Careers at GradGuard

Director of Campus Development

ABOUT THE JOB:
GradGuard is a dynamic company and growing fast! We operate a national business whose mission is to help colleges and universities to help protect their students from preventable financial losses. Our pioneering Tuition Protection Plan and Renters Insurance programs are designed specifically for the risks of college life.

We are looking for a smart, empathetic and enthusiastic person to join our stellar team.

As the Director of Campus Development, you’ll be part of GradGuard's team responsible for growing the schools and student housing partners who rely on us to protect the students / residents they serve. You’ll be the voice of GradGuard to schools and responsible for building an active prospect list and working to secure their agreement to implement our successful student protection programs. You will help us deliver on our promises to support students and their families through difficult moments.

You must have excellent communication skills and work ethic. Your empathy for others and a willingness to develop strong relationships within the higher education and student housing community is essential.

WHO YOU ARE:
Service Focused: You understand what good service is and aim to deliver it to all of our University and housing partners and our members/customers who trust us to protect their investment in college. You completely understand the importance of higher education and get the risks that college students and their families face during this important time of the lives.

A Trusted Professional: We expect you will become a licensed insurance professional (P&C), and become a product expert in the fields of the value of renters insurance programs to schools and the students they serve. As a licensed professional you will maintain high standards and recognize the importance of using precise language in all of our customer communications. You demonstrate respect for everyone involved – the GradGuard member, GradGuard school partners, and our insurance underwriters.

Innovative:
You are tech-centric and understand the digital world. You are comfortable with the sales tools and recognize that sales is a process, not a transaction, that requires commitment. You demonstrate the leadership skills to recommend creative solutions to meet the emerging needs of schools and student housing providers.

Educated:
You hold a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution and value life-long learning. You are curious and knowledgeable about trends in technology, financial services and education.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Contact and qualify colleges and universities to understand their needs.
• Effectively use Salesforce customer relationship management system to track contacts, discussions and campus engagements that will enable you to produce sales, activity, and pipeline reports for review with the VP of Campus Development.
• Schedule in-person or conference call meetings between yourself, VP of Campus Development, and qualified schools or housing providers.
• Learn the GradGuard school-facing implementation process and be able to speak to our technology intelligently.
• Technology education knowledge metrics to be evaluated weekly (Expectations TBD).
• Learn the unique features of GradGuard’s Renters Insurance program that includes valuable financial literacy and disclosures as well as unique protections designed specifically for the risks of college life.
• Listen to the needs of schools and shape case studies that demonstrate the value of GradGuard to schools and students.
• Become a student of the higher education industry.
• Support the team in creating valuable B2B content that engages our school partners.
• Learn to travel efficiently and effectively.
• Be an internal product expert that is capable of providing professional advice regarding the insurance needs of our customers, college students, and their families.
• Give direct feedback to management for marketing, customer trends, and suggestions. You are the front lines of our customer experience and we will value your insights on how to deliver the best possible experience.
• Use your creative mindset and actively share your enthusiasm for GradGuard's mission on LinkedIn and social media.

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution.
• Effective command of communication with strong English written and verbal skill sets.
• Positive and energetic attitude ready to work with a team.
• Attention to detail, with a problem-solving mindset.
• Willingness to become licensed insurance property and causality producer.
• Within 6 weeks of hire become licensed as a property and casualty insurance producer.
• Experience using SalesForce is or other sales automation tools.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office suite.
• This position will require travel to industry conference and between the company’s offices in Phoenix and Boston.
• Exceptional communication skills allowing you to connect with customers by email, phone and in-person.
• Self-managed, highly motivated, and confident.
• Very organized and diligent in managing your day.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Must be flexible and available for approximately up to 20% travel, and to attend meetings, presentations, and events outside the office.
• Flexible to work weekends and/or extended workdays, as required the physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. This position requires: Constant sitting or standing, some walking around, and Occasionally lifting no more than 20 lbs.

