Silicon Valley, home to some of the world’s most forward-thinking companies and top-tier talent, has long been recognized as the leading destination for innovation. Though insurers may not be able to directly replicate the practices of Silicon Valley, they can learn from Silicon Valley’s culture in order to attract exceptional talent and encourage creative and innovative thinking in-house.
Nothing about that has changed as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, innovation may have become even more important in light of the challenges to business processes, customer engagement models, and supply chains highlighted by this global health crisis.
Innovation should be viewed as an opportunity rather than a threat to the status quo. Silicon Valley has demonstrated, many times over, that innovative spirit and culture can only thrive through executive-level support, encouragement, and empowerment of employees. Insurers should look toward Silicon Valley companies as an optimal model for enterprise success, which will involve rethinking traditional IT management and spending best practices.
Insurers who are now revisiting plans and priorities for the future have been issued a stark wake-up call: The risks associated with partially digitized processes and a historic reluctance to shift toward a business model which leverages virtualization are highly visible. With an ongoing threat to elements that have been foundational to the business in recent decades, it is time to consider new approaches. As some insurers report record-setting sales, and others see languishing performance, it is another reminder that even a new, new normal future may already be here. In the words of William Gibson, that future is most definitely not evenly distributed.
As insurers look to the future, Silicon Valley can offer valuable lessons in cultivating enduring innovation and attracting top talent. In order to sustain impactful innovation, insurers can consider clearly articulating their business goals prior to technology investment. Innovation can be messy—and insurers should consider adopting Silicon Valley’s attitude toward “failing fast” and iterating often. What was true back in February is even truer today as a new reality creates both opportunities and challenges.
For more on this, please see the report on Novarica’s most recent trip to Silicon Valley, Enabling Innovation, Volume 7: More Lessons from Silicon Valley.
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