Bret Newman Email and Phone Number

Led multiple teams of Underwriting Service Managers to support Middle Market, Small Commercial, and Homeowners Underwriters. Acted as lead liaison for underwriting with Accounting and Risk Control teams. Worked with outsource vendor to move less technical transaction types offshore.• Developed and implemented team and individual productivity tracking tools to ensure efficient staffing levels.• Developed tools to monitor Service Level achievements to meet customer expectations.• Created career path for USMs to become underwriters and successfully filled open underwriting positions.• Successfully navigated a shift to WFH during the pandemic and a return to office hybrid model while maintaining all service levels and employee morale.

Responsible for Retail Sales and Service of worldwide reservations for Outrigger Hotels and Resorts. Developed and implemented agent performance metrics and quality program. Identified system requirements, and developed and completed agent training for a new Workforce Management tool and Sabre Voice reservation system.

Leadership of Treasury Operations Team, Check and Document Indexing Processes, Records Storage and Destruction Processes, Print and Copy Operations, and Telephone Console Operations. Additional responsibilities include Relationship Management for both onshore and offshore vendors currently contracted to perform related services.> Successfully moved 45 Treasury and Document Indexing positions to offshore vendor, resulting in $1.8 million in annual savings.> Implemented productivity and quality measurement program for onshore TIAA Document Indexing Team.> Developed, implemented, and operated quality measurement, monitoring, and improvement program for offshore Document Indexing Operations.> Worked with peer managers and IT resources to automate indexing of lock-box check receipts.> Worked with downstream business partners to adjust associate working schedules to improve efficiency of workflow processes.> Worked with IT resources to implement online request process for all print and copy requests from business partners.> Developed digitization plan for microfiche records to preserve those records and build an efficient storage recall process.

Established, from start-up, a service center to support call center and processing operations for the Western United States, including facility planning and design, hiring, training, implementation of performance metrics and measures, and responsibility for overall leadership and strategic direction of operations activities.• Established robust plan for recruitment by building relationships with local universities and community colleges via on-campus visits, job fairs, and job board postings.• Redesigned candidate screening process, including skill testing, to ensure best associates were selected, resulting in less than 10% turnover.• Introduced revised training approach to maximize quality and productivity results by building focus around on-the-job training periods between classroom sessions.• Created a matrix reporting structure between Denver and Florida teams to assure consistent service delivery in each functional area.• Delivered targeted results under budget each year by reducing budgeted recruiting dollars, minimizing anticipated turnover rate, building a flattened leadership structure, and maintaining tight control over miscellaneous expenses.• Collaborated with Underwriting, Claim, Risk Control, and Surety areas to build career path guides to enrich associate development.• Built fully functioning teams to support Billing and Collections, Customer Support Call Center, Small Business Service Center, Standard Lines Rating, Specialty Lines Rating, and Policy Support.

Served as Operations Lead on multiple enterprise level projects with both customer-facing and internal process re-engineering impacts, utilizing Six Sigma and LEAN project methodologies.• Developed concept, wrote system requirements, and implemented automated risk evaluation tool that resulted in reduction of 25 headcount.• Led renewal re-design project that shifted less technical tasks from underwriters to clerical associates, creating increased underwriting capacity.• Designed, developed and led cross-functional implementation team to deliver training for re-designed processes countrywide.• Built and delivered Small Business productivity and staffing model that gave leadership a tool for evaluating resource needs by location, resulting in improved organizational effectiveness.• Designed and implemented technology enhancements to eliminate endorsement items that incorrectly inflated Statutory over Ninety delinquency results, driving an all-time low SON of 2.7%.

Direct leadership responsibilities over multiple processing departments and call centers within countrywide service center including development and implementation of performance metrics and measures, budget development and control, staffing, performance management, and delivery of service results.• Led countrywide consolidation of Policy Support functions into Florida service center, bringing initial staff of 180 to 85 within 24 months through process improvement and performance management.• Managed endorsement processing outsource to Chennai, India, including design and delivery of vendor training, monitoring of results, and contract management.• Designed and led product conversion team to successfully move all renewal policies to new system and product formats, resulting in zero customer impact throughout the 12-month conversion time frame.• Led facilities management team with responsibility over a 4-building campus comprised of approximately 1600 employees with direct responsibility for security upgrades following 9/11, space design and build-out, eliminating single points of failure in the electrical and data communications grid, and oversight of property management vendor.• Built robust Business Continuity Plans for all operational areas, simplified employee information updates by creating an interface with corporate HR systems, and managed SunGard contracts to provide alternate location processing sites.

Leadership responsibilities over call centers, processing operations, and Small Business underwriting operations for Southern California and Arizona territories.• Developed service center that consolidated processing support from Southern California and Arizona Branches, resulting in expense savings for multiple locations.• Led Small Business underwriting team responsible for Southern California and Arizona territories, with profit and loss responsibilities over $15mm book of business, including significant re-underwriting effort to reduce construction defect exposures.• Led facilities management team over a 400 employee complex, worked with architectural and construction contractors to redesign and reconfigure entire facility, maintained 75 vehicle fleet, and had oversight of property management vendor.