The Leadership in Insurance Podcast - Insurtech & Innovation

In the latest episode, Alex sits down with Josh Levine, founder and CEO of Cake and Arrow, a design and product innovation firm specializing in the insurance industry. They explore what's really broken in insurance user experience - and how the industry can fix it.
Drawing on Cake and Arrow's own research into Gen Z attitudes, the conversation reveals critical insights for the industry's future.
Key Takeaways:
Gen Z sees insurance as out of sync with reality – They still want stability, but view traditional paths as broken, leading them to create workarounds like emergency funds and side hustles rather than using conventional insurance products
Internal UX is the new battleground – The focus has shifted from customer-facing platforms to redesigning critical internal tools like underwriting workbenches and agent portals, because better employee experience drives better customer outcomes
Insurance has a perception problem with talent – Only 13% of Gen Z are in career roles within the industry, despite insurance offering faster career advancement than many realize
AI is creating an opportunity – As AI reshapes employee experience, there's a chance to make insurance work more engaging and attract the next generation of talent through flexibility, dynamic career paths, and clearer purpose
A must-listen for anyone thinking about digital transformation, employee experience, or how to build products that meet people where they actually are.

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the latest episode of The Leadership in Insurance podcast, host Alex Bond sits down with Rob Lewis, CEO of INTX Insurance Software, to discuss why the insurance industry's fragmented software landscape is holding back its AI potential - and what it takes to fix it.
Rob's journey from launching an online stockbroker in South Africa to acquiring an insurance carrier in Mozambique led him to build INTX: an integrated software solution designed to cover the entire policy lifecycle.
Now, he's bringing that vision to the US market, where 55% of insurance professionals still rely on Excel as their primary system.
Key highlights from the conversation:
Why insurance is "perfectly suited to AI" but "least prepared for it"—and how legacy systems are the bottleneck
The case for incremental gains over revolution: how a 5% improvement in core ratios can transform carrier economics
US vs. London market dynamics: the tension between data-driven underwriting and the irreplaceable value of underwriter intuition
The Excel problem: why half the US insurance industry still operates on spreadsheets, and what it takes to transition them to modern platforms
INTX's US expansion: from 5 clients signed in 2025 to an ambitious goal of 25 by the end of 2026, including a Tier 1 carrier
Rob makes a compelling case that the industry doesn't need revolutionary products—it needs solid operational foundations that can unlock the next wave of innovation.

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In the latest episode of the Leadership in Insurance Podcast, host Alex Bond sits down with Max Bruner, CEO of Anzen Insurance, to explore how the company has evolved since its 2021 founding into a tech-enabled wholesale broker using AI to transform insurance distribution.
Episode Highlights:
From Hype to Reality - Max discusses how the industry has moved past chatbot buzz to focus on enterprise AI applications that genuinely enhance vertical software capabilities
Workflow Revolution - Anzen's AI-powered software is delivering significant time savings and improved resource utilization across the entire insurance process - from submit to renew
Bridge Building - Max emphasizes the importance of connecting technologists with insurance experts to create solutions that actually work
$16M Funding Round - Max shares insights from Anzen's October raise, discussing the challenges of executing during a period when the market was less receptive to AI in insurance compared to other sectors
Software Success - The company is now selling its licensed software to agency partners and the broader industry, developed by their 'small but mighty' engineering team
CEO-Level Priority - Technology adoption is no longer just operational; it's fundamental to competitiveness, talent attraction, and customer service delivery
2026 Vision - Optimistic growth plans ahead, particularly around partnerships in the financial infrastructure space
Max's journey from direct broker to wholesale broker, while developing licensed software that's now being sold to agency partners, demonstrates what's possible when innovation meets deep industry expertise.
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We're thrilled to launch the new year with an incredible episode of the Leadership in Insurance Podcast featuring host Alex Bond in conversation with Tiago Prado, founder of BRZ Insurance (acquired by Troop Gordier in 2025) and current CEO of Altoia.
From High School Dropout to Insurance Innovator
Tiago's journey is nothing short of remarkable.
From accidentally landing in insurance to building and successfully exiting BRZ Insurance, his story is packed with valuable lessons about persistence, strategic thinking, and understanding what truly drives business growth.
What You'll Discover in This Episode:
Building for Exit - How Tiago transformed his approach from running an agency to creating a sellable business with recurring revenue
The Infrastructure Gap - Why recruiting, training, retention, and financial management remain the biggest challenges for P&C insurance agencies
The Birth of Altoia - How growing BRZ by 500% during COVID revealed systemic inefficiencies that inspired his next venture
AI's Real Impact - Tiago's perspective on how artificial intelligence is reshaping success in insurance: "Your role won't be replaced with AI; it will be enhanced by it"
2026 Vision - His ambitious plans to provide clarity, capital, and control to insurance agencies through better financial infrastructure
The Bottom Line
Tiago believes that accurate financial data and KPIs aren't just nice-to-haves—they're essential for accessing growth capital and making informed decisions. His work with Altoia aims to solve the problems that banks and traditional systems have failed to address in underwriting insurance agencies.
Ready to start the year with fresh insights? This episode is essential listening for agency owners, insurance leaders, and anyone looking to understand where the industry is headed.
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