GARTNER 
By Analysts Examining Key Technology Issues Affecting the P&C and Life Insurance Industries at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, October 10-12, Goa, India
Goa, India, October 9, 2012-Property and casualty (P&C) and life insurers will face a very different market during the next 10 years as shifting market conditions bring new rules for competition, according to Gartner, Inc. These market shifts will continue as new regulations are introduced, consumers continue to evolve, new competitors enter the market, and new management practices are introduced. It is imperative that insurers can quickly respond to these changes, and do so in a cost-effective manner.
Consumers will make the rules as they increasingly turn to the Internet to buy insurance, opening the door for new, more customer-centric competitors to enter the market. Analysts predict that many large insurers will find it difficult to reduce operating expenses to compete against new competition and these large insurers will be slow to respond to shifting market conditions.
"Consumerization and digitalization are two of the biggest business strategies among insurers in 2012," said Kimberly Harris-Ferrante, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. "Both represent massive change in business processes and technologies. Responding to consumer change and using digital technologies to improve operations are essential in meeting emerging and future market requirements. Embracing both concepts will allow insurers to evolve to better match customers, sales, and regulatory pressures."
Ms. Harris-Ferrante presented her findings at the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, taking place here through Friday. She said consumers will increasingly adopt mobile technologies, become more social and technology savvy, have shifting requirements for convenience, demand personalized communications, engage in more channels, and express a different view of insurance brands.
"Insurers need to better understand the evolving consumer market and build strategies on how to respond. They must adopt new business processes and technologies to better compete, respond to market conditions and control operating costs," said Ms. Harris-Ferrante. "Digitalization will provide insurers with the electronic and interactive capabilities required to meet future business needs."
Because of the intersection of consumerization and digitalization companies must embrace the Nexus of Forces, which includes four key elements: social, mobile, cloud and information.
"P&C and life insurers must adopt all four in order to improve operational efficiency, improve customer relationships, drive revenue, improved customer service quality, and improve competitiveness in their target market," Ms. Harris-Ferrante. "The most successful insurers will leverage these concepts will help insurers transform during the next five years to better meet market conditions."
Social is a critical element in how insurers will communicate with agents and customers, obtain business intelligence, market, service customers, and improve customer intelligence. In the short-term, insurers are using social media for social marketing, fraud investigation, catastrophic response, lead generation and quoting. Longer-term, social insurers may emerge, social platforms may become agents, consumers may use social platforms for the first notice of loss for claims, and insurers may build social workplaces to interact with.
Mobility is also becoming core to the insurance industry. Companies must support mobile device use with distributors, employees, service supply partners, consumers and policyholders. Making decisions on how to best to deploy mobility, however, is complicated and insurers are struggling with decisions around the best ways to finance the technology, build the mobile platform, handle device security, and build strategies for mobile applications.
To fulfill future insurance business needs, companies need to more aggressively leverage their data assets as well as look to new data sources for additional value. Building business intelligence (BI), analytical, and predictive capabilities will be essential in market success through 2017. Increasingly insurers are using new technologies which provide real-time data to assist in understanding risks, support new products, and support claims. Advancements in telematics are projected to continue through 2017 as more insurers launch telematics-based auto insurance and move to pay-how-you-drive insurance.
Gartner analysts are examining key issues affecting the Indian IT industry at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo.
About Gartner Symposium/ITxpo
Gartner's annual Symposium/ITxpo events are key components of attendees' annual planning efforts. IT executives rely on Gartner Symposium/ITxpo to gain insight into how their organizations can use IT to address business challenges and improve operational efficiency.
Additional information for Gartner Symposium/ITxpo in India, October 10 - 12 , is available at www.gartner.com/in/symposium.
Members of the media can register for the event by contacting Sony Shetty, Gartner PR on +91 9820900036 or sony.shetty@gartner.com.
Additional information from the event will be shared on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Gartner_inc and using #GartnerSym.
Upcoming dates and locations for Gartner Symposium/ITxpo include:
October 21-25, Orlando, Florida: www.gartner.com/us/symposium
October 29-31, Sao Paulo, Brazil: www.gartner.com/br/symposium
November 5-8, Barcelona, Spain: www.gartner.com/eu/symposium
November 12-15, Gold Coast, Australia: www.gartner.com/au/symposium
March 5-7, 2013, Dubai, UAE: www.gartner.com/technology/symposium/dubai/
Contact:
Sony Shetty
Gartner
+91 22 67092031
sony.shetty@gartner.com
About Gartner:
Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT) is the world's leading information technology research and advisory company. Gartner delivers the technology-related insight necessary for its clients to make the right decisions, every day. From CIOs and senior IT leaders in corporations and government agencies, to business leaders in high-tech and telecom enterprises and professional services firms, to technology investors, Gartner is the valuable partner to clients in 12,000 distinct organizations. Through the resources of Gartner Research, Gartner Executive Programs, Gartner Consulting and Gartner Events, Gartner works with every client to research, analyze and interpret the business of IT within the context of their individual role. Founded in 1979, Gartner is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, U.S.A., and has 5,000 associates, including 1,280 research analysts and consultants, and clients in 85 countries.www.gartner.com.
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