Data and information management

ACORD/LOMA saw multiple vendors pushing systems performance dashboards and ease of use for the business side, but does that mean we don’t need IT?

Insurers trying to obtain the sage advice of industry research experts may feel it’s akin to hitting a moving target, but the result is industry analysis excellence.

Karen Clark & Co., a Boston-based firm comprising catastrophe risk, catastrophe models, and catastrophe risk management consultants, reports that it has been selected by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) as the lead consultant in developing a recommendation on the scope, timeline and potential costs of building a national catastrophe multi-peril model for personal lines.

Combining ACORD standards with enterprise cloud computing, Informatica Corp.an independent provider of data integration software and services, announced customer success with the Informatica Insurance Gateway for Salesforce CRM. The solution is designed to improve interactions between insurance carriers and their distribution networks by enabling the sharing of trusted real-time data via the Web.The solution builds upon the joint success Informatica and Salesforce.com have garnered with customers, as more than a dozen carriers including AAA, Florida Family, and Hagerty are already using Informatica to integrate back office systems to Salesforce CRM and Force.com solutions.

Service oriented architecture has many benefits, but all too often, many SOA efforts tend to languish and get mired in organizational politics and inertia. There are many reasons why this happens, but perhaps the main reason is that SOA proponents get trapped into thinking they have to take on and sell a massive, business-transforming project, with lots of planning and lots of committee meetings.

Zurich North America announced its entry into the Risk Retention Group (RRG) and Self Insurance Groups (SIG) markets. The announcement was made last week at the Arizona Captive Insurance Conference in Phoenix . Zurich ’s North America Commercial Alternative Solutions Group reports that it has been the market leader in the member-owned Group Captive field and is now taking that expertise to the owners and members of RRG, SIG and Pooling Groups.

As insurers seek ways to reduce labor costs while improving productivity and performance, many are struggling to find meaningful data and insights to support their human capital decisions. Although the business risks of making the wrong decisions are significant, there hasn’t been a source of global, industry-specific data, benchmarks and analytics to support such decisions.

Insurance Networking News (INN) and Celent released INN’s third annual technology solution provider ranking for the insurance industry today at a black-tie awards event held at the ACORD LOMA Insurance Systems Forum in Orlando.

Recent survey results show companies lack transparency needed to prevent insider threats.

In spite of a down economy, actuaries and risk experts show no real changes to their risk management approach, notes survey.

Letter may shift long-running debate about flood insurance program.

The Insurance Information Institute says the industry’s present capital position is stronger than before any of the major catastrophic events over the past quarter century.

GE's micro-holographic discs could allow all data on a computer to be stored on a single disc that can be read by a DVD-like player.

The Washington Legal Foundation says a set of rules adopted by the NAIC that requires insurers to disclose information related to climate change serves mainly to promote the ideological objectives of global warming activists.

Mary Schapiro last Friday came out in favor of the plan outlined earlier in the week by FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair.

INN issues a call for nominations for its award program recognizing excellence, leadership and professional performance among women in insurance.

At a hearing Wednesday, FDIC Chair Sheila Bair suggested the creation of a systemic risk council composed of existing regulators that would have the "teeth" to intervene when necessary.

The current economy is affecting new car buying and decisions about coverage on older vehicles, a trend that raises important insurance and maintenance considerations.

Given insurers' knowledge of consumer lifestyles, they should be utilizing predictive analytics to better identify ideal customers and sell them higher-value services.

Given the reporting reforms sure to come out of the financial crisis, now is the perfect time for insurers to start making their data center greener.