Ria Vishwanath
Underwriting Assistant
London
Summary
I am a highly motivated professional with a strong interest in expanding my experience within the underwriting industry. I have developed a comprehensive understanding of risk analysis, relationship management, administrative responsibilities, and operational workflows, allowing me to contribute effectively to team objectives. I enjoy participating in group discussions related to policy risk assessment and have a keen appreciation for relationship management within the business. In my free time, I dedicate myself to personal development in these areas and have sought guidance from various mentors to enhance my skills and knowledge.
Overview
6
6
years of professional experience
Work History
Underwriting Assistant
Sompo
04.2024 - Current
- Built strong working relationships between Underwriting and Operations to support the transition to the creation of Underwriting Operations (UW Ops).
- Personally managed the end-to-end lifecycle of over 1000 client policies, dedicating more than 1000 hours of focused client work whilst maintaining my responsibilities as operations coordinator.
- Took full ownership of each policy, ensuring no client was left behind by maintaining organised workflows, timely updates, meticulous attention to every stage of the policy lifecycle.
- Processed Slips via Guidewire and SlipCenter, filled in rating models, Uploaded bordereaux to BinderCloud.
- Completed advanced training in MS Excel and Power BI, improving ability to interpret, visualize, and present underwriting and operational data which help toward the development of robust weekly reporting controls, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and attention to detail for underwriting performance tracking.
- Selected for training provided by the Dale Carnegie Training Institution for High Impact Presentations.
- Identified operational inefficiencies and investigated root cause analysis using Lean Six Sigma principles to be present to senior leadership and supported continuous process improvement initiatives. Some inefficiencies included Data Silos.
- Created an “Issues Matrix” to filter and prioritise the pain points within UW Ops for UAs (such as data silos, efficiency in accessing relevant data, communication troubles between departments, duplicate data entry). This was presented to leadership who then used my ideas to improve the efficiency and conditions for UAs to work optimally. Issues and possible solutions were categorised by themes, priority and impact.
Link to issues matrix I built:
https://daisy-parmesan-2fa.notion.site/Issues-Matrix-184089c1e82f80c19895fc19d2809123
Underwriting Assistant
Beazley Management Ltd
06.2022 - 11.2023
- Provided critical administrative and data entry support to the Cyber Underwriting Service Centre (USC), including handling and triaging of new and renewal submissions within agreed SLAs.
- Coordinated effectively with Underwriters and Brokers to ensure smooth submission allocation based on regions and risk criteria.
- Developed and improved the process of submission handling at the bottleneck streamlining communication and improving response times; developed onboarding and training materials that are now used across the team.
- Led the successful handover of submission management responsibilities as part of a strategic task reallocation initiative, delivering training and conducting quality checks.
- Prepared risk assessment reports using the KYND tool, supporting Underwriters in making informed risk decisions.
- Shadowed Cyber Assistant Underwriters to gain exposure to core underwriting functions including slip signing, risk processing, and data entry using Synergy and Unirisx.
- Built strong internal relationships within the Cyber team and wider underwriting function, contributing to a collaborative and high-performing environment.
Trainee Risk Analyst
Brooks Macdonald Group
09.2019 - 02.2020
- Supported preparations for board meetings through administrative tasks and peer review of internal reports.
- Completed Investment20/20 training, focusing on professional workplace conduct and skills.
- Assisted in compiling reports on key controls related to corporate failures.
Skills
Guidewire
Appian
SlipCenter
Whitespace
PPL
BinderCloud
Power BI
ResQ
KYND
Unirisk
Synergy
Salesforce
Advanced Excel
Lean Six Sigma
Mathematics
Dale Carnegie High Impact Presentations
Interests
Activities: Horse riding, Ballet, Pilates, Yoga, Running, Art, Reading, Software Development
References
· Emeka Cole | Cyber Underwriter – Beazley
· Ainsley Martin | Senior Associate Underwriter – Travelers
· Guy Watts | Cyber Underwriting Team Leader - Beazley
· Laura Dunkley | Head of Underwriting Support – Convex
· Chris Osei | Strategic Operations and Transformation Specialist – Gallagher
· Jana Sivananthan | Chief Risk Officer – 7IM
Contacts available upon request
WORK EXPERIENCE WHILE STUDYING
- Beazley Management Ltd | Actuarial Summer Intern Jul 2019 – Sept 2019
- Moody’s Investors Service Ltd | Sales Summer Intern Jul 2018 – Aug 2018
- J.P. Morgan Competition | Member of United Nations Team Feb 2018 – Feb 2018
- Lords Solicitors LLP | Law Summer Intern Jul 2017 – Aug 2017
- Barclays Life-Skills Ltd | Student Intern Jul 2016 – Aug 2016
Affiliations
The Brokerage, Career Ready, SEO London, Social Mobility Foundation, National Citizen Service, Student Ladder, Bright Network. Equity
Work Preference
Work Type
Full TimeLocation Preference
HybridSalary Range
$45000/yr - $100000/yrImportant To Me
Career advancementCompany CulturePersonal development programsTeam Building / Company RetreatsTimeline
Underwriting Assistant
Sompo
04.2024 - Current
Underwriting Assistant
Beazley Management Ltd
06.2022 - 11.2023
Trainee Risk Analyst
Brooks Macdonald Group
09.2019 - 02.2020