3 strategies insurers can use to attract the next generation of underwriters

Attracting and retaining underwriting talent isn’t just a pipeline problem—it’s a positioning problem: how the role is defined, experienced, and valued within the organization. In an industry where many roles still rely on static PDFs, redundant workflows, and disconnected systems, younger underwriters are looking elsewhere. In fact, only about 4% of young people consider a career in insurance appealing—a clear signal that the industry must rethink how it presents underwriting as a modern, meaningful profession.

But underwriting can offer a deeply rewarding, high-impact career—if it evolves. As the role transforms with the support of intelligent systems and real-time insight, there’s a growing opportunity for insurers to position underwriting as a career of the future.

Here are three ways to position your organization as the destination for top underwriting talent.

1. Make underwriting feel like the modern, strategic work it is

Younger underwriters want to apply their skills in meaningful ways. That’s difficult in environments dominated by manual data entry, fragmented workflows, and legacy tools that prioritize process over performance.

What they’re looking for:

• Integrated platforms that eliminate redundant steps and reduce noise
• Real-time visibility into how underwriting decisions affect portfolio outcomes
• Tools that elevate strategic thinking beyond task execution

By demonstrating how technology enables underwriters to make informed, high-impact decisions, insurers can shift the narrative. The emphasis isn’t on speed or volume—it’s on writing the right business, shaping portfolios, and driving long-term performance.

2. Show your investment in underwriters’ growth

Career development is more than mentorship. While coaching remains valuable, modern underwriters expect systems that scale knowledge, provide contextual guidance, and reinforce good judgment.

To demonstrate your commitment:

• Leverage AI to surface historical win rates, risk scoring models, and decision rationale in real time
• Implement role-specific workflows that inform, not prescribe, underwriter actions
• Create continuous feedback loops through dynamic performance tracking and outcome attribution

The goal is to deliver the strategic context and operational clarity that accelerates learning and improves decision quality.

3. Align daily work with purpose and impact

Millennial and Gen Z professionals seek roles with meaning. In underwriting, that purpose lies in protecting businesses, communities, and the economy—and in being trusted to make decisions that materially impact the organization.

To meet those expectations, insurers can:

• Equip underwriters with real-time portfolio visibility and AI-powered insights—including risk appetite, performance benchmarks, historical win rates, and decision rationale—to support smarter, faster decision-making
• Embed intelligent guardrails to ensure consistency and alignment with strategic objectives
• Connect underwriting to broader business impact by highlighting how risk selection influences reinsurance outcomes, growth potential, and long-term resilience

When underwriters see the connection between their decisions and real-world impact, the role becomes mission-driven rather than transactional.

What pushes younger underwriters away

Insurers that struggle to recruit underwriting talent often rely on outdated assumptions. Common pitfalls include:

• Disjointed workflows and constant context switching
• Lack of visibility into how underwriting links to portfolio performance
• Static guidelines with no real-time strategic feedback
• Tools that feel disconnected from underwriting objectives

When technology hinders rather than supports the underwriting process, even strong candidates will look elsewhere.

Redefining the future of underwriting

Younger underwriters aren’t deterred by complexity, but they are discouraged by inefficiency. By redesigning underwriting as a strategic, tech-enabled role, insurers can attract a generation of professionals eager to make a difference.

The next chapter of underwriting is about empowering human expertise with intelligent systems and actionable feedback.