Meet Colin Smith

With two successful capital raises in less than six months, Chief Operating Officer Colin Smith has been busy. His primary focus at SageSure is to help the organization scale for growth. While he’s worn various hats over the past five years, including overseeing HR, office operations and analytics, this past year has been focused on corporate development, financial analysis and corporate strategy. “I’ve particularly enjoyed the work, given my prior background and how pivotal a time it is for our future to get those capabilities right,” says Colin.

Why is the capital raise so important to SageSure?

“The capital from Ares enables us to invest in reliable sources of SageSure capacity, like SURE. That means we can deliver on our promise to be there for our customers, even in challenging times. It also means we have another dedicated capital partner, who can grow with SageSure as we serve many more policyholders in the years ahead.”

What do you love about working in insurance?

“The confidence it provides. I believe we’re all at our best when we can focus on opportunity instead of fear. Insurance allows us to rest easier that a medical diagnosis or natural disaster won’t financially ruin our family — and that confidence better enables us to take risks, be more creative in our work and be more present at home.”

What excites you about the future of SageSure?

“The opportunity in front of us, and the foundation that’s been built to tackle it. Unlike a number of competitors, we have a decade-long track record of growth and stability. We refortified that foundation in the past 12 to 18 months, recognizing and acting on the need to make meaningful changes — we’ve added dedicated capacity sources, claims servicing, capital raising muscle and other shifts throughout the business. While many companies retrenched or sailed back to calmer seas, we kept moving forward in choppy waters. That positions us well for the future.”

If you weren’t working in insurance, what would you be doing?

“Likely a role in education. I ran a nonprofit benefiting elementary school students, and am a big believer in how critical lifelong learning is to success and happiness. Serving a company or cause in support of that mission is near and dear to me.”

What’s one thing most people don’t know about you?

“A surprise given my near-total lack of rhythm or musical talent, but I know pretty much every word to the musicals Hamilton and Les Miserables. I particularly enjoy “performing” My Shot in the car to my 3-year-old daughter, or playing both characters in the Confrontation scene between Jean Valjean and Javert.”