One team, three flags, five days.
We're here to win the Badger Conference Challenge. AU, NZ and RSA pulling in the same direction across the three themes of the conference. Pick a theme below to jump in, or head to Team & Files for the pre-read library and team uploads.
The three themes
In Brad's words: "in order of weight, on AI, breaking down silos, and execution."
AI
From experiments to default. The AI exercise drives cross-brand cooperation and forces execution, specifically around AI. Where we are on the curve, who's shipping, and how to lift the whole group.
Breaking Down Silos
Why the group plays smaller than the sum of its parts. Pixar case study, "3 Types of Silos" pre-read, Shawn Carr's exercises that turn theory into actions we can measure once we leave the room.
Execution
From decisions to delivery. Aviva AI Claims case study, Shawn Carr's exercises designed to translate the room's intent into measurable actions across our brands.
The Buildathon
Each table presents for 15 minutes. One real business constraint, the current workflow, the redesigned workflow, the AI application, the measurable outcome, and a concept or prototype. Prizes for top three tables. Adjudication is practical, not flashy. This is where we win or lose.
Monday opener (non-competitive)
Two hours on Road to 2030 (group results, mission, vision), then two hours on People 2030 (Badger Leadership principles, engagement survey). The themes kick in from the afternoon onwards.
AI
From experiments to default. The AI exercise sits alongside Silos and Execution but carries the most weight in Brad's framing.
What Brad has asked of us
Spend a minimum of four hours a week learning, playing with, and building real fluency with Claude. Treat it like any other strategic priority. The execs who lean in now will be the ones shaping how Badger operates in the years ahead.
Sandbox VMs with the full toolset (Claude Cowork, Code, Projects, Perplexity) were provisioned in early April. Enterprise access via ARC.
The maturity curve the table has landed on
Prototype freely with Claude. Prove the concept. Then hand to IT to industrialise properly. Burning tokens to find and understand data is the biggest cost; once you know the logic, the build becomes far leaner. This is shaping how we're thinking about the Buildathon build.
From the Lemonade thread (Ryan Passanah)
The mission Ryan has named is AI-first to AI-only: Corné's API layer into the policy admin system, Jo's all-data-for-decisioning layer, and digital transformation across call centre, marketing, web and supporting functions. Done as one project, with one brain trust, one accountability line.
Three moves we could argue for
- Default Claude / Cowork access for every knowledge worker, with skills installed.
- An "AI lead" inside every BU, not just centralised.
- One measurable productivity goal per function per quarter.
Working notes
Breaking Down Silos
Why the group plays smaller than the sum of its parts — and the moves that change that.
The problem, in one line
We have the right pieces in AU, NZ and RSA. They're often optimising for their own P&L instead of the group's. Shawn Carr will lead the room through exercises that turn theory into actions we can apply, execute and measure once we leave.
The pre-reads
- "3 Types of Silos That Stifle Collaboration — and How to Dismantle Them" (HBR-style PDF, attached to Brad's 18 April email)
- Pixar Silo Case Study + the conference group questions (Brad's 19 April email)
Both live in the Pre-read library.
What we're bringing to the table
- Cross-brand customer journeys — where do we hand off badly?
- Shared services that should exist but don't
- Decisions stuck because no one owns them at group level
Working notes
Execution
Translating the room's intent into measurable actions across our brands.
Why execution is its own theme
Brad's framing: "study the material, discuss it, dwell on it. Come prepared. Shawn Carr will lead us through exercises that turn the theory into actions we can apply, execute and measure once we leave the room."
This is the theme that makes the other two stick. The room can agree on AI and silos all it wants — without an execution layer, nothing changes by Monday.
The pre-read
Aviva AI Claims Case Study (PDF, attached to Brad's 18 April email). Use this as the worked example of getting AI from concept to production-grade execution. Lives in the Pre-read library.
The 2030 backdrop
Monday morning sets the frame: Road to 2030 on group results, mission and vision, then People 2030 on Badger Leadership principles and engagement survey results. Execution exercises follow that.
