Business Head: Heavy Haulage JG5 at Santam Insurance

CAREER OPPORUNITY

• Santam Specialist Solutions has a career opportunity for a Business Head: Heavy Haulage which will be based in Alice Lane, Johannesburg.
• The primary purpose of this position is to take accountability for the overall strategic, commercial, underwriting, and distribution performance of the Heavy Haulage business.
• The role carries end-to-end responsibility for sustainable growth, underwriting profitability, governance, people leadership, and market positioning, in alignment with Santam’s strategy, brand promise, and Treating Customers Fairly principles.
• The role integrates business leadership, underwriting excellence, and sales & distribution oversight to ensure balanced growth, strong technical outcomes, and long-term commercial sustainability within the Heavy Haulage portfolio.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Strategic & Business Leadership

• Define and execute the Heavy Haulage business strategy, aligned to Santam and Santam Specialist Solutions objectives.
• Set long-term strategic direction to drive sustainable growth, profitability, and market leadership.
• Assess market, client, regulatory, and competitive trends to identify risks and growth opportunities.
• Represent Santam as a senior leader in relevant industry, broker, and stakeholder forums.
• Promote and embed Santam’s values and brand promise internally and externally.

 Financial & Commercial Stewardship

• Own top-line growth, underwriting performance, and profitability of the Heavy Haulage portfolio.
• Prepare, manage, and deliver against the approved budget, ensuring strong expense discipline.
• Partner with actuarial teams to ensure competitive, data-driven pricing aligned to loss ratio targets.
• Monitor portfolio performance, claims trends, and risk metrics, taking corrective action where required.
• Ensure disciplined premium collection, debtor management, and cancellation reserve controls.

Underwriting Strategy & Technical Governance

• Accountable for underwriting strategy, risk appetite, and governance within Heavy Haulage.
• Ensure compliance with underwriting mandates, authorities, and Santam’s Underwriting Practice Policy.
• Provide guidance and sign-off on complex, high-value, or non-standard risks and wordings.
• Drive consistency, quality, and best-practice underwriting disciplines to minimise operational and financial risk.
• Lead research and development of products, risk solutions, and technical enhancements.

 Sales, Distribution & Market Development

• Define and own the Heavy Haulage sales and distribution strategy in partnership with Sales, Underwriting, and Operations.
• Drive revenue growth, portfolio expansion, and market penetration through effective broker and client engagement.
• Build strong, long-term relationships with key brokers, clients, reinsurers, and strategic partners.
• Act as senior escalation point for complex commercial, broker, or client matters impacting revenue or reputation.
• Oversee national and regional marketing initiatives, ensuring return on investment and alignment to strategy.

Client & Stakeholder Engagement

• Maintain strong internal partnerships across Underwriting, Claims, Sales, Actuarial, Legal, Risk, Compliance, and Operations.
• Ensure delivery of a differentiated, high-quality client and broker experience
• Support cross-selling opportunities across Santam and group businesses.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Governance, Risk & Compliance

• Ensure adherence to regulatory, statutory, and internal governance requirements, including FAIS and insurance legislation.
• Act as custodian of underwriting binders, outsourcing arrangements, and delegated authorities where applicable.
• Oversee internal and external audits, ensuring timely remediation of findings.
• Implement robust risk management and internal control frameworks across the Heavy Haulage business.

Data, Insight & Reporting

• Leverage data analytics and management information to drive insight-led decision-making.
• Monitor dashboards and performance reporting to track growth, underwriting performance, and operational effectiveness.
• Provide regular reporting to management and governance forums

 People Leadership & Talent Development

• Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing leadership and specialist team.
• Create a culture of accountability, collaboration, excellence, and continuous improvement.
• Drive engagement, capability building, and succession planning within the business.
• Identify and mentor future leaders to ensure long-term sustainability of the function.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• Relevant Bachelor’s degree (Commercial, Insurance, Risk, Finance or related).
• FAIS compliant.
• Minimum of 10 years’ experience in the insurance industry.
• At least 5–7 years’ experience at senior leadership level.
• Proven track record in leading a specialist insurance portfolio or business.
• Strong experience across underwriting, risk management, sales/distribution, and financial management.

COMPETENCIES

• Strategic and commercial acumen
• Executive leadership and people management
• Strong underwriting and risk judgment
• Client and broker relationship management
• Financial and analytical capability
• Governance and compliance orientation
• Influencing, negotiation, and decision-making
• Results-driven with high attention to detail