Historically lagging behind personal lines on tech adoption, commercial lines insurers are beginning to see the benefits that digital processes and business intelligence capabilities can have across their complex, relationship-based sector. In a market that remains fiercely competitive despite recent premium increases, carriers look to technology seeking differentiation, to refine underwriting and pricing, to drive down the cost of service, and to grow.
CIOs are looking beyond investing in new technology and are beginning to shift organizational practices. According to Novarica, Agile development is the IT practice with the highest level of planned activity in 2018, and is now widely implemented by insurance carriers. Insurers are currently at various levels of Agile adoption and maturity; when fully mature, the Agile process offers both greater flexibility and the capability to take full advantage of business opportunities that would otherwise be lost.
One of the dilemmas that insurer CIO wrestle with is where to set the dial when it comes to agility vs. control in IT. Control in this context means governance, security, separation of concerns, change management, and so on. Agility is the opposite direction – lightweight governance, fewer barriers, right-sized security, and devolving decision-making down into the organization.
Doron Hai has 20 years of experience in senior operations and business transformation across various industries. As of 2017, Doron leads both Operations and Information Technology at CapSpecialty, a U.S. specialty insurance provider for small and mid-sized businesses. He joined CapSpecialty as Head of Operations in 2014 after serving as Operations Executive, Small Business Division at AIG. Doron has an MBA from the University of Michigan and a BS in Industrial Engineering from the Technion Israeli Institute of Technology. He was interviewed for the Novarica Update in 2018.
You took over the CIO role at CapSpecialty last year. What are your priorities?
