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THE TOOLS, CONCEPTS AND PARTNERS that can help insurance companies effect transformation will be the focus of this year's ACORD LOMA Insurance Systems Forum, with a theme of "Reimagine Your Business." This year's conference, taking place May 22-24 at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas, will address strategies for business growth and navigating a changing industry, including:
- Regulatory requirements and financial management issues;,
- Emerging technologies;
- Business process models; and,
- Service-oriented architectures and Web services.,
This year's exhibit hall will feature more than 200 solutions providers (see exhibitor roster on page 62) and includes a dedicated multimedia demo area. The conference program, which comprises more than 60 sessions, will be highlighted by three general sessions/keynotes. On Monday, May 22 (2-4 p.m.), there will be a Research Presentation featuring the results of AUGIE's 2006 Agency Technology Survey, in which 7,000 agents, brokers, MGAs and wholesalers participated. On Tuesday, May 23 (8-9:30 a.m.), the Keynote Address will be presented by John Hagel III, an independent management consultant and author who has just published "The Only Sustainable Edge," coauthored with John Seely Brown. Hagel will address new approaches to strike an effective balance between opportunities in the short term and long term. On Wednesday, May 24, the annual CIO Panel (8-9:30 a.m.) will discuss "Technology Evolution and Revolution: IT in Changing Times." Panelists will include Ann M. Purr, LOMA; Gregory A. Maciag, ACORD; Barbara Koster, Prudential Financial; John Kellington, Ohio Casualty Group; William Pieroni, Aon Corp.; and Yury Zaytsev, Swiss Re.
Also new for this year's Insurance Systems Forum, in keeping with the focus on innovation and new ways of accessing information and resources, is an ACORD, LOMA and Insurance & Technology partnership to produce four video podcasts related to the themes of the 2006 event. A preview video podcast features insights from LOMA's president, Thomas P. Donaldson, and ACORD's president and CEO, Gregory A. Maciag. The three other podcasts will be produced at the Forum and will feature a mix of speakers, attendees and exhibitors. All four podcasts can be accessed by visiting: www.insurancetech.com/podcast or www.acordtv.org.