Progress to Date
Following the face to face meeting on Sept 22nd between distributors and carriers, the CITS initiative has progressed to the point that the main deliverable is almost complete. This deliverable will be an implementation guide outlining the most appropriate way for carriers to share information about Case Status and Requirement Status information on pending business.
Special SRC Meeting
The SRC held a special meeting on Oct 31st to discuss the issue of ordering of top level elements within the transmittal. This issue had bubbled to the surface based on the experience that some distributors have had in the past when attempting to consume very large XML For Life files from carriers.
The volume of data inside the some files had resulted in the need for creative ways of processing these files. The suggestion was made that by standardizing upon the order in which top level elements are placed into XML, potential problems with processing large files could be warded-off before becoming an issue.
This meeting was a record for a CLIEDIS SRC in terms of the number of participants and there was a very healthy discussion around the topic. It highlighted the value of having participants from all sides of the process involved and able to share insights as to where the different challenges lie when creating and consuming data using the ACORD standards.
The conclusions reached will be incorporated into the final deliverable.
CITS Training
As part of the CITS project, we have scheduled training for project participants on “how to implement” the pending new business transmittals. The training will be a one day session on issues specifically related to the ACORD XML for Life data standard for the CITS transactions. Training is being split between carriers and distributors because of the different issues each group needs to address, depending on whether they are sending the information or receiving the information. The information is geared to technical staff, those that are doing the actual work to implement.
Training Dates:
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CARRIERS: Wednesday, November 16, 2005
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DISTRIBUTORS: Thursday, November 17, 2005
Within hours of the last CLIEDIS SRC meeting on Nov 9th 2005, both training courses had filled up.
Update by Andy Cunningham, PPI Financial Group, participant in the CITS group, and co-chair of the CLIEDIS Standards Review Committee (SRC) which meets monthly to discuss the use of the ACORD XML For Life standards within the Canadian Life Insurance Industry.
Tags: CLIEDIS
