Insurance is a very old concept. The idea behind it is simple: protecting clients from financial loss while ensuring risk is adequately assessed so the provider doesn’t go out of business doing so. The ancient Roman economy was driven in many ways by maritime insurance, which covered the expensive and risky business of trade that propelled the empire. Storms, piracy, and plain old bad luck were all just some of the risks ships took both then and now. Imagine conducting risk analysis using a quill and paper and Roman numerals, and you’ll likely give yourself a migraine.
Luckily, we’ve moved on to far more sophisticated systems, though the concept remains the same. As in many other areas, software helps simplify and automate the insurance industry in all its forms. But building software that can accurately perform all the necessary calculations in insurance can be costly and time-consuming, which is why many companies are turning to outsourcing insurance software to specialised offshore developers.
That’s what we’re here to talk about today: how outsourcing insurance software works, why it can be a good idea, and how best to go about it. But first, why look to outsource insurance software in the first place?
Benefits of Outsourcing Insurance Software
Imagine crunching insurance numbers by hand…and remember you don’t have to.
There are many benefits to outsourcing insurance software. The skills overlap between insurance management and software coding aren’t readily apparent. One could go so far as to say they’re pretty darn different. It goes both ways: Software developers don’t necessarily know how to adequately manage insurance strategies, either.
So, specializing makes a lot of sense. Companies depend on each other through a complex web of interrelated and interweaving skill sets. This relationship can help reduce costs by eliminating the need for expensive infrastructure or personnel like creating your own in-house software team. Furthermore, outsourcing insurance software can help you improve customer satisfaction by providing better customer service and faster response times than traditional methods.
Not all insurance companies choose to outsource their software development, but the number is growing. Currently, insurance companies outsource around 25-30% of their IT teams depending on the company and specialization. There are many ways to integrate an IT team with an insurance provider, which can be custom tailored to the company’s needs.
Outsourcing ensures insurance companies get the tech talent they need — which is difficult to find these days, as the entire tech industry faces a labor shortage among stiff hiring competition. Hiring already-vetted developers via a reputable company saves insurers time and headaches while guaranteeing they’ll get the quality they need.
In a way, outsourcing insurance software needs is a form of insurance in itself. The third-party outsourcing provider assumes some of the risk in developing the software and shoulders the cost of hiring and training developers, thus reducing cost and risk for the insurer.
How to Find the Right Insurance Software Outsourcing Company?
Working with an experienced software company makes a huge difference.
The world is brimming with talented software developers as well as outsourcing companies. So, how do you pick the right company to work with? Many companies face such a question every day.
Fortunately, by reading this particular article, you’re already headed in the right direction. Researching companies to see just how experienced and focused they are in your particular field is crucial. Once you’ve found a potential outsourcing partner, you’ll want to vet them as carefully as possible. This can include calls with project managers, C-level executives, and other technical experts. Bringing your own in-house technical experts to such meetings can help ensure that the outsourcing partner passes the sniff test.
Additionally, look to previous projects the outsourcing provider has completed. Many of these may be protected by non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in terms of specifics, but the contactee on the other end should be able to provide enough detail and knowledge about the industry to indicate they know what they’re doing.
Looking for reliability and credibility is crucial. Internationally-recognised certifications like ISO: 27001 and others help prove the legitimacy of a company via third-party credibility auditors. The software provider should also be an expert in managing sensitive data and providing reliable, secure software that protects companies’ and clients’ information.
What Can Be Automated with Insurance Software?
Small costs add up, and so does time.
Some of the most important aspects of the insurance business can be automated with top-notch software, making lives of insurance companies and clients alike much easier.
A solid customer relations management (CRM) system can be a make-or-break aspect of any insurance software. This is the interface through which the customer interacts with the company, filing claims and adjusting policies as needed.
To say that there’s a lot of data involved in insurance is an understatement. Having a robust CRM that’s also user-friendly can help encourage new customers to sign up and current customers to stay on board. Client information has to be shared across the company in real time. Simultaneously, customers need to be able to get feedback as quickly as possible from claims adjusters should they need to file a claim.
Insurance agents should be able to rely on the CRM for accurate, real-time data, accurate pricing, and customer contact. Essentially, all customer-facing aspects of the CRM should flow through it, streamlining communications and avoiding messy contact via email or phone calls.
This software can exist as a one-off purchase or as a software-as-a-service (SaaS), and can be adapted to cover any sector of the insurance industry. Whether an insurer is small and independent or part of a big broker, having a solid CRM is a must in the modern insurance world.
Underwriting, policy pricing, and every other business-focused aspect of the process can be automated by insurance software. This leaves more time for insurance agents to manage relations with their clients on a human level, since the number-crunching and paper-pushing is kept to a minimum — and in one place.
For insurance companies, this streamlining can reduce policy cost by reducing man-hours necessary to manage risk, set pricing, and manage customer interactions. And as we all know, more competitive costs lead to more customers in insurance. Everybody wins, right?
Is Custom Software Right for You?
When a company is choosing their software, they’re really left with two options: Custom software or off-the-shelf software. Either can work, but it depends just how specific the company’s needs are and the pricing involved.
Consider: A lot of pre-built software may have extraneous features you don’t need that you still have to pay for, or it may be lacking features you realize you do need. If that’s your situation, customised software is the way forward. You can work with your offshore insurance software developer to figure out just what features you need and, crucially, what you don’t in order to save money and time.
Thinking about Outsourcing your Insurance Software?
If you’re in the insurance industry and you’re looking to expand, replace, or improve your software, you’re in the right place. We’ve got a long track record with custom financial software, including apps that handle hundreds of thousands of transactions daily. We’ve got a number of ways to integrate with clients, and we’re happy to be as flexible as possible to fit our clients’ needs.
Reach out to us for a free quote and we’ll start a conversation that may lead you to the verdant pasture of simpler software. The grass really is greener on the other side.
