UBM-I&T

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BEYOND THE CRISIS: CHALLENGE AND OPPORTUNITY P.23

June 2009 Business Innovation Powered By Technology

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EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW TO AVOID BEING EATEN ALIVE.

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW TO AVOID BEING EATEN ALIVE.

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4 IT Survival Guide 2009 www.insurancetech.com

Vol 34, No 4June 2009

ITH FINANCIAL SERVICES in crisis and evidence every-where of the casualties ofthe global recession, it may

be tempting to hide from the turmoil —to hunker down, avoid risks and wait forthe storm to pass. But that could mean missing atremendous opportunity. In fact those organiza-tions that can find ways to control expenses whilealso investing in innovative technology strategiesare likely to come out of the downturn as big win-ners. Not only will they have found ways to buildmarket share and lock in customer and distributorloyalty, they also will have a strong, talented anddedicated workforce, motivated to help the organi-

zation meet whatever regulatory, competitiveand demographic challenges come its way.

That is the mission of Insurance & Technology’s new IT Survival Guide. In this

timely resource you will find targeted andproven information about how to manage

IT resources more effectively in a time of crisis andhow to make sure that the IT organization is recognized as an integral part of an insuranceenterprise’s performance and success, rather thanan unwieldy cost center that must be strippedbare. There’s no reason to concede any ground in today’s marketplace, and I&T created theIT Survival Guide to provide you with the tools and resources you need to fight — and win.

NAVIGATING IT BUDGET CHALLENGES8 Technology Spending Despite the urgency

to contain costs, forward-looking insurance companies, particularly in the P&C sector, areresisting the temptation to sacrifice long-termstrategic goals for short-term tactical gains.

10 Project Prioritization It has never been more critical for insurers to pursue the right technol-ogy projects. SMA’s Deb Smallwood and KarenFurtado offer a six-step checklist to help carriersalign IT investments with business strategy.

14 Vendor ManagementWhether or not carriers arescaling back the scope oftheir technology spending,they are driving hard bar-gains with vendors, pushingfor better terms and seekingfewer, deeper relationships.

15 The New IT Mandate Some-times the best defense is a goodoffense. Deloitte’s Linda Pawczuk and Joseph Joy argue that CIOs must take a proactiveapproach to streamlining IT operations duringthe economic downturn.

16 Outsourcing Even aspolitical anxiety willmake some insurance companies think twiceabout offshore outsourcing, all carriers are likelyto explore alternative software delivery models.

18 Cloud Computing CIOs must not overlook cloudcomputing, which promises to cut costs, assertsTom Pettibone, Transition Partners. But noteverything in the cloud is ready for production.

19 Thin Computing Amerisure Mutual Insurance implemented thin-client computing to create amore stable infrastructure. Now it is enjoying theefficiency gains provided by the technology.

20 Green Facilities While environmentally friendlyprojects have lost some popularity in the currentbusiness climate, carriers such as American Familyare realizing hard dollar savings from going green.

22 Standards Data standards streamline processing,enhance flexibility and improve communicationwith partners, contends ACORD’s Lloyd Chumbley,who says the benefits of standards grow over time. C

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Bill Bloom, EVP – Insurance Operations and CIO, Travelers

Russ Bostick, EVP, Technology and Operations, Conseco

Cathy Brune, SVP, CIO, Allstate

Bob Fullington, President, LOTSolutions; Executive VP, Fortegra Financial

Bruce Goodman, SVP, Chief Serviceand Information Officer, Humana

Barbara Koster, CIO, Prudential Financial

Srinivas Koushik, CIO, Nationwide Insurance

Craig Lowenthal, EVP, CIO,NYMAGIC

Scott McKay, SVP, CIO, Genworth Financial

Piyush Singh, SVP, CIO, Great American Insurance

Greg Tranter, SVP, CIO, COO, The Hanover Insurance Group

Rick Roy, CIO, CUNA Mutual

I&T Reader Advisory Board

www.insurancetech.com IT Survival Guide 2009 5

On-Demand Web EventsThe Road to Adoption: A Business Analytics Research ModelAn Insurance & Technology Editorial Perspectives WebcastData often is an insurer’s most valuable asset. But not every carrier is gettingall it can from its data. A business analytics research model can help. In thisfree, one-hour Web seminar, learn what it takes to adopt a business analyticsresearch model powered by predictive analytics. For more information or to register, visit www.insurancetech.com/business-analytics-model. For a complete list of I&T’s on-demand Web events, visitwww.insurancetech.com/business-analytics-model.

