VP Liability Underwriting Officer

Zurich North America is currently looking for an experienced VP Liability Underwriting Officer. This position reports to the VP Casualty Lines, Underwriting Officer and our preference is for the individual to be located in any of our offices in the United States on a hybrid basis.

The VP Liability Underwriting Officer is a key role responsible for guiding Zurich North America’s liability underwriting strategy and execution. This role leads a team of underwriters and is responsible for setting, maintaining, and evolving underwriting standards, guidelines, appetite, and authority levels. The role ensures disciplined underwriting practices and drives portfolio strategy and performance management.

We are seeking a results-oriented professional with strong influencing skills and the ability to translate data and market trends into clear, executable plans. This leader will be proactive and solutions-oriented, driving modernization of underwriting capabilities through transformation initiatives. They will balance strategic vision with practical execution to deliver measurable impact across the organization.

• Shape portfolio performance by defining strategies, identify trends, support pricing adequacy, and drive profitability frameworks
• Lead the delivery of underwriting direction to enable successful Commercial GL and Excess underwriting to achieve financial objectives in North America.
• Drive profitable growth by providing business unit support for developing, implementing and monitoring business unit portfolio strategies.
• Develop, negotiate and implement strategic operational plans aligned with BU goals; provide input to Commercial GL and Excess underwriting strategies for all North American portfolios with Commercial GL and Excess exposures.
• Anticipate and assess long-term opportunities and risks associated with external market shifts, looking forward 5+ years.
• Determine emerging issues relevant to current and future needs and ensure strategies, programs, processes incorporate these insights.
• Ensure governance and alignment of policy, procedures and operating standards is completed for area of responsibility.
• Optimize resource allocation and champion products, projects, investments in Commercial GL and Excess that meet business unit needs.
• Evaluate underwriting activities to identify strategic risks and compliance issues.
• Lead risk assessment for their area of responsibility and elevate potential issues to higher management.
• Drives consistency and enhance underwriting standards across the Commercial GL and Excess Lines of Business to maintain or improve underwriting performance.
• Promote a rigorous underwriting process and procedure monitoring system.
• Provide effective leadership and management of Underwriting people resources: pursuing active talent management, driving capability development and creating a high-performance culture.
• Oversees framework for underwriting decisions e.g. authority grants, referrals, technical underwriting reviews.
• Guide design and implementation of rating and pricing tools and methodologies.
• Provides strategic underwriting insight for tools development and modernization.
• Develop and maintains strategic partnerships both internally and externally to advance business objectives.
• Leads LoB underwriting strategy for product development in collaboration with business units and the Product Management.
• Drive standardization and simplification of products, processes and tools across the LoB.
• Identify Commercial GL and Excess training opportunities and assists with facilitation of Commercial GL and Excess training framework.
• Oversees underwriting engagement with industry and regulatory bodies.

• Bachelors Degree and 10 or more years of experience in the Operations areaAND
• Experience working globally or internationally with underwriting partners
• Supervisory or management experience

• CPCU
• Technical knowledge and multi-level leadership skills reflective of a practitioner who has been operating at a senior underwriting level or manager role
• Track record of fostering business improvement and delivering change in a complex insurance environment

We…