Who are we?
Howden is a collective – a group of talented and passionate people all around the world. Together, we have pushed the boundaries of insurance. We are united by a shared passion and no-limits mind-set, and our strength lies in our ability to collaborate as a powerful international team comprised of 18,000 employees spanning over 100 countries.
People join Howden for many different reasons, but they stay for the same one: our culture. It’s what sets us apart, and the reason our employees have been turning down disappointed head-hunters for years. Whatever your priorities – work/life balance, career progression, sustainability, volunteering – you’ll find like-minded people driving change at Howden.
Working at Howden Re
At Howden Re, we’re on a mission to do things differently. Our no silo approach, elite team, and clear focus on innovation and relentless execution means our clients are at the heart of all we do.
As a big 4 global reinsurance broker, we deliberately avoid the one-size-fits-all approach, committing to creating bespoke solutions that address the unique challenges of a modern and dynamic marketplace. Our team is empowered to drive progress, creating opportunities for career and personal development, unlocking new value for clients, fostering long-term partnerships, and using the collective power of Howden to change how the world sees risk and insurance.
When you join Howden Re, you become part of a vibrant and entrepreneurial workplace culture that prioritises collaboration, ownership, and shared success. Here, your contributions will directly impact our mission to be the global partner of choice in reinsurance and strategic advisory.
Be a part of Howden Re's exciting journey. Together, we are shaping the future of reinsurance.
The Role
Within Howden Re, the Continental European Facultative Reinsurance team specialises in delivering bespoke facultative reinsurance solutions to cedents and captive clients, offering a comprehensive technical knowledge, best in class market intelligence and tailor made capacity solutions within the property, energy and construction lines of business.
Our offerings range from primary, QS, XOL and structured reinsurance solutions, with a focus on risk transfer for large industrial risks as well as NatCat exposed risks.
We are seeking an experienced Managing Director to join our growing DACH & BeNeLuxFrance team, offering you a key role in establishment and expansion of our activities in Germany, Austria and Switzerland with the objective to produce meaningful new income streams.
You will play an instrumental role driving business growth across Europe and in defining the team’s overall strategy and success.
The location will be Hamburg or Cologne or Munich.
Reporting to the Regional Head with International Facultative Reinsurance, your role will involve:
What will you be doing?
* Acting as a trusted Managing Director and Senior Broker & Producer for our new and existing clients navigate.
* Providing consulting services directly to cedents as well as captive clients incl. professional facultative reinsurance solutions.
* Responsible and accountable for the overall management and administration of new and existing reinsurance book of business.
* Prepare regular updates and reports to Regional Head of DACH & BeNeLuxFrance on growth progress, implementing issues, risks/problems and proposals for necessary remedial actions
* Forge and maintain strong relationships with ceding companies and facultative reinsurance markets as well as overall market decision makers / influencers.
* Educate internal and external stakeholders within the facultative reinsurance market
* Develop and implement a strategic & marketing plan to achieve sales targets and expand the cedent/client base
* Building and maintaining strong, long-term relationships with Howden colleagues, potential cedents and captive clients and external service providers.
* Management of internal team and collaborating with wider Howden working groups
* Represent Howden Re at industry events
* European wide travel to client sites as required
Who are we looking for someone who has:
* Extensive facultative reinsurance experience, proven production track record and established market relationships as well as wide bouquet of
* Experience of expanding a network of clients and ability to generate business
* International work experience
* Must possess excellent written and verbal communication skills in two languages, one of which must be German
* Customer focused approach
* Ability to work independently and to tight deadlines
* Team player
What do we offer in return?
A career that you define.
Our business succeeds by allowing our people to make a mark in the areas they care about most: personal development, volunteering, and fundraising for charity, or creating new insurance products that address society’s greatest challenges.
And we know that separate home and work lives don't really exist. If you're happy and healthy at home, you're more likely to be happy and fulfilled at work – and vice versa. That's why we do our best to support our people in every aspect of their lives.
Diversity and Inclusion
At Howden we value diversity - there is no one Howden ‘personality type’. Instead, we’re looking for individuals who share the same values as us:
* Our successes have all come from someone brave enough to try something new
* We support each other, in the small everyday moments and the bigger challenges
* We are determined to make a positive difference, at work and beyond.
We consider our people our chief competitive advantage and as such we treat colleagues, candidates, clients, and business partners with equality, fairness, and respect – regardless of age, disability, race, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, or family circumstances.
Reasonable adjustments
We're committed to providing reasonable accommodations at Howden to ensure that our positions align well with your needs. Besides the usual adjustments such as software, IT, and office setups, we can also accommodate other changes such as flexible hours* or hybrid working*.
If you're excited by this role but have some doubts about whether it’s the right fit for you, send us your application – if your profile fits the role’s criteria, we will be in touch to assist in helping to get you set up with any reasonable adjustments you may require.
*Not all positions can accommodate changes to working hours or locations. Reach out to your Recruitment Partner if you want to know more.
Our sustainability promise
We’re on a life-long journey to become an ever-more sustainable group. It's a commitment to taking care of our people and the world we live in, to doing good business, and to making a positive impact wherever we can. Our governance processes, company policies, and review systems are all geared towards our goal of making a positive impact in the world. You can read more about our sustainability work here .