Follow Insurance & Technology on Twitter!For real-time insight from Insurance & Technology, followour editors on Twitter. You can find Editorial DirectorKatherine Burger at twitter.com/kathyburger and Associate EditorNathan Conz at twitter.com/nconz. And track the latest developments in the insurance industry at twitter.com/insurancetech.

Optimism Holds in Insurance IT Investment“The financial crisis has hit the life industry much harder than the P&C industry, and all insurers will feel the pinch of the economy as a reflection of how it is felt by their customers,” writes Executive Editor Anthony O’Donnell during research for his recent cover story on core systems.To read more observations from O’Donnell, or to explore other blogsfrom I&T’s editors and special contributors, visit www.insurancetech.com/blog.

Insurance & Technology Executive Summit 2009 “Beyond the Crisis: Challenge and Opportunity”Nov. 1-4, 2009The Wigwam Golf Resort & Spa, PhoenixJoin Insurance & Technology and an exclusive group of senior-level insurance executives to learn about and share the best practices that arehelping them lead their organizations out of the downturn and into thefuture of financial services. www.insurancetech.com/summit2009

INSURANCETECH .COM

SOCIAL MEDIA

BLOGS & BRAINSTORMS

L IVE EVENTS

Insurance & Technology (ISSN# 1054-0733) is published 8 times per year (Feb./March,April/May, Survival Guide, June/July,Aug./Sept., October, Elite 8, Dec./Jan.) by United Business Media LLC, 600 Community Drive, Manhasset, NY 11030 (516)562-5000. All rights reserved. Subscription information, address changes and single-issue requests: $65 per year in theUS, $85 in Canada, $105 elsewhere (payable in US funds). Single issue requests, write to: Insurance & Technology, P.O.Box 1053, Skokie, IL 60076-8053, or call (1-800) 255-2824, (847) 647-2105, or e-mail to [email protected]. EditorialOffices: 11 W. 19th Street, 3rd Fl., New York, NY 10011; (212) 600-3000. POSTMASTER: Send changes of address to Insur-ance & Technology, P.O. Box 1053, Skokie, IL 60076-8053. Periodicals postage paid at Manhasset, NY, and additional mail-ing offices. Registered for GST as United Business Media LLC, GST No. R13288078, Customer No. 2116057, AgreementNo. 40011901. Copyright 2000 United Business Media LLC. “Bulk mail enclosed, standard rate permit #476 paid atIthaca, NY.” Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to Bleuchip International, P.O. Box 255542, London, ON N6C 6B2.

24 Recruitment andRetention The eco-nomic slump has created a buyer’s market for tech talent. But retaining top tech pros should still bea priority for insurance CIOs.

26 Millennials Genworth Financial is working toensure that the IT talent inherent in youngergenerations is a part of the company’s future,reports SVP and CIO Scott McKay.

27 Managing Layoffs Smart transition managementis critical in order to maintain the effective functioning of an IT organization following layoffs, and guiding a firm through the transitionstarts with communication.

28 CIO Job Market The toughest challenge faced bysenior technology executives during these toughtimes may be finding a new job. Consulting offersone way to network and ride out the recession.

SURVIVING CRISIS AND CHANGE30 Technology Innovation Fewer IT dollars doesn’t

have to mean the end of innovation. Just askBCBS of Florida, which turned a small investmentin presentation software into giant returns.

31 CIO Skills To survive and thrive in the new business reality, CIOs must be more focused than ever on business strategy, according toAccenture’s Michael Costonis and Keith Lippiatt.

32 Operational Transformation Even as firms struggleto hang on in this market, they can’t afford to losesight of long-term goals. To prepare for its future,Zurich Financial overhauled its operating model.

