11 Burning Questions for Insurance Tech Providers in 2012

Insurance & Technology, one of our favorite publications for insurance and risk management tech news and updates, published an article in early December that we hope everyone read titled, “11 Burning Insurance Industry Questions That Will be Answered in 2012”. It’s relevant to everyone from carrier to insurance consumer, including all the vendors, agents, TPAs, and tech providers in between. We couldn’t help but post a quick summary of main points from the article for those of you that missed it, along with some questions us technology providers should be asking ourselves this year.

1. Which Core System Replacement Strategy Will Emerge?

Insurance & Technology explained:
As companies modernize to utilize the most efficient technology available, their options include full enterprise systems, best-of-breed solutions, and now best-of-breed suites as solutions providers partner up and add to their capabilities offerings. Carriers are also weighing the options of building solutions in-house, to incorporate internal systems that would be hard to simply sweep out.

Where do we come in?
Solutions providers have to be evaluating the services they provide and asking themselves if they should be expanding, specializing, and/or making integration of their product with other providers and systems easier. We need to be asking ourselves, ‘What is the optimal amount of capabilities we can provide our clients while still sticking to what we do best?’

2. What's Next for Mobile App Development?

Insurance & Technology explained:
For both outward-facing customer interaction, and inward-facing employee and producer management, mobile platforms can help achieve efficiencies and communications once tied to a desktop or computer. Many insurance companies will start 2012 by separating the hype from the ROI in mobile app development, determining which platforms and devices they should focus on most, and exploring alternatives to application development such as more mobile-friendly sites and online portals.

Where do we come in?
We should be asking ourselves many questions: Do we have an app for that? Do our customers want one? Can we be using our IT expertise to not only develop mobile applications based off of our software but to answer other industry needs? What platforms/devices are our clients using?

3. Is 'Bring Your Own Device' the New Standard?

Insurance & Technology explained:
Figuring out how to support personal tablets and devices being used in the office for work purposes and managing the risk involved will be a headache but also an opportunity for companies in 2012. The collaboration opportunities significantly increase as employees become more mobile, available, and technologically savvy, so finding ways to allow them to use those devices they prefer could greatly improve productivity.

Where do we come in?
Again, we have to explore what mobile capabilities we can provide and accommodate to incorporate personal devices into our system. We have to know all the points through which our system is accessed and be able to assure accuracy and security at all times.

4. How Will Social Media Be Used Beyond Marketing?

Insurance & Technology explained:
“Recent SMA research indicates that 24 percent of insurance companies are evaluating using social data in claims and 26 percent are evaluating it for underwriting.” While still not a huge percentage, think about the implications of actually doing so. How would candidness in social media be affected? How would companies incorporate such data mining into their equations and reports and not lose customers? But with such an abundance of data available there, it’s hard to fathom just ignoring it.

Where do we come in?
Solutions providers in such areas should be contemplating what their solution would look like with social media data incorporated. If such capabilities actually come into demand, can you supply? We need to be contemplating any and all avenues social media could affect our product and our clients, from marketing, sales, and relationship management, to employee, policy, and data integration.

5. Will Usage-Based Insurance Finally Take Hold?

Insurance & Technology explained:
“This year, while Progressive rolled out its Snapshot program in all 50 states, other major carriers -- including Allstate and State Farm -- launched their own versions of usage-based offerings.” But how will these programs fare? How will this change data and customer management or will it fade out by the end of the year? Many solutions act as middleman to TPAs and brokers and carriers, but how will such direct coverage administration affect those relationships?

Where do we come in?
A change in contract approaches means an even bigger change in data collection and organization. Solutions providers will also face big obstacles in ensuring the security of direct data input from customers on the go as opposed to claims administrators working from secured offices.

6. How Will 2011's Catastrophes Change Insurers' Strategies?

Insurance & Technology explained:
2011 is now the poster child for insurance losses. “The ISO, PCI and I.I.I. reported last month that insured losses in the first half of 2011 nearly tripled from 2010 -- and that didn't even count Hurricane Irene or the rash of mid-fall snowstorms and tornadoes.” Insurers need to be taking their own and others’ losses to heart and developing future strategies and predictions based off of statistics and analyses of all the catastrophes and resulting losses in 2011.

Where do we come in?
Solutions providers should constantly be adapting their technology to reflect the most current data - any solution that hasn’t been updated now to handle the catastrophes that occurred in 2011 is obsolete. In addition, When huge gaps are exposed in coverage, there may also be huge opportunities available in new solutions and technology. How can smarter technology hedge against such losses?

