On a recent customer visit to build a case study and obtain user video testimonials, I got to witness firsthand how the Guidewire marketing team creates these assets. The team travels with an enormous amount of equipment, moving it from one location to another, setting it up each time, and then recording the customer testimonial. You can see the amazing results produced by this team on our corporate website. Kudos to this team for putting in a tremendous amount of effort to produce short two- to three-minute videos. However, it got me thinking whether there is an easier way to accomplish this.
During the same customer visit, I also got to witness the amount of effort that goes into implementing a policy administration system such as Guidewire PolicyCenter®. I am still new to Guidewire and the business of insurance in general. My background is in marketing horizontal data and analytics solutions. The administration and management of policies across all lines of business can be very complex, but nevertheless it got me thinking if there was a way to reimagine current systems.
The most beautiful product that I have seen so far in the Guidewire portfolio is Guidewire Live Spotlight™. Spotlight empowers underwriters to make better decisions by automating the assessment of individual location-based risk. It brings together relevant data from internal and external sources. It then applies company-specific algorithms to generate peril-based alerts and presents the evaluation results visually to underwriters for detailed interaction.
This got me thinking: what if Spotlight was extended in the following way to create a small next-generation policy administration system?
To begin with, pretend I am a customer looking to purchase auto and/or home insurance. I log in and enter basic personal information. Users can either register with a new ID, or the system can use Facebook or Google authentication. Based on my inputs, the system shows me the hazards I face along with a curve of what other customers are paying in my area for similar coverage. This would borrow some principles from TRUECar and change the way people buy insurance.
The system then sends this information to Spotlight and generates a quote for me online. In instances where human interaction is necessary, it will let me know and alert me when a quote is ready for me to view. I can update the parameters to adjust the premium I am willing to pay and then finalize the transaction.
Once I am ready to buy, the system will integrate and leverage elements of a document or contract management system to generate the policy contract. It then utilizes third-party services from DocuSign to send me the policy contract and enables me to sign it electronically.
Finally, I need to pick a payment plan and provide my credit/debit details. Again, this is accomplished by using third-party services such as Apple Pay, PayPal, etc. Once the payment details are finalized, I am done. My credit/debit card will be charged automatically based on my specified frequency. The system prepares and shows me the final policy document. I can print this out and keep a copy in my car and home.
On the backend, the same system integrates and feeds this information into backend operational and financial systems. It also provides the right set of analytics for the insurer to make the right decision.
Perhaps I am making things look too simplistic and this might not actually work? Did I mention I am still new to the world of insurance? But then, disruption always begins at the low end of the market. Is such a simple policy administration system possible for personal home and auto lines of business? What do you think?
For a top-of-the-line, fully-flexible, and extensible policy administration system, there is nothing better than Guidewire PolicyCenter, as many of our customers have experienced first-hand, but if you would like to save 15% or more on your next policy administration system…