33 Enterprise Strategy OhioNational has responded to thechallenges of the crisis withexhilaration rather than dismay.

34 Relieving Stress Some ofthe industry’s top CIOs

share their personalstrategies for han-dling the demands ofthe job.

WORKFORCE CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES

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16 IT Survival Guide 2009 www.insurancetech.com

The need to find cost advantages is especially acute at

insurance carriers burdened by legacy mainframe systems,

notes Scott Mampre, VP of New York-based Capgemini

Financial Services’ insurance practice. “The high costs of

legacy systems tend to stand out more on the balance sheet

during a downturn,” he comments.

Outsourcing remains an important avenue for carriers to

take advantage of specialization and labor arbitrage for non-

core functions, Mampre asserts. In addition to IT outsourc-

ing (ITO), he says, carriers are continuing to pursue busi-

ness process outsourcing (BPO) for

functions such as HR, billing, account-

ing, call centers and claims.

Now is an especially good time to

leverage outsourcing services because

insurers enjoy a buyer’s market for

solutions, suggests Akhil Tripathi, SVP

and CIO of Harleysville Insurance

(2008 total net written premium of $1.1

billion). “There is a greater opportunity

to negotiate better services and pricing because ... providers

are also facing the economic downturn,” he explains. Tripathi

adds that the Harleysville, Pa.-based insurer has not altered

its attitude toward outsourcing and will continue to leverage

both ITO and BPO opportunities for activities that can be

handed off without impacting strategic initiatives.

That approach is not universally shared, according to

Dirk George, insurance practice lead, BearingPoint

(McLean, Va.). While the life and annuities business is more

motivated to seek offshore outsourcing solutions, the P&C

industry in both the United States and Europe is showing

some reluctance to embrace offshore, he relates. The

Satyam scandal combined with worries of terrorism related

to the Mumbai attacks and domestic political concerns has

led the industry to eye outsourcing with somewhat less

favor, George suggests. “There is a more dramatic pullback

in the European Union with regard to offshore use, fostered

by political concerns ... as well as concern about the security

of data from a terrorism perspective,” he comments.

Within the U.S. there is greater sensitivity about out-

NTIL INSURERS have clear reason tobelieve the economic situation is improving,they will continue to explore ways to controlcosts. Past experience and current concernsare shaping the debate about resorting to

offshore outsourcing, but emerging hosted solutionsare giving insurers an expanding menu of options.

“There is a greater opportunity to

negotiate better services and pric-

ing because ... providers are also

facing the economic downturn.”

—AKHIL TR IPATH I , HARLEYSV I LLE INSURANCE

BY ANTHONY O’DONNELL

Economic drivers will trump politics when it comes

to outsourcing, as all insurers explore alternative

software delivery models to control costs.

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sourcing as business leaders and the general public recog-

nize its possible counter-stimulant effect on the American

economy. “Buyers are starting to recognize the effect that

[outsourcing] has had by eradicating jobs that fuel the econ-

omy domestically,” George explains.

The Bottom LineHowever widespread those concerns may be, economic forces

will continue to drive the adoption of outsourced solutions,

though carriers may look for different ways of embracing

them, according to Kimberly Harris-Ferrante, VP and distin-

guished analyst, Gartner (Stamford, Conn.). “Insurers are

more risk-averse, they want faster results, and they are

increasingly becoming interested in alternative delivery mod-

els for software, including software as a service [SaaS] and

broadening relationships with outsourcing partners,” she says.

Many companies are simultaneously seeking to reduce

internal staff and improve operational efficiency, Harris-

Ferrante reports. “Using third-party partners to help with

staff augmentation and to fill in staffing skill-set gaps is crit-

ical for many companies,” she says. “Lowering technology

acquisition costs through alternative delivery methods is

also a key tool for staying competitive and having access to

modern solutions without the large up-front costs.”

Harleysville has maintained a lean internal IT group for

years, partially by tapping external resources, according to the

carrier’s Tripathi. “It’s more of a variable cost model that does-

n’t require displacing our own employees,” he says, adding

that cost is not the only driver of outsourcing at Harleysville.

“It’s also how quickly you want projects done and the opportu-

nity cost of not getting it done in time,” Tripathi notes.

