At Equitable, we believe work should be a place where you feel supported, inspired, and empowered to grow. In our caring and collaborative environment, your curiosity is encouraged, your passion is recognized, and your contributions truly matter. Together, we create meaningful impact, for our clients, our communities, and each other.
The Opportunity: At Equitable, we believe great things happen when we work together. We’re a Canadian mutual company driven by purpose - putting people first and helping Canadians protect today and prepare for tomorrow. If you’re passionate about making a difference and growing your career in an inclusive and collaborative environment, we’d love to hear from you. Our culture is built on care, passion and curiosity. We put people above all else, strive to be our best and welcome new ideas to deliver positive outcomes.
Join our Large Case Underwriting team and play a critical role in assessing and managing complex, high-value Life and Critical Illness insurance cases for the high-net-worth market. In this position, you will balance sound risk assessment with marketplace competitiveness, leveraging your expertise in medical and financial underwriting to deliver exceptional client outcomes. Working closely with MGAs, advisors, reinsurers, and internal stakeholders, you will negotiate solutions, provide technical leadership, and help shape underwriting practices while delivering a concierge-level service experience.
Work Arrangements: You will work from your home office 100% of the time. You may be required to be in-person at our office in Waterloo, ON or another assigned location within the Waterloo Region, on an as needed basis. Sales related roles may be required to travel based on the assignment.
What you’ll do:
- Underwrite complex large case Life and Critical Illness insurance applications for the high-net-worth market, evaluating medical, financial, legal, and compliance considerations to determine appropriate risk classifications.
- Assess mortality and morbidity risks using advanced medical and financial underwriting expertise while maintaining a balance between profitability and market competitiveness.
- Negotiate with reinsurers, MGAs, advisors, and other partners to develop optimal solutions and offers for clients, Equitable, and reinsurance partners.
- Communicate underwriting decisions directly to advisors, applicants, and administrators, including managing challenging discussions regarding declined or substandard cases.
- Collaborate with lawyers, accountants, medical experts, advisors, vendors, and reinsurers to ensure smooth case management, superior customer service, and timely turnaround within service standards.
- Support the development and enhancement of Large Case underwriting procedures, practices, and continuous improvement initiatives across the department.
- Deliver educational presentations and training sessions to MGAs, advisors, wholesalers, and underwriters, while mentoring senior underwriters on large case financial concepts.
- Provide technical leadership support through underwriting audits, co-signing activities, fraud and policy rescission reviews, Chief Underwriter backup responsibilities, team knowledge sharing, and fostering a positive departmental environment.
What you’ll bring:
- University degree, along with professional designations such as FALU and FLMI.
- 10+ years of underwriting experience in Life and Critical Illness insurance risk assessment, including experience within the large case market.
- Superior technical expertise in medical and financial underwriting, with strong knowledge of mortality and morbidity risk assessment.
- Deep understanding of jumbo limits, market capacity, aviation risks, travel risks, reinsurance exceptions, and the complexities of the individual life insurance marketplace, products, sales concepts, and competition.
- Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to influence, negotiate, and effectively manage difficult discussions and adverse underwriting decisions.
- Proven ability to build credibility and collaborate with advisors, MGAs, reinsurers, lawyers, accountants, medical professionals, and other stakeholders.
- Strong sense of urgency with the ability to perform effectively under pressure while managing complex, high-impact cases with significant financial and reputational implications.
- French language proficiency is considered an asset, while ECG (Electrocardiogram) test interpretation experience is also an asset.
At Equitable, we’re committed to fair pay and an inclusive, accessible hiring experience. If you need accommodations or alternative formats at any stage, just reach out to us at
[email protected], we’re happy to help.
Your base pay will be based on your skills, qualifications, experience, and education. In addition to your salary, this role is eligible for a discretionary annual incentive award tied to business performance, plus a wide range of competitive benefits.
If you’re selected to move forward, our Talent Acquisition team will walk you through all the details of our total rewards program, so you know exactly what’s included.
Reports To: AVP, Advanced Markets Underwriting
Department: Individual Underwriting
Term: Permanent Full-Time
Location: Alberta
This position is open and we are excited to find the right person to join our team.
As part of the recruitment process, you will need to go through background screening, as per our company policy.
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