https://www.linkedin.com/in/sanju-sriram/
If you ever meet Sanju Sriram, she might tell you about the time she stayed up all night because a virtual dragon refused to behave. Or how she spent years designing gaming systems that had to keep millions of players entertained and, crucially, online. But what she might not immediately share is how all that led her to a career untangling one of the least glamorous problems in the world: taxes.
Sanju, now the CEO of Simple720, is on a mission to simplify how businesses file excise taxes, a process as beloved as waiting in line at the DMV. It’s not a flashy industry, but if you ask Sanju, it’s where her skills truly shine.
Sanju Sriram
“I spent years building telemetry systems to keep players engaged and online,” she says with a smile. “Turns out, it’s great preparation for helping businesses navigate paperwork they wish didn’t exist.”
From Dragons to Deadlines
Sanju’s career in the gaming industry was a deep dive into some of the most challenging technical landscapes imaginable. She was tasked with optimizing systems that had to handle massive concurrent usage, ensuring they met stringent requirements for scale, performance, and cost efficiency, all without compromising the player experience.
“Gaming systems operate in real time, under immense pressure,” she explains. “Every millisecond of lag or inefficiency can cascade into dissatisfaction, churn, and even system failures. My job was to ensure that never happened, no matter how complex the environment.”
This rigorous approach to problem-solving became her greatest strength when she transitioned into entrepreneurship. At Simple720, Sanju has taken her mastery of building scalable, fault-tolerant systems and applied it to the frustratingly inefficient world of excise tax filings. Her platform turns what was once a cumbersome, hours-long process into a seamless two-minute experience.
“When designing for gaming, you anticipate bottlenecks, eliminate friction, and build for resilience, all while making it feel effortless for the user. I realized the same principles could revolutionize how businesses deal with taxes,” she says.
Sanju Sriram
Playtesting Everything
One of the most humbling lessons Sanju carried from her gaming career is that no product survives its first encounter with real users.
“Players have an uncanny ability to uncover flaws you didn’t even know existed. They’ll try to climb invisible walls, throw objects at random angles, or invent strategies that make you question the laws of physics,” she says. “Customers are no different. They’ll press buttons you didn’t even remember adding and ask questions that make you rethink everything you built.”
For Sanju, these moments aren’t setbacks; they are opportunities to improve. Every strange interaction and unexpected piece of feedback becomes another step toward building a stronger product.
“Simple720 wasn’t perfect when we launched,” she admits. “But if you’re willing to listen, adapt, and keep refining, you get closer to something that truly works. It is a lot like debugging a game, equal parts frustrating and rewarding when it all finally comes together.”
Why Everyone Wants to Be the Hero
Whether designing games or creating tools for taxes, Sanju Sriram has discovered one universal truth: people just want to feel like they’ve won. It doesn’t matter if they’re navigating a challenging level in a virtual world or grappling with a maze of government paperwork, the sense of victory is what keeps them going.
“In games, you give them a treasure chest, a victory screen, or that triumphant sound when they clear a level,” Sanju says. “In taxes, it’s the moment they realize they can finally stop stressing because everything is taken care of.”
This perspective drives Sanju’s approach to building systems, whether for gamers or business owners. Her goal is always to create an experience where the hard work disappears behind the scenes and the user walks away feeling like they’ve accomplished something meaningful.
“People don’t need to see the complexity or struggle,” she explains. “They just want to feel like they’ve conquered the challenge in front of them. Whether it’s slaying a dragon or filing taxes, it’s about crafting that moment of relief and pride.”
Sanju’s philosophy has shaped everything she does, from designing seamless gaming systems to simplifying the notoriously complicated process of tax filing. It’s not just about functionality; it’s about creating systems that empower users to feel like the heroes of their own stories.
Game Loops and Tax Loops: Building Systems That Just Work
For Sanju Sriram, the secret to designing systems that truly work lies in the data they generate, and how that data is used to make smarter decisions over time.
“In gaming, every move a player makes feeds into the system,” she explains. “You’re collecting data in real time to understand what’s working, what’s broken, and what can be improved. That same principle drives Simple720.”
At Simple720, the platform isn’t just a tool for filing taxes. It’s a system that learns from every user interaction. By analyzing patterns, identifying bottlenecks, and predicting potential errors, Sanju has created a platform that becomes more intelligent with every filing.
“Data is the backbone of optimization,” she says. “In gaming, you use it to balance levels, fix exploits, and keep players engaged. In taxes, we use it to refine workflows, anticipate IRS rejections, and reduce user effort.”
One of the most groundbreaking aspects of Simple720 is its predictive capability. By leveraging historical filings and IRS trends, the system can flag potential issues before users even notice them.
“We’re not just reacting to problems,” Sanju says. “We’re building a system that can predict them and guide users to avoid them entirely. It’s like creating an AI dungeon master in a game. It knows the challenges ahead and subtly nudges you toward the right path.”
This focus on proactive design ensures that users aren’t just completing tasks; they’re doing it with confidence, speed, and clarity. Whether it’s a gamer avoiding a trap or a business avoiding a tax penalty, the goal is the same: empower the user to succeed without worrying about the mechanics underneath.
Why It Matters
Sanju’s work may lack the spectacle of a video game boss fight, but it is rooted in the same core principles: design systems that empower users, simplify the complex, and never lose sight of the human experience.
“I didn’t grow up dreaming of simplifying tax filings,” she says with a laugh. “But solving puzzles, building systems, and making life easier for people? That’s always been my thing. Taxes just turned out to be the ultimate level-up challenge.”
It is this mix of curiosity, humility, and a gamer’s relentless drive to overcome the impossible that makes Sanju stand out. She doesn’t just build tools; she builds trust, turning daunting processes into moments of clarity and relief.
Sanju’s journey from debugging dragons to decoding the IRS is a testament to the power of adaptability and innovation. By bringing the precision of a systems architect and the playfulness of a gamer to the world of taxes, she is proving that even the most unglamorous problems can be tackled with creativity and heart.
“Solving a problem, whether it’s in a game or in real life, is always satisfying,” she says. “And knowing that what you’ve built genuinely helps people? That’s the real win.”
With her unique blend of expertise, humor, and human-centered design, Sanju is redefining what it means to solve big problems, one tax filing at a time.