ABOUT GRADGUARD:
GradGuard shares the goal with educators of helping students successfully complete their higher education. We believe every college student deserves the opportunity to succeed and protect their future. Our student benefit and insurance programs are designed to help schools attract and retain students, while removing obstacles that would otherwise hinder a student’s ability to complete their education.

We have spent years listening to parents, students and school officials in an attempt to fulfill our mission of protecting a family’s investment in higher education. As a result, we are looking for someone who seeks to join us as we help schools protect the college students and families they serve. More than 400 colleges and universities trust GradGuard to protect their students with our tuition and renter’s insurance plans. Since 2009, GradGuard’s programs have protected more than 700,000 students.

Our network of schools and active membership community are noteworthy, as both share the common goal of promoting greater student success. GradGuard is an active member of many higher education associations and regularly contributes to the field through research, mentorship, conference presentations, association support and thought-leadership.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER:
GradGuard, a service of Next Generation Insurance Group LLC, is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.

Assistant Director of Partnerships - Student Housing Specialist

ABOUT THE JOB:
GradGuard is a dynamic company and growing fast! We operate a national business whose mission is to help colleges and universities to help protect their students from preventable financial losses. Our pioneering Tuition Protection Plan and Renters Insurance programs are designed specifically for the risks of college life. We are looking for a smart, empathetic and enthusiastic person to join our stellar team!

Reporting to the Senior Director for Campus Partnerships, the Assistant Director of Partnerships provides critical, “on-the-ground” stewardship for renters insurance partnerships across the United States. You will be part of GradGuard's team responsible for managing our relationship with American Campus Communities and a high profile collection of College and University partners who rely on us to protect the students / residents they serve.

The Assistant Director is a project manager extraordinaire, who is empowered and expected to leverage their advanced critical thinking skills, interpersonal skills and technical expertise to ensure the needs of our campus partners and property managers are being met or exceeded. You will help us deliver on our promises to support students and their families through difficult moments. Your empathy for others and a willingness to develop strong relationships within the higher education and student housing community is essential.

WHO YOU ARE:
Do the Right Thing. You understand what good service is and aim to deliver it to all of our partners and our members/customers who trust us to protect their investment in college. You completely understand the importance of higher education and get the risks that college students and their families face during this important time of the lives.

Take Ownership. We expect you will become a licensed insurance professional (P&C), and become a product expert in the fields of the value of renters insurance programs to schools and the students they serve. As a licensed professional you will maintain high standards and recognize the importance of using precise language in all of our customer communications.

Be Open to Growth. You are tech-centric and understand the digital world. You are adaptable to our digital account management tools and recognize that you’re building relationships and it is a process, not a transaction, that requires commitment.

Be Genuine and Kind. You demonstrate respect for everyone involved – the GradGuard member, GradGuard school partners, and our insurance underwriters.

Be Resilient. You demonstrate the leadership skills to recommend creative solutions to meet the emerging needs of schools and student housing providers.

Be Hardworking and Fun. You hold a bachelor's degree from an accredited institution and value life-long learning. You are curious and knowledgeable about trends in technology, financial services and education. You are willing to put in the time and are a person who truly enjoys working with people.

ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF PARTNERSHIPS RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Serves as a primary account manager for American Campus Communities, other public /private partnerships and on-campus residential life and housing partnerships
• Maintains day-to-day ownership over a broad portfolio of renters insurance partnerships nationally
• Responsible for mastering their understanding of the GradGuard implementation process, and will be able to speak to our technology integrations intelligently with partner institutions and property management companies
• Onboards new accounts from the inception/kickoff of the partnership, through the implementation phase, the initial program launch, annual program review and beyond
• Encourages partners to apply best practices for increasing resident participation and protection
• Responsible for ensuring revenue targets for their portion of the renters insurance portfolio or met or exceeded
• Engages and collaborates with individuals in various organizational levels within partner organizations
• Exemplary presentation skills
• Ability to effectively use the Microsoft Office Suite
• Exceptional communication skills allowing you to connect with partners by email, phone and inperson
• Self-managed, highly motivated, and confident
• Very organized and diligent in managing your day
• Researches current trends to assess potential impacts on the renters insurance business. We expect all employees to become a student of the Higher Education Industry

