The business of insurance is changing dramatically. We have identified three interconnected pressure points – Risk, Technology, and Engagement – that now define critical factors in the new era of insurance. These factors will inform the content of our upcoming Insurance-Canada.ca Technology Conference (ICTC2018). The following describes the trinity aspects and interleved with samples of our program and faculty.
Risk
Risk is the heart-beat of insurance. The insurance product provides knowledge and tools to understand and mitigate the results of risk in order to provide some certainties in an uncertain environment.
Traditional insurers rely on past experience to identify and quantify the impact of risks. With the base data, actuaries and underwriters can determine the historical exposure to specific risks, quantify additional external factors (the distance of fire hydrants to buildings, e.g.), and estimate frequency / severity of losses.
Artificial Intelligence – AI – is creating a new environment for defining risk and quantifying mitigation efforts. This allows for current and projected risk evaluation and mitigation.
For example, Mike Fitzgerald, Senior Analyst at Celent, and Eric Weisburg, Vice President at Novarica, will focus on a key question: “AI: What’s Your Plan”. Fitzgerald and Weisburg will draw on their extensive experience to suggest approaches for introducing and utilizing AI, its alignment between business and IT, and the competitive landscape.
Looking at a specific critical, and complex, risk – Climate Change – Dr. Blair Feltmate, Head of the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation will describe extreme weather risks in Canada that should have been addressed before now. The solution will require new approaches, including de-risking through adaptation.
Technology
Let’s be honest: with a few notable exceptions, technology acquisition and implementation in the P&C community has been important, but not critical – until now.
With the advent of new technology suppliers – some of which having precious-little exposure to the insurance business – are delivering technologies that include insurance risks. Some of these are by-products of new applications in other sectors.
For example, vehicular technology is emerging quickly, allowing autonomous vehicles to run in driverless mode in several test cities. This could expand quickly, leaving insurers to play catch up.
ICTC2018 will have a several sessions to address the issues with vehicular technologies and insurance. Catherine Kargas, Vice President at MARCON, along with other experts, will discuss fundamental questions, including: How should insurers prepare for the changes? What should insurers do to ensure continued relevance as Autonomous Vehicles represent greater share of vehicles on Canadian roads? How should regulators be preparing for the upcoming changes?
Engagement
Digital technologies have enabled customers to be on the same technology level as most businesses, shifting the power to the customer. Our Platinum Sponsor – Kanetix Ltd. – is sending President & CEO Andrew Lo who will discussthe blurring of lines between consumers and business
Mark Breading, Partner at Strategy Meets Action, will describe how leading Insurers and brokers are ramping up tools to develop and maintain relationships with customers by:
- operationalizing analytics in order to personalize communications;
- adopting the reality of omni-channel communications today;
- positioning for the future, including working with InsurTech.
Also, our keynote speaker, David Coletto, CEO at Abacus Data, will share his insights from more than seven years of research. David will offer a Canadian perspective on generational change and the disruptive forces at work in the consumer market generally and the insurance market specifically.
There’s more…
Insurance has had consistent purpose with different constructs. We are different in utilizing different approaches to address existing and emerging risks. We will have experts at ICTC2018.
Plan to join us on 27-28 February 2018 at the Beanfield Centre in Toronto. You can see full details (including all the expert speakers and their sessions) and registration information.
