Insurance Networking News: Executive Strategies for Technology Management articles from February 2006

Insurance Networking News: Executive Strategies for Technology Management archives from February 2006

The Human Factor.(recruitment of information technology workers)
February 1, 2006... Much is written about the wonders of technology. Often overlooked, is how companies become the best at attracting and keeping the people who make technology work for them-their IT employees. Many companies readily spout the corporate dictum...

Customers Bail When Transactions Fail.(survey on online transaction)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2006... Just as the Internet reached its one-billionth user last year, recent consumer research indicates that online transaction failures can have a huge detrimental effect on businesses. The vast majority of consumers (89%) say they experience...

Domestic Alternatives Pay Off.
February 1, 2006... Depending on whom you listen to, offshore outsourcing is the best - or the worst option available to insurance companies. The downbeat discussion typically follows the "hidden costs have pushed the business cycle full circle" path, while...

Marvel Turned Menace?
February 1, 2006... E-mail, the one-time productivity marvel, has turned into an unwieldy menace to many insurance companies. Once heralded as the ultimate purveyor of near real-time collaboration, e-mail's utility and business value is now in question. ...

Aetna Customers Talk Back: The insurer finds benefits for itself, its customers, and health care professionals in its voice-automated telephone response system.
February 1, 2006... One of the most frustrating aspects of life for American consumers in the 21st Century is trying to complete a transaction or obtain information from a company over the telephone. Whether it's ordering a new pair of shoes, checking the...

News Briefs.
February 1, 2006... TRANSAMERICA RECEIVES SIX 'BEST IN CLASS' RANKINGS As a testament to its relationship with its clients, Los Angeles-based Transamerica Retirement Services received six "Best in Class" ratings from the Chatham Partners' 2005 Client...

Solutions.(Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation and Finetre Corp signs agreement)
February 1, 2006... DTCC AND FINETRE INK DEAL TO STREAMLINE LIFE, ANNUITY SALES The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC), New York, and Finetre Corp., Herndon, Va., have signed an agreement to integrate Finetre's AnnuityNet and LifeNet technologies...

News Briefs.
February 1, 2006... COMPLIANCE DRIVING SECURITY IN INSURANCE INDUSTRY Regulatory compliance has taken the lead as the primary driver of information security in the insurance industry, according to a new survey by Ernst & Young, New York. The sheer number...

A Niche within a Niche.(TM Floyd & Co.)(Companion Services Inc.)
February 1, 2006... Insurers forming partnerships with outsourcers to obtain local talent from underserved cities with rich, yet untapped labor pools probably isn't revolutionary. But carriers that create subsidiaries specifically to extend, via successful...

Scouring for Spam: Protecting employees from offensive e-mail delivers time-saving benefits at TWIW Insurance Services.
February 1, 2006... Several years ago, a rising deluge of spam, much of it offensive to the firm's largely female workforce, prompted Tollman & Wiker InWest (TWIW) Insurance Services, LLC, to seek better ways of protecting its incoming e-mail. "We felt as...

Solutions.(iDashboards helped develop a buisness intelligence dashboard for Pioneer State Mutual Insurance Co)(3ianalysis offers India-based investment research services)(Pegasystems delivers solution for Sarbanes-Oxley)
February 1, 2006... PIONEER STATE INSTALLS EPM DASHBOARD An enterprise performance management (EPM) firm, iDashboards, based in Troy, Mich., helped develop a business intelligence dashboard for Pioneer State Mutual Insurance Co., Flint, Mich.. A team involving...

Applicant Tracking System Lowers Recruiting Costs.
February 1, 2006... Three years ago, Great-West Life & Annuity's cost-per-hire reached $5,500, which includes print advertising, agency fees and relocation costs. Last year, after implementing an applicant tracking system (ATS), the Denver, Colo.-based insurer...

Shelter from the Storm: An application services model is making life easier for a start-up near the heart of hurricane alley.
February 1, 2006... In early 2005, after being pounded by hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jean, Glen Distefano pondered the technology model for the soon to be established St. Petersburg, Fla., insurance company. SUNZ Insurance Co. set up shop this year...

Ignore Enterprise Integration at Your Peril: A report by the TowerGroup finds insurers clinging to silos, which is hampering growth and differentiation.
February 1, 2006... Insurance firms that lack a cohesive vision and strategy across their entire enterprise are failing to take advantage of the bounty of newfound technological options available to them and are limiting their capacity for differentiation and...

Web of Solutions Down to One: Striving to increase speed to market, cut costs and embrace a client-server architecture, Penn National Insurance adopts a high-tech document solution.
February 1, 2006... A year ago, faced with stiff pressures to reduce costs and increase production, Penn National Insurance began searching for a robust solution to handle its document management functions for its different business lines. "It wouldn't become...

News Briefs.(Highmark Inc opens new data center)(survey on server failures)(insurers exposure data)
February 1, 2006... QUALITY ISSUES WITH INSURERS' EXPOSURE DATA A recent analysis of insurers' exposure data by AIR Worldwide Corp., Boston, determined that the quality and completeness of most insurers' commercial policy data is insufficient for a detailed...

Alliances.(Verio Inc partners with Arsenal Digital Solutions to provide data protection services)(Symbility Solutions Inc partners with Microsoft's insurance program)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2006... VERIO ALIGNS WITH ARSENAL TO PROVIDE EXPANDED DATA PROTECTION Verio Inc., an Englewood, Colo.-based managed hosting provider, has expanded its data protection and managed storage service offerings through a partnership with Arsenal Digital...

Solutions.(Fiserv Insurance Solutions launches a version of policy Star system)(Marshall and Swift/Boeckh releases database)(InSystems document and compliance automation )
February 1, 2006... ISO RESERVING TOOL PROVIDES CUSTOMIZED ANALYTICS ISO, Jersey City, N.J., has developed a loss-reserving tool that draws on large detailed ISO databases to enable insurers to set loss reserves more accurately. Insurers can use the results of...

Who's Buying What: Recent deals for technology software and services.(risk control strategies)
February 1, 2006... WEALTH RISK MANAGEMENT The Chubb Group of Insurance Cos., Warren, N.J., has selected New York-based Risk Control Strategies to support its new Signature Suite offering of luxury personal risk management services. Signature Suite is...

Ad Index For February 2006.(Brief Article)(Directory)
February 1, 2006... Advertiser/ Website Address Page # Exante www.exantefinancialservices.com 4 IASA www.iasa.org 39 Infogix www.infogix.com 13 ...

HR Plays Strategic Role in Compliance Management.
February 1, 2006... To remain competitive, insurance companies must successfully respond to merger and acquisition activity, escalating customer demands, and increased regulatory pressures. And all of these factors are expanding the human resources professional's...