Senior Property Underwriter at Santam Insurance

What will you do?

• Commercial Underwriting has a position available for a Senior Commercial Property Underwriter and will based at our Alice Lane Office in Johannesburg.  This role will report to the Manager: Commercial Property Underwriting.

What will make you successful in this role?

• The individual is required to fulfil all Senior Property Underwriting functions to ensure Santam’s Commercial Property Portfolio achieves its profit and growth targets within the parameters of our risk appetite, as determined by the Board. 

PRINCIPLE ACCOUNTABILITIES INCLUDE: 

• Making Property Underwriting decisions within the individual’s mandate in support of the Commercial Underwriting Portfolio, including business written within Segment Solutions (Privé, Santam Real Estate, Guesthouse and Tourism and Agriculture), in support of our profit and growth targets.
• Reviewing of Property Underwriting Mandates of individuals outside the Senior Property Underwriting team, including enhancing Property Mandate assessments and assessment criteria.
• Training and upskilling Santam staff with regards to Property Underwriting.
• Manage various aspects of the Property portfolio, as needed, with regards to profit, growth and underwriting adherence.
• Enhance our underwriting rules to balance customers’ needs with Santam’s risk appetite.   
• Produce comprehensive, well thought through business cases to proposals for changes to risk appetite, if needed.
• Research and development of new Commercial insurance covers and products to meet clients’ needs as the risk environment changes and to ensure market competitiveness.
• Determine business specifications for the design and development of the Commercial Property offerings in Policy Centre.
• Maintain, create and sign off on all policy wordings, Broker guidelines and implementation of any regulatory requirements, for all Santam’s Commercial offerings, including Agri, Wine, Schools, Tourism & Guesthouse etc. with regards to Property and General sections.
• Work with Actuaries to determine appropriate rating structures for Commercial Property Sections for all Commercial offerings (incl. Agri).
• Develop rating tools/solutions for these classes of business for use by external business partners.
• Assist in maintaining and amending our National Survey Policy which determines which risks need to be surveyed at what stage of the policy lifecycle.
• Work with our underwriting, surveying and distribution teams to ensure that we meet our Property Underwriting objectives and ensuring that we adhere to our risk appetite and individual mandates at all times.
• Interact and assist Brokers and Partners from time to time, as needed with regards to Property Underwriting queries.
• Provide consistent and excellent service delivery in line with Santam Experience requirements at all times.
• Assist in developing and building specialist Property technical underwriting skills within Santam, ensuring appropriate succession plans in place at all times.

Qualifications and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree or relevant insurance related diploma: AIISA or FIISA or similar 
• Recommendation: Management or Leadership qualification 
• Must be able to demonstrate property underwriting ability and expertise
• Proven track record of ideally at least 10 years’ experience within a Commercial Underwriting environment, ideally with specialist Property Underwriting experience
• Knowledge of (and understanding of the impact of) the relevant legislation on the business e.g. Building regulations etc.
• Advance Computer literacy (MS Word, Excel & PowerPoint) 

Skills

• Commercial Property Underwriting skill
• Advanced Excel
• Management experience in Commercial Underwriting
• Excellent English communication & report-writing skills
• Presentation skills
• Establish interpersonal relationship, negotiating and networking skills
• Ability to influence
• Ability to learn new systems quickly
• Ability to work under pressure with appropriate prioritisation skills
• Results-orientated and deadline driven
• Good analytical skills and problem-solving abilities
• Skilled in leading and coaching staff
• Creativity and ability to innovate and find new solutions to new challenges
• Able to organise own and others workloads to achieve priorities and objectives
• Demonstrate capability to think of the organisation holistically
• Build and lead a team and ensure Santam remains market leader in Commercial Property & Casualty risks

Competencies

• Collaborates 
• Client focus 
• Drives results  
• Flexibility and adaptability 
• Cultivates Innovation 
• Organisational Savvy
• Builds Networks
• Manages Complexity
• Persuades
• Managing, adapting and responding to change 
• Negotiating and Influencing others 
• Analytical 
• Attention to detail and meticulous