Customer service

Wellesley, Mass. — The digital world is transforming the way information is organized and stored, and companies across all lines of business are being charged with using emerging technology solutions to support the customer experience in new and innovative ways, according to experts at an e-business thought leadership conference held January 16 and 17 in Wellesley, Mass.

Despite barriers such as cost, electronic health records are slowly but surely becoming a technological cornerstone of the health insurance

New York — AIG Executive Liability, a division of the property/casualty insurance subsidiaries of American International Group Inc. (AIG), announced AIG e-Discovery Solutions, a program of e-discovery-related products and services to help all of AIG Executive Liability’s clients, including the division’s directors and officers and errors and omissions insureds, more effectively manage the e-discovery process. AIG e-Discovery Solutions is a claims service offered by AIG Executive Liability to their clients.

Chicago — Tri-City Brokerage, a division of Crump Insurance Services Inc., a Dallas-based insurance wholesaler, announced an expansion of their binding authority group, Tri-City Binding Authorities. The new financial services binding authority provides D&O, E&O, EPLI, Crime and Fiduciary coverage for numerous classes. Target industries include community associations, nonprofit organizations and for-profit companies, miscellaneous service providers, property managers and technology service companies.

Hopkinton, Mass. and Carlsbad, Calif., - EMC Corp., a Hopkinton, Mass.-based information infrastructure solutions provider, and Carlsbad, Calif.-based Document Sciences Corp. signed a definitive agreement whereby EMC will acquire publicly-held Document Sciences in a cash transaction valued at approximately $85,000,000. Document Sciences is a provider of document output management (DOM) software that facilitates highly personalized, multi-channel communications to customers, partners and suppliers. The acquisition complements and extends EMC's position in the transactional content management marketplace, the fastest-growing segment of enterprise content management, according to the company.

Despite taking much longer than initially expected, e-signature adoption is picking up steam, but is it worth it?

Though customer relationship management has been hyped, then written off, carriers are finding new uses for the technology.

Alpharetta, Ga. - BB&T Insurance Services plans to expand its metro Atlanta operation with the acquisition of Ott & Co. of Alpharetta, Ga.

New York - XL Insurance, the global insurance operation of XL Capital Ltd., has completed the purchase of Global Asset Protection Services LLC (GAPS) from Swiss Re. GAPS is a provider of unbundled loss prevention consulting services, offering individually tailored risk management solutions to risk managers, insurance brokers and insurance company clients operating on a global basis.

Frisco, Texas - Mark Depker, president of Hall Financial Group's management division, announced Skywire Software signed a new 49,500-square-foot lease for its new worldwide corporate headquarters at 3000 Internet Blvd. in the Hall Office Park development in Frisco, Texas.

Boston - Liberty Mutual Agency Markets (a strategic business unit of Liberty Mutual Group) senior special investigator Barbara Parker was honored by the National Society of Professional Insurance Investigators (NSPII) with the 2007 F. Lee Brininger Award, which annually recognizes one insurance professional's outstanding contribution to the fight against insurance fraud.

Portland, Ore. - Kryptiq Corp., a provider of healthcare connectivity solutions, was recently acknowledged at the annual Portland Business Journal banquet honoring the most-admired companies in Oregon. The company received recognition as the fifth most-admired technology company, as determined by a survey of more than 2,000 Oregon CEOs.

Chicago - Aon Corp. has signed separate definitive agreements to sell its Combined Insurance Company of America (CICA) and Sterling Life Insurance Co. (Sterling). The Sterling transaction is expected to be completed by the end of the first quarter 2008, and CICA is expected to be completed by the end of the second quarter 2008.

Columbus, Ohio - Grange Insurance, a Columbus, Ohio-based insurance provider, has been awarded the 2007 Insurance Standard of Excellence Award from the Web Marketing Association.

Windsor, Conn., and Atlanta - Member companies of LIMRA International and LOMA voted overwhelmingly in favor of the proposal to unite two of the world's largest insurance and financial services trade organizations. The merger will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2008.

New York - Lightyear Capital LLC, a New York-based private equity firm focused on financial services investing, completed the transactions related to the establishment of Antares Holdings Ltd., a Bermuda-based holding company whose businesses will include the sponsorship of a new Lloyd's of London syndicate ("Antares Syndicate 1274").

Atlanta - Connecture Inc., provider of Web-based sales, service and process automation solutions to the health insurance industry, has been awarded the Robinson College of Business (RCB) Eagle Award. The business school selected Connecture as a high achiever among fastest growing private companies in the Southeast.

As mortgage lenders struggle to contend with the double-barreled threat of rising defaults and lower origination volume, a third, less discussed source of risk is now starting to emerge.

USAA and State Farm provide the best customer experiences, according to consumers surveyed by Forrester Research Inc.

Pewaukee, Wis. - Indiana Insurance, a member of Liberty Mutual Group, has been named the 2007 Company of the Year by the Independent Insurance Agents of Indiana (IIAI), an honor that Indiana Insurance also received in 2006.