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Santa Barbara, California – August 03, 2020 – When we talk about emerging technology tools in the insurance industry, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning are frequently the first words that come to mind. But the technology having the biggest impact on insurance today is probably Robotic Processing Automation (RPA), says Michael DeGusta, CEO of ClarionDoor.
Chances are you have been involved in an insurance technology implementation at some point in your career. Whether you have ripped and replaced a core system, installed a new rating engine, or even just upgraded existing systems, there is a good chance you have had to deal with situations like the one in Doorway episode 6.
The real dilemma here is that the solution provider is on the hook to deliver their system, and customer priorities and needs can change throughout the implementation. It is not necessarily a bad thing, but does expose some fundamental issues with insurance technology implementations – that is if the technology being implemented is the wrong tech.
While many insurance solution providers claim their software is flexible and configurable, the reality is that most are not. Configurability tends to be masked with custom coding that ends up being unique for each implementation. The result is that the software is so intertwined that any change on something previously delivered has a domino effect on everything else. Even the smallest change can have the largest impact and disrupt the entire implementation – extending the project lifecycle and increasing cost.
In order for technology to be flexible, it needs to be hyper-configurable – meaning the user has complete control over the implementation where they can make changes as needed without the risk of crashing the entire system.
Technology flexibility is undoubtedly the greatest impact to any implementation; however, the process or methodology being used is also a major factor. While Agile approaches are widely adopted throughout the insurance industry, the reality is that it is not a perfect process. It promotes flexibility, fast deliveries, and instant feedback, but just because you are doing an Agile project does not mean it will be successful.
The problem is that Agile is not always flexible.
Agile still has dependencies and every sprint builds upon previous deliveries. Any requested changes are pushed to future sprints in order to keep the flow of the project, and if subsequent sprints rely on previous deliveries, the whole model could collapse. Combine this reality with technology inflexibility and you have a perfect recipe for a failing project.
It’s a known fact that customer requirements and priorities will change throughout the project. What the customer initially thought they needed or wanted can change as more functionality is delivered. This is does not mean that the client doesn’t know what they want, but realize new opportunities as features become available. For many organizations, this could result in a complete overhaul of business processes, or underwriting procedures, and so on. Many pre-implementation decisions are based on initial product demos which tend to only scratch the surface of most insurance software. It is not feasible to understand every feature before starting an implementation, but the customer (and vendor) need to be flexible to adapt when necessary.
The major difference with ClarionDoor is our technology. We designed our software as a no/code solution with the utmost flexibility and configurability which means that you can make changes throughout an implementation without disrupting prior and future deliverables. Our software was designed with you in mind, ensuring that every customer can control and manage their insurance products with ease and without the need for exhausting implementations.
With implementation times that far exceed the industry norms, we have employed a process that actually gets clients live in weeks, liberating you to focus on innovation rather than implementation. So, if you need to change something, you won’t have to worry about crashing the implementation.
Learn more at clariondoor.com and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn for the latest ClarionDoor updates.
Implementation projects in the insurance industry are notorious for taking forever for most solution providers. Some projects are known to take upwards of a decade and cost insurance companies millions of dollars. Ironically, those projects tend to be from solution providers who boast that they use Agile processes in all of their projects. If that is the case, then why do those projects take so long?
Before Agile was introduced twenty years ago, the industry really had one approach – waterfall. There were others available, but waterfall was the most common and widely accepted. Back then, it was somewhat understandable why projects took so long. For one, the waterfall process is slow, long, and tedious, but loaded with checks and balances. Secondly, the technology back then was not as efficient as compared to today’s standards.
But Agile was supposed to fix all of that with the promise of delivering functional software to the client early and deal with changes in future deliverables.
The reality is that many industry solutions are not designed to deliver functional software early to clients.
And this is where the “agile-concept” fails. When software projects take a decade to implement, something is definitely wrong, and there is no process or methodology that can fix that. It is a pure technology and architecture problem.
Don’t believe us? Some major industry solution providers have implementation timelines upwards of 80,000 hours. One in particular is known to take anywhere from 5 to 10 years to implement. And they all claim to be “agile.”
At ClarionDoor, we never get distracted with process buzzwords that may sound good during a kickoff meeting. Instead, we focus on processes that actually get clients live. Backed by zero failed projects and always delivering on time and on budget, the ClarionDoor approach beats the industry norms getting clients live in weeks!
In our experience, we have found that implementation buzzwords might sound good, but they don’t always get you live. Just because a project is “agile” does not automatically mean it will succeed. As a matter of fact, core system implementations are notorious for running over budget and schedule despite their use of Agile methodologies. In the end, it shouldn’t really matter what process or methodology you use, but understanding what it takes to get live.
At ClarionDoor, we use sensible approaches that actually get clients live in weeks, enabling them to focus on innovation rather than implementation.
Our process is simple – deliver fast, deliver quality, deliver value. Backed by zero failed projects, go live times that far beat the industry norms, and 100% referenceable clients.
Learn more at clariondoor.com and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn for the latest ClarionDoor updates.
Digital Insurance Connect – September 22, 2020 – You just may have heard the term before: Change Management. It’s technology, it’s people, it’s process — and it’s imperative. Whether you’re at a large carrier that’s been around for 200 years or a smaller, digital born Insurtech experiencing rapid change fatigue, there can be a huge resistance to change, even though it’s in the customer’s best interest (*and therefore yours). How do you get people to adapt to the digital revolution when it may not be apparent where they fit? How do you foster a culture of agility and speed in order to win long term?
Santa Barbara, CA – July 2, 2019 – Harnessing the Opportunities of Insurance Innovation
General insurance companies today face rapidly increasing demands both externally and internally. Externally, customers and agents alike expect a purchase process that used to be slow and complicated to now be fast and easy. Internally, there’s pressure to implement ever more sophisticated risk pricing and eligibility screening, augmenting the basic rate tables and human judgement of the past.
Believe it or not, there used to be a time where “standard” insurance never existed. In the early years, and according to today’s criteria, every risk would have been classified as Excess and Surplus (E&S). Today, E&S lines continue to play an important role in the insurance market.
Santa Barbara, California — March 23, 2021 — ClarionDoor, provider of the most intelligent insurance product distribution software, is pleased to announce that the company has been selected by a major Pennsylvania-based insurer to optimize their cannabis program.
Santa Barbara, CA – June 19, 2019 – The Value of Digital Distribution
Digital distribution is one of the major challenges facing insurers today as more insurers are relying on distribution partnerships to stay competitive. See digital distribution come to life from ClarionDoor’s demo at DigIn 2019.
It seems like forever since we have all had the chance to meet in person at an insurance industry event. Fortunately, the much anticipated in-person events appear to be coming very soon. Here are some key in-person events where you will have the chance to meet the amazing ClarionDoor team:
Santa Barbara, CA – May 9, 2019 – Why Insurers Choose ClarionDoor
With so many different technology solutions in the insurance industry today, differentiating yourself from the competition can always be a challenge. See how ClarionDoor is leading the pack and why many insurers are choosing ClarionDoor for their innovative solutions to insurance distribution.
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