In addition to more-traditional ITO and BPO arrange-

ments, Harleysville also is exploring other means of getting

non-core work done. “We’re looking at hosted options and

SaaS — especially when delivered through the cloud — for

things like call center services,” Tripathi comments. “There

are pretty adaptable applications and tools available without

having to invest a great deal of money up front.”

Nonetheless Tripathi doesn’t believe

the moment has arrived for the use of

such solutions for functions such as pol-

icy administration and financial systems.

“I don’t believe the solutions for that are

sufficiently mature,” he says.

That judgment may be a luxury some

insurers can’t afford, notes Karen Pauli,

research director, TowerGroup. “Carriers

whose survival hinges on market penetration and growth that

also lack sophisticated IT capabilities should consider

options for the entire back-office function,” she advises.

BPO in general is growing as the number of providers with

deep domain expertise expands, according to Pauli. “It looked

as if carriers were pulling back around the end of the fourth

quarter of 2008, but we are now seeing more deals being

done,” she says. “There’s a very robust market, especially for

onshore providers catering to more-cautious carriers.”

Adds Lisa Hastings, SVP of client services, Kaplan Compli-

ance Solutions (KCS), “Over the past few years the insurance

and financial services industries have become more open to out-

sourcing their onboarding and licensing activities to industry

experts.” As carriers anticipate increased regulatory burdens in

the coming months, she says, they are concerned about the

resources they may have to devote to compliance purposes.

An insurance executive with a large Northeast P&C car-

rier who declines to be named reports beginning an out-

sourcing relationship with KCS in 2007. “Our decision to

outsource was ... an internal initiative to reduce costs,” the

executive says. “Having a team of professionals who can

handle the processing has made a world of difference.”

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SUNSHINE ON A CLOUDY DAY

April/May 2009 Business Innovation Powered By TechnologyApril/May 2009 Business Innovation Powered By Technology

SUNSHINE ON A CLOUDY DAY

Federal RegulationStirs Old Tensions p.11

Jackson National LifeRebuilds Web Site p.34

Managing Content inA Web 2.0 World p.38

DESPITE THE TEMPESTTHAT HAS CONSUMEDFINANCIAL SERVICES,INSURERS SAY NOW IS THE PERFECT TIMETO INVEST IN POLICYADMIN SYSTEMS TOPREPARE FOR SUNNIERDAYS AHEAD. P.26

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26 April/May 2009 www.insurancetech.com

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In Depth: Policy Admin Systems

Spending for A Sunny Day

Despite the gloom that has consumed the financial services industry, most insurance

companies remain bullish on technologyinvestment and many are looking to buildout policy admin capabilities to positionthemselves for growth as the economy

emerges from the recession.BY ANTHONY O’DONNELL

0409_26-30.qxd 4/1/09 11:59 AM Page 26

perceived mismanagement and greed. Many other insurers have

taken a beating in their investment income and, as the economic

downturn evolves, can expect a hit to premium income as well.

Given these gloomy conditions, one might logically ask: Is this

any time to be investing scarce resources in core insurance sys-

tems? According to Mike Clifton, CTO for The Hanover Insur-

ance Group, the answer is a resounding “Yes!”

Despite the financial crisis and the longer-term

economic downturn, Clifton says, when it comes

to technology investment at The Hanover ($2.5

billion in 2008 revenue), “We are still as aggressive

as we were before the downturn.” If anything, he

adds, the Worcester, Mass.-based P&C carrier is

investing more aggressively in core systems.

The Hanover is not alone. “We are aggressively

investing in technology,” says Robert Fullington,

president of Jacksonville, Fla.-based Life of the

South’s LOTSolutions technology company, not-

ing that he sees opportunities for both cost reduc-

tion and expansion of capabilities and services.

The outlook is similar for New York Marine

and General Insurance Co. (NYMAGIC), reports

Craig Lowenthal, the carrier’s EVP and CIO. “The

economic downturn hasn’t changed our approach

to technology investment at this point; in fact I

believe this is a great time to invest in key initia-

tives,” he comments. “Being able to successfully

execute on key initiatives at this time will position

your company to be that much more competitive

as the country emerges from the recession.”

