Todd Rodgers, CTO
What brought you to Haven Technologies?
- The opportunity to disrupt a complex, data-intensive industry—in this case to figure out how to really make life insurance available to people in a customer-centric, efficient, and easy way
- The ability to build a team from the ground up, creating a supportive and inquisitive culture of respect and positive impact
- Working with leading-edge technology to create a large-scale, industry-leading platform.
What is your proudest achievement during your time at Haven Technologies?
Several come to mind. First, the ability to be able to help create the technology for a customer to apply, be underwritten, and have their policy issued all on the same platform is a highlight. Also seeing our company grow to 100 (and then 200, and then 300 and then…) and truly become an entity that delivers huge value not just to our client and the industry but to every customer that goes through our process.
How would you describe your hiring philosophy? What traits do you look for when considering whether to add someone to the Haven Technologies team? Is there anything unexpected?
I weigh both technical ability and positive impact on team culture heavily. On the tech side, I’m generally less focused on specific language expertise and more interested in the ability to think through and solve problems, communicate ideas and thought processes clearly, and a broad expertise in various aspects of software development. On the culture side, I look for individuals who will reinforce our culture of building things that matter and mattering to each other.
Is it true you have a farm? Any favorite things to grow? Anything you’ve been hoping to grow but haven’t yet?
Farm is definitely an overstatement—technically when not in the city I do live in an old barn that is part of what used to be an apple farm. My wife and I do have a vegetable garden — it started as a way of teaching our kids, but we’ve gained an appreciation for what it takes to grow food using organic approaches, such as the importance of soil health and crop rotation. We’ve had successes with tomatoes, corn, okra, and we are continuing to expand and experiment with what grows best in our soil and climate.
If we were to take a peek at your Spotify account, what would be your most-streamed song?
Probably something by Dave Brubeck or Oscar Peterson. In general, I listen to jazz, blues, baroque, and techno (not all at the same time)
What books are on your nightstand right now?
The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Pollan, Searching for Stars on an Island in Maine by Lightman, and I’m also rereading Neuromancer by Gibson for probably the eighth time…
Who would play you in Haven Technologies: The Movie?
No idea—in fact, sign me up for audio engineer or lighting designer. That’s what I used to do back in college and am far more comfortable backstage than onstage.
