In this episode of the Insurtech Leadership Podcast, host Joshua R. Hollander sits down with Roman Stepanenko, founder and CEO of RecordLinker, to explore the often-overlooked world of insurance data management. Roman shares his journey from writing software at age 13 to co-founding RiskMatch, and how that experience shaped his vision for RecordLinker.

Discover how RecordLinker is addressing critical challenges in the insurance industry by focusing on the unsung heroes of data management - the data administrators. Roman shares how his time as CTO at RiskMatch provided a window into the complexities of insurance data aggregation and led Roman to identify a critical gap in the market - the need for specialized tools for data administrators. Roman also provides insights into the complexities of data standardization, the impact of mergers and acquisitions on data integrity, and the future of AI and machine learning in insurance.

Key Insights:

• How Roman's experience at RiskMatch revealed the widespread data standardization issues in the insurance industry
• The critical role of data administrators in insurance and why they deserve more recognition
• How RecordLinker is transforming data management, cutting conversion times from weeks to hours
• The challenges of bootstrapping an insurtech startup and building a sustainable business
• The future of AI and machine learning in insurance and why basic functionality improvements may be more crucial than advanced AI applications

In This Episode:

• [01:01] Roman's journey from software development to co-founding RiskMatch
• [01:30] The birth of RecordLinker: Lessons learned from RiskMatch
• [06:13] The hidden world of insurance data administrators and their challenges
• [10:15] RecordLinker's unique approach to sales and customer acquisition
• [18:43] Common data issues across agencies
• [23:25] The challenges of bootstrapping versus raising money for a startup
• [25:18] Roman shares what he looks for in candidates beyond technical skills
• [26:10] The impact of being a solo founder vs. a co-founder in the insurtech space
• [28:32] The future of technology in insurance and the need for core system vendors to open up their platforms
• [29:20] A shocking revelation: 800 variations of a single insurance company name in one database

Notable Quotes:

"If you remember anything from this conversation, please find your data admins and just say thank you. You know, say thank you. Take them out to coffee or dinner, buy them flowers, because your organization has those people and they are very hardworking." - [08:37] Roman Stepanenko

• “I wanted to build a business, not a startup. To me, being a startup was a way of building a business from day one. My focus was being a business that can support itself first and foremost.." - [21:07] Roman Stepanenko
• "The attitude is, to me, the most important thing. You can learn new technology, but I just don't know if the person will work out well or not, even if I feel good after the interview" - [25:19] Roman Stepanenko
• “When you are a solo founder, you have to know before you do that you are going to be the one driving the truck and figuring out how to keep track inside the truck.”- [26:10]  Roman Stepanenko

‍About Our Guest:‍

Roman Stepanenko is the founder and CEO of RecordLinker, a leading machine-learning solution for seamless data linkage and conversion in the insurance industry. With a background in software development and experience as a co-founder and CTO at RiskMatch, Roman brings a unique perspective to the challenges of data management in insurance. RecordLinker simplifies record matching across disparate systems, normalizing various data types such as coverage and job titles. By integrating with AMS360 and Applied Epic, it auto-maps up to 90% of records, significantly reducing data conversion timelines. A Vertafore Orange Partner and Guidewire Insurtech Vanguards Member, RecordLinker supports diverse industries beyond insurance.

Resources:

Roman Stepanenko

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/romanstepanenko/
• https://recordlinker.com/

Josh Hollander

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshuarhollander/
• https://www.horton-usa.com/
• https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/insurtech-leadership-show/?viewAsMember=true
• https://www.insurtechassociation.org/
• https://innsure.org/

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