Risk and Claims Manager

Keller Executive Search is partnering with a family-owned leader in the waste and recycling industry to recruit a full-time, on-site Risk and Claims Manager in Cincinnati, OH. Our client is one of the largest firms of its kind, delivering essential waste and recycling services to millions of residents, businesses, and communities, and is experiencing rapid growth. This high-impact leadership role within the Loss Control department offers the opportunity to shape risk management and claims resolution for a large, expanding operation.

About the role

Waste, recycling, and fleet operations present some of the most complex and high-exposure risk profiles in the country, where commercial auto claims combine high frequency with significant severity. This role demands disciplined, data-driven claims leadership to drive bottom-line impact. You will lead a small, experienced team of claims professionals, oversee the timely and sound resolution of complex commercial auto, property-damage, and bodily-injury claims within settlement authority, and transform claims data into risk-reduction strategies that lower the company's total cost of risk.

This is a replacement hire with a built-in advantage: you will overlap with the current, long-tenured manager for hands-on knowledge transfer, ensuring a confident ramp-up. Beyond claims management, you will collaborate with safety, operations, HR, IT, and legal teams to design and measure loss-control programs, and present actionable trend analysis directly to senior leadership. As the company grows, the claims function and its leadership structure will expand, creating opportunities for advancement.

Responsibilities

• Lead the overall planning, development, direction, and administration of claims handling across the team.
• Manage a team of claims professionals to ensure files progress appropriately and resolve in a timely manner.
• Provide technical guidance and direction on complex claim-file management.
• Review complex and high-exposure claims, advise on resolution strategy, and exercise settlement authority within approved limits.
• Present recommendations on matters exceeding assigned authority to the Assistant General Counsel for Claims and Litigation.
• Analyze company and industry-wide claims trends, frequency, and severity to develop and present risk-reduction recommendations to leadership.
• Use databases and dashboards to evaluate claims-handling trends and surface opportunities for improvement.
• Support business continuity and catastrophe response planning for large-scale loss events, coordinating with TPAs and consulting experts.
• Develop and recommend loss-control policies and procedures for implementation.
• Partner with corporate and regional safety, operations, and HR teams to design, implement, and measure loss-control programs, safety policies, training, and corrective actions.
• Monitor safety databases for data-collection and workflow improvements and work with IT to resolve performance issues.
• Set consistent claims-handling and reserving standards and support the development of team members.

Requirements

• ~10 years of experience in commercial auto property-damage and bodily-injury claims, owning complex, high-exposure files.
• Minimum 5 years of experience managing and developing a claims team with accountability.
• Strong critical thinking and trend analysis skills, translating claims data into actionable risk-reduction recommendations.
• Substantial knowledge of insurance principles: loss reduction and control, claims management, adjusting, reserving, and subrogation.
• Proficiency in Power BI or equivalent BI/data-analysis tools, with the ability to analyze claims data independently.
• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Risk Management and Insurance, Finance, or a related field.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, with fluent, professional English.
• Willing to work full-time on-site in Cincinnati, OH (relocation support available).
• Legally eligible to work in the United States.

Preferred Qualifications

• Direct property-damage and auto claims experience for a carrier, TPA, or self-insured organization.
• Industry exposure in waste, recycling, transportation, fleet, logistics, or field operations.
• Catastrophe/large-loss response and TPA/consulting-expert coordination experience.
• Cross-functional partnership with safety, operations, HR, IT, and legal on loss-control programs.
• Advanced Excel, SQL, RMIS, Tableau, or Qlik claims analytics experience.
• Approachable, consistent, and communicative leadership style suited to a close-knit, in-person team.

Schedule

• Full-time, permanent, on-site at the corporate headquarters in Cincinnati, OH.
• Occasional travel to other locations, approximately once per month.
• Ability to work flexible hours, including nights, weekends, or holidays as needed during large-loss events.

Benefits

• Base salary of approximately $104,000 to $172,000, depending on experience, plus bonus potential up to 25%.
• Health, dental, and vision insurance.
• Matching 401(k) and life insurance.
• Three weeks paid vacation plus paid holidays.
• Relocation assistance available.
• Structured onboarding with knowledge transfer from the current manager.
• Career growth as the company and claims function expand.