Head of Ceded Reinsurance in London

Who Are We? Taking care of our customers, our communities and each other. That's the Travelers Promise. By honoring this commitment, we have maintained our reputation as one of the best property casualty insurers in the industry for over 170 years. Join us to discover a culture that is rooted in innovation and thrives on collaboration. Imagine loving what you do and where you do it.

What Is the Opportunity? We are currently recruiting for a Head of Ceded Reinsurance to join our team based in London on a full time permanent basis. The Head of Ceded Reinsurance leads Travelers Europe's ceded reinsurance strategy and relationships, with oversight of the analysis, placement, management, and optimisation of reinsurance programmes. Working closely with European Leadership and underwriting management, the role shapes and refines risk appetite and reinsurance strategy, ensures appropriate programme structure recommendations are made, and that placement is executed effectively. Drawing on deep reinsurance expertise, strong relationship-building skills, and executive presence, the role drives day-to-day treaty placement activity, provides thought leadership on long-term placement strategy and other critical reinsurance matters, and builds robust internal and external networks. This role has direct line management responsibility.

What Will You Do?

• Strategic Leadership & Innovation: Develop and execute the overall ceded reinsurance strategy, aligned with corporate risk appetite and business objectives. Lead the design and structuring of treaty and facultative reinsurance programmes across all lines of business, driving best-in-market structures that differentiate the company and meet strategic goals. Provide thought leadership and strategic guidance to senior leadership on reinsurance market conditions and opportunities, and on how reinsurance can influence business strategy. Ensure reinsurance solutions support enterprise growth, profitability, and capital optimisation.
• External Relationship Management: Establish and maintain key broker and reinsurer relationships to secure optimal market access and competitive terms, building strategic partnerships with top-tier reinsurance markets globally. Manage broker expectations and timelines for assigned placements, coordinating materials and meeting with and presenting to reinsurance markets. Represent the company at industry events, reinsurance market meetings, and, where appropriate, on reinsurance industry panels.
• Internal Relationship Management & Stakeholder Collaboration: Partner with underwriting, actuarial, finance, risk management, and capital management teams to ensure alignment and deliver group objectives. Communicate proactively with business units, demonstrating a thorough understanding of primary coverages and underwriting strategies.
• Reinsurance Programme Management & Treaty Negotiation: Oversee the placement and renewal of treaty and facultative reinsurance agreements, ensuring optimal protection while managing cost efficiency. Independently negotiate pricing, coverage, exclusions, terms, and conditions with reinsurance markets to obtain the best terms for the company.
• Contract Wording & Documentation: Draft and propose contract wording for new and renewal treaties, researching conceptual topics and evaluating alternative clauses.
• Capital Management, Analytics & Reporting: Use capital model metrics to assess the effectiveness of the reinsurance strategy against regulatory capital requirements and internal targets, optimising capital efficiency in collaboration with capital management and actuarial teams.
• Treaty Design & Structuring: Evaluate broker and reinsurer presentations for veracity and applicability, proposing renewal structure changes and establishing the associated evaluation criteria.
• Risk Management: Analyse catastrophe exposure and develop appropriate risk-transfer solutions.
• Operational Controls & Regulatory Compliance: Design and implement team controls and develop corporate reinsurance policies to assure compliance, appropriate referral protocols, and best practices.
• Team Leadership & Development: Lead, mentor, and develop the ceded reinsurance team, coaching members on the technical expertise and other skills required to perform effectively.

What Will Our Ideal Candidate Have?

• Proven experience leading a reinsurance function, with demonstrated success in strategic leadership.
• Extensive experience of Global Property and Casualty Insurance and Reinsurance business.
• Proven knowledge and understanding of London Market processes and systems.
• Extensive experience in reinsurance, including in a senior leadership role.
• Proven track record in reinsurance programme design, placement, and negotiation, and in building and maintaining broker and reinsurer relationships.
• Strong understanding of capital modelling and its application to reinsurance strategy.

What is a Must Have?

• University degree (Business, Finance, Actuarial Science, or related field).
• ACII (Associate of the Chartered Insurance Institute) qualification.

What Is in It for You?

• Private Medical Insurance: On commencement of employment, you are eligible for single cover provided by Travelers, with the option to add cover for your dependents, at your expense through payroll deduction.
• Retirement: Travelers will make a core contribution of a percentage of salary to your Pension Plan.
• Holiday Entitlement: Start your career at Travelers with a minimum of 25 days holiday entitlement annually, plus the opportunity to purchase additional days to allow for up to a total of 35 holidays per year.
• Wellness Programme: The Travelers wellness programme is comprised of tools, discounts and resources that empower you to achieve your wellness goals and caregiving needs.
• Volunteer Encouragement: We have a deep commitment to the communities we serve and encourage our employees to get involved.

Employment Practices: Travelers is an equal opportunity employer. We value the unique abilities and talents each individual brings to our organization and recognize that we benefit in numerous ways from our differences.