5 lessons from InsurTech as I part from Livegenic

After three incredible years at Livegenic, it’s time for me to move on. I’m sure some of you are surprised. Sadly, leaving comes short of realizing my complete vision for Livegenic, but I’m extremely proud of the many accomplishments that were achieved during my tenure.

Foremost, I’m heartened that Livegenic, the name, is respected and well recognized by the industry. I remember anguishing late at night looking for just the right name. I came up with the name Livegenic as a combination of Live and Genic, an original idea of combining real-time interaction with a natural foundation, as coming from genes. Although the original vision for Livegenic was as a customer service solution, I am pleased to have found a way to take the company into insurance space, as opposed to other directions as some original investors have desired.

The experience being a part of InsurTech has been gratifying. Insurance is exciting, complex and multidimensional. It’s full of many challenges and a healthy amount of capital. It’s also got great people. These people are willing to listen and take chances, despite the arduous and lengthy process necessary to explore and implement new solutions. The insurance industry is undergoing a transformation, influenced by newly engineered customer behaviors and modern customer service expectations. This transformation exerts tremendous pressure on the industry to explore and adopt new and better ways of doing business.

Success is never simple. During all phases of our growth many lessons were learned. Raising three investment rounds, working with clients, developing award-winning solutions, and so much more. To see Livegenic handle thousands of monthly claims, processed by 19+ insurance carriers, on three continents, and by over 5,000 users is extremely satisfying after having been on this long journey. Passion, dedication, and perseverance pays off.

Running Livegenic also taught me a great deal about myself. I found my true calling. I love building great products, collaborating closely with customers, and working with engineering teams. My joy has been in learning and uncovering customer’s pains and then seeing the result, customers solving their challenges and benefiting from the solutions we created.

As I seek my next opportunity where I can devote my passions, I must extend a very special thank you to all of the Livegenic customers, particularly the customers I was fortunate to work with directly. By being dedicated partners, you helped refine and create the solutions that you now enjoy. You provided your valuable insights, communicating and sharing your challenges you wished could be solved. It spoke volume and everyone benefited from the results.

Many thanks are also due to the talented and committed Livegenic team, the many investors who have helped catapult the company to success, and to the steadfast board of directors, from which I now depart.

What sage advice do I have for those who set their sights on the InsurTech field? Here are five lessons learned:

1.      Patience, my friend, it will take more time.

”Moving at the speed of insurance” is very different from a tech startup speed. A tech startup can implement changes in software and business models as quickly as overnight. But in InsureTech, startups need to understand that large enterprises must take a measured and thorough approach to implementation. This obviously takes time.

Why so risk averse? Simple, a lot is on the line and there is no room for errors. Errors in implementation, premature rollout, and mistakes in integration could mean you not only exacerbate the problems you set out to solve, but create whole new ones. And, human nature has taught us that nobody likes to fall on their face either.

Obviously, when things take time, this need to be accounted in financial models. Which brings me to the next subject – investment.

2.      Raise enough capital to sustain the business while growing the team.

Raising capital is an important achievement. However, InsurTech timelines are a lot longer than in other industries. You must raise capital to grow the team, but also raise enough money to last until your company can survive sustainably on its revenue. Money does not begin flowing in right after the agreements are signed or solutions are deployed. Sometimes it can come months later due to the rollout and implementation schedule and that delay must be accounted for in the financial plan. This fact makes selecting patient, knowledgeable investors conversant with Insurance industry dynamics, and who are committed to your long-term vision.

As part of building out the team and capital planning, understand that execution is key. Cast a wide net for prospective customers and ensure you are capable of onboarding multiple customers simultaneously. This practice will avoid being stuck if one customer is stalled or delaying.

This brings us to the next lesson learned – customers.

3.      Be at the right place, at the right time.

An insightful TED talk identified successful startups are those with the right product, at the right time, and with lots and lots of luck. We’ve been lucky multiple times. But it wasn’t random. As my table tennis coach likes to quote, “Luck favors the prepared.” Luck, preparation, right place, right time—this all comes from getting out there, tirelessly pitching, probing and being vocal about the challenges the business can solve for customers.

If you build it, they will come thinking will lead to failure. As you actively continue reaching out to customers, they will soon recognize and relate to the challenges and solutions. Once the customer connects with your story and contacts you, be sure to simply listen. This takes us to the next bit of advice – product.

4.      With products, listen to the customers, but trust your gut.

Feedback from customers and prospects is critical. Yet, it’s important to transpose the feedback into your product vision. Extract the desired purpose, ask lots of “why”, and keep taking down the notes. Then, map out a way that the technology “how” can address the “why” with the vision you have. This will yield the best strategic product direction.

It’s important to trust your gut on the product direction, but make sure to be plugged in to the customer feedback to recognize if you are moving in the wrong direction as well. Sometimes, a solution could be too early or assumption can be wrong, while the customer expresses a much bigger need for something else. If contemplating a significant direction change, remember, the ultimate validation is when customer purchases -- signs off officially on the value and need for your solution. Without this agreement, you can be chasing the feedback loop indefinitely.

The best and the quickest results are created when the customer, with their huge vault of subject matter expertise, can work closely with the product team. This not only helps build the right solution quickly and efficiently, but also helps establish a strong customer relationship.

This brings me to the next lesson learned – customer relationships

5.      Insurance is a tightly knit family, so relationships are key.

InsurTech is an industry that runs on relationships. Certainly, a three trillion-dollar industry sounds gigantic. Yet, that figure is deceptive when you consider the number of executives and senior management staff that work at insurance companies. The community is small so if you hang around enough, you start to recognize names and faces.

Breaking into this family can be problematic at first, when nobody knows you or your company. However, you will soon benefit from your efforts and build a reputation within this small network of professionals. These professional also move positions and from company to company, so making solid connections with the people involved makes all of the difference in your success.

Focus on building relationships that last a lifetime. My approach has been to always be there for my clients, no matter what -- to listen, to get their feedback, to suggest solutions, and bounce ideas, and most importantly keep my promises. I love being a valued resource, a friend and confidant. This type of relationship will always succeed, and earned great reputations will always last because people like to do business with people they like.

It’s been an honor for me to serve as the Livegenic CEO and to drive the company forward over the past few years. As I unfold the next chapter of my life, I wish the company every success.

Alex