AVP, Corporate Underwriting Risk & Governance

You are as unique as your background, experience and point of view. Here, you’ll be encouraged, empowered and challenged to be your best self. You'll work with dynamic colleagues - experts in their fields - who are eager to share their knowledge with you. Your leaders will inspire and help you reach your potential and soar to new heights. Every day, you'll have new and exciting opportunities to make life brighter for our Clients - who are at the heart of everything we do.

At Sun Life, we're driven by our Purpose: helping our Clients achieve lifetime financial security and live healthier lives. Our values shape how we work: caring, authentic, bold, inspiring, and impactful.

When you join Sun Life, you'll work with passionate colleagues and empowering leaders who support your growth and celebrate your contributions, so you can make a meaningful difference in our Clients' lives.

Discover how you can make a difference in the lives of individuals, families and communities around the world.

Job Description:

About the Role

The Corporate AVP, Underwriting Risk & Governance is accountable for maintaining the organization's underwriting philosophy, risk appetite, technical standards, and governance framework across all life and health insurance businesses. The role serves as a corporate risk subject matter expert on mortality, morbidity, product, underwriting, and fraud risks, providing underwriting risk management guidance to business units globally, with particular emphasis on emerging risks, high-net-worth markets, and the impact of underwriting and product design decisions on long-term business performance.

The incumbent will lead the evaluation and approval of underwriting and product-related risk initiatives, assess the mortality and morbidity implications of underwriting requirement changes, product innovations, and distribution strategies, and ensure alignment with corporate risk management objectives, with primary focus on our Asia business units and Private Wealth business. The role provides technical leadership to underwriters and input to actuarial, product development, and risk management teams on underwriting-specific risk while championing sound underwriting practices, risk governance, and sustainable growth.

Operating in a highly collaborative, consultative, and project-oriented environment, the Corporate AVP, Underwriting Risk & Governance will lead complex initiatives across the Asia business units and jurisdictions, influence business unit underwriting leadership and risk management decision-making, and represent the organization on underwriting and insurance industry matters under the direction of the Corporate Chief Underwriter.

Key Responsibilities

Enterprise Underwriting Governance

Support and champion corporate underwriting philosophy, risk appetite, and underwriting governance standards.

Provide enterprise oversight of underwriting practices across life, health, critical illness, disability, and medical reimbursement products.

Evaluate proposed changes to underwriting requirements, underwriting evidence, accelerated underwriting programs, automation initiatives, and digital underwriting solutions.

Assess and communicate the mortality and morbidity implications associated with underwriting and product design changes.

Mortality and Morbidity Risk Management

Evaluate mortality and morbidity risks associated with existing and proposed products, underwriting methodologies, and distribution strategies.

Assess the impact of product features, underwriting evidence requirements, and benefit structures on expected mortality and morbidity outcomes.

Partner with actuarial, product, and risk management teams to monitor emerging experience trends and recommend mitigation strategies.

Provide technical leadership on mortality and morbidity risk management across multiple markets.

Product and Anti-Selection Risk Assessment

Assess product design features for anti-selection, fraud, claims, and sustainability risks.

Identify underwriting controls, medical requirements, and risk management measures necessary to mitigate adverse selection and fraud exposure.

Provide risk guidance during new product development and product enhancement activities.

Evaluate the potential impact of product design changes on underwriting outcomes and claims experience.

Fraud Risk Oversight

Identify emerging fraud risks and vulnerabilities within underwriting and product frameworks.

Recommend underwriting, medical, and operational controls designed to mitigate fraud exposure.

Partner with claims, investigations, and risk management teams to identify trends and strengthen preventive measures.

High - Net - Worth and Complex Risk Expertise

Provide technical leadership on high-net-worth and Private Wealth underwriting practices, particularly within Asian markets.

Evaluate large face amount and complex financial underwriting cases.

Monitor market developments and emerging risk trends impacting high-net-worth and Private Wealth business.

Support business units in developing prudent underwriting strategies for complex and high-exposure risks.

Retention and Reinsurance Management

Provide leadership and guidance regarding retention management practices.

Evaluate retention limits, concentration risk, and reinsurance effectiveness.

Partner with reinsurance stakeholders as permitted to ensure alignment between underwriting strategies and risk transfer objectives.

Strategic Leadership

Lead complex cross-functional underwriting initiatives involving multiple business units, jurisdictions, and product lines.

Influence senior leaders and business partners on underwriting, mortality, morbidity, and product risk matters.

Provide strategic recommendations balancing growth opportunities with responsible risk management.

Serve as a trusted advisor to the Corporate Chief Underwriter on emerging underwriting and insurance risks.

Technical Thought Leadership

Research emerging medical, underwriting, product, and industry developments.

Participate in the development and maintenance of underwriting manuals, medical guidelines, and risk assessment standards.

Translate emerging medical evidence and industry research into practical underwriting guidance.

Represent the organization externally through industry associations, conferences, forums, and professional organizations.

What you'll need to succeed

Minimum 15 years of progressive life and health underwriting experience.

Minimum 5 years holding an individual underwriting approval authority of at least $30 million (preferred).

Significant experience assessing complex mortality and morbidity risks.

Experience underwriting high-net-worth and large face amount business, including exposure to Asian insurance markets.

Demonstrated experience evaluating underwriting implications of life, health, disability, critical illness, hospital indemnity, and medical reimbursement products.

Proven experience leading complex underwriting, governance, or risk initiatives across multiple business units or jurisdictions.

Experience working with reinsurance and retention management frameworks.

Experience developing underwriting philosophy, guidelines, manuals, and risk governance standards.

Proven ability to influence business risk management and underwriting leaders.

Strong strategic thinking and risk assessment capabilities.

Exceptional communication, presentation, and stakeholder management skills.

Ability to work independently with minimal direction while managing multiple concurrent priorities.

Strong collaboration skills with the ability to drive alignment across diverse stakeholders.

Comfortable operating in a dynamic environment focused on governance, consultation, project leadership, innovation, and enterprise risk oversight rather than production underwriting activities.

Preferred Designations

FALU

FLMI

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