Technology Report: Integration, data transfer remain big issues

Along with integration, the surplus lines industry is still facing challenges in being able to upload and download data, according to speakers at the NAPSLO sponsored keynote address at the AAMGA Automation Conference in Dallas in March.

“It’s now more about interface, now more about upload and download and online rating,” said Eric Winch, an industry consultant. 

“The number one thing we keep talking about is integration. Integration is a key aspect of what we do whether it is a third party product, an online rater, engaging our retail agents, brokers. In all of those things integration becomes key and we’ve got to do a better job as an industry addressing that issue.”

One of the challenges facing the industry is the limited number of industry firms resulting in fewer vendors looking at this market to develop products, said Winch.

Winch, along with Jeff Yates, Executive Director of the Agents Council for Technology, delivered the keynote address and discussed what agents are looking for regarding working with MGAs and brokers, and also the broker’s views.

“In my discussions with a lot of you, there’s a lot of concern that if we do all this technology doesn’t that diminish our role?” said Mr. Yates. 

“That’s kind of the same discussion we get sometimes with the retail agent but in the future, your value added is your expertise, and the other services you provide, it’s not the processing, and that’s something we try to tell retail agents as well. By having advanced with technology, that’s going to position you to branch out to new lines of business and get competitive advantages.”

In other programs, the challenges of remote workers was addressed by a number of panelists who reviewed the procedures and equipment setups they use in their organizations to enable employees to work remotely.

In addition, representatives of ACORD reviewed the eForms which are ACORD forms enabled to be passed along the distribution channel while retaining data for use; budgeting and cost control and server virtualization was reviewed.