Women in FinTech: create delightful customer experiences - they're always a sure bet

Ahead of InsurTech Rising Europe, September 10 - 12 in London, we spoke with one of our key speakers, Erica Young, Director at Anthemis, about her experience being a leading woman in FinTech. Erica will be examining how to balance financial and strategic return, she will also be exploring the alignment and trade-offs between tangible and intangible returns.

How did you start your career?

My degree is in product design and I started out as a technical footwear designer. This gave me exposure to the end-to-end process, from understanding both the technical and non-technical requirements, creating conceptual designs, working with manufacturers, fit and wear testing, all the way to sales support. Over the years I've designed many types of products, from robots to solar cookers. As I progressed, I began to apply design thinking to other aspects of a business because design methodologies are highly transferable to experiences, processes and human systems.

What was your light-bulb moment?

After burning out at an early-stage clean energy startup, I reflected on my skills and interests. I realised that after designing and developing physical products for almost 15 years, the world had enough 'things'. The aspects of roles that I enjoyed most were more process and people-centric and I felt comfortable during the most ambiguous or uncertain stages of development. That is what led me to explore venture design.

What is exciting about FinTech/ InsurTech at the moment?

Right now I'm very passionate about financial wellness and the increasing understanding that people physical, mental and financial health are inextricably linked.

The most exciting opportunities at the moment are propositions that embed financial instruments into the experience but aren't overtly financial services.

This needs-based approach helps the value proposition resonate with the end consumer.

How can businesses attract more women into their technology teams?

A friend and software developer was lamenting about her recent interview experiences. She explained that throughout the multi-stage interview processes at 3 different growth stage companies, she wasn't interviewed by a single woman. This is a very simple way to attract potential hires, providing you have at least one woman to start with.

Do you have any advice to women looking to get started in FinTech?

Seek a culture where cognitive diversity is valued and where you have an opportunity to help that organisation reflect the customer base they serve.

What will the future of InsurTech look like and what trends should we be keeping our eye on?

Since I'm not much of a futurist, I tend to focus on things that never go out of style. Creating increasingly delightful customer experiences are always a sure bet. Embedding habits into your business processes that help every team member empathise with the customer pays for itself many times over.