As technology continues to evolve and reshape the sector, underwriting processes are undergoing rapid changes.
A panel discussion last week, hosted by Send and partnered with ACORD and moderated by industry advisor Tony Tarquini, delved into the various dimensions of this digital transformation, highlighting its challenges, opportunities, and strategies to adapt successfully to the future of underwriting.
It is without doubt that the commercial underwriting landscape is dynamic and going through transformation. Director – Insurance Transformation at Deloitte, Veronika Field, Co-Founder and CEO of Send, Andy Moss, and VP – Business Development at ACORD, Mark Bennett made thought-provoking comments on how, as an industry, we can understand and grasp the technological change.
Evolving market
Veronika started the session off by explaining how the market is evolving with changing market conditions, emerging risks, and customer expectations. As the world becomes increasingly digitally advanced, customers expect a faster and more reliable service, as a foundation with more and more looking to insurers for value-add services and a move from the “repair and replace” model to a “predict and prevent” model.
Veronika stressed that insurers must understand their clients better to tailor products and add-on selection to differentiate themselves in the market and build strong, long-term customer relationships.
Andy continued Veronika’s point on innovation by stating how there needs to be a shift in focus within the market from post-bind to pre-bind. He highlighted how there has been a boost in investment in technology for post-bind, but now it’s time to target pre-bind.
There is an abundance of data now, compared to a few years ago, which can allow underwriters to assess potential risks more easily before policyholders go on cover.
“Adoption of digital automation within the specialty and reinsurance market has been dominantly focused on Accounting and Claims and not Pre-Bind. Technology is no longer the barrier to leveraging digital automation in pre-bind, and there are some excellent case studies in the market to show its successes. It is the right time to be focused on how automating pre-bind can drive your own competitive position and innovative” – Mark Bennett
Emerging technology
As the market faces technological advancement, it is important to not get ‘FOMO’ (fear of missing out) and chase the trends. It is vital to keep up to date with the latest technology and how it is positively changing the industry, but it’s equally vital to not rush your investments.
Mark stated that before implementing new technology such as an underwriting workbench, people need to carefully consider why they want one in the first place. Additionally, Mark noted the importance of adopting the right tech with the right partners.
Questions to think about when adopting new technology, highlighted by the speakers, included: Is your business ready and able to adopt new tech? What has been learnt from previous implementations? Why are you implementing an underwriting workbench solution? What is it that makes your company function? What are the goals and expectations?
“Businesses want to achieve excellence, a good combined operating ratio and growth” -Veronika Field
Emerging technology is reshaping underwriting processes, so to integrate tech into your business means change. It converts manual processing into automated processing, so what underwriters do now, a big chunk of it will be automated.
It takes time to integrate a system into your company, so take time to check your business’ readiness.
“Businesses need to navigate sensitively the changing protocols of how people work as the cultural impact of any digital innovation is the largest barrier of them all” – Mark Bennett
An innovative world
The main takeaway from the discussion is in its title, Prepare for the Future of Underwriting. It’s important not to jump ahead and adopt the latest technology without understanding the impacts it will have on your business. The world has become more innovative and technologically advanced, so preparation is key.
There’s no doubt, innovation is key to stand against competitors. Adopting technology is the way forward but with sensibility. Take into consideration the points made in this overview and figure out what technology will impact your business for the better. And by doing so investing in pre-bind can be as valuable as investing in post-bind.
If you missed this insightful panel discussion and would like to learn more, please contact Send for a recording.