These technology executives’ opinions are

representative of the positions of many others

— from a wide variety of companies in terms of

size, lines of business and geographic location —

with whom I&T has spoken in 2009. This bullish-

ness is in significant measure a manifestation of

insurers’ strong capitalization, owing to the strict

solvency rules to which the industry is subject.

To the extent that an insurer has not been dev-

astated by the financial crisis, it is likely to con-

tinue its strategic technology investment, observes Donald Light, a

San Francisco-based senior analyst with Celent. “Policy adminis-

tration replacement is a little like sailing an ocean liner — it’s not

something you start and stop,” he explains. “These initiatives will

tend to have their own momentum unless things get much worse.”

A Celent study conducted around the turn of the year found

that most carriers are holding their technology budgets fairly

steady, neither growing nor shrinking them by more than 2 per-

cent. Certainly, in the wake of the crisis, there is more caution in

the air at many carriers, Light acknowledges. But, he says, he

hasn’t seen that result in many halted projects.

The Push of Strategic Tailwinds“IT groups are getting orders to start controlling expenses, but I

wouldn’t predict any major downturn in spending,” Light says. “The

strategic tailwinds are stronger than the economic headwinds.”

That may be true from the carrier perspec-

tive, but to the degree that insurers’ caution may

slow their spending, vendors face more-adverse

conditions. A combination of continuing vendor

consolidation and economic factors will make for

a buyer’s market for insurance software, accord-

ing to a Gartner (Stamford, Conn.) report. “The

shaky economy has deterred many insurers from

funding system replacements in favor of smaller,

tactical software and service purchases,” wrote

Kimberly Harris-Ferrante, Gartner distinguished

analyst and author of the report.

Current market conditions will put pressure

on smaller, niche software providers, according to

Harris-Ferrante. These vendors will lack the

resources to provide services and to fund research

and development, she commented in the report.

“The number of life companies buying sys-

tems has slowed down, and purchase decisions

are being put on hold and being scrutinized

more now,” Harris-Ferrante tells I&T. “P&C ven-

dors are better able to sell their systems because

there is less risk associated with the implemen-

tations. However, carriers are exercising more

caution in contract negotiation and looking more

stringently at proofs of concept to ensure that

projects will be on time and on budget.”

Harris-Ferrante suggests that even budgets

with insignificant increases signify a departure

from spending envisioned before the financial cri-

sis struck. “We’re not seeing many companies exe-

cuting the full budget they had originally projected

for 2009,” she remarks. “There is less to spend.”

That being the case, insurers will place more

www.insurancetech.com April/May 2009 27

Technology Investment

“Being able tosuccessfully

execute on keyinitiatives at this

time will position yourcompany to bethat much morecompetitive asthe country

emerges fromthe recession,”

says CraigLowenthal,NYMAGIC.

THE FINANCIAL SERVICES INDUSTRY

remains mired in turmoil, every daybringing new omens, recriminations

and prognostications of doom. While insur-ance has fared better than other sectors, itslargest company has become a symbol ofthe crisis and a focus of public outrage over

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November 2009 Business Innovation Powered By Technology

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I&T’S EXECUTIVE SUMMIT 2009: SEE PAGES 18-19BEYOND THE CRISIS: CHALLENGE AND OPPORTUNITY

Elite

2009

Kevin MurrayAXA Equitable

Andy EdwardsonFarmers Alliance

Lori BeerWellPoint

Robert CasaleMassMutual

Andy WoodWilton Re

Eileen SlevinNew York Life

Mark BerthiaumeChubb Group

Keith SieversUnitrin Services Group

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24 November 2009 www.insurancetech.com

HEN IT COMES to personal use, MassMutual SVP and CIO Bob Casale lists hisBlackBerry, iPod and GPS as his most important technology devices. “GPS navi-gation in the car was the most tremendous invention of all time for a guy like me,who is horrible with directions,” Casale admits.

For a man who has trouble finding his way behind the wheel, Casale has demon-strated an extraordinary sense of direction at MassMutual, where he has helped

Elite 2009

MassMutual’s Bob Casalehas stepped into the CIO role

and led the carrier into the next phase of its technology

modernization initiative.

