Entrepreneur Jamie Sahara to Deliver 2026 Convocation Address
Entrepreneur and alumnus Jamie Sahara, one of the world’s sharpest thinkers in insurance and risk management, will deliver the 2026 convocation address for Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy.
Sahara, cofounder and CEO of Applied Underwriters, has spent decades reshaping how the insurance industry approaches risk transfer — the practice of shifting financial exposure from businesses to insurers. Through his global risk services firm, he helps businesses, governments, and individuals manage uncertainty, building his operation by identifying undervalued companies and folding them into a growing portfolio.
The celebration begins at 2:30 p.m. June 15 the Ryan Fieldhouse, 2333 Campus Drive, on Northwestern’s Evanston campus. A reception for graduates and their families will follow the ceremony.
- More info about SESP’s 2026 Convocation.
Among the youngest presidents and leaders of a major, global insurance operation, Sahara has completed 40 deals — buying, building, or merging insurance companies — including 20 since he joined Applied Underwriters in October 2019.
Making deals to strengthen a company for the long term is “endlessly interesting and challenging,” he says.
A Division I college athlete, Sahara studied social policy and captained the men’s tennis team during his Northwestern days. After graduation, he began his career at General Re and then Swiss Re, where he focused on casualty and professional liability insurance.
An entrepreneur at heart, he soon began building and buying his own insurance companies and related businesses, assembling a team of top industry talent along the way.
Among his most notable ventures were Rivington Partners, a specialty insurance underwriting firm; United Insurance Company, which focused on complex reinsurance structures; and VALE, a transactional liability business he later sold.
He notes that insurance touches every part of modern life and business — yet despite its massive size, the industry remains surprisingly scattered and disorganized. “This allows a lot of entrepreneurial opportunity for anyone willing to apply themselves,” he says.