Fusing Cybersecurity + Insurance
As a founding employee — I have been critical in creating Elpha Secure from day one. Starting with the design and development of the initial brand and product, to setting efficient processes, hiring a strong team, shaping roadmaps, and managing executives and founders.
When
2020 - Present
What
B2B Cybersecurity Insurtech
Why
Mitigate Insurance Claims
Role
Director & Designer
Designed and led creation of all our core products, including web based real-time endpoint protection and desktop software.
Key Takeaways
- Designed user-friendly cybersecurity solutions such as real-time endpoint protection and automated cloud backups.
- Recruited and developed a group of designers and frontend engineers while balancing my individual contributor responsibilities.
- Helped create and refine efficient processes to guide and grow the team.
- Researched and planned multiple intertwined products through collaboration, userflows, interviews, surveys and further methods.
Challenge
Simplifying cybersecurity for everyday employees
You don't have to look further than the 6 o'clock news to realize that the frequency and impact of cyber breaches is increasing. Small businesses haven't had access to the same cybersecurity tactics as large corporations, yet they face the same threats with less resources.
Our objective is to even the playing field by providing comprehensive cybersecurity software with every commercial cyber insurance policy. AI-assisted underwriting helps measure our customers risk and supply instant insurance policies through our streamlined insurance quoting dashboard. Our cybersecurity technology approach includes offsite data backups, multi-factor authentication remote access, ransomware remediation, and real-time threat monitoring EDR platform.
Goals
- Minimize users' digital security risk with a approachable EDR platform — reducing insurance claims paid out by Elpha Secure.
- Easy-to-use access and permissions management, with administrators retaining complete authority
- Enable everyday employees to mitigate their own digital risk through media-rich training and automation
- Automate cloud backups for employees and facilitate quick deployment in the event of a ransomware attack
- Transform highly technical cybersecurity insights into a simple, accessible dashboard for employees
Research
Securing our customers by uncovering their weaknesses
Knowing that 88% of all cyber breaches occur due to employees, it was obvious to start our research by studying the actions contributing to these cybersecurity incidents and then planning a roadmap.
Goals
- Conduct an audit of the current proof of concept and collaborate with business and engineering stakeholders to map out potential threats
- Undertake qualitative research sessions with insurance brokers and employees to establish a foundation for guiding product decisions
- Facilitate product workshops with our founders and engineering team, to shape our company and product thinking
- Assess external data and research to find and prioritize opportunities
- Evaluate leading enterprise cybersecurity software, including product feedback, interface trends, and documenting user journeys
- Collaborate with the Head of Customer Success to develop quantitative surveys aimed at gaining a more in-depth understanding of market needs
Running workshops to plan and ideate features based on a balance of ROI and impact was a common task in my director role.
Early persona development work developed alongside stakeholders and content.
Planning
Charting a course through cross-disciplinary guidance
By convincing my orthodox cyber teammates to adopt a modern approach, breaking away from the typical dull cybersecurity industry, we were able to make cyber accessible through clean design and thorough planning. Comprehensive userflows, rapid wireframes, and a little bit of trust helped us reach a consensus to start production.
I aligned the team around comprehensive user journeys for our products, including AI-driven insurance policy renewal product.
Before we had a more mature design system, wireframing was useful in setting patterns.
User story mapping was incredibly helpful in setting expectations with the team.
Results
Democratizing cybersecurity through perspicuous copy and interface design
From the inception of Elpha, I played a direct role in shaping the MVP of every product we created. Despite limited time and resources, we built a comprehensive collection of cybersecurity tools, from an EDR to offsite data backups. We accomplished this through tight collaboration and scrupulous planning.
Adopting a systems-based approach was vital to quickly navigating the high-stakes startup world. I directed the frontend team through development with high-fidelity concepts, interactive prototypes, and in a pinch, straightforward communication. My strong belief is that every challenge requires a thoughtful approach, certain tasks can be accomplished with simple collaboration, thus saving precious time that would otherwise be wasted in a rigid process.
This leadership approach enabled us to move swiftly with purpose, resulting in accolades from our partners for our velocity and caliber of work. My design abilities and leadership played a key part in acquiring a $20 million Series-A investment from the leading figures in cyber and insurance, including State Farm®.
(No, I never met Jake. Bummer — I know.)
Approaching an EDR from a layman's point of view resulted in simple navigation, step-by-step resolutions, and straightforward language.
A simple, clear presentation of crucial details for employees, not the typical cluttered cybersecurity dashboard.
Traditional cyber EDRs are typically outdated hard to navigate and filter tables. I set out to simplify the presentation through cards.
Standout Moments
Directing the design team through software design
Our design team's success in delivering exceptional experiences set the bar for our software application. My prior work on the Parade Design System made it a breeze to guide the team in creating a consistently top-notch experience.
Guiding and mentoring fellow designers in the software design process, while also contributing, was enjoyable and fulfilling.
Standout Moments
Setting the bar for all future insurtech broker experiences
The work I did for our cyber insurance brokers provided outstanding digital services, including 2-minute quotes and direct internal messaging with underwriters using Twilio.
Automated underwriting chatbots helped unblock brokers and give them an authentic experience.
Intuitive permissions management
A handy policy status timeline keeps the broker in control of the process by letting them know what to expect every step of the way.
My work reduced our cyber application to 5 efficient steps, compared to the typical 20-30 questions in other applications.
Due to confidentiality, certain aspects of this project cannot be made public. To learn more about my process, a portfolio presentation can be scheduled.
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