Specialist, Underwriting - Life (Team Lead)

Are you passionate about being part of a team at a Fortune 100 company with nearly $70 billion in annual sales that delivers extraordinary care to help individuals and businesses prepare for and protect their future? If so, then Nationwide Financial could be the place for you! At Nationwide®, “on your side” goes beyond just words. Our customers and partners are at the center of everything we do and we’re looking for associates who are passionate about delivering extraordinary care.

Join a high-impact underwriting team where you’ll be a go-to resource for partners, help shape smarter decisions on complex cases, and play a key role in training and process improvement. In this role, you’ll balance technical underwriting responsibility with collaboration, coaching, and project work—offering plenty of visibility to leadership and opportunities to grow your influence and expertise.

Associate responsiveness & communication

• Serve as a daily resource for questions from team members, sales partners, and case managers.
• Keep leaders informed of capacity, constraints, and opportunities, and proactively meet all required deadlines.
• Actively participate in underwriting continuing education and team meetings (with video on).

Technical underwriting & case management

• Handle co-signs and referrals, including same-day reviews for underwriters and leaders.
• Support production and pass-out on high-volume or heavy PTO days, ensuring fair case distribution.
• Apply sound risk assessment, follow retention and reinsurance protocols, and consistently extend the best possible initial offer.
• Leverage underwriting tools, programs, and competitive intelligence to improve speed, quality, and placement rates.
• Maintain key tracking tools (referral points/limits, late phone schedule, PTO calendar) and report on SLA and pass-out metrics.

Training, onboarding & team leadership

• Design and lead day-to-day onboarding for new underwriters and support ongoing training/continuing education.
• Review audits to identify top development opportunities and track co-signs/referrals to provide feedback to leaders.
• Collaborate with peers on meeting topics, sales/underwriting trainings, and content updates to WFG SharePoint/Teams.

Projects & continuous improvement

• Partner with Case Management, Life Delivery, LBI, and Sales to drive workflow efficiencies and share updates in team huddles.
• Participate in due diligence meetings and road shows to build industry knowledge and producer relationships.
• Own updates to the WFG Spark page and support additional projects and improvement initiatives identified by leadership.

Fully remote work eligible.

This role does not qualify for employer-sponsored work authorization. Nationwide does not participate in the Stem OPT Extension program.

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Job Description Summary

Our underwriters work hard to provide the exceptional customer experience for which Nationwide is known. Actively engaging with our firms and financial professionals to get to know their clients and their needs builds our understanding of the market, what is needed to win business and put our best offer out first.

If you thrive working autonomously, making decisions on a variety of impactful issues and continuing to learn and adapt to grow, we want to know more about you!

As a Senior Life Underwriting Specialist, you'll analyze, select and classify applications for life insurance of a more complex nature according to established underwriting policies, practices and standards. You'll coordinate life insurance selection standards according to underwriting practices and procedures to achieve satisfactory mortality and morbidity experience and acceptable administrative results. We'll count on you to use independent judgment based on your underwriting authority and company underwriting standards. You will also likely serve as a referral point for less experienced underwriters and will often have cross distributional experience. You may also represent your distribution on underwriting related projects.

Job Description

Key Responsibilities: 

• Receives, evaluates and underwrites, on a medical or non-medical basis more complex applications for life insurance up to their maximum handling limit as approved by the Chief Underwriter. Protects the confidentiality of documentation and information acquired throughout the underwriting process. Works independently, but engages referral points, mentors and staff underwriting and medical staff for complex issues and cases.

• Maintains in-depth knowledge of manuals, underwriting materials, rules, regulations, procedures medical factors and practices impacting mortality and morbidity underwriting. Maintains proven understanding of all underwriting administrative systems to conduct business and provides outstanding service to all internal and external customers and field partners.

• Evaluates and accesses applications requiring additional evidence of insurability. Determines the need for and authorizes the ordering of, underwriting requirements to include, but not limited to, medical examinations, blood profiles, home office specimens, attending physician reports, inspection reports, client direct interviews, and other essential information.

• Develops a strong understanding of the accelerated underwriting process and can apply risk-based decision-making skills to determine the appropriate requirements needed to provide protective value as well as determining appropriate risk class.  This may include but not limited to, making fluid-less underwriting decisions as well as the utilization of alternative sources of medical information while maintaining appropriate tolerance for accepting risk.

• Consults with other underwriters and accepts referred cases when designated. Suggests innovative solutions, motivates team performance and facilitates open communication to achieve results.

• Evaluates, appraises and quantifies data derived from personal or business financial information and establishes insurable interest in keeping with the principle of indemnification. Assists with training other team members in this area

• Reaches terms on and coordinates both automatic and facultative reinsurance within the contractual terms and conditions of Nationwide's various reinsurance treaties and product and market practices.

• Meets and presents with field partners as needed. Acquires input and feedback during these visits to build a better understanding of partner needs and expectations.

• Determines eligibility for temporary insurance and authorizes disbursement of policy refunds if the Temporary Insurance Agreement (TIA)is not eligible.  Also authorizes reimbursement for medical records or other fees associated with requirements needed to confirm evidence of insurability.

• Interprets electrocardiogram tracings received as evidence for life insurance applications. Consults with Medical Director on cases where physician input is required.

• Consults with Chief Underwriter, Staff Underwriting, Underwriting Consultants, Senior Underwriters and the Medical Director as the need arises.

• Supports and assists in meeting goals and objectives for varying territories, special agent programs and contests.

• Resolves challenges with effective solutions while maintaining focus on improving time service, quality of application submissions and underwriting quality 

• Handling up to $5,000,000 for life, up to $750,000 sign off for morbidity underwriting, and ability to sign off on exceptions for Intelligent Underwriting.

May perform other responsibilities as assigned.

Reporting Relationships: Reports to Underwriting Manager or Director

Typical Skills and Experiences: 

Education: Undergraduate studies in medical related discipline, marketing, insurance, risk management, economics, finance or business management preferred.

License/Certification/Designation: LOMA Level 1 Certificate (LOMA 280, LOMA 290) preferred. Participation in, or attainment of, professional/technical studies or designation such as ALMI (ALU Level 1 Cert, ALU 201, 202, LOMA 320, 335).

Experience: Five years of life underwriting experience

Knowledge, Abilities and Skills:  Proven foundation for basic financial underwriting. Ability to evaluate the life financial supplement, understand more sophisticated beneficiary situations, e.g., buy/sell agreements, beneficiaries other than immediate family, foreign risks. In-depth knowledge of anatomy, physiology, pathology and non-medical risks. For investment life, proven knowledge of independent distribution systems.

Relationships: Very comf