Working notes
The Buildathon
15 minutes on stage. One business constraint solved with practical AI. Adjudication is practical, looking for projects that add the best value and address a table-wide challenge or opportunity. Prizes for top three tables.
The project: Pet Community App
A brand-agnostic pet community app built around the three group objectives below. Universal use-case first; territorial iterations follow. No insurance branding, no early marketplace scope creep.
Starting point: Jo Ferolli's prototype (Dotsure) — embedded on the Artifacts page. Tiaan leading the build, Rick alongside. Locked in by NZ, AU and RSA on the table thread, 15 May 2026. Stays under wraps from other tables until the room on Friday.
The three objectives (Glen)
Attract
Pull pet owners into our orbit through value they can't get elsewhere — content, community, useful tools — before they're shopping for insurance.
Retain
Make the app the thing they open weekly, not yearly at renewal. Stickiness comes from utility plus identity, not from policy reminders.
Optimise
Every interaction is a signal. Use it to lower CAC, improve underwriting, surface upsell moments — and to learn faster than competitors.
Proposed features
Proposed features
Proposed features
Scope discipline
Glen's principle, agreed by the table: be specific about the universal use-case first, then get territorially specific in v2.
Tempting scope creep (parked, not dead): a marketplace for pet services, vet booking, breeder directories, classifieds. We can build out the niches over time. For the conference room, the muscle to demonstrate is restraint plus clarity, not breadth.
Inspiration set
Sites Glen flagged for the look-and-feel and feature thinking.
- petsly.co.za — RSA pet community
- loyal.com — utility-led pet wellness brand
- yapperapp.co.za — RSA community app pattern
Jo's prototypes
The three HTML files Glen shared on 15 May (Community App, Go-to-Market, original mockup) live on the Artifacts page, embedded inside the team site so they're easy to review without leaving and so Badger's email gateway can't strip them.
The 15-minute pitch structure (Dylan's brief)
The constraint
What business problem, friction point, bottleneck or silo are you solving?
The current workflow
Where does the process create delay, duplication, cost, risk or frustration today?
The redesigned workflow
How should the process work before AI is applied?
The AI application
Where do AI, automation, Claude or agents improve the workflow?
The business outcome
What measurable value does this create for the business?
The concept or prototype
Prototype, MVP, workflow model, or clearly articulated concept. Does not need to be production-ready.
The brief in Dylan's words
"Bring a real problem, not a theoretical one. Existing Claude work is encouraged. Simpler workflows usually win. Strong business outcomes matter more than flashy demos. ARC will capture key learnings across the tables so the work continues beyond the conference."
And Brad's adjudication note: practical, table-wide challenge or opportunity, best value. Not theatrical.
Our working detail
This is the team's working area for fleshing out each of the six pitch sections. Everything stays inside the team.
Pre-reads & references
- Dylan's full Buildathon brief (6 May)
- Anthropic enablement webinar (Goldcast)
- YouTube intro videos (x2)
- Aviva AI Claims case study (execution worked example)
- DBS AI Journey pre-read (AI worked example)
All linked from the Pre-read library.
Bonus point reminder
Dylan: "Bonus points if your workflow does not accidentally create Skynet 😉"
Break their moats.
Deepen ours.
Buffett's two questions. 1. Do you make money? 2. Do you have a moat? PetSure has three moats in Australian pet insurance. We are dismantling each one. While we do that, we are building two of our own that they cannot copy.
The battlefield, June 2026
PetSure had three moats. Here is where each one stands today, and what we are building on the outside.
Incumbent dominant
Two new moats rising
PetSure's three moats
The structural advantages that have kept PetSure dominant for two decades. Each one looks formidable on its own. None of them are permanent.
Scale
Largest book in the market. Largest claims dataset. Lowest unit costs on processing and reinsurance. Their pricing flywheel runs on volume that no challenger can match in a single year.
