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Researcher – Vulnerability Specialist Physicist, Earthquake / Wind Engineer

“The ideal person for this role will be someone who is passionate about science and seeing where they can use this knowledge to quantify risk and balance uncertainties to make decisions which have a real impact”.

 

We currently have a position in our Zurich office for a Researcher in the Catastrophe Research team. The Research team is comprised of highly skilled applied scientists, whose expertise is utilized throughout the company to support risk transfer decisions based on a robust scientifically based view of catastrophe risk.

 

The Position:

Within this role, you will provide expertise in modeling the vulnerability of insured risks to a range of geophysical hazards, such as earthquakes, windstorms and floods, relevant to PartnerRe’s view of risk and proprietary model development.

 

• Contribute to the research, development and maintenance of the vulnerability component of PartnerRe’s proprietary earthquake, wind and other peril catastrophe models


• Acquire expertise on third party catastrophe models and perform evaluation and validation studies


• Statistical analysis of claims data used to validate and/or calibrate geophysical hazard vulnerability functions


• Lead the development of analysis tools that combine a variety of geo-spatial data, industry and loss data, and complex model output to build a view of vulnerability of insured risks to natural catastrophes


• Develop and communicate a view of catastrophe risk for business purposes to underwriters and risk managers


• Participate in loss estimation and reporting on major catastrophe events

 

About You:

Your background and experience allows you to understand how the application of a force to an insured risk results in damage and loss. Whether it be a seismic wave causing a particular spectral response in a masonry building resulting in deformation and failure, or a wind force and pressure differential from a tornado increasing the probability of roof failure on a residential property, you enjoy taking that knowledge to estimate the impact on an insurance portfolio.

• A masters degree, in applied physics or the field of earthquake, wind or hydrological engineering. A PhD in the above mentioned fields or natural science would be a plus.


• Strong programming background with experience in languages such as R, Matlab, python, SQL


• Experience in catastrophe model development and evaluation would be a plus Interest / experience in the application of risk assessment in the Re-/ Insurance industry


• Willingness to expand knowledge of vulnerability to geophysical hazards which are potentially outside of your core expertise 



• You are either an EU or Swiss citizen, or entitled to work in Switzerland.

 

Why PartnerRe:

PartnerRe is a leading global reinsurer that was established in 1993, in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew, to bring much-needed capacity to a market in crisis, helping insurers to provide continuity to their clients. Though we have evolved continuously throughout the years, our purpose remains the same: to help insurance companies succeed.

We are a global and culturally diverse team of more than 1,000 talented professionals spread across 20 locations. Our size ensures that we are big enough to matter and be relevant to our clients and brokers, but small enough that you will quickly get to know all of the colleagues that you will be collaborating with. More importantly, PartnerRe is a company where you can make a real impact and get a true sense of the contribution you make to the company′s success and results.

Our culture is based on trust, responsibility, openness, and initiative, and we pride ourselves on delivering the best possible reinsurance solutions for our clients.  We are always looking for bright, proactive people with expert knowledge skills, and integrity to join our international teams.

 

PartnerRe Zurich:

The Zurich office was established in 1998 in the heart of the city by the lake, where we have various amenities such an in house restaurant, fitness, parking, etc. There are currently 300 employees with diverse backgrounds who collaborate across locations in multicultural teams. Our business specialists look after Property & Casualty, Specialty and Life lines of business with the support of different functions, such as Actuarial, Risk Management, Reinsurance Accounting, Claims, IT, Legal, Audit and HR.

 

We are only working with Agencies on our PSL and will not accept any unsolicited CV’s.

Apply nowPartnerRe does not interview employment candidates or make offers of employment solely on the basis of telephone or electronic interviews or other communications. Authorized PartnerRe email communications are sent only from an official @PartnerRe.com email address. In addition, PartnerRe does not request payments of money from employment candidates before or after an offer of employment is made.