Agency Management System

Executive Summary

A new agency management software system accelerated an insurance and financial services company's growth-by-acquisition strategy.

Case Background

Industry: Financial services; insurance
Company: A full-service provider with annual premiums of more than $1.2B, represented by more than 18,000 independent insurance agencies.

Key Challenges and Goals

The client started an aggressive business strategy of sustained market share growth through acquisitions. However, the company realized that much of its business application software could not support growth at the desired pace.

One of the critical issues hindering growth was the lack of a single agency management system (AMS), a single application to allow sales leadership to manage its distribution channel of 18,000 independent agencies. The client recognized that an AMS presented an opportunity to create one efficient front-end system that could be integrated with various agency and policy management systems as new companies were acquired.

Affinity's Approach and Solutions

Affinity analyzed both the current software applications and the operational infrastructure supporting agency sales management. The analysis was process-driven and requirements-oriented, helping define the future needs and processes that a replacement system would need to accommodate. We identified potential alternatives to meet these needs while also identifying specific chances to improve operational procedures, reducing future costs. Based on these analyses, we proposed that the client build rather than buy an AMS to more profitably match its processes and goals. We helped the client develop a cost-benefit analysis for senior executives, which led to the approval of the proposed solution.

Affinity's engagement was expanded to include project management of the new system's development. An Affinity senior consultant coordinated a team of client business analysts to ensure consistency and progress on schedule. This group also managed the identification and closure of risks, issues, and defects for the entire project. We also lead the planning and execution of a user acceptance strategy.

Results

Affinity delivered the entire project on time and on budget - in spite of a significant expansion of scope when the client acquired a competitor midway through the project, adding more than 6,000 agencies and $400M in revenue. The flexible design of the new AMS allowed for successful integration of this organization midstream.

The new system not only met the goal of helping increase revenues (by 25% in two years) and recruit new agencies at a faster pace, but also reduced error rates in new policy data entry and reduced sales overhead and cycle times.

Project Snapshot

Technology: Microsoft .net platform; integrated mainframe, LAN, and Web-enabled service delivery

Affinity expertise applied:
- Risk management
- Business continuity and business resiliency planning
- IT/technical strategy and architecture
- Change management
- Enterprise, client, and service management systems
- Project management

Project duration: 24 months

Cost: $4M