Network effects via GapOnly
Closed vet-payments rail. Vets get on-the-spot claim settlement only for PetSure-bound insurers. Customers feel it as friction-free claiming, vets feel it as cash flow. Leaving means losing both.
Pre-existing condition lock-in
Conditions that arose under one insurer are not portable to another. Once a pet has a claim history, leaving PetSure means re-pricing or losing cover for the very things they need it for. The longer the customer stays, the harder leaving gets.
Where we are chipping
Three coordinated attacks, each aimed at a specific moat. None of them is theoretical. All are in market or shipping this year.
RSPCA brand win
We took RSPCA Pet Insurance off PetSure. The most trusted brand in Australian animal welfare now sits on our book. Brand permission, not raw volume, drives the next era of acquisition cost. Their scale advantage starts compounding more slowly.
Direct2Vet
An industry-open standard for vet-to-insurer data exchange and on-the-spot claim settlement. Any insurer can join. We replace GapOnly's closed rail with an open one. The network effect inverts: every new insurer and vet on D2V makes GapOnly weaker, not stronger.
RSPCA winback + Clean Break
Winback is already pulling former RSPCA customers back across, accepting pre-existing conditions on terms they could not get elsewhere. Clean Break extends the same mechanic to the wider market. The lock-in stops working the moment a credible path out exists.
Our two moats
While their walls come down, ours go up. Both are structural. Neither is replicable on PetSure's timeline.
RSPCA Pet Insurance
The only pet insurance brand in Australia carrying the country's most trusted animal welfare mark on the policy. Every premium dollar contributes to animal welfare. PetSure cannot reproduce it. Aggregators cannot dilute it. The market only has one of these.
Knose breeder network
Breeders place pets with first-time owners at the exact moment insurance is most economically rational, before any condition exists. Own that channel, own the highest-LTV cohort at the lowest CAC, with renewals compounding for the life of the pet.
Win the brand
Take RSPCA off PetSure. Convert brand permission into book.
Open the rail
Ship Direct2Vet. Make GapOnly's closed network a liability, not an advantage.
Unlock the customer
Run winback. Ship Clean Break. Make switching frictionless.
Compound our moats
RSPCA brand and Knose breeders, both growing while their walls fall.
Do we make money? Yes.
Do we have a moat? Two, and building.
PetSure had three moats. We are taking them apart in order. We are replacing them with two they cannot copy. That is the strategy.
Direct2Vet
The play in one line. PetSure's strongest moat is GapOnly, a closed payment rail between vets and PetSure-bound insurers. We replace it with an open industry standard. Any insurer can join. The network effect that once protected PetSure starts working against them.
GapOnly today
A closed payment rail between vets and PetSure-bound insurers. The customer feels it as instant claim settlement at the counter. PetSure feels it as the single biggest reason customers do not leave.
Why it works for them
- 01Vet adoption. On-the-spot settlement is the most valuable thing a vet can offer a stressed customer at the counter. GapOnly is the only rail that delivers it at scale.
- 02Customer stickiness. Frictionless claiming is what customers remember at renewal. It does the retention work that price discounts cannot.
- 03Exclusivity. Only insurers PetSure brings into the rail get access. That makes PetSure indispensable to its underwriting partners.
- 04Switching cost. Leaving PetSure means losing the rail. For most customers and most vets, that is the deciding friction.
Direct2Vet, the open rail
One login at the vet. One pipe to any insurer. Claim data, payment, decision, receipt, and pet records flow through a single standard. Owned by none of the insurers. Open to all of them.
Claim data via D2V
Vet submits invoice and notes through their PMS. D2V routes the data to the right insurer. The insurer uses the data to run their own claims assessment. Decision and receipt flow back via D2V to the vet.
Money bypasses D2V
Payment flows directly from the insurer to the vet. D2V carries the payment information (how much, for what), not the money itself. Each insurer settles on their own terms, their own rails.
D2V is invisible to the customer
The customer deals with their vet and their insurer. D2V sits between vet and insurer only. The customer never logs in, never sees it, never needs to know it exists.
