DELIVERING RISK MANAGEMENT SERVICES
By combining various off-the-shelf products, agencies create custom solutions that meet their unique needs
Car salespeople sell cars. Broom salespeople sell brooms. And insurance agents and brokers sell insurance. That’s just what they do. Well that’s what some insurance agents and brokers do, anyway.
Others differentiate themselves. More and more, they’re achieving distinction through the delivery of risk management services. And they’re tapping technology to help.
Focus on risk Scott Addis, CPCU, president of The Addis Group, based in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, has built a process that he’s dubbed “The Risk Management Audit.” “This lets us, very efficiently, uncover an organization’s risks, prioritize and measure them, and then set a strategy to mitigate those risks,” he says. Addis’s staff also evaluates related tools and processes that the entity has in place, including claims management systems, insurance program design, risk management procedures, and any training initiatives.
The whole task requires some heavy lifting. “We go in, typically, nine months before renewal and go through this process,” Addis says. This raises a slew of eyebrows among his peers. They’re convinced the work, while beneficial, just can’t be cost effective.
Addis disagrees. “It’s just the opposite,” he says. “When we go through the audit process, which typically takes from two weeks to two months, we literally become the broker on the account instantaneously.” He’s adamant that the audit process is less time-consuming than traditional agent practices. Plus, his hit ratio hovers around 90%.
To help deliver, Addis and his team use automation-from customer relationship and management tools to robust risk management software. He’s also developing and refining technology to make the process more efficient, something he sees as necessary for agents and brokers who want to, as he says, “get away from the commodity trap.”
The name works literally-short for reconnaissance, which Tyler says agents should be ready to perform every day-or as an acronym: Research the data, Examine the risk, Collaborate on solutions, Organize the players; and Neutralize the risk. Either way, it features a service timeline that covers the entire policy period, spelling out exactly what the agency will deliver each month. “It’s been unbelievably successful,” Tyler says. “We’re able to renew many of our accounts two months before renewal date. That keeps a lot of our competition out.”
Effective use of technology helps drive RECON 365. In creating the program, the agency bought commercial software where it existed and built tools to fill gaps. The piece-meal approach came, in large part, because Tyler wasn’t satisfied that any product on the market at the time would meet all of the agency’s requirements. RECON 365 does.
A key element is automated communication between agency and insured. Included in this are electronic newsletters the agency sends clients, addressing risk management issues that businesses face.
Online claims viewing is also included. “For companies interested in managing their claims, we create regular reports, using proprietary software, and then hold quarterly review meetings,” Tyler says. “We take carrier claims information and present it to clients in graphical format, complete with analysis.” These meetings can take place in person but often are done online using Web conferencing software.
The agency also uses off-the-shelf and proprietary software to deliver OSHA logs and other safety and wellness information. And clients can perform online policy selfservice through InScope, a feature of the agency’s management system. “They can go in and look at their policy whenever they want,” Tyler explains. “They can print out certificates of insurance, automobile ID cards and dec pages on their own schedule,” Tyler notes.
Higgins and his staff use proprietary software, along with products from two Australian firms. The process involves a thorough examination of the types of events that could affect the firm’s people, income, reputation, and objectives.