This bootstrapped data platform has been profitable for six years without a cent of VC funding. But the real story isn't about the company—it's about the people who built it. After 10 episodes of conversations with the team at Human Managed, we learned not just how to build resilient security operations, but also how to build meaningful careers in tech without following a straight line.
1. The Degree That Got You Here Won’t Define Where You Go
From aerospace engineering to Kubernetes administrator. From linguistics PhD to design ops lead. From physics major to front-end engineer.
The career paths inside Human Managed aren’t just unconventional — they’re a feature, not a bug.
As Wei Xiong Lee, now a cloud architect, put it: “Your diploma at 18 doesn’t define your career at 28.” His path was paved by two hours of nightly self-study, certifications earned on the side, and the willingness to adapt.
That theme repeats across the team: diverse backgrounds became competitive advantages. Different ways of thinking — systems from physics, language patterns from linguistics, precision from aerospace — enriched how they built, designed, and solved problems.
Takeaway for enterprises: skills can be taught. Attitude, initiative, and perspective are harder to find. Hire for curiosity and ownership, not just credentials.
2. Data Without Context Is Just Noise
Every enterprise collects more data than it knows what to do with. The real challengeisn’t storage — it’s meaning.
HM Philippines President, David Medallo put it plainly: “You still have to tie it back to what the business needs. You have to tie it back to what problems you are solving.”
This insight hit home for regulated industries like finance and healthcare, where compliance gaps often come from data mismatches. Dashboards may look complete, but what’s captured in the system doesn’t always match reality.
Takeaway for security leaders: measure ROI not by how much data you collect, but by how effectively that data answers critical business questions.
3. AI Won’t Replace You — But Colleagues Who Use It Might
AI showed up in almost every episode, but not in the way you expect.
Chief Engineer Jesum Yip was clear: “AI is a tool that needs to be guided by humans to produce the best results.”
Adam Spiers, our Lead AI Engineer, built a framework he calls Human Learning Through Machine Learning (HLTML) — a reminder that the goal isn’t replacement, but amplification.
Across the team, the advice echoed:
- “The person who uses AI won’t be replaced. The person who doesn’t will be,” said Tawqeer Bhat, DevSecOps trainee.
- “AI can feel like a team of 50 — but you still have to validate every output,” added Clarisse Medallo, Head of Design Ops.
- “Don’t spend months learning tools. Learn in a week and move forward,” advised AI Engineer Abdul Jaweed.
Takeaway for professionals: the advantage isn’t in mastering one tool — it’s in continuously adapting to new ones while keeping your fundamentals sharp.
4. Build Systems Like Lego, Not Monuments
Technology stacks grow old fast. The difference between adaptable and obsolete often comes down to architecture.
Jesum explained their design principle: “Think Lego blocks. The ones from 30 years ago still work with the blocks today.”
That modular, composable approach has saved Human Managed from costly rewrites, while enabling them to adopt new technologies quickly. Combined with a multi-cloud strategy (AWS, Azure, and GCP), the company avoided vendor lock-in and gained resilience.
Takeaway for CTOs: invest in platforms that evolve without forcing reinvention. Backward compatibility isn’tjust good engineering — it’s good economics.
5. Culture Is the Real Multiplier
You can buy tools. You can’t buy initiative.
Grace Salazar, our Community Ops Officer, summed it up: “Skills can be developed, but attitude is hard.”
Human Managed runs distributed teams across Singapore, Manila, and India, blending graduates, interns, and experienced experts. The flat structure means interns can challenge senior engineers — and sometimes they’re right. That dynamic fuels innovation faster than hierarchy ever could.
Takeaway for business leaders: the best defense isn’t just technology, but a culture of ownership where people feel empowered to act.
6. Bootstrapping Forces Better Decisions
Finally, there’s the matter of money. That is tied to value generated, not borrowed. In an industry where startups raise millions before shipping a product, Human Managed chose to stay bootstrapped. “We want to stay debt free,” explained Director of Operations Roshanara Basheerudin. Every dollar had to be tied to customer value — not vanity metrics.
That constraint became a discipline: build modular, stay multi-cloud, prioritize explainability, and keep customers at the center.
Takeaway for founders: constraints sharpen focus. And for enterprises choosing vendors, profitability is often a better signal of resilience than investor decks.
Final Thoughts: Technology Is Still Human-Centered
The most striking theme across our Humans in the Loop series wasn’t about data pipelines, AI models, or cloud strategies. It was about people.
Whether it was fraud detection models that highlight anomalies but rely on humans to interpret them, or engineers rewriting code eight times to get it right, the pattern was clear: technology scales what people imagine, but it doesn’t replace their judgment.
That’s why “Humans in the Loop” wasn’t just a series title. It was the philosophy that’s kept our bootstrapped company profitable while venture-backed peers stumbled.
For enterprises, the lessons are straightforward:
- Collect data with intent
- Use AI to empower, not replace
- Build adaptable systems
- Invest in culture
- Spend like every dollar is your own
Because the future of cybersecurity won’t belong to those with the biggest budgets. It will belong to those who put humans — their judgment, creativity, and initiative — at the center.
👉 What challenges has your organization faced in balancing security investments with measurable business outcomes? Watch all 10 episodes of Humans in the Loop to hear these stories firsthand.