Season 3 Episode 23
Season 3 Episode 23
James Benham is a serial entrepreneur, technologist, speaker, podcast host and pilot who is helping lead the insurance industry into the next age of innovation. As the CEO of JBKnowledge, James and his team have served as strategic business and technology advisors and as software development partners over the past 20 years. James has led the development of technology for some of the largest insurance carriers, brokers and TPAs in the world, helping them build award-winning insurance ecosystems.
JBKnowledge has also built and continues to scale two disruptive insurance products: SmartCompliance—a top insurance certificate tracking and compliance management software that collects COIs, automates renewals and ensures compliance; and Terra— a cloud-based claims management software that improves claim outcomes for providers and consumers of Property and Casualty (P&C) insurance.
James started his journey as a tech entrepreneur in his Texas A&M dorm room in 2001 and has harnessed his passion for innovation to bootstrap multiple businesses to financial sustainability. James’ most successful bootstrapped exit occurred in 2018 when he and his team sold their construction bid management software, SmartBid, in a groundbreaking deal with ConstructConnect.
James is a sought after consultant and speaker at the forefront of innovation in the insurance industry. His no-nonsense style and love for “geeking out” on technology has landed him keynote opportunities on over 400 conference stages in the last 15 years.
James is also the host of the growing 70+ episode show, The InsureTech Geek Podcast, where he interviews leading industry experts including the Chairman & Co-Founder of InsureTech Connect, Caribou Honig, and AXA XL executive, Rose Hall.
When James isn’t working hard on improving companies—his own or his clients’—he keeps himself busy as a Regent at Texas Southern University or with his many hobbies as a pilot, musician, Star Trek fan, tech gadget aficionado, and Lean Methodology “life hacker”.
In this month's episode, Ryan Eaton welcomes James Benham, author of Be Your Own VC. James is the CEO and Co-Founder of JBKnowledge.
Benham's insights into innovation, growth, and family come from JBKnowledge having over 300 employees in 50 states. In addition to discussing favorite quotes from the novel, the native Texan breaks the quotes down into a key points and principles that will help you learn how to bootstrap your business.
Bootstrapping is the minimalist approach to starting a company characterized by extreme simplicity and sparsity. It usually refers to the start of a self-sustaining process without accumulating additional debt with little to no assets.
A company will need to dedicate a lot of time to building its dream business, according to Benham. In order to achieve your vision, James emphasizes the importance of determining what you'll need to build now to generate revenue and cover expenses.
Build what you have to so you can build what you want to
You can think of cash flow as the movement of money into and out of your business. When you have a positive cash flow, you earn more than you spend.
Business owners must master proper cash flow management in order to achieve long-term financial success. One of the greatest challenges faced by business owners is managing their cash flow.
Benham explains that there are some really healthy businesses that have gone out of business not because they lacked revenue, but because they lacked cash flow. As a result, they were unable to operate the business.
Nothing beats cash on hand.
Business owners must master proper cash flow management in order to achieve long-term financial success. One of the greatest challenges faced by business owners is managing their cash flow.
Having all the resources a company needs on its first day would be the ideal situation for many new businesses. The reality is that this is not always the case.
The majority of businesses are forced to bootstrap or temporarily come up with creative, resourceful solutions to meet their business needs. Bootstrapping can be accomplished in various ways including relying on personal capital, reducing costs, or limiting operations, but it also entails potential pitfalls.
Be sure to tune into next month’s episode as we continue our discussion with Lee Smith, Clinical Director at Cornerstone Counseling.
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