Commercial Underwriting Manager

Shore United Bank is hiring a full-time Commercial Underwriting Manager to join our team. The Commercial Underwriting Manager serves as the senior leader of the commercial underwriting function and provides oversight and guidance on the Bank's most complex and specialized credit relationships while ensuring consistency of underwriting philosophy and execution across the underwriting team. Responsible for leading the commercial underwriting function to support sound credit decision-making, effective risk management, and profitable portfolio growth. This role ensures consistent evaluation, structuring, and approval of commercial lending opportunities while maintaining compliance with bank policies and regulatory requirements. Serving as a key partner to lending teams and senior leadership, the Commercial Underwriting Manager provides guidance on complex credit matters and promotes operational excellence throughout the underwriting process. The role also develops and oversees underwriting staff to support quality outcomes, workforce capability, and the achievement of departmental and organizational objectives.

What You'll Do:

A detailed list of job duties includes (but is not limited to):

• Ensures all activities of the credit department are conducted in accordance with Bank lending policy and procedure and outside regulatory requirements.
• Establishes and maintains underwriting standards and ensures consistency in analytical quality, risk assessment, credit structure, and documentation across all assigned underwriting staff.
• Reviews selected complex credit presentations and provides guidance on significant credit, policy, structure, and risk-rating matters.
• Monitors departmental quality metrics and implements process improvements to enhance underwriting effectiveness and consistency.
• Manages underwriting team workflow by monitoring pipeline volume, work distribution, and individual capacity to ensure timely and efficient processing of credit requests. Directly supervises assigned personnel and provides leadership in underwriting of which the following are illustrative:
  
  
  
  • Assists in the selection of new personnel as appropriate.
  • Makes provisions for the proper orientation and training of new personnel.
  • Keeps personnel informed of pertinent policies and procedures affecting the office and/or their jobs; creates an atmosphere in which upward communication from employees is encouraged.
  • Administers personnel policies and procedures as established by bank policy.
  • Oversees general productivity and adequacy/accuracy of analyses; reviews work, provides guidance as needed, and follows up to ensure deals are moving smoothly through the pipeline as assigned.
  • Assesses training needs and implements on-the-job training via feedback and guidance, assigns third-party training when appropriate, and ensures professional growth is achieved based on employee's desires and department's needs.
  • Prepares annual performance reviews and is involved in the merit increase process.
  
  
  
  

Credit Analysis & Underwriting

• Independently underwrites and evaluates the Bank's most complex commercial loan relationships, including commercial real estate, owner-occupied real estate, construction, healthcare, franchise, agricultural, investor real estate, and operating company credits.
• Conducts joint client meetings with Relationship Managers to evaluate and advise on loan structure and provide constructive feedback. These meetings may include Borrowers as well as their accountants and other advisors.
• Analyzes financial statements, tax returns, appraisals, borrowing base reports, projections, and other supporting documentation.
• Performs advanced borrower, guarantor, and global cash flow analyses.
• Evaluates multiple repayment sources and identify strengths and weaknesses within proposed credit structures.
• Assesses collateral adequacy and review appraisal methodologies, discounted cash flow analyses, and valuation assumptions.
• Recommends loan grade assignments and appropriate risk ratings consistent with Bank policy.
• Identifies emerging risks and recommend strategies to mitigate potential loss exposure.

Loan Structuring

• Partners with Relationship Managers to develop appropriately structured credit facilities.
• Recommends loan covenants, guarantor requirements, collateral enhancements, and other risk mitigation measures.
• Provides guidance regarding policy exceptions, underwriting concerns, and transaction structures.
• Participates in discussions with lenders and credit officers regarding complex borrower relationships.

Approval Package Preparation

• Prepares comprehensive credit approval memoranda for presentation to senior credit officers, executive management, and Loan Committee.
• Develops narratives that clearly articulate borrower performance, repayment capacity, collateral position, management assessment, industry conditions, and risk factors.
• Ensures all analyses are thoroughly documented and supported.
• Quickly completes loan packages without sacrificing the quality of the analysis or missing key risks.

Credit Approval Authority

• Exercises delegated credit approval authority within established Bank lending limits and policies, where applicable.
• Escalates heightened risk relationships and material policy exceptions to appropriate approval authorities.
• Demonstrates sound judgment and consistent risk assessment in exercising approval authority.

Credit Administration Support

• Participates in special projects related to credit process improvement, policy enhancement, and portfolio risk management.
• Supports regulatory examinations, internal audits, and loan review activities.
• Identifies opportunities to improve underwriting efficiency and effectiveness.
• Assists management in monitoring portfolio trends and emerging credit risks.
• Identifies early warning indicators of credit deterioration and assist RMs and RCEs in developing strategies for criticized and classified credits.
• Cooperates with, participates in, and supports the adherence to all internal policies, procedures, and practices in support of risk management and overall safety and soundness and the Bank's compliance with all regulatory requirements, e.g., Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), Equal Credit Opportunity Act, SAFE Act, etc.; ensures that the office and all personnel adhere to the same.
• Participates in required training sessions, including training for compliance with BSA/AML policies and procedures.

Location: Fredericksburg Loan Production Office (LPO) - 10 Chatham Heights Rd, Suite 104, Fredericksburg, VA 22405

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work:

• Full-time.
• Exempt.
• Days of Work: Monday-Friday.

Required Education and Experience:

• High school diploma/GED equivalent.
• Minimum of eight (8) years of commercial credit underwriting, commercial lending, credit administration, or related banking experience.
• Bachelor's degree in finance, accounting, economics, business administration, or a related field strongly preferred; equivalent combination of education, training, and relevant experience will be considered.
• Three (3) or more years of leadership, supervisory, or underwriting team lead experience
• Demonstrated expertise in:
  
  
  
  • UCA cash flow analysis
  • Global cash flow analysis
  • Comparative financial analysis
  • Industry analysis
  • Commercial real estate analysis
  • Construction lending analysis
  • Appraisal review
  • DCF valuation methodologies
  • Loan structuring and covenant development
  
  
  
  
• Advanced knowledge of applicable banking regulations and regulatory expectations.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills with the ability to distill complex information into clear and concise presentations and loan packages.

Compensation:

• The pay range for this position is $134,000 to $177,000 annually.
• Actual compensation offered may vary from the posted hiring range based on factors such as relevant experience, time in role, base salary of internal peers, prior performance, business sector, licensure requirements and/or skill level, and will be finalized at the time of offer.