88

lead a multiyear effort to modernize the technology environ-ment, which includes mainframe and distributed environments.

In his previous role as MassMutual’s deputy CIO, Casaleestablished an enterprisewide reference architecture for theSpringfield, Mass.-based carrier and oversaw the developmentof an SOA environment, effectively creating a road map that thecompany would use to pursue modernization. Since steppinginto the CIO role in December 2008, when he replaced the retir-ing Michael Foley, Casale has pushed MassMutual’s moderniza-tion effort forward, implementing key enabling technologies

and leading the IT team as it seeks to build out and extend thecapabilities of those technologies to drive value to the business.

In the months leading up to his promotion, Casale learned onthe job as deputy CIO and counts Foley as a mentor. “The tran-sition went smoothly,” Casale says. “Mike did a wonderful jobwith me, stepping back and really purposefully setting a transi-tion timeline that gave me the time to get my legs under me.”

Casale adds that Foley helped him realize that one big keyto the CIO job is, quite simply, people. “It’s about the team. It’sabout inspiring people. It’s about influencing people. It’s aboutgetting people excited to come to work,” Casale comments.“When you get that right, everything else just works.”

With that in mind, Casale employs a management stylefocused on creating an environment open to diverse perspectives.In 2008, for example, he initiated an Operating Strategy Activitythat facilitates collaboration and open dialogue across the car-rier’s IT organization. He also believes it’s important to enjoy whatyou do and, crediting his father for helping develop his sense ofhumor, says he tries to inject humor into the workday.

When Casale took over as CIO, MassMutual ($363 billion inassets under management) had already implemented severalnew core systems and applications, including an enterprisecontent management (ECM) system, data warehousing capabil-ities, a new whole life platform and a Web-based illustrationtool. As the modernization effort has progressed, though, so toohave the objectives of the IT team.

Casale explains that the IT team set out a couple of years ago

W

SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT AND CIO SIZE OF IT ORGANIZATION: 1,500 peopleCAREER: Casale joined MassMutual in 1995 after servingas a senior programming analyst at Connecticut OnlineComputer Center Trust. He has held a range of IT leader-ship positions at MassMutual, including deputy CIO, andwas first named a corporate VP in May 2007. EDUCATION: B.S. in Computer Science from Charter OakState College; M.B.A. from Boston UniversityHOBBIES/PASTIMES: Casale has played music since thethird grade. “It’s just something that has stuck with me,” he says. “My wife knows when there’s been a particularlystressful day — she’ll hear [me playing] the acoustic guitar.”

Robert Casale, MassMutual

Stepping Up■ By Nathan Conz ■

1109_24-25.qxd 9/28/09 3:22 PM Page 24

to position the business with industry-leading technolo-gies. In the past 18 months, he reports, a new distributionplatform, a new strategic platform for traditional productsand new field capabilities have been put in place.

“Over the last year and a half, really, all of those coreplatforms have now been implemented, and we’re movingon to the second phase, which is the build-out of the busi-ness capability,” Casale relates. “We’re really focusingnow, going forward, on things like mobility, collaborationand social networking. We’ve got a lot of irons in the fire.”

‘Conduit to the Policyholder’Over the past few months, Casale adds, MassMutual hastaken steps to provide its field force with more mobilecapabilities. “We’re in a high-touch business, and ourfield force is really the conduit to the policyholder,” hesays. “We’re trying to create an environment where it’smuch easier to work with us, where [field agents] haveaccess to information at any time they need it so thatthey can do what they do more effectively.”

In a proof of concept that was completed at the endof the second quarter, MassMutual developed two proto-type mobile field applications for Waterloo, Ontario-based RIM’s BlackBerry device and delivered them to 40field force workers, Casale notes. The carrier’s internalIT team partnered with Waltham, Mass.-based PyxisMobile on productivity tools that give users access topolicy data and sales results, and worked with Chalk, amobile software firm recently acquired by RIM, on a pro-ducer learning tool that delivers instructional informa-tion, such as policy compliance guidance, to users.

The proof of concept, which took seven weeks todevelop, was well received, according to Casale, and theIT team is currently deciding the next steps for a widerpilot and rollout. “Mobility is really about giving access tocritical information, whatever that may be, to them wher-ever they need it while they are on the road,” Casale says.