Why this kills GapOnly
Closed networks beat open networks when there is no credible open alternative. Once an open alternative exists with critical mass, the closed network's exclusivity becomes a liability.
Vets pick one rail, not many
Vets do not want to log in to GapOnly for some claims and another rail for others. They want one workflow. The rail with the broadest insurer coverage wins the workflow. Open D2V grows faster than closed GapOnly the moment three insurers are on it.
Insurers do not want a competitor's rail
Joining GapOnly means joining PetSure's network on PetSure's terms. Joining D2V means joining an open standard owned by no competitor. For any insurer not already locked into PetSure, the choice is structural, not commercial.
PetSure cannot win this either way
Ignore D2V and lose vet relevance as we scale it. Join D2V and GapOnly's exclusivity ends the day they sign. The moat depends on being the only rail. We are removing that condition.
Every new entrant comes via us
Every new pet insurer that enters Australia chooses D2V on day one because it is the cheapest distribution and the broadest vet network. PetSure can sign one or two GapOnly partners a year. We pick up the rest, automatically.
How we ship this
Four stages. Each one is defensive on its own and offensive once stacked. We are at the end of stage one.
Standard + patent
Draft the data contract. File the patent on the workflow. Lock the IP position before signalling intent publicly.
NowFirst three insurers
PetX (RSPCA, Knose) goes live first. Sign two challenger insurers behind us. Three on the rail is the minimum for vet credibility.
Next, 2026Vet PMS scale
Integrate into the top three vet practice management systems by claim volume. Each PMS partner gives us their full vet base in one signature.
2026 to 2027Open the standard
Publish the spec as an industry standard. Lower the cost of joining for everyone except the incumbent. The standard becomes infrastructure. We are the operator.
2027 plusOnly a challenger can build this
PetSure has a structural reason to keep the rail closed. Every other insurer has a structural reason to want it open. We are the credible challenger with the assets to seed it.
We have the volume to seed
RSPCA Pet Insurance gives D2V real claim flow from day one. A rail with one insurer is a demo. A rail with the most-trusted brand in pet welfare is a market.
We have the breeders
The Knose breeder network puts D2V in front of pets at the moment they are placed with their first owner. The vet that sees that pet first should be on our rail.
We have Pacific
Underwriting capacity and pricing intelligence sit with Pacific. D2V is the distribution layer. The two together let us run challenger economics that no other entrant can match.
Risks and counter-moves
Three serious failure modes. None of them is fatal. All of them have a planned response.
PetSure joins D2V early
To stay vet-relevant, PetSure could ship a D2V plug-in faster than expected.
PMS vendor blocks integration
A vet practice management system favours an exclusive deal with PetSure or GapOnly and refuses to certify D2V.
Slow insurer sign-up
Challenger insurers wait to see traction before integrating.
Open rails do not have incumbents.
GapOnly is a moat only while it is the only rail. Direct2Vet ends that. We do not need to take vets from PetSure or customers from PetSure. We need to make the rail open. The rest follows.
Artifacts
A site within the site. Embedded HTML artifacts — prototypes, inspirations, experiments — loaded inside this team frame so we can review them without leaving.
How this works
Click any card below to load it into the viewer at the bottom of the page. Each artifact stays inside this site — no tab switching, no email-gateway dramas. Newest at the top.
Today's set is Jo Ferolli's three Dotsure-branded files — our inspiration starting point. When the team's own brand-neutral build emerges, it'll land here too with a Team build tag.
New artifacts are added via the repo, not from here. Got something to add? Ping Tiaan or open a PR.
Team & Files
Who's on the table, what's already been sent to us, and where to drop material we create.
Roster
Click any name or role to edit it inline. Edits persist in your browser.
Curated list of conference material sent to date. Click any item to open the PDF, SharePoint folder, or public URL. Add-to-library functionality is on the roadmap — for now, drop a note in Slack and we'll add it manually.
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