Sollers Consulting, a specialist in consulting and implementation services for the insurance industry, and Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE: GWRE), a provider of software products to general insurers, co-hosted the fourth annual international Innovation in Insurance conference in Warsaw, Poland. This event offers a forum for insurance professionals to share their own experiences and discuss best practices regarding insurance technology. The theme of the conference was, “How new industry trends and Agile Methodology support innovation in insurance.”
This year’s conference brought together more than 220 European attendees. Speakers from leading European insurers included Aviva UK, Basler Versicherungen, P&V, Zurich Germany and UK. Each provided insight into their respective core system transformation projects as well as contributed to a detailed discussion on industry trends and the use of Agile Methodology within the insurance industry.
The conference began with keynotes from Michal Trochimczuk, managing partner, Sollers Consulting and Marcus Ryu, chief executive officer, Guidewire Software. Mr. Ryu spoke about Guidewire’s outlook on key trends within the general insurance sector. Among them he included the growth in digital expectations, the decline in personal motor risk, the rise of non-traditional insurance, the arrival of new insurance-relevant technologies, and the emergence of new risk categories. At a time of rapid change throughout the insurance market, the stakes are high for insurers who do not respond and prepare. He confirmed Guidewire’s commitment to general insurers to build and evolve enabling technology platforms while insurers set their strategy in these complex and demanding times.
Mr. Trochimczuk followed with a perspective on market trends that are impacting the insurance sector. Socio-economic, demographic, political and technological influences have a strong bearing on the environment in which insurers operate. Mr. Trochimczuk offered an assessment of the challenges and innovation opportunities afforded to insurers by those trends.
“Only 2% of the world’s economy is insured. This is a huge potential for those insurers who can take advantage of it. To do this, insurers need the flexibility and agility provided by modern core systems for customer, policy and claims administration. This enables them to enter new markets, create products more quickly or effectively and cooperate with new partners, like Amazon®, Google®, or affinity groups,” said Michał Trochimczuk.
Four of the insurers presented case studies about the particular experiences of their companies.
Anna Fleming, programme director, Zurich UK, talked about how to harness the opportunity for business transformation, the importance of the team dynamic and how to make use of lessons learned.
Chris Hone, senior platform manager, Commercial, Creditor & Guidewire Development Centre of Excellence, Aviva UK and consultants from Sollers Consulting, Michał Piotrowicz and Sebastian Łubnicki, took the stage to explain how Agile methodology and technological innovations can be applied in the connected world in a distributed manner.
Rolf Schiltknecht and Tristan Schuler, executive directors of Basler Versicherungen, described their implementation experience, the significance of out-of-the-box functionality, quick decision-making processes and the need for clarity of requirements.
Finally, Marc Beaujean, board member, P&V and Luc Van Dessel, programme manager, P&V described their company’s drive to establish a distinctive market positioning, the benefits they already see from their transformation project, the significance of using a “hybrid” Agile Methodology and the importance of getting the team right.
“We have enjoyed spending time with this varied audience of European insurers, to hear about the practical challenges they have overcome and the benefits they have gained,” commented Keith Stonell, managing director EMEA, Guidewire. “With the increasing expectations of customers, influenced by the trends of digitalization and emerging technology, insurers must take heed and deliver responsive solutions. Guidewire is here to support them in addressing these challenges.”
“It is important to have this platform for exchanging experiences, especially as we all agree that insurance is currently facing disruptive changes. New players and new technologies threaten the sources of revenue and insurers need to get ready,” said Marcin Pluta, managing partner at Sollers Consulting. “We are proud that several of our customers have been able to share their experience of the transformation journey that enables them to better prepare for the challenges of the future.”
About Sollers Consulting
Sollers Consulting is an international company specialized in advisory and implementation services for the financial sector. The company was established in 2000 in Warsaw by experts in operational consulting and IT. The company cooperates with a number of partners all over the world including Guidewire, Moody’s Analytics, Microsoft, Oracle and TIA Technology. Sollers Consulting is distinguished by an ability to combine business knowledge with competence in new technologies. Sollers Consulting team has completed various projects for over 50 financial groups from all over the world such as Santander, PZU, Millennium, Raiffeisen, Talanx (Warta), Santander, Inter, Generali, ING and Proama. On a day to day basis the company uses modern project management methods such as Agile methodology. The core value of Sollers Consulting is a strong team of professionals – the company employs over 260 highly qualified consultants and developers in Warsaw, Lublin and Cologne. More information can be found at: www.sollers.eu.