This submit is a part of a collection sponsored by AgentSync.
Nothing good comes simple, proper? Seems, overhauling your outdated know-how in favor of extra fashionable, cloud-native methods isn’t any exception.
In at present’s digital age, shying away from cloud-native know-how places companies susceptible to falling behind. Flexibility, scalability, lowered prices, and an enhanced buyer expertise are only some of the advantages cloud-native software program can deliver to insurance coverage companies and their shoppers. However, irrespective of how a lot constructive influence cloud-native insurtech can have on an insurance coverage group’s each day operations, switching from legacy methods to fashionable options is never simple, and anybody attempting to make the transition would possibly discover themselves working into a number of bumps alongside the best way.
3 boundaries to adopting cloud-native insurtech
As with all main technological overhaul (and particularly in an business as longstanding as insurance coverage), most of the challenges of adopting cloud-native insurance coverage know-how stem from the organizational and cultural modifications essential for such a big transition. Put merely, change is tough, and a number of of the next areas would possibly gradual you down.
Your present methods
Changing legacy methods which were in place for years is far simpler stated than performed. Some insurance coverage organizations’ processes are so closely rooted of their current know-how that making the transition would trigger sufficient disruption to close down operations within the quick time period. When the workflow and productiveness influence required to overtake their total tech stack appears like too excessive of a hurdle, companies will proceed to depend on outdated know-how, spreadsheets, and different handbook processes for each day operations.
Selecting to maneuver solely some methods to the cloud would possibly look like a extra viable possibility. However, doing so can depart companies with much more challenges as they battle to combine the brand new software program into their current platforms, which possible weren’t constructed with clean integrations in thoughts.
Your individuals
Switching to cloud-native software program is greater than only a technological change. It’s additionally a reasonably important cultural change, and one that may be tough for people working in an business that, till lately, has remained comparatively resistant to vary. For a lot of, the present methods, irrespective of how inefficient, are so intricately tied to each day operations that they’ve formed the corporate’s tradition.
Getting customers to undertake a brand new manner of doing issues can require a company-wide shift in considering. And don’t overlook that, on high of serving to your workforce perceive the worth of the transition, you’ll want to offer the assist and coaching essential for customers to reap the complete advantages of the brand new cloud-native know-how.
Your finances
Irrespective of how sure you might be that cloud-native software program will positively influence your backside line in the long term, getting previous the upfront prices of buy and implementation is usually a important problem. The actual fact of the matter is, whereas the preliminary price would possibly look like too excessive a barrier to beat, it’s sometimes nothing in comparison with the price of enterprise as ordinary.
Not solely does going into technical debt ultimately price you greater than what you’d spend modernizing your tech stack, it additionally wastes worker time, opens you as much as pointless compliance dangers, and stunts your group’s progress.
5 greatest practices for adopting cloud-native insurtech
Whereas the boundaries for adopting cloud-native know-how at your insurance coverage group could also be sturdy, they aren’t impenetrable. Right here are some things enterprise leaders can do to assist set themselves up for fulfillment.
1. Perceive the issue you’re attempting to unravel
There’s a cloud-native answer on the market for nearly each facet of an insurance coverage group’s each day operations, from claims administration, to buyer relationship administration, to e mail advertising and marketing and so forth. However simply because cloud-native software program exists for every of those areas doesn’t essentially imply a enterprise must undertake all of it.
It’s essential you perceive the issue you are attempting to unravel earlier than diving into a brand new answer. What might be worse than investing all of your time, cash, and assets into implementing a brand new answer just for the bottlenecks and inefficiencies to persist after the mud settles?
Are you attempting to chop down on producer onboarding time? To take away handbook workflows out of your workforce’s plate? To enhance the general producer expertise? Nailing down the issue (or issues) you’d like to unravel with cloud-native know-how will enable you to reduce by the noise and focus solely on evaluating know-how that may really enable you to attain your objectives.
2. Examine what’s in the marketplace
Not each cloud-native utility is similar. The suitable answer for your small business will rely on a number of elements, together with your particular wants, finances, and most popular degree of management. After you’ve established your major ache factors and set future objectives, evaluate that information in opposition to what every answer can supply.
Bear in mind, product functionalities are only one piece of the puzzle. You must also take into account issues like the extent of partnership you’ll obtain with every vendor, their requirements round information safety, and the way they deal with software program updates and bug fixes after implementation.
Sidenote, for those who simply so occur to be available in the market for a cloud-native producer administration software program, we’ve put collectively a helpful patrons information to assist along with your evaluations.
3. Get references from present clients of potential options
It’s one factor to listen to about the advantages of switching to cloud-native insurtech from the tech distributors themselves, however what do insurance coverage companies who’ve already made the change need to say? Search for references from present clients of potential options who have been attempting to unravel related ache factors as you are actually. Their success, not solely with the product itself but additionally with implementation and buyer assist gives you a good suggestion of what you may really anticipate from any given answer.
Should you’re curious concerning the success AgentSync clients have had after implementing our options, we invite you to take a gander by our case research in addition to our buyer critiques on G2.
4. Prioritize safety and compliance credentials
Safety and compliance will be both a profit or a disadvantage of cloud-native software program. Whereas some options prioritize safety and compliance, others don’t fairly meet expectations. However within the data-driven world of insurance coverage, safeguarding delicate producer and client data is important.
A vendor’s response to business requirements like SOC 2 and NIST can provide you a clearer image of which softwares take information safety critically and which of them would possibly open your group as much as extra threat. Today, it’s not even value contemplating distributors who exhibit something lower than a dedication to cybersecurity excellence.
5. Make a plan for coaching, assist, and inner adoption
Whereas an enormous draw of switching to cloud-native options is taking tedious, handbook work off your workforce’s plate, updating your tech stack with out providing the required worker coaching and assist will possible have the alternative impact.
Worker coaching is an easy and efficient approach to allow your workforce to see the complete benefits of a brand new answer. With out coaching, you might discover individuals hesitant to make use of the brand new software program, preferring as an alternative to simply revert again to the previous, acquainted manner of doing issues. Which might be a critical waste of time for everybody.
If you need a excessive adoption fee, make a plan for making certain everybody has a high-level understanding of the worth the answer gives and entry to coaching supplies and assist to fill in any information gaps that would maintain them again.
Cloud-native software program is paving the best way for insurance coverage organizations
With a rising variety of insurers planning to undertake cloud-native options over the subsequent 5 years, it’s secure to say cloud-native know-how is quickly to be the brand new gold commonplace for the insurance coverage business. The earlier a company migrates to a cloud-native tech stack, the earlier it reaps the advantages and the higher ready it’ll be for future innovation.
Should you’re able to make the swap and future-proof your producer licensing and compliance administration processes, AgentSync may also help. Attain out at present to find out how our cloud-native answer makes managing your entire producer lifecycle extra environment friendly and cost-effective.