VP, Distribution

Company Details

Berkley Small Business Solutions is a newly formed operating unit within WR Berkley. The new operating unit offers commercial insurance products for small businesses through a modern technology platform that leverages data and analytics to deliver a superior customer experience. In addition, Berkley Small Business Solutions is in its second year of offering insurance products for small trucking operations of fewer than 15 power unit.

W. R. Berkley Corporation, founded in 1967, is one of the nation’s premier commercial lines property casualty insurance providers. Each of the operating units in the Berkley group participates in a niche market requiring specialized knowledge about a territory or product. Our competitive advantage lies in our long-term strategy of decentralized operations, allowing each of our units to identify and respond quickly and effectively.

Responsibilities

Berkley Small Business Solutions seeks a Distribution Leader with deep experience and expertise defining, implementing and managing sales strategies to meet or exceed growth and profitability objectives. This role is responsible for evaluating existing capabilities, implementing new capabilities, competitive environment and marketplace dynamics to develop and execute the distribution capabilities required to meet/exceed growth and profitability targets. This position will develop and continually improve sales performance and translate key sales initiatives into action. 
Responsibilities

• Exhibit a thorough understanding of the Property & Casualty small commercial marketplace
  • Define and implement a small commercial growth strategy including:
    • Producer recruitment, selection, appointment and geographic placement
    • Producer contracting and compensation structure to incent growth and profitability
• Identification and implementation of alternative distribution strategies
• Define sales strategy and objectives by forecasting and developing annual sales targets and projecting expected sales volumes and revenue
• Provides input on product development and marketing to improve competitive position
• Develops accurate & timely new business forecasts & manages to these forecasts by tracking changing trends, economic indicators, competitors’ efforts and supply and demand
• Consistently deliver superior business performance across KPI's, including quotes, issued policies, line and industry mix, and profit
• Develops tactical sales plans/incentives designed to meet/exceed growth objectives. These objectives to include the capture of market share, new agency appointments, expanded distribution capabilities & revenue growth.
• Maintains and shares feedback surrounding market conditions, competitive intelligence, customer needs/expectations specific to the small commercial marketplace.
• Define and implement strategies to improve productivity of existing Independent Agency relationships
• Define strategy and timeline to expand current distribution capabilities to include alternative markets (Association/Affinity), Broker/Consultant and Direct-to-Consumer
• Coaching the sales team on a continuous basis to assess performance against key indicators
• Maintains direct market visibility with consultants, brokers, business community leaders & target prospects.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of Property Casualty sales leadership experience, developing & implementing sales strategies to produce quantifiable business impact
• Demonstrated ability to coach and develop field management talent & expertise
• Cross functional management experience in the execution of corporate strategies in or to achieve company revenue and customer satisfaction objectives
• Advanced proficiency and understanding of the Property & Casualty insurance industry and market dynamics
• Excellent communication and analytical skills
• Robust problem solving, conflict resolution and negotiating skills
• Exceptional organizational skills while working on multiple project initiatives, managing schedules and meeting deadlines
• Superior logical, analytical and reasoning abilities with close attention to detail
• Experience working in a large, matrixed environment where leadership, co-workers and necessary resources come from different geographical regions
• Entrepreneurial and Creative approach to challenges and opportunities
• Excellent communication and analytical skills
• Robust problem solving, conflict resolution and negotiating skills
• Exceptional organizational skills while working on multiple project initiatives, managing schedules and meeting deadlines
• Superior logical, analytical and reasoning abilities with close attention to detail
• Demonstrated ability to coach and develop field management talent & expertise
• Entrepreneurial and Creative approach to challenges and opportunities
• Advanced proficiency and understanding of the Property & Casualty insurance industry and market dynamics
• Experience with iterative, agile development methodologies (including scrum)

Education

• Bachelor’s degree required

Additional Company Details

The Company is an equal employment opportunity employer. We do not accept any unsolicited resumes from external recruiting firms. The company offers a competitive compensation plan and robust benefits package for full time regular employees. Base salary & Benefits include Health, dental, vision, life, disability, wellness, paid time off, 401(k) and profit-sharing plans. The actual salary for this position will be determined by a number of factors, including the scope, complexity and location of the role; the skills, education, training, credentials and experience of the candidate; and other conditions of employment.

Additional Requirements

Travel: When needed, approximately 30-50%