simplesurance insider

The title ‘Head of Business Development Process and Technology’ sounds complicated. Can you help me understand what the profile is all about?

Right! Absolutely! This is a great question and not so easy to answer (laughing) - ahem - let’s say we are a team of people with broad skillsets performing Technical Business Development. We are generalists, you can find - sales, product, engineering, and integration skills combined - to take abstract ideas, organize the validation of new ideas, and create boxes around them to fit them in as a product.

As you already know, I started with simplesurance as an intern and became the first employee at simplesurance. Initially, I was literally coding the first version of our backend to handle customers. Over a period of time, I took a shift from engineering to product ideation and sales consultancy. I was taking responsibility for new things coming in, like expanding our platform across European countries to serve the needs of Asian smartphone OEMs or the setting up of a new type of travel insurance for a major Japanese airline.

The strength in all of this is to bring in ideas, knowledge, and capabilities from different areas and work on the frame that needs to be filled.?

How did Japan come into play?

The trigger came from a Japanese e-commerce company, with whom we were playing around in European markets already - they saw a lot of potential for our platform in their home ground. Additionally, they put us in touch with Tokio Marine and the process of ideation was put into motion. Talks started about how, which, and what models or products to start with- not really easy to find something actionable.?

But - more as a side-topic- it was voiced to us that there exists a challenge for one of their partners to introduce a new product with ideally with some more direct integration - Bingo! We sized the opportunity and took a brave step forward. In the end, we could integrate in a relatively short period of time.?

You have had a marvelous journey from being an intern to now. What did all change?

Argh!! Let’s see how we structure this - there is so much that happened during the past decade (laughing).? So, let’s start with the first three months, I was interning while programming at our backend and at the same time creating lots of process diagrams on how we would function.

At that time, I personally had no idea nor could imagine still being with simplesurance 10 years after. But it worked out pretty well I would say! From the prototype stage of buying the insurance and a system that allows us to complete the claim etc - I directed towards product management - where tasks were about adding various kinds of insurance and new countries to the platform, as well as creating the first set of integration tool. Further, I got pulled more and more into sales discussions being responsible for the solution design.

Throughout this decade, what made you stay?

It’s like still interesting for me to learn new things and to be exposed to challenges. And I think that Manuel and Robin actually have been quite key by always providing such interesting challenges or projects. The opportunities to work with people and the ample chances to do so with people from different backgrounds is another reason - for example in the close collaboration with our Japan team.

We still work in a mode, where I feel what I do, is added as a contribution to the company’s growth and can witness it coming to life - small pieces or ideas that come alive or seeing them in action.

What do you do when you’re not at simplesurance??

My hobbies when I am not at simplesurance!! I am mostly going around Potsdam - as it was a place I have stayed for years during my studies and meeting up with my friends. My friends might describe me as someone who is down to earth and quite easy to get along with. What I did recently, i.e. the past weekend was a lot of biking and chilling.? For me honestly, it could be anything that keeps me in the loop.

What kind of a manager do you envision yourself as??

At this moment, I have a small team. But, if given a chance to lead a larger team - leadership by fear and intimidation. They gotta fear me (laughing). Jokes aside - I think that intrinsic motivation is the driving force for a lot of us - at least looking at the colleagues here at simplesurance. And I think that it's important to keep this fire of motivation burning and to try to fuel it. Also,? this kind of that motivation challenges you to grow. ? This factor plays a very major role in making this or any other company thrive and that is exactly one of the key highlights when it comes to my viewpoints on being a manager.?

What helps me go along with people so easily - I’d say is empathy. Empathy for me is a key functionality to getting along with people and the skill to separate a professional profile from the person.?