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Hi everyone, my name is Maria Moore, and I am a Candidate Experience Manager here at Root Insurance. I am super excited to have the chance to speak with you all today and share a little more about what we're doing over here at Root, some of the exciting engineering challenges we're facing and embracing, and a little more about where we're going from here.
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I'll also wrap up the conversation by talking about how we do our work and how you can get involved if you're potentially interested in any open opportunities. So those are my main goals. Again, I'm a Candidate Experience Manager at Root, and I focus on growing and scaling the engineering organization. I've been here since December 2020, and it's been a really exciting journey. I've loved having the opportunity to work with engineering leadership and software engineers to scale in a meaningful way and to really help build out their teams.
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I am really thrilled to have the chance to talk with you all today about what that has meant to us. I think we have a really cool story of disrupting the insurance industry using technology, and I'm really happy that I can share a little bit about what that has meant to us with you all here today.
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So to just dive right in, I always like to start off by talking a bit more about our mission and about how we got here and why we got here. We talk about unbreaking things, and that can sound kind of silly. You know, I think we fix things might sound better, but fixing and unbreaking is different to us here at Root. Fixing would be temporary; we wanted to fundamentally change the way insurance is handled.
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So back in 2015, Root Insurance was first founded. Our founders were familiar with the insurance industry and aware of all the ways that it was broken and archaic in many ways. They said, 'Hey, we can fix this. Using technology and meaningful data, we can really unbreak a lot of what is broken and make fundamental changes in this industry that no other players had tried to change in this way before.'
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So all that to say, our main mission here is to continue to unbreak and make insurance more fair, ensuring things are more equitable for people. That's how we started back in 2015, and I think this next slide explains how we are going to unbreak things.
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As I mentioned, we have a focus on technology when we're solving these exciting problems. We wanted to make sure that data and technology were at the forefront of how we approach creating solutions. A big differentiator for us is the use of telematics, which makes up the core of our technology. I will talk about our core product shortly.
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One main point I want to emphasize is that taking a data and technology approach in the insurance space was not commonly done. The insurance industry is quite archaic and not very up to date. When we had the opportunity in 2015 to really unbreak an industry and create an insurance company from scratch, we wanted to make sure we were bringing things up to date and using data that makes sense.
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So, what does all this mean? I've already said 'broken industry' a million times, and I may say it a million times more. I wanted to make sure I clarified what this means to us. We had this great idea to create a car insurance company from scratch, being tech-forward in our approach. We decided to tackle the archaic car insurance industry.
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Root Insurance actually became the nation's first licensed insurance carrier powered entirely by mobile technology. Our approach was to use telematics to track driving habits and base people's car insurance quotes on those habits, placing less emphasis on traditional demographic data.
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Traditional car insurance companies really focus on demographics, such as age, zip code, gender, marital status, and other factors to give clients a quote for car insurance. In our effort to make things more fair and ensure the quote makes sense, we decided to weigh driving habits much more heavily in the pricing equation.
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We wanted to redefine the pricing model fundamentally. It's interesting to note that insurance companies have known for a long time that driving behavior data is a more accurate predictor of the likelihood of getting into an accident than demographic factors. However, implementing this into practice and executing it into the pricing model is challenging.
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But that's exactly what we do here at Root. We enjoy hard problems and like solving things that aren't straightforward and haven't been done before. This brings me to my next point: recognizing that we know things are broken, we take a tech-forward approach to fix it, and we are clear on how that looks in practice.
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What this looks like is our insurance product and the mobile application we've built. This is basically the lifecycle you'll go through if you're interested in purchasing car insurance through Root. You download the app on your smartphone, and then you do a quick test drive that typically lasts a couple of weeks. During this period, we gather the driving data I mentioned earlier.
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We want to use your driving behavior to set the pricing, which is how we acquire that driving behavior. We can differentiate if you are the driver, a passenger, or if you are on a bus, a train, etc. Our technology is capable of detecting that. Once we have this data, you're able to choose your plan, manage your plan, and file a claim.
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Up to this point, I have focused on our goal to make pricing fairer, which is to shift less emphasis toward demographics. However, it also shows that we're keeping up with the times; many people are relying on their smartphones and mobile apps. We wanted to ensure, as we create this insurance company, that we provide a user interface experience that folks would crave.
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Traditional auto insurance practices, which include having to talk with an agent on the phone and waiting several days to purchase a quote, can be inefficient. Through our mobile app, in just moments, you can choose your plan, download it, sign up for it, and be done. This instant gratification is something we are very proud to achieve through our app.
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Now, what you might be thinking is, 'Okay, you've created this fantastic product. What's next? Where is the business going?' This is something I'm always excited to discuss because yes, we have this core insurance product that we are proud of and will continue to build upon, but moving forward we want to explore how we can use this technology in innovative ways.
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We want to partner with other companies, particularly in the car buying process, and expand into auto rental and home insurance. We've been excited to announce a recent partnership with Carvana, where we will be the exclusive insurance provider. This is a way for us to create a more seamless process for purchasing insurance right after you've purchased your car.
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We aim to embed ourselves directly into their system, and this is the kind of work we want to continue to pursue: Using our technology, being tech-first, and exploring how that applies to the rest of the process, enhancing the user experience.
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From an engineering perspective, I find this approach to be particularly interesting. We started with our mobile product, building this from scratch. The engineers who created this technology collaboratively developed it from the ground up, and we are excited about the challenges we face together moving forward.
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Yes, we have great work to build upon with this mobile app, but we are now exploring how to embed our technology into other systems and how to partner with businesses. Embracing this expansion opens new avenues for creativity that could differentiate us from other technology firms.
