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Knowledge is THE competitive advantage in life insurance underwriting and servicing. Bringing the right information to the right person at the right time is the mantra of successful underwriting competition. Our ePaperclip panel with Senior Underwriting Representatives will set illustrate the state-of- the-art, after a review of Knowledge Management fundamentals sets the stage. To be concluded by a case study of KM and its place in the Corporate strategy at Clarica.

Seminar Topics

Seminar has been cancelled as of January 6.

8:00 – 8:30: Registration and Coffee

8:30	Welcome: Doug Grant Insurance-Canada.ca
8:40	"Knowledge Management 101" Deb Wallace, Consultant, Knowledge and Learning Strategy Development, Sun Life Financial Canada.
Fact or fiction, fad or foundation, knowledge management is a topic that is receiving substantial attention as we all try to make sense of the newly labeled "knowledge era" and "knowledge-based economy." So what do we mean by knowledge management? Is it old wine in a new bottle, a repackaging of management consulting opportunities, or the corner stone of creating a sustainable competitive advantage in our business or organization? Knowledge management practitioner Deb will outline the basics of KM, introducing key concepts and vocabulary and propose a framework from which you can plan and evaluate a knowledge initiative.
9:25	break
9:35	Is There an Opportunity to Use Knowledge Management Principles to Evolve the Underwriting Process? Andrea McGrory, Insurance Practice Leader, BearingPoint. Gail Johnson Morris BA, Vice President, Underwriting and New Business, Transamerica Life Canada. Representatives from Canada Life and Clarica Sunlife.
In this session we will discuss if there is a play for knowledge management in underwriting. The ePaperclip is the concept of timely and electronically aligning the incoming documentation with the client file. The cycle time to get the required data from all the sources has long been an issue. Are there knowledge management principles that can lead us to the underwriting ePaperclip that will change the paradigm and reduce cycle time? Andrea will be joined by a panel of Canada's leading experts in the Underwriting Life Cycle from Transamerica, Canada Life and Clarica Sunlife. The panel will share their insight on where Knowledge Management can shape the underwriting process.
11:00	break
11:10	Knowledge Management at Work Deb Wallace, Consultant, Knowledge and Learning Strategy Development, Sun Life Financial Canada.
Clarica Life Insurance Company was named one of the most admired knowledge enterprises in the world in 2002. Lead by KM visionary, Hubert Saint-Onge, Clarica (now Sun Life Financial) has a comprehensive knowledge and learning strategy that supports the creation, management, and use of its knowledge assets. This session will overview the components of Clarica's K&L strategy and illustrate how communities of practice play a key role in leveraging the wealth of individual and organizational capabilities at Clarica.
11:55	Close: by Doug Grant Insurance-Canada.ca

Seminar Sponsors:

ci   Canadian Insurance Magazine

Speaker Information

Deb Wallace, Consultant, Knowledge and Learning Strategy Development, Sun Life Financial Canada.

In her role, Deb is responsible for developing the enterprise-wide knowledge and learning strategy for the newly combined Sun Life Financial and Clarica Life Insurance organizations. She manages the process of creating a knowledge and learning blueprint based on foundation elements of strategic imperatives, culture and values, and technology. Working at the enterprise level, she consultants with business units to ensure alignment with corporate imperatives, technology directions, and industry standards to provide state-of- the-art knowledge sharing and learning solutions that increase individual and organizational capabilities.

Prior to her current role, Deb was the Project Manager and Community Facilitator for the Agent Network, a community of practice for Clarica agents Canada-wide. She was responsible for the community project design and implementation, the evaluation of the initial phase of the project, the facilitation of the on-line discussion forum, and the development of a process model/best practice case study.

Deb arrived at Clarica's Knowledge Team with a wide range of experience in libraries, public education (K- post secondary), and the private sector. As Assistant to the Dean for Knowledge Management Initiatives at the Faculty of Information Studies, University of Toronto, Deb developed and implemented new programs that linked information and knowledge management with creating competitive advantages for government and private sector organizations. It was in that capacity that she met Hubert Saint-Onge and began applying her research background to practice.

A frequent speaker and lecturer on the benefits of "knowing what you know," Deb has co-authored a chapter on communities of practice in "In Action: Measuring Intellectual Capital" (ASTD 2002) and continues the writing partnership with Hubert Saint-Onge in "Leveraging Communities of Practice for Strategic Advantage" (Butterworth-Heinemann - Fall 2002).

Deb holds a Bachelor of Science from Moorhead State University, a Masters in Education from the University of Manitoba, and a Ph.D. from the University of Toronto. Her dissertation research focused on the creation of a curriculum development model for professional schools in higher education.

Andrea McGrory, Insurance Practice Leader, BearingPoint.

Andrea is a Certified Management Consultant who has 18 years of management and consulting experience in Canada. She assists both public and private sector organizations with change management, aligning people, processes and technology to enable all aspects of organizational change and realization of market position. Ms McGrory works with her clients to define strategic direction, design appropriate and flexible organizational structures and processes, create road maps and action plans, manage change programs, and implement benefit measurement systems. Andrea has over 10 years of experience working in the financial industry in both insurance and banking and began her career as an actuarial student. She leads the insurance practice for BearingPoint (formerly KPMG Consulting) and is a subject-matter expert in web-enabled processes and knowledge management.

Gail Johnson Morris, BA, Vice President, Underwriting and New Business Transamerica Life Canada.

Gail completed her undergraduate degree at York University, Toronto, Canada. She started in the life insurance industry as an underwriter, achieved the position of Chief Underwriter, and was promoted to successive levels of management within the underwriting, new business and reinsurance administration areas. Gail also has notable achievements in the sales and marketing stream - as Director, Marketing for a Canadian life insurance company and as Vice President, Sales for Osborn Group, Inc. successfully launching several life new business process solutions in major North American companies. She joined Transamerica Canada, as Vice President, Underwriting and New Business, Life Operations in October 2000.

Host and Moderator

Doug Grant MBA CIP, Consultant, Insurance-Canada.ca

As a keen analyst of computer and networking evolution for more than thirty years, and the opportunity and impact on the insurance industry, frequent industry speaker, columnist, and consultant. Doug is cognizant of the changes that are occurring in the Internet insurance world. As a principal in the Insurance- Canada.ca Web site, he brings a unique perspective to the session. For a more extensive biography.

Doug will be host of the seminar and will welcome and set the stage, build the linkages between topics, and then provide conclusions and points to ponder at the end of the session.

(Examples will be used throughout)

Questions? call Doug Grant 416-921-7756 or email at doug.grant@insurance-canada.ca

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