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News & Commentary
Content posted in March 2003
AS FARMERS’ NEW CIO, FRANKLIN FOCUSES ON EFFICIENCY
News  |  3/26/2003  | 
Jan Franklin, a 25-year veteran of Farmers Insurance Group, has been appointed CIO, following the promotion of Cecilia Claudio to CIO for continental Europe for Zurich Financial Services.
CANADA LIFE INKS PAY-AS-YOU-GO DEAL WITH IBM
News  |  3/26/2003  | 
Canada Life signed a deal with IBM under which the rates it pays the vendor for IT support will be linked to the number of policies its group insurance division processes.
LEVERAGING NEW REGULATORY TRENDS FOR A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
News  |  3/26/2003  | 
Insurance policyholders and consumers of financial services in general have certain expectations with regard to the management of their personal data.
WAR INSPIRES MORE CAUTIOUS APPROACH TO OUTSOURCING
News  |  3/26/2003  | 
Insurers' concerns about the relative riskiness of offshore outsourcing were heightened even before Operation Iraqi Freedom began last week, and those concerns continue to affect assessments of the strategy.
TRADITIONAL CARRIERS MUST BALANCE AGENT CONCERNS WITH CLIENT NEEDS TO FACILITATE ONLINE ENROLLMENT
News  |  3/26/2003  | 
Until recently, online access to insurance policies and self-service was traditionally the realm of non-agent-based firms.
IS THE CUSTOMER ALWAYS RIGHT ON SELF-SERVICE?
News  |  3/26/2003  | 
As insurers have gradually embraced the multi-channel delivery and support model, they also have recognized that alternative channels of distribution and support do not replace traditional channels; they supplement them.
DEADLINE EXTENDED TO APRIL 11 FOR INSURANCE INNOVATORS AWARD ENTRIES
News  |  3/26/2003  | 
The deadline for applications for the award, created by InSystems, Celent, and Insurance & Technology, has been extended to Friday, April 11.
Calm Down...Later?
News  |  3/25/2003  | 
This month's editorial, "Can you be too cautious?" by Katherine Burger, Editorial Director.
ALLSTATE CREATES NEW ENTERPRISE-WIDE IT STRATEGY VP POSITION
News  |  3/11/2003  | 
In order to better coordinate technology within the enterprise, Allstate names Anthony Abbattista to the newly created position of VP, enterprise technology strategy and planning.
GUARDIAN/PATNI CONFIRM $35 MILLION+ OUTSOURCING DEAL
News  |  3/11/2003  | 
The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America announced it awarded outsourced software services to Patni Computer Systems Ltd., in a deal potentially worth $35 million over seven years.
ANALYTICS & DATA WAREHOUSES -- THE MIND & MUSCLE BEHIND CUSTOMER SERVICE
News  |  3/11/2003  | 
The practice of data warehousing is no longer an emerging information technology construct.
SHERWOOD/DOCUMENT SCIENCES WILL MARKET END-TO-END SOLUTION
News  |  3/11/2003  | 
In response to insurer demand for solutions that can leverage several components on a common platform, Sherwood International (and Document Sciences) formed a partnership.
WITH ONLINE HEALTHCARE INFO EXPLODING, CIGNA SEEKS BALANCE BETWEEN HIGH-TECH & HIGH-TOUCH
News  |  3/11/2003  | 
Lingering concerns about information overload, as well as the quality of that information, continue to hinder wider consumer use of the Internet to inform important healthcare decisions, according to research from CIGNA HealthCare.
CRM for Insurance
News  |  3/7/2003  | 
Obtaining a single customer view, retaining customers with great service and cutting costs are all part of a sound CRM initiative.
Ex-NAIC CIO Bridges Worlds
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
Gummig joins iITs as VP of e-government.
Regence Promotes Infomation Security Vet
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
MacLeod promoted to director of information security.
Executive News
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
Executive moves and promotions in the insurance technology industry.
Tech Watch
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
Showcase of new products and services including companies such as Facetime, Broadbeam, and CSC.
CSLF 2003: Making Sense of Service Challenges
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
Participants in this event will hear executives from some of the industry's leading service organizations offer insights as to what it takes to exceed customer expectations and do it in a way that actually achieves ROI.
Delivering Advice Economically
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
Using technology to craft effective and economical advice delivery models is key for carriers seeking to capitalize on a changing investor base.
Web Services: Walk Before You Run
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
Insurance companies must build a sound technology foundation before using Web services to support the insurance value chain.
CNA’s Golden Boy
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
Under CIO John Golden, CNA insurance companies has reduced maintenance and increased new initiatives.
Such a Deal: Storage on Sale
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
Storage system prices are plummeting because of vendor competition and newer low-cost technologies. That's a good thing, since insurers need more storage than ever before.
Worth the Effort: Tackling the New Project Management
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
Today's demands for rapid turnaround, business/IT alignment and technology ROI make skillful deployment of up-to-date project management methodologies and tools more essential than ever.
Supporting an Empire
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
On the Record with Kenny Klepper, SVP, Systems, Technology & Infrastructure, Empire BCBS.
Deltanet AppScans for Hacker Penetration
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
Delta Dental Plan of California's IT provider cuts testing time from weeks to days.
Norwich Union Conserves Brainpower
News  |  3/4/2003  | 
Insurer automates processes that once required manual intervention, for a big ROI.
Mapping System Reassures Reinsurers
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
Greater New York Insurance Companies uses MapInfo technology to monitor geographical concentration of risk.
Getting a Headstart on HIPAA
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
Mercator's InsideHIPAA facilitates translation of HIPAA-compliant claims transactions to standard Mutual of Omaha is accustomed to accepting.
Cyber News
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
News from EReinsure, Progressive Insurance, Delta Dental, Sam's Club, and Insurance Information Institute.
ASC X12 & HR-XML Team
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
An XML transaction set for benefit enrollment is in the works.
R&SA UK Outsources Life Admin
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
Royal & Sun Alliance UK outsources life administration to Unisys.
Carriers Gain Accreditation
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
URAC's program is designed to ensure consumer confidence.
New Contracts
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
COSS Development Corp. has entered into an agreement with The Cincinnati Life Insurance Company; Genelco Software Solutions announced that its partnership with Sterling Commerce has resulted in several licenses of Gentran...
Privacy Regs Pending
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
Seven states have privacy legislation pending which could require major systems changes.
Cool Sites
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
We asked Al Pratico of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida for his website recommendations.
Slammer Raises Patch Debate
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
Vendors and users need to collaborate in working out the bugs.
Are You an Insurance Innovator?
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
Competition for the 2nd Annual Insurance Innovators Award is underway, sponsored by InSystems, Celent, and Insurance & Technology.
Alliances & Partnerships
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
A2iA announced a license and maintenance agreement with Alogent Corp.; A partnership has been formed between Create!Form International Inc., and Optika Inc.; Impact Technologies Group is a new member of Microsoft's Gold Certified Partner Program...
AIG's Loss: A Wake-Up Call
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
Insurers must invest in underwriting IT, to better predict losses.
Will HIPAA Efforts Fall Short?
News  |  3/3/2003  | 
As carriers enter home stretch on privacy and transaction measures, many will not be prepared for broad interpretations of privacy breaches.


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