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On the surface, when someone mentions they are an engineer at an insurance company, it may not spark excitement, but at Root, we are making impactful changes. We are providing more fair pricing for clients and working toward a goal that has not previously existed in terms of partnerships with other organizations.
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This is exciting work, impactful work, and this type of engagement motivates us every day to work creatively toward these goals.
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I want to briefly address what I mean by 'driving habits.' You might be wondering what exactly we're tracking and how that works. We utilize the sensors on your smartphone to gather this information, and we assure you that we will never sell your personalized data. We use it purely to provide you a fair price.
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Some of the factors we evaluate include smooth braking, when you are driving, whether you are focused while driving, and if you are texting while driving. This data contributes to determining your driving score, which plays a significant role in your pricing model.
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I wanted to touch on the 'Drop the Score' campaign, which we're very passionate about here at Root. As I mentioned earlier, promoting fairness in insurance is incredibly important to us. We started addressing this by introducing the driving score into our pricing model, but we also aim to eliminate credit scores from our pricing equation altogether.
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Relying on credit scores can disproportionately harm certain groups of people. Various circumstances, such as outstanding medical bills or student loan defaults, can negatively impact a credit score. We recognize that people may be unaware of how their credit score affects their insurance rates, and we want to address this issue.
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Our aim is to fully remove credit scores from our pricing model in order to promote fairness. We believe this speaks to our underlying commitment to fairness in all aspects of our business. We are not just going to talk about fairness; we are dedicated to walking the walk.
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While we've made significant progress by adding the driving score, there is still work to be done. We will not shy away from this responsibility. We are committed to finding ways to continue promoting fairness in insurance.
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I wanted to discuss growth at Root, which has been a substantial theme within the company. We've scaled rapidly, and I will share details about that as it relates to our personnel and technology.
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Gaining traction in the car insurance market isn't straightforward, primarily due to the significant regulations in each state. As we work toward expansion, we are thoughtful about how we navigate these regulations and integrate our model into various states.
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We are excited to see the growth represented on the map and are eager to see continued expansion across the board. Additionally, our engineering teams are actively focused on market expansion, considering regulatory factors and how to handle increasing volume.
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As we enter new markets, we witness an enthusiastic reception, which presents unique challenges, such as demand and volume. This rapid growth showcases both our accomplishments and the exciting work our engineering teams have the opportunity to engage with.
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I want to provide some insights into our growth regarding personnel and applications. Back in 2018, we had 78 employees, with an engineering team comprising just seven engineers. As you've likely gathered, we have experienced immense growth since that time.
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In July 2021, we totaled 1,450 employees across the company, and the engineering team has now expanded to 212 software engineers across several small, highly collaborative teams. Each team is focused on various aspects of our technology, from backend development to mobile applications.
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As a result, we have scaled rapidly, which has been a significant theme within our company. This growth is exciting, and we face various engineering challenges associated with this expansion as we consider how to adapt our processes.
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We understand that our company today is very different from the company we were three years ago, which brings a multitude of changes that we must navigate.
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While I have extensively discussed the business, the product, and technology, I must also highlight how we accomplish this work—the culture and mindset behind how we operate. I have identified several themes that reflect why people enjoy working at Root.
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First and foremost is the people. When you ask a Root employee what keeps them engaged, they'll often cite the people they work with. We conduct meaningful work, and even though we are an insurance company, the work we do has substantial impacts on lives.
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Across the board, our managers lead with care, promoting growth for both individuals and the business. We gravitate toward Root because the challenges we face are hard and we have a team of individuals eager to solve them.
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Another key theme is autonomy and collaboration. We believe we hire exceptional people who understand their roles, so we do not impose strict processes. Employees enjoy autonomy in how they execute their work, which enhances the ability to create impact.
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Of course, we recognize the importance of collaboration. We foster an environment that encourages questioning norms and offers feedback. Our journey as a company was sparked by challenging the status quo.
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Nurturing a feedback loop is essential—providing ongoing updates and guidance helps us work towards our collective goals. I want to touch briefly on what it looks like to be an engineer at Root, particularly given our recent growth.
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Despite our significant increase in team size, our teams remain small, promoting ownership over projects and results. We acknowledge that we exist today due to the dedication of the people who built our initial product.
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In terms of how we work, we follow agile methodologies and emphasize cross-team collaboration. Our engineers frequently engage directly with stakeholders and collaborate with product, data science, and design teams.
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Our belief is that providing our engineers context concerning business results helps them build the best product. We embrace a one-week iteration process, engage in account kickoff sessions, and hold daily stand-ups to maintain momentum.
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Our product team sets quarterly roadmaps, and we frequently host hack days. Hack days provide engineering teams a chance to explore new technologies, hone their skills, and work on problems of their own choosing.
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We engage in weekly releases for mobile applications, with the backend seeing updates twice daily. For our technology stack, our backend is developed in Ruby on Rails, primarily functioning as an API for our mobile clients.
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Mobile applications are built with React Native. I encourage you to consider potential open roles we have listed, as we are hiring engineering managers, staff software engineers, and senior software engineers.
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Engineering managers lead smaller teams of six to seven engineers, taking on a significant leadership role while also working on technical aspects. Staff and senior engineers are our highest level independent contributors, and they have a wide range of opportunities in mentoring and leading projects.
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We do not expect applicants to have prior experience specifically with Rails; we welcome strong full-stack engineers from various tech backgrounds who are passionate about our mission and solving problems.
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That concludes my presentation! Thank you so much for your time. I hope you enjoyed learning about Root and our journey. If anyone wants to learn more about anything I've discussed, I'm more than happy to chat. My email and LinkedIn information are included, as well as a link to our engineering site that contains further details.
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Thank you again for your attention.