In many ways, the concept of technology modern-ization and Casale’s IT leadership style work in concert.“We need to be at least 18 months ahead of the businessin terms of what we’re thinking about and getting readyfor,” Casale describes. “The successes we have todayare because of the decisions we made 18 months ago,and the success we have 18 months from now will bebecause of the decisions we make today.”

With that in mind, Casale says, he and his team spenda considerable amount of time discussing potentially dis-ruptive trends in the industry. One technology that in thefuture, Casale feels, could be a disruptive force is socialnetworking. “Lots of companies like ours are really tryingto understand what it means to our business,” Casalerelates. “We know it’s coming, we know it’s real. We knowthat it will change the way people work. It will change theway our customers expect to be worked with.”

Casale has responsibility for MassMutual’s enter-prise architecture, infrastructure, enterprise informa-

tion and risk management functions, as well as applica-tion development and delivery. He also oversees sharedservices, technology that spans multiple MassMutualgroups or subsidiaries. Casale counts CSC (FallsChurch, Va.), IBM (Armonk, N.Y.), Microsoft (Red-mond, Wash.) and SAP (Walldorf, Germany) as the car-rier’s key vendor partners.

With an assist from his predecessor, he has learned tobetter compartmentalize the requirements and stressesof his job, helping to make him, he says, a more effectiveand, ultimately, a more productive IT leader. “[Foley]also taught me that urgency and importance aren’t nec-essarily the same thing,” Casale reveals. “In these kindsof jobs, everything is urgent, and what you find out isthat not everything is as important as you think.”

He also has learned to maintain a better balancebetween work and home life, which centers around hiswife and three children. “I don’t know if you ever get trueseparation of work and life, but you get a better integra-tion when you think about it that way,” Casale says. ■

www.insurancetech.com November 2009 25

“We’re trying to create anenvironment ... where [fieldagents] have access to infor-mation at any time they needit so that they can do whatthey do more effectively.”

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October 2009 Business Innovation Powered By Technology

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THE HARTFORD’S ENTERPRISE CIO, BRIANO’CONNELL, IS DRIVING ANENTERPRISE TECHNOLOGYAGENDA BASED ON ANARCHITECTURE THAT CANMAXIMIZE EFFICIENCY AND MEET EVOLVING DISTRIBUTOR AND CUSTOMER DEMANDS. P.20

I&T’S EXECUTIVE SUMMIT 2009: SEE PAGES 18-19BEYOND THE CRISIS: CHALLENGE AND OPPORTUNITY

ArchitectsOF THE Future

ArchitectsOF THE Future

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AnatomyOfAWebSite

30 October 2009 www.insurancetech.com

According to Alan Lurty, SVP and head ofretail life business development, ING, the carrierdeveloped the site with middle-market cus-tomers in mind after noticing that its independ-ent distributors were having difficulty reachingthem. It was an issue, he indicates, of distribu-tion economics: Distributors believed that thecosts associated with finding and selling to themidmarket were not justified by the amount ofpremium available from those clients. “As aresult of that, a lot of distributors have tried tomigrate upscale to pick up those really big, per-manent life insurance checks, and yet the middlemarket is crying for insurance,” Lurty explains.

Lurty says that in many instances middle-market consumers recognize their need forlife insurance but just don’t know much aboutit and, with distributors focusing more andmore on the high end, they aren’t being con-

tacted by producers who could help educateand sell to them. “We think there is a tremen-dous opportunity in the middle market thatremains unfilled,” Lurty relates. “[We werelooking for] a tool that we could develop thatwould educate consumers, especially in themiddle market, about life insurance.”

Stronger LeadsThe goal of the new site, Lurty suggests, is toattract consumers who have expressed a realinterest in purchasing life products, therebyproducing stronger leads and reducing theamount of time and money a producer wouldhave to spend developing middle-marketclients. “If you had a Web site that couldguide people through [the educationprocess], then you’d have a ready-to-buy cus-tomer for the distributor. It makes a lot ofsense to them, and the distribution econom-ics problem gets solved.”

