Going Digital

The journey requires an outside-in view (prioritizing customers) and an inside-out view (prioritizing operational optimization).

To get on a path toward digital prominence, insurers need a strategy that ties legacy systems into future-proof distribution.

Insurance is stuck with legacy technology, built for legacy processes, operated by a legacy mindset. Each problem must be corrected.

Last week's announcement by A.M. Best that it will assess and score insurance companies on their ability to innovate means that incumbents either have to build robust capabilities or suffer consequences

The industry recently perked up its ears and started investing in technologies that other industries have leveraged for years. Why now?

Many are daunted by accounts of digital initiatives gone awry and, conversely, by the winner-takes-all nature of tech-driven industries.

Incumbents are likened to oil tankers, which change direction slowly. The goal is to be a speedboat, but that's unrealistic. What about being an aircraft carrier, which turns slowly -- but can launch fighter jets?

It's become clear that the lowest common denominator is the core system, most notably for policy admin and quote and buy.