Technology is playing an ever increasing role in the insurance market. While there may well be those who describe the subscription market as having changed little in 300 years the processes behind it are unrecognisable from what they would have been two decades ago. But with the march of new technology has come new systems and new products so what do the IT managers of the brokers and insurers need to remember in order to ensure that their firms remain ahead of the technology?
The first consideration of any IT director or manager has to be that before you start to look for the product or your external partners you have to know what you have already and what you specifically need. The good IT manager does all the internal work before they start to look at the products externally. You have to ask yourself at the start of the process, exactly what it is you need to address. By understanding the need, be it systems to meet new legislation or a realisation that your workflow could and should be improved you cannot engage with external parties.
An area which is ignored by many is the legacy issue. What tools and skills does your company already possess and how can they be brought into what you are hoping to achieve.
Once you have a good understanding of what you need and what you have then is the time to consider the other drivers, the timescale and the budget. Ask yourself when you want to have addressed the issue and how much you are prepared to pay to do so.
Once the internal issues have been solved and the questions answered you should take a two tier look at the external market. You need to know who has successfully delivered what you want and who has the technology that you want? It might seem odd but the two are not necessarily the same companies. Often they have to be considered in isolation.
It is at this point that the less astute IT managers may take the “soft” approach. They will simply work with “someone they know” thinking it is an easy and quick win or they will simply look to acquire what they consider to be best of breed. Best of breed does not always work, because best of breed may well be a system or a firm which is used to working on contracts with very large organisations rather than those that are predominantly found in the London Insurance Market.
The market is a specialist one and high profile systems may not fit with what you want. If you are an IT manager which is happy or determined to spend a great deal of money on a high profile system then it might be the case that you get the system and then spend more money to try to make it fit with the ones you already have.
Ask yourself just how well the new system will be able to fit with your existing legacy system? The 'language' barrier is an important consideration. Ensure that the system will speak the 'language' that enables you to communicate with existing systems and those of your clients and your contacts. A system which does not enable the smooth transfer of information is not a system to choose.
In this market standards are key; will the system enable you to adhere and adopt standards such as ACORD or the needs of the market and the FSA?
How easy is the system to use? As IT manger you may well be aware of the how to work the system, but just how easy is it for the staff which will need to use it day in day out?
How easy is it to add and remove products and services from your system, In a market such as insurance the changing nature of risks and the products which cover them, any system must include the flexibility to enable you to make changes quickly and easily.
When it comes to a partner company support is everything. Ensure the company has the staff which can install and integrate the system and offer the ongoing support to ensure that going forwards the system will support internal and external business change. Make sure you are confident that when you get to the stage where changes need to be made that the firm you are working with are responsive to your needs.
Just how important is your business to your partner? The bigger the firm the further down the pecking order you may be depending on your own size. Make sure that you are comfortable that your provider has you as a key client and will ensure that when you require support it is there quickly and has the ability to deliver that promised support.
Once the system has been chosen and integrated the biggest threat to success is the reluctance of staff to realise its benefits. It has long been the case in this market that the pace of technology has been slowed by the refusal of some to adopt the systems in their day to day business. As an IT Manager you will need management buy in from day one and to be able to articulate the benefits to your organisation so that all stakeholders understand the need. Remember, that adoption of new systems can often change areas of impact of the workload, so understanding why is essential. Once they see the specific benefit to them they will be far more accepting of the system.