In this episode of The Insurance Technology Podcast, Reid speaks to Ilya Bodner about the challenges and rewards of starting your own business. Ilya speaks in-depth about how his philosophies as an entrepreneur led his small startup of “bold penguins” to take on the massive insurance industry “whales” and come out on top.

Episode Highlights

• Columbus, Ohio – a hidden insurance hotbed (2:00)
• How Reid and Ilya met (14:50)
• Why the success of Bold Penguin lies in its people (17:13)
• The challenges and rewards of being an entrepreneur (24:15)

Quote

“If you just sprinkle a little bit of tech, life can get easier for some people. If you can sprinkle a lot of tech at the right problems, then you can build this machine and make things a hell of a lot easier for a lot of people.”

About the Guest

As the founder of several successful insurance technology start-ups, Ilya Bodner has changed the way people buy, sell, and engage with commercial insurance. Bodner began his career on the front lines of insurance as an agent, experiencing the challenges of the industry firsthand that he would later go on to solve as an entrepreneur. Recent recognitions include “Executive of the Year” by BizTech and Best in Biz, “People’s Choice Innovation Leader of the Year” by the Insurance Innovation Awards, EY “Entrepreneur of the Year” Finalist, and “Most Admired Executive” by the C-Suite Awards.