What are the responsibilities and job description for the Underwriting Manager Executive Benefits position at Guardian Life?
We are seeking a self-assured, autonomous professional with outstanding consulting and negotiation skills to lead our underwriting team. In this role, you will blend detailed analysis with strategic understanding to make sound, case-by-case decisions that drive business objectives and deliver client-focused solutions.
You will lead a group of underwriters and pre-sale coordinators. You will set underwriting guidelines and work with sales, product, actuarial, and operations to improve risk strategies. Your expertise in life and disability underwriting, risk assessment, and market trends will position you to shape innovative solutions and ensure compliance with regulatory standards.
This is an opportunity to influence underwriting strategy, enhance processes, and champion growth initiatives in a dynamic, evolving market.
You are
A confident, independent professional with exceptional consulting and negotiation skills. You consistently demonstrate sound judgment and can clearly articulate your decisions on a case-by-case basis, balancing analytical rigor with strategic insight to support business objectives.
You will
Professional Experience:
$86,210.00 - $141,635.00
The salary range reflected above is a good faith estimate of base pay for the primary location of the position. The salary for this position ultimately will be determined based on the education, experience, knowledge, and abilities of the successful candidate. In addition to salary, this role may also be eligible for annual, sales, or other incentive compensation.
Our Promise
At Guardian, you’ll have the support and flexibility to achieve your professional and personal goals. Through skill-building, leadership development and philanthropic opportunities, we provide opportunities to build communities and grow your career, surrounded by diverse colleagues with high ethical standards.
Inspire Well-Being
As part of Guardian’s Purpose – to inspire well-being – we are committed to offering contemporary, supportive, flexible, and inclusive benefits and resources to our colleagues. Explore our company benefits at www.guardianlife.com/careers/corporate/benefits. Benefits apply to full-time eligible employees. Interns are not eligible for most Company benefits.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Guardian is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to age, race, color, creed, religion, sex, affectional or sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, marital status, disability, military or veteran status, or any other classification protected by applicable law.
Accommodations
Guardian is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, its services, programs, and activities. Guardian also provides reasonable accommodations to qualified job applicants (and employees) to accommodate the individual's known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, unless doing so would create an undue hardship. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact MyHR@glic.com. Please note: this resource is for accommodation requests only. For all other inquires related to your application and careers at Guardian, refer to the Guardian Careers site.
Visa Sponsorship
Guardian is not currently or in the foreseeable future sponsoring employment visas. In order to be a successful applicant. you must be legally authorized to work in the United States, without the need for employer sponsorship.
Current Guardian Colleagues: Please apply through the internal Jobs Hub in Workday.
You will lead a group of underwriters and pre-sale coordinators. You will set underwriting guidelines and work with sales, product, actuarial, and operations to improve risk strategies. Your expertise in life and disability underwriting, risk assessment, and market trends will position you to shape innovative solutions and ensure compliance with regulatory standards.
This is an opportunity to influence underwriting strategy, enhance processes, and champion growth initiatives in a dynamic, evolving market.
You are
A confident, independent professional with exceptional consulting and negotiation skills. You consistently demonstrate sound judgment and can clearly articulate your decisions on a case-by-case basis, balancing analytical rigor with strategic insight to support business objectives.
You will
- Develop and enforce underwriting guidelines, workflows and standard processes
- Partner with Sales and Distribution teams to support producer relationships
- Collaborate with product, actuarial and operations teams to deliver client focused solutions
- Monitor KPIs and ensure underwriting decisions align with risk appetite
- Drive improvements in execution and efficiency in risk assessment and renewal process
- Serve as escalation point for challenging cases and exceptions
- Ensure adherence to compliance and quality standards
Professional Experience:
- 5-7 years of insurance risk management experience, experience in life and disability underwriting, experience in Guarantee Issue Case Level Underwriting for Individual Disability and Executive Benefit Life a plus.
- Minimum 3-4 years in a supervisory or management role.
- Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent work experience.
- Strong knowledge of underwriting principles, risk assessment methodologies, rating and pricing strategies and insurance regulations.
- Skilled in approving/declining complex or high value cases.
- Familiarity with underwriting software, data analysis tools and performance metric tracking (KPIs like loss ratio, turn around time and close ratio)
- Proven ability to lead, develop, and mentor underwriting teams
- Experience in creating underwriting policies, training programs, and performance improvement initiatives
- Strong decision-making under pressure and problem-solving capabilities
- Excellent interpersonal, communication and negotiation skills
- Experience collaborating cross-functionally with sales, product, actuarial, claims, legal, compliance, and broker teams.
- Proficiency in analyzing market data, economic trends and emerging risks to shape underwriting strategies
- Capability to set departmental KPI, monitor performance, and adjust underwriting guidelines to optimize profitability and compliance.
- Drive innovative initiatives to enhance, optimize and automate support growth
- Thorough understanding of legal and regulatory requirements in insurance underwriting
- Ensure underwriting policies practices align with internal policies and external regulatory standards
- Bethlehem, PA or Pittsfield, MA
- Hybrid - In office 3 days per week
$86,210.00 - $141,635.00
The salary range reflected above is a good faith estimate of base pay for the primary location of the position. The salary for this position ultimately will be determined based on the education, experience, knowledge, and abilities of the successful candidate. In addition to salary, this role may also be eligible for annual, sales, or other incentive compensation.
Our Promise
At Guardian, you’ll have the support and flexibility to achieve your professional and personal goals. Through skill-building, leadership development and philanthropic opportunities, we provide opportunities to build communities and grow your career, surrounded by diverse colleagues with high ethical standards.
Inspire Well-Being
As part of Guardian’s Purpose – to inspire well-being – we are committed to offering contemporary, supportive, flexible, and inclusive benefits and resources to our colleagues. Explore our company benefits at www.guardianlife.com/careers/corporate/benefits. Benefits apply to full-time eligible employees. Interns are not eligible for most Company benefits.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Guardian is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without regard to age, race, color, creed, religion, sex, affectional or sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, marital status, disability, military or veteran status, or any other classification protected by applicable law.
Accommodations
Guardian is committed to providing access, equal opportunity and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, its services, programs, and activities. Guardian also provides reasonable accommodations to qualified job applicants (and employees) to accommodate the individual's known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, unless doing so would create an undue hardship. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact MyHR@glic.com. Please note: this resource is for accommodation requests only. For all other inquires related to your application and careers at Guardian, refer to the Guardian Careers site.
Visa Sponsorship
Guardian is not currently or in the foreseeable future sponsoring employment visas. In order to be a successful applicant. you must be legally authorized to work in the United States, without the need for employer sponsorship.
Current Guardian Colleagues: Please apply through the internal Jobs Hub in Workday.
Salary : $86,210 - $141,635