Chief of Staff

COMPANY INTRO

ARU, founded in 2016, has quickly risen to become the U.S. leader in specialty property insurance underwriting, product development, loss control, and technology.

 

CEO Will Johnson is currently seeking an exceptionally well-organized collaborator to perform as his regular "right hand" and occasional surrogate, supporting and empowering Will to be more effective leading strategic growth. In practical terms, the Chief of Staff (COS) will work very closely with Will on a daily basis, inclusive of communicating on behalf of Will and accompanying Will on domestic and international business travel. The right candidate will demonstrate a successful track record of supporting dynamic and fast-moving C-suite executives in high-growth companies (note: experience in entrepreneurial settings is highly preferred). In addition, the right candidate will be an exceptionally well-polished professional who has substantial intellectual curiosity and the heart of a servant-leader.
 

WHAT WE’RE OFFERING TO YOU:

• You will work closely with company CEO Will Johnson, a nationally-recognized insurance leader. You will partner with the CEO and perform in a key collaborative, administrative, and support role, helping lead the company.
• You will receive a competitive compensation package, with base annual salary, annual bonus, and company-provided benefits.  You will have 100% employer-paid health insurance, generous PTO, and a 100% vested retirement plan with company match.
• You will have a position in a fast-growing, modern, technology-based company, where your contribution will be critical to the company’s success, and where your performance will earn your opportunities for recognition and promotion.

PRIMARY DUTIES:

• Help ARU be the best in the world at what we do, and do not ever settle for mediocrity. Actively participate in ARU’s culture of collaborative problem-solving.
• Treat every assignment as an opportunity to:  1) learn and grow as an insurance professional, and 2) prepare for increased responsibilities in the company.  
• Perform with a high level of polish and professionalism, in all spoken and written communications.  Address internal and external business challenges in a graceful and tactful manner.  Complete all duties with a high degree of urgency, thoroughness, and accuracy.
• Strategic Partnership & Leadership Support
   
  • Strategic Planning & Execution: collaborate closely with the CEO and senior leadership to develop, refine, and drive the execution of ARU's strategic plan and key business objectives. This includes identifying opportunities for growth, market expansion, and operational improvements.
  • Prioritization & Time Management: serve as a gatekeeper and strategic filter for the CEO, managing priorities, incoming requests, and commitments to ensure alignment with CEO goals. Optimize the CEO's time by proactively managing calendars, preparing briefing materials, and ensuring efficient use of time.
  • Decision Support & Analysis: conduct research, synthesize complex information, and prepare data-driven reports and presentations to support the CEO's decision-making on critical business issues, market trends, and competitive analysis.
  • Cross-Functional Collaboration: facilitate efficient communication and collaboration across all departments (e.g., Underwriting, Claims, Sales, Accounting, Operations) to ensure alignment on strategic initiatives and efficient project execution. Act as a central point of contact for internal and external stakeholders on behalf of the CEO.
• Operational Excellence & Project Management
   
  • Initiative Management: lead and manage special projects and strategic initiatives on behalf of the CEO, often requiring cross-functional involvement. This includes defining project scope, setting timelines, allocating resources, tracking progress, and quality assurance.
  • Meeting & Communication Facilitation: plan, prepare for, and facilitate internal leadership meetings, board meetings, and external engagements. This involves location planning, vendor coordination, developing agendas, preparing comprehensive materials, capturing action items, and ensuring timely follow-up.
  • Process Optimization: in collaboration with the CEO, identify and implement process improvements across the organization to enhance efficiency, streamline operations, and support ARU's rapid growth and evolving business needs.
  • Performance Tracking: develop and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to track the progress of strategic initiatives and overall business performance, providing regular updates and insights to the CEO.
• Communication & Stakeholder Management
   
  • Internal Communications: draft and disseminate internal communications on behalf of the CEO, ensuring clarity, consistency, and alignment with ARU's vision and values.
  • External Representation: represent the CEO and ARU in various capacities with internal and external stakeholders, including partners, clients, and industry associations, maintaining strong relationships and reflecting the company's professional image.
  • E-mail Management: perform as the CEO's e-mail surrogate and directly handle the CEO's e-mail inbox and all day to day e-mail correspondence.
  • Problem Resolution: proactively identify potential issues, conflicts, or roadblocks, and work collaboratively to resolve them, escalating to the CEO as necessary, with proposed solutions.
• Assist the CEO with incidental personal matters such as calendar management, correspondence, donations, and gift selections.
• Master the use of ARU standardized hardware, software programs, third party software, and processing procedures.
• Other, as assigned.

WHAT WE MINIMALLY REQUIRE - YOUR EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE, AND SKILLSET:

• Preferred: MBA, JD, or other post-graduate degree. Required: Bachelor's degree from an accredited 4 year college or university.
• 10+ years of strategic, operational, and administrative experience at a Property and Casualty insurance Program Administrator, MGA, TPA, or (re)insurer (with entrepreneurial company experience highly preferred).
• 5+ years as a Chief of Staff or equivalent, directly supporting C-suite or Board level executives.
• Demonstrable proficiency in thoroughness, accuracy, organization, resource management, record-keeping, and requirement gathering.
• Demonstrable success influencing positive outcomes, driving initiatives, and coordinating efforts across departments without having formal direct authority.
• Exceptional leadership and soft skills, with the strong ability to resolve challenging situations with a patient and calm demeanor.
• Excellent professional presentation and polish, in the spoken word and written form.
• Excellent critical thinker and problem-solver under pressure. High intellectual curiosity, with an enjoyment of learning and self-improvement.

REQUIRED LOCATION:  80% IN-PERSON / 20% REMOTE

• The Chief of Staff role requires approximately 80% in-person collaboration with Will Johnson, the company CEO. Will's office is located at UNC's Innovate Carolina Junction in downtown Chapel Hill, NC.
• As a requirement of the position, the Chief of Staff must live within a 35 minute commute of Chapel Hill, NC. For candidates who do not currently reside in this geographic area, relocation assistance may be available.
• Some remote / work from home will be acceptable in the normal course of business, to be discussed in good faith between Will and the Chief of Staff hire. Expectation: approximately 1 day per week (20%).

ABOUT ARU’S CULTURE:

We demand excellence from ourselves and those around us; we work accurately and thoroughly, but also with a great sense of urgency; we are excellent critical thinkers and creative problem solvers; we contribute cheerfully to ARU’s environment of collaborative brainstorming and respectful debate; we love to explore and experiment, and we are comfortable occasionally blazing a trail that ends up actually being a “bridge to nowhere” -- just as long as we fail fast, pivot appropriately, and become tougher and smarter as a result; we love to learn, read, and grow as human beings; we believe in science-based truths, and we know there is no such thing as an alternative fact.

MORE ABOUT ARU:

ARU was founded with a goal to use expertise, engineering, and technology to disrupt the legacy marketplace. Our core mission is to deliver a superior experience to our policyholders, while also maintaining sustainability and consistency writing historically-challenging classes of business. To do so, we build and deploy 100% proprietary insurance products, we invest heavily in property loss prevention engineering and research, and we develop home-grown software and other technology. We also focus on collaborative broker and policyholder relationships, which allow us to deliver shared victories for all stakeholders.  ARU is part of the Accelerant Insurance family:  https://accelins.com/