Senior Director - Portfolio Risk & Underwriting Strategy

Key Responsibilities

Lead portfolio risk management and performance oversight across products, programs, distribution channels, and geographies, with accountability for profitable growth and disciplined risk selection. 

Analyze loss, exposure, pricing, frequency, severity, mix-of-business, and market trends to identify emerging risks and recommend timely portfolio actions. 

Direct underwriting strategy and governance, including pricing, eligibility, authority, referral, and exception frameworks; ensure decisions align with business objectives and risk appetite. 

Partner with Actuarial, Product, Finance, Sales, and Operations to evaluate product changes, pricing actions, reserving implications, and opportunities to improve portfolio returns. 

Guide the development and use of forecasts, predictive models, simulations, dashboards, and scenario analyses, translating technical results into practical business decisions. 

Establish portfolio monitoring routines, performance thresholds, and executive reporting that make profitability drivers and risk concentrations visible and actionable. 

Influence product design and program strategy by assessing financial, actuarial, underwriting, operational, and customer impacts. 

Lead complex decisions in ambiguous, high-impact situations and communicate recommendations, trade-offs, and financial implications to senior leadership. 

Improve underwriting processes, data, tools, controls, and governance to increase consistency, scalability, speed, and decision quality. 

Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing team while strengthening collaboration and analytical capability across the organization. 

Core Competencies (skills, knowledge and abilities):

Deep knowledge of underwriting, portfolio management, risk selection, and insurance profitability drivers. 

Strong actuarial and quantitative orientation, including pricing, forecasting, trend analysis, scenario modeling, and performance measurement. 

Ability to connect technical findings to underwriting actions, product strategy, financial outcomes, and risk appetite. 

Understanding of loss cost, frequency, severity, exposure, mix, concentration, and rate adequacy concepts relevant to P&C or specialty insurance portfolios. 

Executive-level communication skills, including the ability to explain complex analyses to technical and nontechnical audiences. 

Strategic judgment and the ability to balance growth, customer, profitability, compliance, and risk considerations. 

Cross-functional leadership and influence across Actuarial, Product, Finance, Sales, Operations, and Technology. 

People leadership, coaching, talent development, and organizational change capability. 

Comfort navigating incomplete information, challenging assumptions, and making sound decisions in rapidly evolving markets. 

Required Qualifications:

Bachelor's degree in Actuarial Science, Mathematics, Statistics, Economics, Finance, Risk Management, Business, or a related field. 

7+ years of progressive experience in underwriting, actuarial, portfolio management, product management, risk management, or a related insurance discipline. 

4+ years of relevant leadership experience, including direct people management. 

Experience managing portfolio performance and profitability across multiple products, programs, markets, or distribution channels. 

Experience using analytics, performance metrics, and financial insights to support strategic decisions and portfolio actions. 

Demonstrated success partnering across functions to shape business strategy and execute complex initiatives. 

Ability to present recommendations and influence decisions at the senior-leadership level. 

Preferred Qualifications:

8+ years of progressive experience in actuarial, underwriting, portfolio management, product, or insurance risk leadership. 

ACAS, FCAS, or meaningful progress toward a Casualty Actuarial Society designation; CPCU, ARM, or another relevant insurance credential also valued. 

Experience in automotive finance and insurance (F&I), extended service contracts, vehicle protection products, warranty administration, specialty insurance, or adjacent P&C markets. 

Experience with pricing strategy, reserving, predictive analytics, loss trend analysis, or actuarial model implementation. 

Experience leading underwriting transformation, governance, data modernization, or technology-enabled decisioning. 

Advanced degree such as an MBA, MS, or related discipline. 

About Us – Asset Protection

Protective Asset Protection has been providing finance and insurance (F&I) solutions for the automotive industry for more than 60 years. We proudly serve thousands of dealerships and financial institutions in the automotive, marine, powersports and recreation vehicle industries throughout the U.S. providing innovative vehicle protection products, wealth-building programs, training, and technology. Our portfolio of vehicle protection plans, GAP coverage, limited warranties, and ancillary products provide opportunities to generate revenue with products that help drive customer retention and satisfaction. Protective Asset Protection is part of the financial services holding company, Protective Life Corporation. For more information about Protective Asset Protection visit www.ProtectiveAssetProtection.com.