Development of the ING for Life site beganin the fourth quarter of 2007. The initial sitewas rolled out in November 2008, with a leadgenerator and fulfillment center sending e-mail blasts to consumers, Lurty reports. Thepilot phase continued through the first quarterof 2009, and ING formally announced the siteto the public in late July.

ING worked with NovoLogic, aLawrenceville, Ga.-based marketing technol-ogy firm, to develop the Microsoft (Redmond,Wash.) .NET site, which makes heavy use ofFlash technology and Flex, an open sourceWeb application framework from San Jose,Calif.-based Adobe, according to Kay Eller,director of business development and the INGfor Life project manager. “An in-house teamserved as the subject matter experts for devel-oping content while NovoLogic worked with

■ By Nathan Conz ■

ING HAS DEVELOPED A NEW CUSTOMER-FACING WEB SITE AIMED AT REACHING A MIDDLE MARKET CUSTOMER BASE THE CARRIER FEELS IS UNDERSERVED.

Reaching for the Middle

AVING IDENTIFIED an unclaimed opportunity in the midmarket for life insurance, The ING Life Companies, part of Amsterdam-based ING Group (US$789.6 billion in assets under manage-ment), has launched ING for Life, a new Web site that aims to educate consumers on the basicsof life insurance through interactive online tools. Making heavy use of video and Flash tech-

nology, ING for Life walks potential customers through an education process that addresses issues suchas the importance of life insurance, life insurance options and how much coverage individuals should buy.At the end of the process ING offers visitors the option to begin the buying process.

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Determine Your NeedsOnce users have selected the avatars that best representthem and their families, the site takes them through aprocess of determining their specific needs. “It uses somevideo vignettes ... that really talk in fairly emotional termsabout why life insurance is important,” Lurty says.

As important as the videos are to the site, the technicalteam had to make sure that the content did not adverselyaffect navigation. “The rich media available on the site —videos, animations, etc. — are a huge part of the site, butthey could not slow down the user’s progression,” notesJason King, lead developer for NovoLogic. “Once the userwas ready to buy, we had to provide a simple way for themto get product quotes, choose the product best for themand submit that information in as few steps as possible.”

Pick a PersonIn a press release, Alan Lurty, SVP and head of retail lifebusiness development, ING, suggested that the ING forLife site provides users with the kind of personalized experience that creates “the emotional impact required totrigger a sale.” Part of that personalization comes from thesite’s navigation process. Each user is asked to select oneof four avatars, varying in age and gender, to represent himor her during the education process. Then the user isasked to select from a larger and more varied set ofavatars to represent the rest of his or her immediate family.

“The primary goal was to build an educational site thatis engaging and entertaining in order to captivate the consumer and motivate them into submitting their contactinformation and wanting to buy life insurance,” says KayEller, director of business development and the ING for Lifeproject manager. “The new generation of Web sitesincludes interactive human-type contact while enhancingthe navigation experience.”

ING

the subject matter experts to architect, designand build a site that would educate consumersabout life insurance,” Eller details.

The carrier intends to leverage businesspartnerships and some of its other businessunits to market the site, Lurty notes. Already ithas partnered with ING Direct, its Internetbank, to e-mail banking customers about thesite. The results of that e-mail campaign areproprietary, but Lurty does say the metricshave been promising thus far. “We’re gettingsome good close rates,” he reveals. “We’reable to gather some good data, and we’re get-ting some good sales out of it.”

While the site is targeted directly at con-sumers, ING stresses that it is not interested indirect selling. Under the ING Direct bank part-nership, for example, potential customerswho visit the ING for Life site and choose to

purchase insurance are contacted via phoneby an ING brokerage general agency. “We arenot in competition with our own distribution[network],” Lurty stresses. “In this example[of the work with ING Direct], we have usedone of our brokerage general agencies to actas a fulfillment center.”

Independent producers can leverage theirown business relationships in a similar way, asthe site allows for co-branding opportunities,such as co-branded URLs and a qualified lead-generation tool, Lurty points out. As an exam-ple, he explains, a producer couldprovide life insurance to the ownerof a car dealership. It might be ben-eficial to then send an e-mail out,linking to ING for Life, to all of thedealership’s employees.

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