guidance reflects field conditions.
Oversee insured claims, including workers’ compensation, auto, general liability, riggers, cargo, equipment, and warehousing claims.
Lead third-party liability claims from initial notice through investigation, coverage determination, reserve setting, and resolution.
Coordinate with the SVP Risk Management and Administration to direct TPAs, carriers, brokers, adjusters, and defense counsel and support timely, sound claim decisions.
Coordinate with the Senior Transactions Counsel when claims involve contractual defenses.
Review reserves, retentions, deductibles, and total cost of risk to support optimized structures and long-term planning.
Manage uninsured and self-insured losses, subrogation and recovery opportunities, and claims against vendors and subcontractors.
Partner with Safety and Operations to identify emerging risks and use claims and loss data to support targeted prevention.
Analyze loss drivers by branch, division, equipment type, customer, and job profile, and collaborate on training, procedures, and controls.
Participate in serious incident response and post-incident review with Safety and Operations, supporting factual investigations for prevention and claim defense.
Advise on high-risk pursuits and unusual job scopes with Safety, Operations, and Engineering so risks are priced and controlled before work is accepted.
Own insurance structure, placement, and renewals; investigate and advise on alternative structures and revisions.
Collaborate with Finance and Operations on insurance structures that support corporate objectives, and recommend retentions, risk financing, captives, and deductibles.
Oversee OCIP and owner-controlled program participation, including review, risk determination, participation alignment, and enrollment.
Manage broker and carrier relationships, market strategy, submissions, and underwriting narratives.
Support acquisitions and strategic transactions with insurance and claims due diligence, historical loss analysis, and post-closing program integration, coordinating with the Senior Transactions Counsel.
Review contracts for insurance and risk-transfer requirements and advise the Senior Transactions Counsel and contract review team on insurance, indemnity, additional insured, waiver of subrogation, and limitation of liability provisions.
Establish and maintain standard insurance and risk-transfer requirements, fallback positions, and certificate and endorsement standards.
Manage subcontractor and vendor insurance compliance, including qualification standards, certificate tracking, and escalation of deficiencies.
Feed claims and loss experience into contract standards, templates, and field training, and flag customer terms that create avoidable exposure.
Develop, analyze, and present reports on claims activity, loss trends, reserve adequacy, loss forecasting, total cost of risk, and strategy recommendations.
Communicate risk exposures, claim developments, and recommendations to internal stakeholders, claimants, carriers, brokers, TPAs, legal counsel, and executive leadership.
Provide facts, data, options, and mitigation recommendations for enterprise risk, including uninsured losses and claims.
Identify risk trends and explore mitigation options across risk categories, including emerging and uninsured exposures.
Ensure compliance with applicable insurance, workers’ compensation, DOT, OSHA, and contractual requirements, and monitor regulatory developments affecting risk exposure.