Change of Tack

Leading brokerages are reviewing their digital strategies to ensure that systems are advanced and flexible enough to respond quickly to new market opportunities. When evaluating if it is the right time to make a technology change – whether adopting a new self-service software or switching brokerage management systems (BMSs) – it is important to clearly define the business goals and closely manage and monitor the project’s progress to ensure a successful and positive implementation.

 

PROVIDE STAFF COMPELLING BUSINESS REASONS

As brokerage leaders continue to evaluate their growth strategy – organic and by acquisition – they are in tandem assessing their internal infrastructure to ensure it can support expansion. To support growth goals and continue to attract and retain new clients and employees, brokerages require integrated software that delivers consistent workflows, standardized data and a modern architecture that is scalable for growth.

• consistent workflows provide universal procedures across locations and regional branches, as well as simplify employee on-boarding and training;

• standardized data provides a single view into a brokerage’s book of business, enabling staff to better service their clients and identify opportunities to cross/up-sell; and

• as technology continues to become even more embedded across all enterprise functions, today’s brokerages are looking to leverage software best built to integrate additional technologies, like rating services, that will further drive business efficiencies and support superior client servicing.

GET EVERYONE ON BOARD

In any organization, change management requires well-defined business benefits, objectives and structured steps to be successful. Adopting new software is no different.

Strong executive leadership, along with clearly communicating why change is needed and the benefits of implementing new software across the business to all stakeholders in the transition, helps to build buy-in from the start. Teams need to foster a partnership approach, examining strategic areas of the brokerage’s business to make operational, process and training improvements based on insurance technology best practices.

Throughout the entire implementation process, brokerage teams discover new methods and insights that optimize business operations and service practices, increasing return on investment. Change is never easy, but by setting expectations and preparing staff thoroughly, brokerages can quickly derive benefits from their investments.

AVOID BUMPS IN THE ROAD

Key focal points in the transition are centred on data, workflows, staff education and business continuity, ensuring that brokerages maintain daily business operations to continue supporting clients and prospects.

When beginning any software conversion, brokerages should consider what data needs to be transitioned.

When evaluating moving BMSs, look at the process as being similar to moving to a new home: a buyer takes the time to consider what to move into his or her new home and what is no longer needed; no one moves everything from an existing home to the new one.

When making the transition to a new management system, data quality is critical to a brokerage’s success.

Secondly, focusing on workflow development can be critical in driving overall efficiency and reducing time spent on-boarding employees to a new system. For instance, as the implementation of a new BMS can take as long as several months, it is critical to involve employees consistently throughout the process.

In doing so, leaders obtain critical insight on how their technology has been used to date, as well as identify opportunities to better leverage their technology investment.

Additionally, employees then feel more involved in the decision-making process and are motivated to support adoption of the new management system within the organization. Brokerages should identify “champions” early in the transition process, and involve them in every step along the way.

A FIRST-HAND LOOK

Since 1963, Brokers Trust Insurance Group has been delivering expertise in a full range of commercial and personal products and services through traditional distribution channels.

But with change unfolding, the independent brokerage renewed its commitment to innovation and adopted an enhanced digital strategy to better align itself with the external demands of the market, as well as the rapidly evolving service requirements of its client base.

The company’s digital strategy involved the selection, implementation and adoption of various new technologies to reinvent the methods used to interact with its customers, including a new state-of-the-art management system.

The brokerage designed a goal-oriented strategy to enable brokerage teams to focus their activities on specific business results. The bottom-up approach employed, allowing all staff members an opportunity to participate in the project’s design and roll-out, proved an important factor to the project’s success.

“It was a tough year, no doubt. Managing change might be one of the most difficult things we’ve ever had to do. Nothing makes wide-scale change easy, especially when it relates to a brokerage’s main management system – proper support, preparation and a structured plan makes it manageable,” comments Dave Bertolin, director of IT and finance, and deputy principal broker, of Brokers Trust Insurance.

“We learned a lot very quickly about people and the quirks adopting new technology can have, but with the dust settling and benefits being realized, we can say confidently that we would repeat the process,” Bertolin says. “Would we change some things? Of course, but there is no substitute for creating a culture that embraces change if you strive for success and longevity in such a highly competitive marketplace.”

MEANS JUSTIFY THE ENDS

Many brokerages have been on the same systems for well over a decade, and their users are comfortable with the status quo. However, the benefits of a modern, scalable platform outweigh the challenges of change.

Flexible, advanced, integrated technology enables brokerages to customize and automate operations, further improving staff productivity and allowing them to focus more time on selling and servising customers.