What insurers must tackle in the next five years to stay ahead

• Insurers revenues from core business activities are stagnating.

• How can help businesses grow again?

• They have to intensify the relationship to their customers.

For insurers, the current situation is uncomfortable, as their revenues from core business activities are stagnating. They need to develop innovative products, modernise their processes and IT infrastructure, while at the same time not losing the close relationship to their customers.

Currently, contact between insurers and policyholders usually has negative connotations. Clients encounter an insurer when they pay bills, submit a claim or need to deal with potential risks against which they want to insure themselves. The cost of health insurance premiums is continually rising and, when submitting claims, policyholders struggle due to a lack of goodwill – positive touchpoints are entirely lacking in many areas.

Digital transformation in insurance: Customers purchasing while out and about

The pressure among insurers to digitise their services is leading to changes in the industry. In addition, customers want to be able to take out insurance policies while on the move in the future – at a car dealership, when shopping online or at a ticket machine. The current problem in this regard is that insurance companies and their systems are, in many ways, not yet ready for this transformation.

In his speech, Wolfgang Emmerich, CEO of Zühlke Engineering Ltd, raises the right questions: What lessons can we learn from past disruption? Can the insurance industry cope with today’s big technology challenges?

Furthermore, he gives an example to illustrate how insurers can transform their IT systems and thus strengthen customer loyalty.

Consistent customer experience as an investment

In order to survive in the long term, insurers, like every other company, require sustainable financial strength. This can be achieved by having a loyal customer base, and satisfied customers are the key in this regard. But in times of decreasing brand loyalty, insurers will only be able to keep hold of their customers by providing a well-thought-out customer experience.

Insurers need to continually rethink their product range and quickly innovate. At the same time, they need to integrate their customers and products into an insurance ecosystem with seamless services.

It is essential that insurers focus on

• efficient and, preferably, automated processes,
• a modern and agile application landscape,
• an entrepreneurial way of thinking
• and the right skills, so that these changes can be implemented.

A clear goal for the future

If insurers want to remain successful in the long term, they must strengthen their positioning and be able to answer the following key questions:

1. Who is serving our customers?
2. What is our product of tomorrow?
3. How can we position these products in attractive ecosystems?
4. How can we use the automation of services to speed up our market approach?
5. How can we digitise our core systems quickly?
6. How can we respond to changing market needs in an agile way, and thus create long-term value?