Director of Underwriting AI and Strategic Automation - Ryan Specialty Group

Position Summary:
The Director of Underwriting AI and Strategic Automation will leverage AI to improve underwriting risk selection and pricing, in addition to partnering with internal and external vendors to improve underwriting and operational efficiencies for improved service to our clients.

Location:
Chicago - Illinois - Wacker

What will your job entail?

The Director of Underwriting AI and Strategic Automation will work closely with underwriting, data engineering, actuarial, operations, and IT to accomplish the following:

Underwriting AI

• Automated Solutions: Continue the growth of our automated solutions for declinations, submission triaging, quoting, and audits.
• Re-Evaluate Underwriting: Collaborate with underwriters and carrier partners to re-evaluate the underwriting process. Streamline the risk selection, pricing, and coverage determination process. Identify external data vendors to replace or supplemental manual underwriting question
• Underwriting Innovations: Evaluate new underwriting innovations for reliability, accuracy, cost efficiency, legality, and customer experience. Integrate findings into a cohesive underwriting strategy in collaboration with executive management, distribution, risk, product development, underwriting, and implementation teams
• Stakeholder Relationships: Cultivate and maintain relationships with key stakeholders, advocating for user-centered solutions that align with business goals. Assess the user experience from start to finish to ensure a seamless underwriting, operations, and producer experience.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work with cross-functional teams to embed user experience design principles into product development processes, ensuring cohesive experiences for underwriters, operations, and producers.

Strategic Automation

• Vendor Identification: Lead the identification of a new external vendor to support the automated extraction of data from email submissions including ACORD Apps, Supplemental Apps, Excel SOVs, Loss Runs, and the body of emails. Develop a framework to expand this over time to include verification of that data, augment missing data, and application of automated underwriting rules with the data.
• AI Vision: Help shape the AI vision across the organization; coordinating efforts with underwriting, operations, actuarial, IT, and legal resources to ensure successful implementation of Generative AI initiatives.
• Strategic Thinking: Demonstrate strategic thinking and drive innovation in AI experience design, supporting AI and data leaders in planning and executing the insurance product strategy.
• Market and Technology Insight: Stay informed about market trends, product knowledge, and technological advancements, leveraging emerging technologies and industry best practices.
• Flexible Implementation: Develop implementation approaches that produce Generative AI applications that are flexible, maintainable, and adaptable to evolving business needs.

Education/Experience/Skills:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Business Administration, or a related field, with both technical and business credentials a plus
• 10+ years of experience
• Skills: Strong background in AI technologies, leadership, communication, strategic thinking, problem solving and analytical capabilities
• Commercial E&S lines experience with in-depth knowledge of underwriting, risk selection, analytics, and quality control strongly preferred.
• Robust knowledge of the insurance industry, especially the specialty, commercial, and/or reinsurance sectors.

Ryan Specialty is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to building and sustaining a diverse workforce throughout the organization. Our vision is an inclusive and equitable workplace where all employees are valued for and evaluated on their performance and contributions. Differences in race, creed, color, religious beliefs, physical or mental capabilities, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, and many other characteristics bring together varied perspectives and add value to the service we provide our clients, trading partners, and communities. This policy extends to all aspects of our employment practices, including but not limited to, recruiting, hiring, discipline, firing, promoting, transferring, compensation, benefits, training, leaves of absence, and other terms, conditions, and benefits of employment.

How We Support Our Teammates

Ryan Specialty seeks to offer our employees a comprehensive and best-in-class benefits package that helps them - and their family members - achieve their physica