Scout InsurTech Spotlight with Adam Erlebacher

Adam Erlebacher, formerly of Fabric, is a seasoned insurance professional. Adam was interviewed by Andrew Daniels, Co-Founder at Scout InsurTech and Co-Founder and President at CrashBay.

Adam, coming from a FinTech background and later moving into insurance, how did your fundraising strategy differ between those industries? And how critical were relationships when navigating the insurance space?

“I’d say the fundraising strategy for both businesses—and probably for all startups—is very similar. We approached it by asking: what is the max potential of the business we're building, and how can we efficiently validate that? That answer informs your fundraising approach.

Think of it like peeling back layers of an onion: market risk, regulatory risk, technology risk, team risk, product risk. As you de-risk each layer, you get a clearer picture of the overall opportunity. That drives your fundraising strategy.

You don’t have all the answers when you're starting out, so understanding the market opportunity is key. That should inform how much financing you pursue. You also need to raise enough capital to de-risk appropriately so that you’re well-positioned for the next round, if needed.

At both Simple and Fabric, we didn’t want to raise too much or too little. Raising too much can make it harder to secure future funding or exit. Too little, and you may not have enough to prove your business. The strategy sets the direction and trajectory of the company, so it’s critical to think it through early.

As for investors and relationships, we aimed for strong alignment with company goals. Early on, financial investors were often the best fit—they’re aligned in wanting to build the biggest and most impactful company possible. Later, it can make sense to bring in strategic investors, especially if you need key partnerships early that help with de-risking.

There are also ways to bring strategics in—through warrants or other tools—to align interests. When we did bring on strategics early, we tried to bring on two. That helped balance interests and ensure alignment from the start.”

How did you balance creating long-term value with positioning Fabric as an attractive acquisition target?

“We never really thought about positioning Fabric for acquisition. We stayed focused on building long-term value. If you’re positioning for an exit, you’re trying to predict what someone else is looking for—which is incredibly difficult.

Even if you manage to figure it out, big companies go through personnel and strategy changes. So, trying to follow those signals can cause you to lose sight of your own vision. That’s a dangerous path. We stayed focused on building something durable and valuable that truly served our customers. When you try to live in the head of a potential acquirer, you risk losing the reason you started your company in the first place.”

What would you have done differently to better prepare for that acquisition journey?

“Rather than thinking about positioning for acquisition, I’d frame it as: what could we have done differently to continue building long-term value?

There are so many forks in the road when building a company. At one point, we had a fast-growing product with strong traction. It had a lower Lifetime Value (LTV), and we saw other products with higher LTV potential. We chose to pivot towards those higher LTV products and didn’t fully pursue the growth of that low-LTV, fast-growing product.

In hindsight, I would’ve doubled down on that low-LTV product to see where it could have taken us. The economics were not quite there, and we moved away from it. Growing that product might have opened up future opportunities that we never explored.”

Acquisitions often require clear communication with employees, clients and partners. How do you manage messaging throughout the process to ensure alignment and minimize disruption?

“An acquisition process is incredibly distracting and can be all-consuming. You're trying to manage it while still running the business.

We approached it by isolating the process: only the people who absolutely needed to be involved were included, until the point when we had to bring in others. We never did company-wide updates because it would have created unnecessary distraction and uncertainty.

With partners and external stakeholders, it was also on a need-to-know basis. Sometimes you do need to notify them—especially if key contracts require assignment or consent. But, until things are more certain, it’s best not to bring everyone into a process that can quickly change direction.”

What strategies were most effective in ensuring a smooth integration—operationally and culturally—during the acquisition?

“Finding the right partner is everything. Alignment upfront on both strategy and culture is critical to a smooth integration.

Once the deal is done, leadership from both companies need to explain: why we did this, what we aim to achieve together and how we’ll get there. That communication is key. People want to know how this personally impacts them, and it should always connect back to the ‘why’ of the integration.

Clear accountability and reporting are also vital—processes, checkpoints, shared goals and mechanisms for measurement. Whether it's internal reporting or regular strategy check-ins, it keeps things on track.

One thing that’s incredibly helpful is having a dedicated liaison from the acquiring company—someone you can go to daily. They can help unblock your team, answer strategic questions and ensure alignment. That person becomes your go-to for anything from legal and compliance to accessing APIs, and they can make a big difference in smoothing the road ahead.”

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