The Chronicle: Issue 2012-25, June 19, 2012
What's Going Through The Intersection of Insurance and Technology, an Insurance-Canada.ca Blog.
- Consumerization of Access: Can Insurers and Their IT Departments Make the Shift?
Consumerization means more than just accommodating tablets and iPhones on corporate networks, according to a recent report. And the implications can be profound for insurers and their technology departments. We'd like to know what you think about these trends. - When it comes to Social 'Engagement,' are we asking the wrong questions?
Engagement is a hot topic these days, especially with regard to on-line and social media activities. Business managers are being told they must have "engagement" with customers, business partners, or employees, in order to enjoy increasing sales, more profitable business integration, and productivity. Corporate scorecards are now containing "engagement" as a goal, with metrics to support it. For social media initiatives, the metrics typically include "likes" or "shares" on various social media sites. Is this valid?
Distribution
Economical Insurance implementing eDoc capability this year.
WATERLOO, ON, June 6, 2012 - In support of efforts by the Insurance Brokers Association of Ontario to drive real cost efficiencies for brokers, Economical Insurance announced today that it is committed to implementing in 2012 the new CSIO XML standard for the transmission of electronic documents in broker downloads.
iter8 works with Aviva Canada to complete broker portfolio transfer.
June 2012: iter8, an insurance solutions software developer, is pleased to announce that Aviva Canada (Aviva) has rolled out broker portfolio transfer using communic8, the iter8 broker connectivity solution. The solution will reduce the time and effort necessary for a broker when a book of business is transferred to Aviva.
Applied Systems Epic® 7 to Support Canada Insurance.
University Park, Ill. - June 12, 2012 - Insurance software company Applied Systems announced it will release Epic® 7, the upcoming version of the insurance industry's fastest-growing agency and brokerage management system, in the first quarter of 2013.
ACE Canada® Launches BrokerPass(SM).
TORONTO, June 14, 2012 - ACE Canada, the Canadian-based operating division of the ACE Group, today introduced an easy-to-use option for Canadian brokers to coordinate placement of local admitted insurance policies. This efficient and seamless application benefits ACE's brokers and clients by reducing the operational hurdles often encountered when securing a local broker by leveraging the ACE Global Network. BrokerPassSM is available in more than 140 countries to Canadian brokers whose clients have international property and casualty exposures that require local admitted policies.
Brovada NexCenter: Terrace Software Releases Latest Version of its Recognized Agent & Broker System (ABS).
San Francisco, CA - June 5, 2012 - Terrace Software, a Microsoft Systems Integrator and Microsoft Gold Certified Partner announced today the availability of the latest version of its Agent & Broker System, ABS 3.0.42. The newest release of ABS delivers a real-time interface to carriers and a completely new coverage editor in addition to several new feature enhancements and bug fixes.
Policy and Product Management
OneShield: Skills and Core System Replacement (Comments from The Dominion).
June 2012, Techdecisions - As technology changes the way insurance carriers do business, companies are forced to adapt to those changes. But the technology is not the only thing changing; so too is the way carriers go about purchasing integrated solutions-particularly those core solutions that are so vital-and expensive-to buy.
Sapiens ALIS Policy Administration System In Production with KBC.
Uxbridge, UK, June 13, 2012 - Sapiens International Corporation, (NASDAQ and TASE: SPNS), a global provider of innovative insurance software solutions, today announced that KBC?s insurance business in Belgium is in full production with the ALIS Policy Administration Solution.
Verisk Analytics: The QPC Mileage Calculator Provides USA Auto Insurers with Real-Time Estimates of Annual Miles Driven.
JERSEY CITY, N.J., June 11, 2012 - Verisk Insurance Solutions, a unit of Verisk Analytics, announces the availability of the QPC Mileage CalculatorTM. The new predictive model provides real-time mileage estimates for each household vehicle during web, call center, or agency-based quote and point-of-sale processes.
Insurance-Canada.ca Survey: Applied Systems acquires Compu-Quote
Change is a constant. The segment of industry which provides products and services to the Canadian insurance industry is continually evolving. This acquisition of Compu-Quote by Applied Systems – see announcement – is particularly interesting due to their individual and collective presence.
Give us your own thoughts in a quick 5-minute survey.
The results will be reported in the June 26th issue of the Chronicle.
Social Business
Accenture: Insurers and social media: vast potential, significant challenges.
Although it is a relatively new phenomenon, social media has become a vitally important component of human resources, marketing, customer services, and public relations. For insurers, social media can provide a continuous, interactive relationship ith the customer, with multiple opportunities to listen and to engage with individuals and communities in a highly personalized dialogue.
Technology
Gartner Says Top 10 Strategic Technologies Will Be Assimilated Into Management Tools.
EGHAM, UK, June 12, 2012 - The impact of Gartner's top 10 strategic technologies will not center only on the business - their capabilities will also increasingly become integral to future generations of management architecture, according to Gartner, Inc.
Marketing and the Market Place
eMarketer: Mobile Set to Reshape Canada's Marketing Landscape.
JUNE 6, 2012 - Mobile phone penetration in Canada is neither as wide nor as fast-growing as in the US, but the country that birthed the BlackBerry is rising rapidly when it comes to uptake of smartphones and tablets?and inspiring more mobile internet usage as a result. Marketers on both sides of the 49th parallel are taking note.
Business of Insurance
Travelers Guarantee changes name to Travelers Insurance Company of Canada.
Toronto, Ontario, June 11, 2012 - Travelers Canada announces that Travelers Guarantee Company of Canada is changing its name to Travelers Insurance Company of Canada.
CLHIA: Manitoba's new tax on life, health and disability insurance hurts consumers.
TORONTO, June 13, 2012 - Canada's life and health insurers today expressed their deep concern and disappointment with the Manitoba government's imposition of the Retail Sales Tax (RST) on individual disability insurance, critical illness insurance and group disability insurance coverage for Manitobans.
Consumer Information
Desjardins Financial: Half of Canadians will put their physical, financial health at risk on their next vacation.
LEVIS, QC, June 12, 2012 - Canadians are planning to stay close to home for their leisure travel in the coming year, according to Desjardins Financial Security's recent national survey. In fact, 57% expect to visit the US and 62% will travel within Canada*. Among this last group of respondents, 36% aren't planning on purchasing travel insurance.
Standard Life committed to delivering VRSP to Quebecers.
MONTREAL, June 13, 2012 - Québec's Minister of Employment and Social Solidarity, Julie Boulet, tabled Bill 80 yesterday in the National Assembly. Bill 80 lays the foundation for the Voluntary Retirement Savings Plan (VRSP) to become a reality in Québec, effective January 1st, 2013. With the financial security of Quebecers a topmost concern, Standard Life is committed to offering a VRSP to the majority of Quebecers who don't have access to a group savings and retirement program to help them save for retirement.
From Doug:
The weekend was abuzz with activities to start the celebrations of the bicentennial commemoration of the War of 1812 in earnest. I participated only in the Sunday afternoon program in and around St James Cathedral here in Toronto. The much earlier wooden church was a hospital at times during that war and the Rev John Strachan from it was a leader in the negotiations with the American invaders when they burned the Parliament buildings (we got even by burning the White House later). The sermon described how both Canada and the USA evolved from that defining war.
A busy few days as a number of us will celebrate Loyalist Day in Ontario today Tuesday with the raising of the Loyalist Flag in the presence of the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, His Honour David Onley UE. It is great to see such an amount of interest in our history - finally more of us start to sense that we have a history worth celebrating.