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About the Role

Responsible for providing leadership and strategic direction for the Commercial Surety business, driving underwriting excellence, profitable growth, portfolio performance, and market competitiveness. Serves as the senior underwriting executive accountable for establishing and executing underwriting strategy, risk appetite, product direction, and distribution objectives across the business. Leads a geographically dispersed team of underwriting leaders and directs the development of talent, succession strategies, and organizational capabilities to ensure long-term business success.

Responsibilities

Provides executive leadership for the Commercial Surety line of business, establishing and executing long-term strategies that drive profitable growth, market expansion, and sustainable competitive advantage.
Leads a team of Home Office and Regional Directors, creating alignment between underwriting, distribution, and business objectives across the operating territory.
Develops and maintains executive-level relationships with key agencies, brokers, producers, and industry stakeholders, influencing distribution strategy and optimizing market presence.
Directs agency and broker appointment strategies, ensuring alignment with growth objectives, risk appetite, and profitability goals.
Establishes and maintains underwriting philosophy, risk appetite, authority structures, guidelines, and governance frameworks for the Commercial Surety portfolio.
Serves as the senior underwriting authority and principal subject matter expert, ensuring consistent underwriting discipline and portfolio management practices across the organization.
Oversees portfolio performance, capacity utilization, emerging risk assessment, and underwriting results to achieve profitability and growth objectives.
Collaborates with internal business partners on underwriting audits, quality assurance processes, and compliance activities to ensure adherence to underwriting standards and regulatory requirements.
Engages with reinsurance partners and executive stakeholders to communicate portfolio performance, strategic initiatives, and risk management outcomes.
Accountable for achieving financial objectives for the Commercial Surety business, including premium growth, profitability, retention, and expense management targets.
Oversees pricing strategy, risk selection practices, and portfolio optimization efforts to maximize underwriting performance and return on capital.
Provides strategic direction for product development, policy form enhancement, rate adequacy initiatives, and regulatory filings.
Partners with enterprise leadership to evaluate market opportunities, competitive trends, and business performance, adjusting strategies as needed to achieve desired results.
Provides leadership, coaching, and development for underwriting leaders and teams, fostering a caring, high-performance culture focused on accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement.
Establishes organizational capability strategies, including workforce planning, succession management, talent retention, talent acquisition, and leadership development.
Maintains full management accountability for performance management, compensation decisions, employee engagement, and workforce effectiveness.
Develops future underwriting leaders and strengthens organizational bench strength to support long-term business objectives.
Provides executive sponsorship and strategic direction for underwriting technology, workflow optimization, and business transformation initiatives.
Partners with technology, analytics, and operations leaders to enhance underwriting platforms, predictive modeling capabilities, and portfolio management tools.
Drives continuous improvement efforts that improve underwriting efficiency, decision quality, scalability, and customer experience while supporting enterprise objectives.
May perform other responsibilities as assigned.

Requirements

Minimum of 15 years of Underwriting/Marketing/Leadership experience in the surety bond marketplace.
Prior-related experience will be considered but most recently in surety marketplace with key broker contacts.
Significant experience leading Commercial Surety underwriting operations with responsibility for profitability, growth, and portfolio performance.
Experience managing large accounts, complex surety programs, and significant underwriting authority.
Experience developing and executing underwriting strategies, risk appetite frameworks, and portfolio management initiatives.
Demonstrated success leading geographically dispersed underwriting teams and developing underwriting leaders.
Experience working with brokers, agents, producers, and key distribution partners.
Experience presenting business results and strategic initiatives to executive leadership.
Experience leading a national or multi-regional Commercial Surety business.
Experience managing reinsurance relationships and negotiating treaty structures.
Experience overseeing product development, pricing strategies, regulatory filings, and form development.
Experience leading underwriting transformation, technology implementation, predictive modeling, or analytics initiatives.
Experience managing P&L or direct financial accountability for a product line or business segment.
Regularly and consistently demonstrates the Nationwide Values.

Skills

Knowledge of the surety bond marketplace, general, retail, broker and agency systems, state and local filing systems, underwriting and marketing principles and techniques.
Strong agency and broker relationships throughout the United States.
Strategic planning and business leadership.
Executive decision-making and judgment.
Financial and business acumen.
Organizational leadership and change management.
Data-driven decision-making and analytical thinking.
Negotiation and influencing skills.
Executive communication and presentation skills.
Cross-functional collaboration and stakeholder management.

Location

Full-time remote
This position could be filled within any of the lower 48 U.S. states.

Work Type

Full-time
Remote

Experience Level

15+ years of experience
Senior Underwriting Executive

Education Level

Bachelor’s degree in risk management, Insurance, Finance, Business Administration, Accounting, Economics, or related field; or equivalent combination of education and experience.
Master’s degree in business administration (MBA), Finance, Risk Management, Economics, or related discipline is preferred.
Completion of CPCU and AFSB helpful.

Salary/Compensations

$207,750.00-$346,250.00

Benefits

Medical/dental/vision
Life insurance
Short and long term disability coverage
Paid time off (minimum of 18 days per 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

About the Company

Nationwide is a Fortune 100 company with nearly $70 billion in annual sales.
At Nationwide®, “on your side” goes beyond just words.
Our customers and partners are at the center of everything we do and we’re looking for associates who are passionate about delivering extraordinary care.

Equal Opportunity

Nationwide is an equal opportunity employer.
We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive culture where everyone feels challenged, appreciated, respected and engaged.
Nationwide prohibits discrimination and harassment and affords equal employment opportunities to employees and applicants without regard to any characteristic (or classification) protected by applicable law.