Imagine you are preparing for the 2020 Summer Olympics. It will be a major challenge to get through to the finals of the Digital Claims Transformation Relay. And then there is is only room for three on the winner's podium. 4th and below will be forgotten by most of the population when they come to renew insurance so they had better get the best experience ever when they make a claim to stay a customer.

To win does not involve tactical excellence but a complete vision, strategy and tactical execution. How do insurers rank when it comes to the Digital Transformation Olympics?

Too often they focus on fads and hyped solutions when they should be tackling the big picture. Take AI.

I am constantly surprised by insurers asking for discrete, tactical AI solutions which are not part of a vision, strategy and tactical plan. It's almost as if the C-Suite demands that AI be a priority as 85% of other insurers state this to be a technology priority.

As always you must know why should we deploy AI and you can only ask that if you have the vision and strategy to ensure that you are one of the five to six insurers that will win the lion's share of net premiums in each market and each sector. Follow the link to see why that is a critical success factor.

Below are laudable aims but limited in scope.

  • AI powered Total Loss and Damage Repair Solutions
  • Fraud identification and prevention
  • Personal Injury Analyser
  • Straight through Processing (STP) FNOL and settlement

Simple claims are often predictable and it behoves the insurer to settle fast, settle accurately and settle cost-effectively. But customers also want the personal touch.

A decision in 5 minutes that the car is a total loss, the value $4,250 and it will be in your account by 17.00 today sounds fantastic but also sounds, well "automatic". "That was my pride and joy, my kids grew up being transported to activities every day and on vacation every year. Have you really thought about this?"

And a large proportion of claims are more complex- even in just General Insurance. Multiple vehicle accidents, personal injury, disputed liability, property subsidence and CAT events to name a few.

Customers need the optimal choice of self-service and human support and empathy. That requires the optimal blend of technology and human intuition and knowledge/skills. Augmented Intelligence.

We are undoubtedly moving towards a symbiosis of man and machine, but a symbiosis where the human aspect is equally central to success.

That must be achieved as part of an enterprise vision, strategy and plan that puts the insurer on the front foot for leadership. The technology is the easy part in many ways. It should be a platform that will help deliver the vision that delights customers and collapses costs.

It will include AI powered projects but it cannot until the insurer can access and analyse the raw data that lies all too often in raw, unstructured format in data silos and legacy core systems. Until you can access and manage ALL the data inside and outside the enterprise you are too immature to exploit AI fully.

Which comes back to knowing why you need AI, how to exploit it and how to train people to take a much higher level of decision-making when the dull repetitive decisions are automated. 

Make sure that the technology partners you choose deliver a digital platform that scales to deliver the vision and strategy and integrates the world class specialist technology that are vital components of success e.g. AI