Chief Underwriting Officer

Let's Write Africa's Story Together!

Old Mutual is a firm believer in the African opportunity and our diverse talent reflects this.

Job Description

Lead Specialty’s technical underwriting function, establishing practical underwriting standards, controls and capabilities that support sustainable risk-adjusted returns. Provide objective technical challenge to business-line leaders without displacing their accountability for commercial execution and results.

• Underwriting strategy, policies and mandates
• Develop and maintain the Specialty underwriting philosophy, policies, class guidelines, delegated authorities and underwriting referral framework within Group standards.
• Review and authorise technical guidelines, underwriting mandates, rating tools and material product underwriting terms in line with agreed delegations.
• Translate business appetite into commercially usable risk parameters, minimum underwriting hurdles and disciplined exceptions processes.
• Pricing adequacy and portfolio performance
• Oversee technical pricing methodologies, portfolio profitability reviews, rate adequacy and risk-selection quality in collaboration with actuarial and business-line teams.
• Track changes in loss cost, rate achievement, attritional and large-loss performance, concentrations and emerging exposures; propose timely technical interventions.
• Lead technical portfolio reviews, quality assurance and peer challenge while requiring business-line remediation where agreed hurdles are not met.
• Technical governance and regulatory compliance
• Maintain underwriting quality controls, documented decision-making, technical audit programmes and appropriate oversight of underwriting delegations.
• Provide technical assurance and challenge on binderholders, UMAs and other delegated underwriting arrangements, working with business-line owners and risk functions.
• Ensure underwriting practices comply with applicable insurance licences, regulatory requirements, approved policies and delegated authority limits.
• Specialist reinsurance and capacity interface
• Represent Specialty underwriting requirements in Group reinsurance design, renewal discussions, facultative referrals and exposure management.
• Contribute credible underwriting, risk engineering and accumulation information needed to assess retained risk and programme effectiveness.
• Work with the Group CUO and Reinsurance Officer, who retains ownership of Group reinsurance strategy, placement and programme decisions.
• Automation, data and innovation
• Set technical requirements for underwriting tools, product rules, data quality and automation; sponsor use cases that improve consistency and decision quality.
• Use data, exposure analytics, predictive insights and responsible AI to augment specialist underwriting judgement and strengthen monitoring.
• Support technical evaluation of new insurance products, markets and partnerships before they enter the portfolio.
• Leadership, performance and resource stewardship
• Build specialist underwriting talent, technical succession, communities of practice, coaching and professional development.
• Set objectives, report underwriting-quality performance, manage technical resources and deliver the function’s approved operating budget.
• Prepare clear technical recommendations and reporting for Specialty leadership, risk committees and relevant Group forums.
• Authority and key interfaces
• May refer, decline or stop underwriting outside approved technical limits; material disputes escalate through the Specialty CE and Group CUO.
• Group CUO & Reinsurance Officer owns Group treaty and facultative reinsurance programme decisions.
• The Specialty CE retains overall business performance, leadership and capital allocation accountability.
• The role operates within approved OMI Group policies, risk appetite, delegations and control frameworks.
• Cross-functional priorities are resolved through agreed governance and escalation to the Specialty CE.
• Required experience
• Extensive non-life underwriting experience, 12+ years, including substantial experience in commercial or specialist risks and at least 5 years leading technical teams.
• Demonstrable authority in technical risk selection, underwriting governance, delegated authorities, pricing adequacy and complex portfolio analysis.
• Strong understanding of reinsurance economics, exposure management, claims drivers and the practical application of South African insurance regulation.
• Qualifications and leadership capabilities
• Relevant degree in insurance, actuarial science, finance, engineering, risk or a related discipline; advanced insurance designations or professional accreditation advantageous.
• Able to challenge senior commercial stakeholders constructively; sound judgement, financial literacy, integrity and effective communication.
• Success measures
• Underwriting quality, technical pricing and risk-selection adequacy.
• Effective delegated-authority governance, portfolio reviews and timely remediation.
• Technical capability development and data-supported underwriting decisions.
• Specific objectives, grading, delegations and reporting arrangements are subject to the approved OMI governance and organisational processes.
  

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Skills

Accounting, Budget Management, Change Management, Data Compilation, Executing Plans, Financial Acumen, Legal Practices, Management Reporting, Numerical Aptitude, Policies & Procedures, Presenting Solutions, Professional Presentation, Risk Management, Servant Leadership, Underwriting Management

Competencies

Balances StakeholdersBuilds Effective TeamsBusiness InsightCommunicates EffectivelyEnsures AccountabilityFinancial AcumenInstills TrustManages Ambiguity

Education

NQF Level 9 – Masters

Closing Date

19 November 2026 , 23:59

The appointment will be made from the designated group in line with the Employment Equity Plan of Old Mutual South Africa and the specific business unit in question.

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