Joe McKendrick

A couple months back, we reported on a study that showed younger people (under 30) were more likely to be receptive to electronic communications from carriers about new products and offers, which opens new possibilities for the way insurers can and should engage with this digital generation.

Master Data Management, MDM, is one of those great ideas that everyone agrees on, like maintaining a good diet and getting exercise. But then everyone resists actually doing it. Small wonder my friend Dave Linthicum once said the biggest job in MDM was “Managing Dumb Meatheads.”

Open source offers rapid turnaround and quicker time to market, which appeals to many insurers.

Experts believe companies should gradually immerse themselves in social networking strategies—not dash in an all-at-once fashion.

Critic contends that all this cloud terminology is sort of silly, and suggest that it may even be setting the industry back.

The green concept is catching on with insurers as well, as Allstate opened a data center last year based upon best practices and technology aimed at saving energy and employing renewable resources.

Wouldn't you love to have even a piece of that magic when you're pitching ideas for a new underwriting system or agency portal? Learn how.

The focus of lean IT is to put forth “a set of principles that says you are going to slow down in order to speed up.”

MetLife's new teleconferencing setup may have cost about $1 million, but it expects a double-digit ROI in travel savings.

For an industry built on trust and relationships, technology is beneficial, but there are still times when face-to-face contact is still important.

Internet marketing will be regulated by 2015, controlling more than $250 billion in Internet marketing spending worldwide. Outlandish? Maybe not.

Two insurers prove that SOA has finally reached a stage of maturity that allows it to address real business problems.

While still seen by many as a double-edged sword, social media helps insurers bring bring about new innovation.

Going forward, insurers will be employing their existing Web application platforms for all manner of devices.

It seems like a Millennium ago: it's been 10 years since the rollover to the new century, a time when many expected the greatest computer crash in history.

A McKinsey & Co. study finds 55% of execs say current performance in providing basic IT services is very or extremely effective, but only 21% are happy with IT's ability to add value to the business.

Survey results show younger generation more open to being approached via non-traditional channels.

Businesses need working solutions to their problems, and spending capital on all the latest bells and whistles is not the answer.

Fresh thinking and innovation is needed in the health care sector, and only then will IT improvements begin to have their desired impact.

A new Celent report concludes that the greatest challenge facing insurers is their siloed environments. Improving info sharing would help eliminate this problem.