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IN THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY

Analysis of the 2008 Global CEO Study

and the five themes that emerged from it
show that insurance executives recognize
the essential nature of change and
acknowledge the need to invigorate their
innovation agendaswhat other implications
should insurance leaders consider?1
Hungry for change
Many insurance CEOs (89 percent) indicate that their organizations will
need to implement substantial change over the next several years to deal
with a broad range of external forces. The challenge across the industry is
that only 65 percent say that they have successful track records of implementing change, leaving a 24 percentage point gap between the need
and the ability to execute change. CEOs recognize that change is not simply about changing things such as technology, but is also about breaking
down cultural and political barriers.
Implications: Insurers are particularly interested in how market forces that
include changing demographics and shifting regulations, as well as emerging trends such as social computing can be leveraged to meet their strategic
goals. Insurance enterprises of the future as envisioned by their leaders will
be more agile and able to execute on their strategic visions by leveraging
more automation and raising knowledge management to something more
than a bullet in a slide presentation.

One

of the key constraints to

change is the conservative
nature of our industry
CEO, Insurance Company, United
Kingdom

Innovative beyond customer imagination

Over 80 percent of insurance executives ranked the rise of informed and colLeading

innovation comes
from a robust, comfortable
relationship with customers
thats where the reality is.
CEO, Insurance Company, Australia

laborative customers as having a positive impact on their businesses. This

puts them among the top third of all CEOs. They recognize that customers
have higher expectations for their interactions with insurance providers as a
result of their dealings with other businesses. Insurance leaders are inclined
to drive innovation by exploring new markets and developing new products
and services. The question is whether or not the typical modification to existing wares is the type of innovation for which customers are looking.
Implications: Carriers have to decide whether investments in the optimization of existing capabilities and business paradigms will be sufficient to
attract new policyholders and to retain existing ones. Theyll need to pay
continued and deeper attention to demographic flux to understand consumer polling that indicates a level of frustration with complex products coupled with a lack of choice and flexibility.2 And, as all CEOs indicate the need
to adapt to changing business and regulatory environments, executives must
begin to focus on agility the ability to adapt to change rather than be
impeded by it.
Globally integrated
The insurance industry operates across a broad range of geographies.
However, the number of truly globalized organizations is in the minority.
These firms have the scale and scope of operations to take advantage of
rapidly increasing numbers of middle-income consumers in emerging and
maturing economies. In addition to the standard challenges facing all insurers such as underwriting profitability, regulatory issues, and maintaining a
highly skilled professional workforce, carriers that operate on a worldwide
basis must struggle with operational efficiency across borders and oceans.
The challenge is to integrate their operations so that they are making the
most efficient use of their operational and monetary resources, and most
importantly, their knowledge capital. To that end, 46 percent of insurance
CEOs say that they plan to partner extensively and change their businesses
mix of capabilities, knowledge and assets. Insurance companies that are
committed to domestic operations will need to consider the impact of
international players in their market space. At the same time, local players
can make use of the skills and techniques used to integrate across broader
geographies.

Implications: The basic nature of insurance requires deep knowledge of

local risks in order to price them correctly, but that does not preclude making use of operational and governance capability on broad scales. Global
integration requires the insurance enterprise of the future to optimize information technology to prudently support the mix of local knowledge and
global management needed for profitable operations. The integration of
local cultural knowledge and demographic data can help ease marketing
and business challenges associated with expansion across any geography.
The role of enterprise risk management must be elevated and empowered
within a company to account for the nature of a dynamic world.
Disruptive by nature
Insurers have shown that they plan to focus on Enterprise Model Innovation
and Revenue Model Innovation when they consider how they will be disruptive in the future. To achieve results via these business model innovations, 71 percent of insurance respondents plan to leverage intense
collaboration with external partners. When thinking about Industry Model
Innovation, 81 percent indicated that they would look to redefine their
existing industry, rather than move into another industry or create an
entirely new one.
Implications: To successfully execute these planned business model
changes, insurance companies will need to inform and involve key value
and service chain participants early in the innovation cycle. Consumers and
policyholders must be included as part of this effort to assure the level of
communications needed to manage expectations as changes are
implemented.
Genuine, not just generous
Insurance industry CEOs place emphasis on new operations, new products
and services, as well as environmental (green) initiatives as a way to meet
customer expectations for corporate social responsibility (CSR). Carriers are
beginning to appreciate the value of actively integrating sustainable operations, products and services as more than a passing fad. As more companies explore enterprise risk management, exposures to reputation
impediments and energy shortages become more pertinent and less
abstract. While insurance companies provide annual support and funding
in excess of US$147 million to community programs and charitable causes,
there may be room for CSR innovation beyond philanthropy.3

We
are developing green
products and services,
leveraging the trust our
customers have in us,
and have implemented
a substantial program to
understand customer needs
and grow our customer
advocacy base.
CEO, Global Insurance Company,
United States

Implications: In addition to the monetary benefits of reducing the

energy footprint in data centers by means of server consolidation, carriers will be investing in a culture of social responsibility that will be
part of the package that attracts new generations of professionals. For
example, a company that invests in automation to enhance operational
agility will also reduce paper consumption, putting less strain on the
environment. Emerging concepts such as microinsurance and pro bono
insurance will cause the industry to reevaluate previously held views of
what constitutes a good corporate citizen.
Building your Enterprise of the Future
We look forward to learning more about where you think business is
heading and working with you, as you build your Enterprise of the
Future.

Copyright IBM Corporation 2008

IBM Global Services
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Produced in the United States of America
September 2008
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For additional information about the IBM Global CEO Study, please
visit ibm.com/enterpriseofthefuture or e-mail one of the following
contacts:
Global

Michael Adler

[email protected]

Americas

Peter Corbett

[email protected]

David Ortiz

[email protected]

Asia Pacific (excluding Japan)

Paul Robinson

[email protected]

Japan

Takeo Endoh

[email protected]

Europe

Kathie Schoenleben

[email protected]

IBM Institute for Business Value

Christian Bieck

[email protected]

About IBM Global Business Services

With business experts in more than 170 countries, IBM Global Business

References in this publication to IBM products

and services do not imply that IBM intends to
make them available in all countries in which
IBM operates.
NOTES AND SOURCES:
1 Of the 1,130 interviews conducted for the
IBM CEO Study, 74 were from the insurance
industry. Of this subset, 18 percent were from
Asia Pacific, 23 percent from the Americas
and 59 percent from Europe, the Middle East
and Africa.
2 Maas, Peter, Albert Graf and Christian
Bieck. Trust, transparency and technology:
European customers perspectives on
insurance and innovation. IBM Institute for
Business Value. January 2008.
3 Kao, Amy. The 2006 Corporate Contributions
Report. The Conference Board. Report 141407-RR.

Services provides clients with deep business process and industry

expertise across 17 industries, using innovation to identify, create and
deliver value faster. It offers one of the largest Strategy & Change
practices in the world, with over 3,250 strategy professionals. The IBM
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develops fact-based strategic insights for senior business executives
around critical industry-specific and cross-industry issues.

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