7. What Does 'Big Data' Demand From IT?

Insurance & Technology explained:
"Cheaper, faster hardware and more advanced data query and management tools are making it possible to actually work with much larger data sets that eliminate the need for estimation and aggregation." Inevitable cliche: with big data, comes big responsibility. The companies who can wrap their head and hands around all the available data and mine, organize, and utilize it most efficiently for policy admin, predictive modeling, customer relationship management, and all else will be at the top of the heap.

Where do we come in?
Unless companies are going to move from providing insurance coverage to providing IT services, then it will probably us, the solutions providers, working to prove this “Big Data” can be contained and that we can do something with it. Where will it come from? How do we obtain it? How do we encrypt it? How do we help our clients use it? We’re working on some large data aggregation projects right now that have forced us to answer these questions on a case-by-case basis, especially stressing the importance of securing the networks, applications and databases that wrap around these mega-data stores.

8. Will Healthcare Reform Survive the Year?

Insurance & Technology explained:
The 2012 national elections will determine the fate of healthcare reform and the future of health insurance. In addition, Washington DC’s measures (or lack thereof) to cut the deficit will have a big impact on funding for programs like Medicaid and Medicare. Insurers will undoubtedly have to adjust their offerings accordingly.

Where do we come in?
Wait and see, but prepare for any regulatory requirements and or funding changes that need to be incorporated into any and all contracts, processes, and technology. Know which changes in laws and regulation apply to us as well as our clients, because it’s very possible we’ll be responsible for both once we’re invested in the client’s processes.

9. How Will IT and Marketing Roles Merge?

Insurance & Technology explained:
As an insurance company’s network, including employees, policy holders and prospects, become more and more reliant on technology, who that medium should be managed by is a growing question - the sales, support, marketing or IT team? A combination? What would that look like and how do exchanges not get lost in the web? Marketing and communications must depend on IT for the infrastructure and analysis to build and implement strategy, but IT also needs interpreted market data and direction to build the necessary systems.

Where do we come in?
How can or should our solutions aid across departments for the clients we serve? We have to be prepared to work with members of different teams, we may not report solely to IT managers if marketing and communications departments will need access to data tied up in our solutions. Knowing and accommodating the operational structure of the companies we serve will make it easier for us to do so successfully. Technology is designed to absorb the shock of changes caused in evolving organizations, not complicate them.

10. How Will the Insurance Technology Landscape Change After This Year's M&As?

Insurance & Technology explained:
“Through 2011 the insurance technology market saw some significant mergers and acquisitions, including Mphasis' (Bangalore) acquisition of Wyde (Eagan, Minn.); Accenture's (New York) acquisition of Duck Creek (Bolivar, Mo.); and the merger of Sapiens (Rehovot, Israel), FIS (Cardiff, Wales) and IDIT (Beit Dagan, Israel).” Predictions also note that independent software providers may get picked up by larger services firms, in an effort to consolidate best-of-breed solutions into “componentized suites.”

Where do we come in?
Many solutions providers will be approached by complimentary solutions or service firms looking for vendors. Knowing how we can best serve our clients and prospects and whether partnerships and consolidations will further that cause will be of utmost importance - though we should always be discussing our services with clients and finding out how they can be focused, expanded, or integrated with others to be of most use.

11. Will Insurers Remember Agents In Their Push to Improve the Customer Experience?

Insurance & Technology explained:
Agents already take the front-line in customer interaction, but as the customer’s preference for online interaction grows, so should the agents’ involvement in the development of those environments they operate in. Agents are the face of the portal and system customers interact with, it’s only fair that the face they are given is made up well and something that helps them do their job well.

Where do we come in?
We will ultimately be the enablers, empowering agents and working with everyone from carrier to agent to design the most efficient solutions for all involved. Knowing everyone from administrator to end-user is essential to developing a solution that not only enables but supports.

 **Note: All statements in quotations are from the original Insurance&Technology article.**

Version 2.1 | SmartCompliance

• CERTIFICATES: When issuing certificates, the system will still notify you if the certificate is a duplicate but will give you the option to override and contine issuing.
• CERTIFICATES: A drop down menu of Additional Remarks libraries has been added for the user to choose from when issuing a certificate.
• CERTIFICATES: When issuing certificates, "Reason" will be pre-populated with that of the previously issued certificate and the date will automatically be show today's date.
• COMMUNICATIONS: When sending communications, the "Next" button has been moved to the top right of the window and when clicked will pre-populate the next communication with the From and Template information from the previous communication.
• COMMUNICATIONS: The subject of communications will now autofill with the "[Name of the holder] - COI"
• DUPLICATES: When duplicate certificates are searched for and found, the user can now Add New Holder from the same screen, and the search information will be automatically inputed in the Add New Holder form for review, addition, and issuing a certificate all in one step.

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