In this episode, Snejina Zacharia, SF ’13, a 2013 MIT Sloan Fellow from Bulgaria, transformed a personal insurance frustration into a $500 million business by founding Insurify, the "Kayak of insurance." After a minor car accident during her time at MIT caused her premiums to spike, she discovered the absence of a comprehensive insurance comparison platform and spent over a year convincing risk-averse carriers to join her marketplace. Despite facing significant challenges as a first-time female immigrant founder in a highly regulated industry, Zacharia built Insurify from a three-person team to nearly 200 employees through relentless persistence, strategic fundraising, and operational focus. Her journey exemplifies the MIT entrepreneurial spirit, emphasizing the importance of building the right founding team, maintaining financial discipline, and never giving up despite countless rejections—ultimately creating the largest online insurance comparison platform in the United States.

Thanks for listening! Find more episodes on the Sloanies Talking with Sloanies website.

Learn more about MIT Sloan Alumni on Facebook, LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and Threads.

To support this show, or if you have an idea for a topic or a guest you think we should feature, drop us a note at sloanalumni@mit.edu

© MIT SLOAN SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT

Fantasy DFS Preview | NFL Week 8

Fantasy Flex

Choosing Dalton Schultz and flex allocation

The AI-powered Podcast Player