Federato’s design methodology

William Steenbergen
July 8, 2021

At Federato we believe that businesses don’t have problems, people do. Our design methodology is are flection of this tenet. The software we produce works for its users and not the other way around.

Listen and research

Before any line of code is written, we spend hundreds of hours interviewing underwriters, actuaries, regional managers and insurance executives. Users don’t know what they want until you show it to them so you have to focus on what they do know: Problems.

Test, then test again

Once people’s problems are well understood, we ideate, test and iterate. Whether it’s pencil and paper, low fidelity wireframes or functional software – we don’t tell our users what they are seeing. They tell us. Until a user can understand a feature, complete a task with it, and attest to the value without any explanation orintervention, it doesn’t ship. Good enough isn’t good enough.

Don’t justs how it to users, let them play wit hit.

It’s not just about what users say; it’s about what they do. We observe their facial expressions, look at where their eyes go, note when they lean in. The product is critiqued to the pixel until we hear:

  • “If you built this it would win you the insurance Nobel Prize” Regional Underwriting Manager - 8 years
  • “I love this. It’s smooth and quick. I’d love to see this in action” Middle Market Junior Underwriter - 3 years

Build from first principles

With true problems and validated solutions in hand, almost anything can be built on today’s technologies. As publishing mathematicians, ML researchers, and infrastructure experts, our unique perspectives allow us to conceive of and ship capabilities our competitors would have you believe are impossible. We let fleeting technology trends fade to the background, instead focusing on the most efficient way to build what we know users will love. Put it all together and the result is an experience that surpasses your underwriters’ wildest expectations.

“It’s important to build from first principles rather than from analogy. With analogy, we are building something because it’s like something else that was done.With first principles, you build something up from fundamental truths.”

Elon Musk

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