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Insurers appear to be playing a better hand in 2014 according to the results of KPMG’s “2014 Insurance Industry Outlook Survey”. According to the results, KPMG found that significantly more insurers are pondering strategic acquisitions this year (54 percent of the 95 insurance executives polled) compared to 2013 (34 percent). Additionally, the majority of carriers are looking to invest in customer programs, talent and technology to grow their businesses and gain a competitive advantage. When asked to identify the highest-priority investment area for their company over the next year, the respondents most frequently cited “strategic acquisitions” (34 percent, up from 22 percent in 2013), “customer programs” (25 percent, up from 23 percent in 2013) and “information technology” (24 percent). But in what specific areas are insurers looking to invest their information technology dollars? Continue on to find out. Photo courtesy of Fotolia
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10. Forecasting Capabilities

2014: 11 percent 2013: 14 percent Photo courtesy of Fotolia
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9. Enhanced Security and Information Protection

2014: 12 percent 2013: Question not asked Photo courtesy of Fotolia
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8. Cloud computing

2014: 13 percent 2013: 20 percent Photo courtesy of Fotolia
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7. Financial (Accounting, General Ledger) Systems (New, Upgrade, Consolidation)

2014: 16 percent 2013: Question not asked Photo courtesy of Fotolia
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6. Business Intelligence/Reporting

2014: 18 percent 2013: Question not asked Photo courtesy of Fotolia
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5. Mobile Technology

2014: 19 percent 2013: Question not asked Photo courtesy of Fotolia
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4. IT Infrastructure

2014: 21 percent 2013: 43 percent Photo courtesy of Fotolia
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3. Risk Modeling and Analysis

2014: 24 percent 2013: 26 percent Photo courtesy of Fotolia
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2. Data/Predictive Analytics

2014: 26 percent 2013: 33 percent Photo courtesy of Fotolia
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1. Customer Growth/Service

2014: 27 percent 2013: 32 percent Photo courtesy of Fotolia
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Looking For More?

For additional information about KPMG’s 2014 Insurance Industry Outlook Survey, read “Survey: M&A Activity on the Rise”. Photo courtesy of Fotolia