The insurance industry is partnering with academia in the use of some rather unique efforts to actively address the anticipated shortage of IT talent.

Turnersville, N.J. — The Computer Measurement Group (CMG), a not-for-profit worldwide organization of IT professionals committed to ensuring the efficiency and scalability of IT service delivery to the enterprise through measurement, quantitative analysis and modeling, is making its conference proceedings from 1997 through 2005 available to the public.

Seattle — In recent years, increasing attention has been paid to the role of lifestyle-based analytics (LBA) in health insurance underwriting, according to Seattle-based actuarial and consulting firm Milliman Inc. In some instances, proponents of LBA made overly optimistic claims about the use of consumer data as a predictor in the underwriting process. Milliman's Jonathan Shreve, author of the white paper “Lifestyle-based Analytics: A Practical Guide”, examined the appropriate and effective use of LBA as an advance in risk selection and classification.

Kansas City – The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has launched a public database containing the regulatory status of certain insurer-owned securities. The database is intended to assist market participants that advise insurance companies and investment professionals working for insurance companies. The tool shows whether a publicly rated security is subject to regulatory guidance other than as indicated by its credit rating assigned by one or more public rating organizations.

Mobile units enable insurers to provide immediate lines of aid to those affected by recent tornadoes.

A pair of reports detail what the year ahead has in store for the insurance industry.

Competitors from unlikely verticals, a reduction in IT staff, and the ability to clean up data stores and use them to garner business intelligence are but some of the challenges insurers will face through the year 2012.

Alpharetta, Ga. – ChoicePoint has resumed its acquiring ways by snapping up Optimal Decisions Group (ODG), an Australian firm that develops analytics and software for the insurance industry.

Washington – A recent report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) suggests that insurers should make a broader swath of claims data available to Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) regulators. The suggestion arises in the wake of questions prompted by Hurricane Katrina concerning the responsibility for damages and later allegations that insurers misrepresented wind damage in claims to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) in order to limit their financial losses after the storm.

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It’s tempting to view STP implementation as an enterprise-scale undertaking, but the best approach may be step-by-step.

Foresight, and a focus on usability, will help those converting to straight-through processing reap dividends from the process.

A widening array of solutions is giving carriers more options to backup and safeguard their critical data.

Insurers with legacy systems face an uphill battle: find replacements for retiring IT workers or retire their legacy systems.

New technologies take virtualization to the application and database level, helping it reshape and transcend the data center.

Peoria Heights, Ill. — Pearl Dental Insurance recently launched a new Web site that provides an immediate, online quote rating engine for insurance brokers and dental plan prospects living in most states.

Hillsdale, N.J. — Despite the ongoing crisis in the real estate industry, MyClosingSPACE.com is making its debut in New York, offering residents across the state the ability to purchase title insurance and mortgage closing services directly online.