Joan Bauer | Age: 44 Chief operating officer

WKFC Underwriting Managers and CorRisk Underwriting Managers, units of RSG Underwriting Managers LLC

San Francisco

Joan Bauer wasn’t supposed to end up in insurance. After graduating from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the self-described cooking lover went to culinary school in South Carolina. But when her dad got sick, she moved home to North Carolina to take care of him and got a job as a receptionist at a family friend’s brokerage.

It was there in 2003 that she met her first female insurance mentor — a property producer who took her under her wing and taught her about insurance.

“Eventually, I realized I loved cooking, but I really loved this business,” Ms. Bauer said.

She spent seven years at the brokerage, working her way up to property broker.

In 2010, she moved to California and met Dawn D’Onofrio, now the CEO of WKFC Underwriting Managers, CorRisk Solutions, AgRisk Underwriters and Ryan Specialty National Programs. They hit it off immediately, she said, and knew they had to work together.

She joined WKFC as an underwriter and later became senior vice president, director of strategic initiatives and deductible buyback lead.

In March of this year, she was promoted to chief operating officer.

Maria Amelio, head of U.S. Casualty for MS Reinsurance, who worked with Ms. Bauer at WKFC, said she has a great analytical mind, a lot of patience and the ability to bring people along with her, which will be invaluable in her current role.

“Once I knew Joan was going to be on a project, I was confident and had full faith that it was going to be pulled through from beginning to end successfully. That’s just what Joan does,” she said.

Ms. Bauer says she believes in hard work and seizing opportunities, and she says support from female mentors like Ms. D’Onofrio have also been critical. She has made it her mission to pay that forward.

“I really want to see the women I work with grow in their careers — that truly brings me joy,” she said.

Amy O’Connor