Inside Haven Life with new head Mitch Ocampo

June 14, 2022 1:10 PM

A person's hands using a desktop computer.

Mitch Ocampo has joined as the new Head of Haven Life, a digital life insurance company wholly owned by Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual). Digital Insurance reached out to Ocampo to discuss his new role, how digital is involved and plans for the future. He replied via e-mail. The following responses have been lightly edited for clarity.

Can you tell me more about your position at Haven Life and how technology plays a part in this role?

Earlier this year I accepted the role as the Head of Haven Life, following the strategic decision by the MassMutual board to create Haven Technologies last fall. Haven Life continues its mission as a digital-first insurance agency with the goal of bringing affordable financial security to every American household. Technology, of course, plays an important role in this, where everything in the Haven Life customer journey is completely digital, from app to issue to claim. The team also does a great job focusing on the customer journey, ensuring that all customer needs are met, and where gaps exist, to revisit digital ways that we can address these gaps.

How have your past roles and industry experience prepared you for this position?

I started out as a software engineer for a Boston fintech company during the late 90s and early 2000s. I witnessed a lot of really good and bad things first hand. I remember modeling my thinking after founders I admired, how they solved problems, ran strong operations and focused on metrics that matter. It helped shape how I think about business today with a focus on profitable growth and strong financials, balanced with a need for innovation and a willingness to invest.

I worked for a few more startups, and even launched an analytics consulting practice, before spending the next 15+ years in insurance and reinsurance companies of various sizes. Then, I went to business school at IE Brown, which focused on traditional business skills with a critical lens on social impact and society. Enter Haven Life, where I feel the work we are doing is a combination of all these experiences summed up into one message: an innovative startup culture, MassMutual’s strong balance sheet and A++ rated paper and a social mission and purpose to bring financial security to the mass market.

What are your plans for the future of Haven Life?

I think there is a lot to be excited about, and I believe the next decade will be as interesting if not more so than the last one. For example, our engineering teams and algorithms are doing amazing work around underwriting risks, predictive insights, forecasting and data models. It’s allowing humans (qualitative) and machines (quantitative) to do what they do best – together.

As a society, we are becoming more aware of ethical [lapses] we set upon ourselves prior, and are more open to challenging fundamental assumptions about money, access and security. We have a real opportunity to improve financial literacy in this country. And we have a real opportunity to help all Americans protect the ones they love through simple and affordable financial solutions.

Could you share any plans you have to help the company grow its digital capabilities?

The company was born out of the need to reduce consumer friction in the current process. This meant that from the very beginning, Haven Life was rethinking how technology could enable a simpler insurance buying journey. People looking for life insurance that qualify can go through our quoting process, answer a few simple questions, and sign and pay electronically. Behind the scenes, we leverage vast amounts of data to inform our operations teams, marketing teams, and product teams to continuously improve our customer experience.