Description
Job Title: Manager, Underwriting & Sales Operations
Team: Operations
Location: Knoxville, TN
Are you looking for an opportunity to lead a growing team, influence business operations, and apply your underwriting expertise in a highly entrepreneurial environment? CIC Services is seeking an experienced Operations Manager to lead our Underwriting and Sales Operations functions, helping ensure an exceptional experience for both prospective and existing clients while building scalable processes that support our continued growth. This position will be based in our Knoxville, TN office and we are open to candidates willing to relocate for the position.
CIC Services is an award-winning risk management and consulting firm specializing in the formation and operation of captive insurance companies for clients nationwide. As a captive insurance manager serving more than 200 businesses across a wide range of industries, we help business owners transform risk into a strategic asset through innovative insurance solutions and industry-leading expertise.
Overview:
As the Manager, Underwriting & Sales Operations, you will lead a small but highly impactful team responsible for underwriting operations and sales operations support. This player-coach role combines people leadership, commercial underwriting expertise, process improvement, and cross-functional collaboration.
You will oversee our underwriting function, manage and develop team members, partner with clients, brokers, actuaries, and advisors, and work closely with Sales leadership to strengthen pipeline visibility and tighten the sales process.
The ideal candidate brings strong commercial underwriting experience, leadership capability, and a passion for building scalable processes. While captive insurance experience is not required, this role offers the opportunity to apply traditional underwriting expertise within one of the insurance industry's most innovative and rapidly growing segments.
What You’ll Do:
- Lead and Develop the Team: Manage and coach our Underwriter and Sales Operations Coordinator, providing day-to-day leadership, professional development, and process oversight while ensuring exceptional service for clients and internal stakeholders.
- Own the Underwriting Function: Oversee the full underwriting lifecycle for new and existing clients, serving as the senior underwriting resource and bringing a disciplined commercial underwriting approach to our captive insurance platform.
- Manage Risk Evaluation, Pricing, and Renewals: Partner with clients, actuaries, brokers, and advisors to gather underwriting information, support pricing analyses, evaluate coverage changes, manage annual renewals, and ensure underwriting decisions are well supported and efficiently executed.
- Align Underwriting and Sales Operations: Partner with Sales leadership to improve pipeline visibility, support forecasting efforts, build and improve prospective client modeling, and ensure seamless transitions from prospect to client.
- Drive Operational Excellence: Evaluate workflows, implement process improvements, and develop reporting and controls that support scalability and continued growth.
- Support Strategic Initiatives: Partner with company leadership on projects related to operational improvements, technology adoption, automation, and organizational growth.
Requirements
What You’ll Bring:
- 7-10+ years of commercial insurance underwriting experience, preferably involving middle-market accounts, risk analysis, and policy review
- Experience leading, mentoring, or managing team members, with a demonstrated ability to develop talent and improve team performance.
- Strong understanding of underwriting processes, risk evaluation, commercial insurance coverage structures, and underwriting workflows. Captive insurance experience is a plus but not required.
- Demonstrated ability to work effectively with clients, brokers, actuaries, and other professional advisors.
- Strong operational mindset with experience improving processes, managing workflows, and balancing multiple priorities.
- Excellent communication, analytical, and problem-solving skills and the ability to excel in a fast-paced environment.
- Strong analytical, consulting, and problem-solving capabilities, including comfort reviewing data, identifying trends, and making sound business recommendations.
- Bachelor’s degree in business, finance, risk management, insurance or related field.
- Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel and strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office and business systems.
- A self-directed, hands-on leadership style with the ability to operate as both a manager and individual contributor.
- Ability to work in our Knoxville, TN office approximately four days per week.
What We Provide:
- Performance Recognition: Competitive compensation and eligibility for our annual bonus program
- Hybrid Flexibility- This role is based in our Knoxville, TN headquarters (relocating candidates welcome to apply) and will have some work from home flexibility approximately 1 day per week
- Training & Mentorship: You’ll have the opportunity to work with award winning experts in the captive insurance space to grow your career.
- Comprehensive Benefits: 100% Employer-paid medical insurance plus additional health benefit options (dental, vision, short- and long-term disability, etc.)
- 401(k) Program: Significant employer match (4% on the first 5% employee contributes)
- Valuable Time Off: 3 weeks PTO to start, 13 paid holidays, paid parental leave, etc. to support work-life balance
Additional Details:
- Annual base salary for positions at this level starts at $120,000 plus bonus opportunity. Actual compensation will depend on the qualifications, experience, skills and competencies relevant to this role.
- We are open to candidates willing to relocate to Knoxville, TN.
About Us:
CIC Services is a dynamic, forward-thinking leader in captive insurance, helping middle-market business owners transform risk into a strategic financial asset. As a recent three-time Captive Manager of the Year award recipient, we are proud to help shape the future of the industry through innovation, technical excellence, and a relentless commitment to compliance.
CIC Services, LLC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), national origin, ancestry, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. We also provide reasonable accommodations as required by law. Applicants must be legally eligible to work in the U.S. for any employer.
Candidates only. No direct calls or emails. No recruiters/agencies, please.
