Role Title: Construction Portfolio Solutions Lead
Department: Underwriting
Team: Energy & Construction
Location: London
Type: Permanent
About the Role:
The Senior Underwriter will help develop the newly formed Portfolio Solutions proposition within the Liberty Construction team, with a focus on Delegated Authority, broker facilities, and other portfolio-based trading structures. This role will drive a portfolio-led underwriting approach to construction business, using data, pricing insight and performance analytics to inform underwriting decisions and portfolio composition. Assessment of opportunities will be at a portfolio level rather than solely on individual risks, balancing growth, profitability, diversification and volatility management.
The successful candidate will work closely with Distribution, Delegated Authority, Actuarial, Exposure Management, Claims and Operations to build a scalable and well-controlled portfolio underwriting proposition. They will support the development of underwriting frameworks, performance metrics and governance for facility and delegated portfolios. We anticipate that the successful candidate will come from an existing Delegated Authority team or a treaty underwriting background. Applicants from a portfolio management or actuarial background are also encouraged where there is a desire to transfer into a portfolio underwriting function.
About the Department & Team:
The LSM Construction team are leaders across the sub-sectors of the Construction market, including EAR, Civils, CAR (buildings) and Annuals. We write Property Damage policies with all the aligned extensions including Delay in Start-Up, Primary Third-Party Liability, Existing Property and Contractor’s Plant & Equipment.
In the single risk marketplace, we adopt a technical approach to underwriting, supported by a team of in-house risk engineers. Our appetite is aligned with past performance at an occupancy level and we seek close relationships with key clients based on a mutual understanding of the importance of risk management. This role will augment that capability with a portfolio approach to underwriting, building on our ability to gather and analyse data, which will bring further diversification to the book.
Key Responsibilities:
Strategy and Planning
- Support the development of the strategy for Portfolio Solutions, build relationships with key external and internal stakeholders and shape the direction of the book.
- Contribute and participate in all meetings to share and develop strategy, knowledge and best practice.
- Contribute new ideas and concepts to support the development and delivery of the business plan
Delivery
- Develop portfolio-level underwriting strategies, including appetite, capacity deployment, attachment points, limits, territorial mix and class/occupancy segmentation.
- Evaluate and underwrite delegated authority, facility and other portfolio opportunities through analysis of historical performance, exposure profiles, pricing adequacy, structure and governance.
- Use relevant data to monitor portfolio profitability, identify trends and recommend corrective underwriting actions.
- Partner with actuarial, exposure management and claims teams to assess loss drivers, accumulation risk, catastrophe exposure and portfolio volatility.
- Design and maintain portfolio underwriting controls, including data standards, referral triggers, KPI thresholds and exception reporting.
- Support the creation and optimisation of broker facilities and delegated structures that provide efficient access to attractive construction business.
- Assess delegated partners’ underwriting capability, governance, reporting quality and operational readiness as part of onboarding and ongoing oversight.
- Drive underwriting decisions through a balance of quantitative analysis, market insight and broker/coverholder engagement.
- Ensure portfolio business is reviewed regularly against plan, with clear actions around remediation, repricing, restructuring or exit where required.
Policy, Process and Procedures
- Own and monitor key portfolio KPIs including rate adequacy, loss ratio, expense ratio, exposure growth, mix changes, data quality and volatility.
- Contribute to business planning through portfolio performance forecasting, scenario analysis and stress testing.
- Identify underperforming segments and recommend actions such as repricing, tighter underwriting parameters, capacity adjustment or portfolio remediation.
- Support quarterly portfolio reviews and present insights to underwriting leadership and relevant governance forums.
People Management
- Collaborate with the wider Construction team and Integrated Business Unit to ensure business requirements are achieved.
- Motivate and develop the team by demonstrating good leadership behaviours and management best practice.
- Manage performance in accordance with the company’s performance process.
Adherence to all relevant regulatory requirements forms part of your role, and the demonstration of behaviours as set out in the Conduct Risk Policy, as they relate to your role, is core to LSM's commitment to our Liberty Values, placing customers at the centre of our business and behaving with integrity. LSM expects you to understand your responsibilities relating to all regulatory and internal requirements, and to proactively demonstrate compliance with these requirements and behaviours at all times. These requirements include the Senior Managers and Certification Regime Conduct Rules, Solvency II, fair treatment of customers, Financial Crime, Data Protection, Conflicts of Interest, and Whistleblowing
Skills and Experience:
- Comfortable operating in a role combining underwriting judgement, commercial relationship management and data-led decision-making.
- Experience underwriting or managing delegated authority, facilities, treaty or other portfolio-based insurance business.
- Ability to analyse portfolio performance using bordereaux, exposure, pricing and claims data.
- Experience assessing portfolio structures, underwriting controls, data quality and partner governance.
- Understanding of portfolio composition principles, including diversification, aggregation, volatility and capital efficiency.
- Ability to translate analytical insight into practical underwriting actions and portfolio strategy.
- Experience working with actuarial, claims, exposure management and delegated authority teams.
- Understanding of the features of a construction risk portfolio (build-up of values, development tail, nat cat vulnerability etc).
About Liberty Specialty Markets (LSM)
Liberty Specialty Markets is part of Global Risk Solutions and the broader Liberty Mutual Insurance Group, which is a leading global insurer. We offer a breadth of world-class insurance and reinsurance services to brokers and insureds in all major markets.
Our people are key to our success. That is why "Put People First" is one of the five Liberty values which unite us as a global organisation. We bring this to life for our colleagues through:
- Offering a vibrant and inclusive environment and committing to their career development.
- Promoting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). Our Inclusion Matters framework and employee-led networks strengthen the diversity of our workforce and our inclusive environment.
- Reinforcing that collaborating together to share our unique perspectives help us make better decisions, deliver innovative solutions and pursue our ambitious goals.
- A supportive culture, which includes promoting a healthy work-life balance and working flexibly.
For more information, please follow the links below:
https://www.libertyspecialtymarkets.com/gb-en/careers/working-for-us
https://www.libertyspecialtymarkets.com/gb-en/careers/diversity-equity-and-inclusion
