Meet Dan DeRuvo, the Strider keeping our health plan information up-to-date (when he’s not practicing Jiu-Jitsu).

Dan is celebrating his one year anniversary at Stride—here’s a bit about his journey as Stride’s Product Operations Lead.

Dan, you’re a Product Operations Lead here at Stride—tell us a bit about what you do.

Like many operational roles, I wear many hats! However, I focus on two key areas: I make sure the health plans we display on our website are current, in compliance with our health insurance carriers and the health insurance marketplace, and that each plan is priced correctly. I also work closely with our engineering team to enhance the enrollment experience for our members.

Where are you from originally?

I’m from Clinton Corners, New York. You’ve probably never heard of this place, so I tell people I grew up 1.5 hours north of New York City!

What were you doing before you joined Stride?

Most of my career has been spent in insurance. I’ve worked with auto, property, accident, life, disability, and now health insurance! Early on, I started in claims, then switched to underwriting, and found my calling in operations a few years ago at a NYC-based startup.

Why did you choose to work at Stride?

I believe that my duty on this earth is to help others in need. Although my aspirations as a kid of becoming a police officer or firefighter didn’t work out as planned, I still knew I needed to find a way to help. Everyone needs insurance of some kind, but it's complicated, boring, and expensive. That’s all types of insurance. However, health insurance is arguably the most important type. Here at Stride, we make it easy to understand and help a group of people that have been historically neglected: the self-employed. Stride has allowed me the opportunity to make an impact, and it's been an incredible journey so far!

What’s the most rewarding part about working at Stride?

Two very obvious reasons stand out to me. One being the people we serve, and two being the people I get to work with. I work in a highly cross-functional role, and since we are a fully remote company, I have gotten to meet so many unique, TALENTED, friendly, and downright amazing people!

We have a Slack channel where we can see all customer feedback. It is so UNBELIEVABLY rewarding to read those reviews and to know we are making a huge difference.

What’s your favorite memory at Stride (so far)?

All the team bonding we got to do at our last company retreat.

What are some of your hobbies and interests?

Mountain biking, Jiu-Jitsu, hiking, chess, and hitting the random article button on Wikipedia! (There will always be something new to learn!)

What opportunities are you most excited for within the next year at Stride?

I am really excited to see Stride scale and see our SaaS product grow as we continue to innovate in more ways than one to help people get the coverage they need.

Favorite food?

My last name should make this one obvious. Anything Italian! Red sauce is in my veins. Also a huge fan of sushi.

What’s your current dream vacation?

Can I make this one plural? I have a goal of reaching many national parks out west. The first priority is Glacier National Park in Montana.