Business Development Manager - Commercial Insurance (Distribution Manager)

Location: Chicago, IL, US

CHICAGO, IL  --  HYBRID

Ready to own broker relationships, shape go-to-market strategy, and drive meaningful growth in the commercial insurance space? If you're a commercially driven leader who thrives on building partnerships and making a visible market impact — this is your moment.

About the Role

At Swiss Re Corporate Solutions, we're looking for a dynamic and results-oriented Distribution Manager to join our team in Chicago. In this high-impact, market-facing role, you'll be the driving force behind broker relationship growth, regional strategy, and multi-line revenue expansion. You'll work at the intersection of business development, strategy, and deal execution — collaborating across underwriting, claims, and product teams to deliver differentiated solutions that win in the market. This is a role for someone who loves the thrill of building relationships, influencing complex deals, and leaving a real mark on the business.

Key Responsibilities:

Market & Broker Growth

• Own and grow a portfolio of key broker relationships across your region, building trust and long-term partnerships
• Build and convert a high-quality deal pipeline with a sharp focus on multi-line solutions
• Influence placement strategy on large, complex deals to drive favorable outcomes

Strategy & Market Impact

• Shape and execute your regional go-to-market strategy aligned with Swiss Re Corporate Solutions' growth ambitions
• Identify whitespace opportunities and drive targeted growth campaigns to unlock new revenue streams
• Position Swiss Re as the preferred partner across managed brokers through consistent market engagement

Internal Leadership & Deal Enablement

• Connect brokers with underwriting, claims, and product teams to unlock deal success and deliver tailored solutions
• Act as a quarterback across functions, driving execution and alignment on priority opportunities
• Leverage data and insights to inform strategy, track performance, and sharpen decision-making

About the Team

The Distribution Management team is at the heart of Swiss Re Corporate Solutions' commercial success — representing the full suite of Corporate Solutions products and capabilities, and leading business development across a portfolio of strategic broker relationships.

You'll be part of a collaborative, high-performing team that works closely with a diverse group of internal stakeholders — including Underwriting, Alternative Risk Transfer, Claims, Risk Engineering, and Operations — to deliver differentiated solutions and drive commercial outcomes. The team is passionate about strengthening broker partnerships, enhancing market relevance, and accelerating growth across priority segments. Here, your ideas matter, your relationships count, and your impact is visible.

About You

You are a commercially minded, relationship-driven professional with a proven track record in the commercial insurance space. You bring strategic thinking, a strong broker network, and the ability to translate market insights into tangible growth. You're energized by complex challenges, thrive in collaborative environments, and know how to influence outcomes across a matrixed organization.

We are looking for candidates who meet these requirements:

• 10+ years of commercial insurance experience, with a strong background in business development, sales, or broker distribution
• Deep knowledge of commercial insurance products, including property, executive lines, international programs, and alternative risk solutions
• Proven ability to originate opportunities and influence deal outcomes on large, complex transactions within the commercial insurance market
• Bachelor's degree required, preferably in Business, Finance, Risk Management, or a related field

These are strong assets we value:

• An established and active broker network with a demonstrated ability to leverage relationships to originate and convert high-value opportunities — this is a significant differentiator for success in this role
• A strategic mindset with a strong commercial focus, including experience identifying whitespace, driving market expansion, and executing revenue growth initiatives
• Exceptional stakeholder management and influencing skills, with the confidence to navigate complex internal and external relationships at senior levels
• A data-driven approach to decision-making, with the ability to translate market insights and analytics into clear, actionable strategy
• Experience in a matrixed, global organization, with a track record of collaborating effectively across functions such as underwriting, claims, and risk engineering
• Strong communication and presentation skills, with the ability to engage, influence, and build credibility with senior-level audiences and key broker partners

Our company has a hybrid work model where the expectation is that you will be in the office at least three days per week.

The estimated base salary range for this position in Chicago, Illinois is $124,000 to $206,000. The specific salary offered for this, or any given role will take into account a number of factors including but not limited to job location, scope of role, qualifications, complexity/specialization/scarcity of talent, experience, education, and employer budget. At Swiss Re, we take a "total compensation approach" when making compensation decisions. This means that we consider all components of compensation in their totality (such as base pay, short-and long-term incentives, and benefits offered), in setting individual compensation.