Issue 2006-42: October 17, 2006

eBusiness and Technology

Newlink Group: Faster Process Improvements through Industry Frameworks.
Over the last years, the industry has been witnessing an increase in business and IT strategic projects. Several companies in the financial industry are currently selecting or implementing new technology to replace or improve their existing systems. This trend is happening in all lines of business: P&C, Life, Banking, Credit Unions etc...

Information Builders Continues Its Market Leadership and Innovation With Enhancements to Portable Business Intelligence Offering.
New York, NY - September 28, 2006 - Information Builders, the enterprise business intelligence (BI) standard of choice for organizations around the world, today announced new enhancements to the company's Active Reports that improve the performance of its portable BI solution. In addition, the company announced it has completed the first half of 2006 with a number of other industry-leading innovations.

Salaries For Top E-Business Executives Lag Those of Their Counterparts Outside of Asset Management, Says kasina.
NEW YORK, September 25, 2006 - The growth in the compensation of e-Business teams within the asset management industry has not kept pace with their expanding role in supporting firms' marketing and distribution objectives, according to a new report from kasina, a leading consultant to the asset management industry.

Policy and Product Management

CAA Insurance Company (Ontario) chooses Integrated Technology Solution from Tritech.
October 3, 2006 (Toronto) - CAA Insurance Company (Ontario) has chosen a leading-edge Enterprise P&C solution from Tritech Financial Systems Inc. for their Personal Auto and Homeowners portfolio. Tritech's General Insurance Management System (GIMS) is a modular client-based solution that automates and streamlines all key functions of a P&C company, such as Policy underwriting, Claims management, Reinsurance, 3rd party interfaces, Agent Portals, Management reporting, Document issuance and Financial reporting.

Claims

Automated Benefits Reaches Milestone of 3,500 Individual Users of the Symbility Mobile Claims™ System.
WATERLOO, ONTARIO (Sept. 27, 2006) - Symbility Solutions Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Automated Benefits Corp., today is pleased to announce two significant milestones in the adoption of its mobile claims processing solution as this week the 600th company was signed representing over 3,500 users.

Progressive Commercial Auto Releases Insurance Claims Data; Pinpoints When Most Crashes Occur.
MAYFIELD VILLAGE, Ohio - Sept. 26, 2006 - Progressive Commercial Auto, part of The Progressive Group of Insurance Companies, which ranks third in the nation for commercial auto insurance based on premiums written and sells commercial auto insurance to small businesses over the phone and through independent insurance agents and brokers, recently reviewed claims data from crashes that occurred between September 2005 and August 2006 involving commercial vehicles it insures.

Business of Insurance

LOMA Releases New Report: Managing Guarantee Risk on Variable Annuities: An Introduction.
ATLANTA, GA--Sept. 14, 2006--The US has approximately $1.12 trillion in variable annuity (VA) assets out of total life insurance industry assets of $4.3 trillion. The vast majority of these VA assets carry additional option-like investment guarantees, which give customers the right to transfer part of the risk of poor investment performance to the insurer, contingent on certain behavior or death.

Lloyd's market posts strong interim result.
Lloyd's, the world's leading specialist insurance market, today announced an interim profit before tax of �1.35 billion ($2.50bn) for the six month period ending 30 June 2006. This result is broadly similar to that of last year, underpinning the market's consistency with a 20% improvement in underwriting profit offset by a smaller contribution from investment income compared with the same period last year.

Swiss Re to acquire UK GE Life business for GBP 465 million.
13 Oct 2006 CET - Swiss Re has agreed to acquire a group of companies which together comprise the "GE Life" business of General Electric Company (GE). The cash purchase price is GBP 465 million, including GBP 260 million for statutory net assets. The transaction will provide further scale and infrastructure for Swiss Re's Admin ReSM business in the United Kingdom and is Swiss Re's largest Admin ReSM deal to date.

Consumer Information

New production launched to teach children about fire safety.
Staying Alive Inc., an organization dedicated to teaching children how to get to safety in the event of a fire, recently launched its newest educational tool, a Public Service Announcement.

SGI helps introduce No Regrets program launched in Saskatchewan schools.
September 21, 2006 - SGI has joined forces with SMARTRISK to help reduce unintentional fatalities and injuries among our province's youth by introducing the No Regrets program to Saskatchewan schools.

Our People

RIMS Introduces Online Professional Development Courses: Focus on Business Ethics in the Captive Insurance Industry.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - October 5, 2006 - A new three-part web conference series titled "Business Ethics in the Captive Insurance Industry" trains risk managers about the legal and ethical issues related to business practices in the captive insurance industry. The program is presented by the Risk and Insurance Management Society, Inc. (RIMS) in partnership with the International Center for Captive Insurance Education (ICCIE).

Marketing and the Market Place

SAS leading the charge to improve Marketing's performance.
CARY, NC (Sept. 12, 2006) - SAS, the leader in business intelligence, today announced new software to help solve the age-old problem of calculating marketing's contribution to an organization's bottom line. Designed to help boost the performance of marketing organizations as well as quantify marketing's results, SAS for Marketing Performance Management demystifies marketing's impact on an organization's overall success.

Reference and Statistics

Towers Perrin Survey Shows USA Employer-Sponsored Health Benefit Costs Continue to Outpace the CPI.
STAMFORD, CT, SEPTEMBER 26, 2006 - According to the Towers Perrin 2007 Health Care Cost Survey, health care costs for U.S. employers are projected to rise by 6% in 2007. That increase, fully two-thirds higher than the Consumer Price Index (CPI), will exert significant pressure on businesses striving to maintain adequate coverage for their employees -- and make medical coverage costs increasingly burdensome for all U.S. employees, particularly lower-wage workers and those who retire before becoming eligible for Medicare.

from Doug:

Snow in October. Maybe some were ready for it but not me. Too much to do yet before more of that.


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