EVP, Head of Surety

Head Of SuretyZurich North America is seeking an experienced leader to serve as Head of Surety. The Head of Surety is responsible for delivering underwriting results across Contract and Commercial Surety lines of business. In this pivotal role, you will shape both the technical and strategic direction of the Surety portfolios. Your leadership will be key to ensuring strong profitability and long-term growth.We're looking for someone with deep expertise in the Surety sector, a proven ability to build influential business relationships, and a strong track record in strategic underwriting oversight and portfolio management. Exceptional communication skills and a talent for fostering client partnerships are essential. This position reports to the Head of Specialties and the location is flexible and can be attached to any of our major Zurich offices with business travel expected.Responsibilities include:Establishing key performance targets and financial budgets for underwriting unit in order to optimize business performance in line with set objectives.Interpret and review the commercial drivers in the market and the organizations strategic goals, translate into objectives to develop cross-functional business cases for complex projects and programs and act as program sponsor to ensure effective delivery of projects.Develop and maintain relationships in support of business retention, new business and determine their insurance-related needs and provide solutions.Manage relationships with key internal stakeholders in order to identify opportunities for service improvement to ensure commercial viability and customer satisfaction.Participate in leadership team meetings to provide specialist guidance and enable the implementation of policies, projects and change initiatives to produce profitable results.Recommend and implement action plans after reviewing agency books of business and profit/growth results and trends.Develop a people management plan to drive performance management in the organization and to optimize performance within the team, and manage performance of team members, including ensuring team members comply with company policies and expectations and take appropriate action.Contribute to the business strategy to align underwriting strategy with wider business goals.Basic qualifications:Bachelor's degree and 15 or more years of in the underwriting or market facing within the commercial insurance industryAND5 or more years of management experienceBusiness unit management experienceSurety underwriting experiencePreferred qualifications:Deep expertise in Contract and Commercial Surety underwriting and market dynamics.Previous experience running a complex business unit with P&L responsibility with a proven track record of growing and retaining a large book of business.Proven track record of leading high-performing teams and delivering business results.Strong strategic thinking and ability to execute with precision.Exceptional communication and relationship-building skills with clients, brokers, and internal teams.Collaborative leadership style with a passion for talent development.Ability to influence and drive change across a complex organization.At Zurich, compensation for roles is influenced by a variety of factors, including but not limited to the specific office location, role, skill set, and level of experience. In compliance with local laws, Zurich commits to providing a fair and reasonable compensation range for each role. The proposed salary range for this position is 248,500 - 435,000, with short-term incentive bonus eligibility set at 50%.Zurich maintains a comprehensive employee benefits package for employees as well as eligible dependents and competitive compensation. Zurich in North America is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race/ethnicity, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status.