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Welcome to eNews!
Welcome to the October 7th edition of Tech
Decisions' eNews! Every two weeks we bring you the latest essential
information for technology and business decision-makers at insurance
organizations. If you're a CEO, CIO, CTO, or think you ought to be one, this is
the place to get the information you need--from key developments relating to
critical industry solutions providers to news briefs from the carrier front as
well as highlights from the current issue of Tech Decisions magazine. As
a publication of The National Underwriter Company, Tech Decisions is a
part of more than 100 years of expertise in insurance publishing,
information, and communication.
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As insurance companies face growing regulations for
the information they maintain on their products and services, improving time to
market is a top concern, according to Open Text Corporation, a provider of
enterprise content management (ECM) software. With this in mind, Open Text and
InSystems Corporation, a specialist in document and compliance automation for
insurance and financial services companies, will extend their eight-year
partnership to focus on delivering solutions that improve document processes
and regulatory compliance for insurance and financial services companies.
For more on how this joint initiative helps manage Web pages,
ERP content, e-mail, and Word documents in accordance with specialized industry
requirements, click here.
An affiliate of Investcorp, the global investment
group, has purchased CCC Information Services Group Inc., a supplier of
advanced software, communications systems, and Internet and wireless-enabled
technology solutions to the automotive claims and collision repair industries.
The equity value of the transaction is approximately $495 million.
Click here for more on the terms of the agreement, including the
share price stockholders will receive.
“All of us in the industry recognized there was a
common problem plaguing most insurance companies—the need to create and
maintain their own unique forms. And with both internal and regulatory changes
coming faster than ever, they were left with stockpiles of obsolete paper,”
says ACORD. To deal with these challenges, ACORD announced the release of 105
standardized life and annuity forms available through the Internet.
For more on the forms release and which carriers already have
become part of the program, click here.
Technology Consultants, Inc. (TCi), a provider of
benchmarking and advisory services to the insurance industry that has operated
under the TCi Consulting & Research banner, has found a new home with
Deloitte Consulting’s Insurance Practice. “At Deloitte Consulting, we have long
admired the extensive experience, depth of knowledge, and objectivity of TCi.
TCi’s core people and assets are an excellent fit with—and an important
addition to—Deloitte Consulting’s insurance practice,” says Deloitte.
Click here for more on staffing issues, current offerings, and
future product development.
“The growth in recent years in U.S. worksite
marketing has put pressure on existing systems to keep pace in a cost-effective
manner,” says SunGard. As a result, SunGard has made its comprehensive benefit
administration support system, COMPASS Worksite, available for enrollment and
management of group products sold through worksite marketing.
For more on the solution’s functionality and benefits, click
here.
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Quick Stat
Spending Priorities
After speaking with
insurance IT leaders, Forrester Research reports support of regulatory change
is uppermost in their objectives for the industry over the next 12 months,
barely outpacing reduction of IT costs—specifically, 80 percent vs. 78 percent
of those surveyed.
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Features & Columns
Feature
Piece by Piece
by Robert Regis Hyle
Carriers increasingly are connecting disparate business
processes that take place over and over—assembling them into a single, coherent
entity and user experience. Utilizing business process management, workflow,
business rules, and other processes become repeatable throughout the
enterprise, enabling carriers to contain costs and become more profitable.
For more on the truth beyond the hype regarding business
process management systems, click here.
Feature
Coming Up to Speed
by Michael P. Voelker
Insurers’ legacy systems have struggled to keep up with
customers’ changing expectations and market pressures. But rather than pulling
the plug, insurers have taken a number of approaches to supporting process
automation with in-place technologies.
Click here for more on whether process-savvy legacy systems can
be considered a viable option or a contradiction in terms.
Feature
Katrina Aftermath: Pan-American Life Down but Not Out
by Robert Regis Hyle
Hurricane Katrina tested the resiliency of New Orleans-based
Pan-American Life Insurance, but both the carrier’s systems and people were
well up to the challenge.
For more on one insurer’s tale of survival, click here.
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