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Must be flexible and available for approximately up to 20% travel, and to attend meetings, presentations, and events outside the office
• Flexible to work weekends and/or extended workdays, as required the physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job
• This position requires: Constant sitting or standing, some walking around, and occasionally lifting no more than 20 lbs

ABOUT GRADGUARD:
GradGuard shares the goal with educators of helping students successfully complete their higher education. We believe every college student deserves the opportunity to succeed and protect their future. Our student benefit and insurance programs are designed to help schools attract and retain students, while removing obstacles that would otherwise hinder a student’s ability to complete their education.

We have spent years listening to parents, students and school officials in an attempt to fulfill our mission of protecting a family’s investment in higher education. As a result, we are looking for someone who seeks to join us as we help schools protect the college students and families they serve. More than 400 colleges and universities trust GradGuard to protect their students with our tuition and renter’s insurance plans. Since 2009, GradGuard’s programs have protected more than 700,000 students.

Our network of schools and active membership community are noteworthy, as both share the common goal of promoting greater student success. GradGuard is an active member of many higher education associations and regularly contributes to the field through research, mentorship, conference presentations, association support and thought-leadership.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER:
GradGuard, a service of Next Generation Insurance Group LLC, is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.

Full Stack Developer

ABOUT THE JOB:
The primary job responsibility for the PHP web developer position is to provide PHP programming and functionality for a variety of consumer-related websites, intranets, extranets and web-based applications. You will be challenged on a daily basis to solve problems in new and creative ways. The ideal candidates work well in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment and deal professionally with both teammates and clients in order to meet business and technical demands.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Work across teams to develop sites from scratch or enhance existing websites and software to meet business requirements
• Working closely with the business team to build requirements and define elegant technology solutions
• Develop new features for existing solutions using PHP, MySQL, JavaScript, HTML, and CSS
• Implement and support existing applications using the technologies mentioned above
• Recommend code and design optimizations to improve the scalability of the applications and maximize performance

DESIRED SKILLS & EXPERIENCE:

Requirements:

• You’re a hacker who gets things done
• Significant experience PHP, JavaScript, CSS and MySQL
• Experience with Frameworks such as Laravel, Symphony, etc.
• Familiarity with Vue.js, Tailwind.css, jQuery and other front-end frameworks
• Experience integrating 3rd party APIs
• Understanding of software architecture
• Experience with highly-scalable applications
• Able to work across the entire software development lifecycle, from concept, to testing, to launch
• Demonstrated ability to build impressive, non-trivial web applications

Nice to Haves:

• Experience with Amazon Web Services running Apache
• Development experience consuming or providing web service APIs
• Experience with MongoDB, Redis
• Experience setting up and running E2E and functional tests
• Prior start-up experience

ABOUT GRADGUARD:
GradGuard shares the goal with educators of helping students successfully complete their higher education. We believe every college student deserves the opportunity to succeed and protect their future. Our student benefit and insurance programs are designed to help schools attract and retain students, while removing obstacles that would otherwise hinder a student’s ability to complete their education.

We have spent years listening to parents, students and school officials in an attempt to fulfill our mission of protecting a family’s investment in higher education. As a result, we are looking for someone who seeks to join us as we help schools protect the college students and families they serve. More than 400 colleges and universities trust GradGuard to protect their students with our tuition and renter’s insurance plans. Since 2009, GradGuard’s programs have protected more than 700,000 students.

Our network of schools and active membership community are noteworthy, as both share the common goal of promoting greater student success. GradGuard is an active member of many higher education associations and regularly contributes to the field through research, mentorship, conference presentations, association support and thought-leadership.

HOW TO APPLY:
Interested parties should send a short introductory email and resume to cbailly@nextgenins.com.

Also, if you’ve built anything interesting outside of work/school, we want to see it. Links to web apps, repos, portfolios, etc. are greatly appreciated.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER:
GradGuard, a service of Next Generation Insurance Group LLC, is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.

Summer 2021 Member Experience Internship

ABOUT OUR TEAM:
For more than a decade, GradGuard has selected summer interns who share a passion for higher education, financial services and technology! We operate a national business trusted by nearly 400 colleges and universities to deliver insurance benefit programs to students and their families. We are focused on our mission to help families protect their investment in higher education through our pioneering Tuition Protection Plan and Renters Insurance programs designed specifically for the risks of college life.

As a Member Experience Intern, you’ll be the voice of GradGuard to our members and help us deliver on our promises to support students and their families through difficult moments. You must have excellent communication skills, empathy for others and a willingness to collaborate with our dedicated team.

WHAT YOU'LL WALK AWAY WITH:

• An understanding of insurance and personal finance in a specialty market.
• A crash-course in professional communication skills in a dynamic setting.
• Networking skills and one-on-one mentorship from GradGuard employees.
• The ability to say that you’re a published author by creating unique blog posts!

OUR IDEAL CANDIDATE WILL:

Do the Right Thing: You think of yourself as a customer and understand what good service is and aim to deliver it to GradGuard’s members/customers who trust us to protect their investment in college.

Take Ownership: You are excited to take on new projects, responsibilities, and challenges. You are trustworthy to complete your tasks with expertise.

Be Open to Growth: You are tech-centric and understand the digital world. You are comfortable with the data tools to measure the customer experience. You demonstrate the leadership skills to recommend creative solutions to meet the demands of our rapid growth.

Be Genuine and Kind: You get college students, their families, and everything that is going on at this time of their lives. You demonstrate respect for everyone involved – the GradGuard member, GradGuard school partners, and our insurance partners.

Be Resilient: As a leader in our national agency, you will be responsible for finding ways to make sure customers can easily get answers to their questions and reach us through multiple channels. Finding ways to eliminate barriers to meeting our member’s needs is your passion.

Be Hardworking and Fun: You are a Rockstar team member who is willing to put in the time and effort to provide an unparalleled customer experience and are a person who truly enjoys working with people.

YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES AS A GRADGUARD MEMBER ADVOCATE:

• Create raving fans for GradGuard through the delivery of outstanding service to our customers.
• Act as the voice of GradGuard to our members by phone, chat, and e-mail via a ticketing system.
• Attend weekly department meetings to gain exposure to different skills and career paths.
• Maintain a library of knowledge to address member inquiries.
• Write and pitch ideas for blog posts with an emphasis on SEO value and market trends.
• Give direct feedback to management for trending inquiries, content, and any issues that may arise. You are the front-line and we value your insights on how to deliver the best possible experience.
• Speak to our members – by contributing to the editorial calendar of tips, insights and GradGuard membership messages that add value to #collegelife.
• Assist with special projects requested by other department leads.
• And More!

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Effective communication with strong written and verbal skill sets.
• Positive and energetic attitude ready to work with a team.
• Attention to detail, with a problem-solving mindset.

ABOUT GRADGUARD:
GradGuard shares the goal with educators of helping students successfully complete their higher education. We believe every college student deserves the opportunity to succeed and protect their future. Our student benefit and insurance programs are designed to help schools attract and retain students, while removing obstacles that would otherwise hinder a student’s ability to complete their education.

We have spent years listening to parents, students and school officials in an attempt to fulfill our mission of protecting a family’s investment in higher education. As a result, we are looking for someone who seeks to join us as we help schools protect the college students and families they serve. More than 400 colleges and universities trust GradGuard to protect their students with our tuition and renter’s insurance plans. Since 2009, GradGuard’s programs have protected more than 700,000 students.

Our network of schools and active membership community are noteworthy, as both share the common goal of promoting greater student success. GradGuard is an active member of many higher education associations and regularly contributes to the field through research, mentorship, conference presentations, association support and thought-leadership.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER:
GradGuard, a service of Next Generation Insurance Group LLC, is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status.