My Thoughts About the Importance of Automation
When I talk to carriers who are unsure if they should fix their current claims “situation” or invest in a modern, end-to-end system, I advise them to evaluate their claims processes and technology in the contect of how they support their business goals.
Carriers face the “Legacy Dilemma”. This is the phenomina of having outdated technologies, manual processes, multiple legacy systems and change management concerns. The antiquated processes “get the job done” but at what cost? Should they optimize what they have or look to a larger transformation – if that’s even possible given their current digital foundation. Once traction is made on this discussion, a new discussion begins – whether it makes sense to try to use in house technology and resources or find a technology partner.
There are a lot of factors to weigh. Often, carriers partner with external technology companies to connect modern technology with legacy, to achieve a hybrid approach that fulfills their business outcomes with a phased approach.
A “Crawl, Walk, Run” approach requires a deep assessment to determine where automation can make immediate impact in the claims process. There are hundreds of sub-processes in a claim process, many of which do not need to be performed manually.
For instance, automating correspondences will save you from hiring staff to carry out a menial job and reduce “human interaction” for minimal risk of error.
Automation can fast-track claims, giving claims associates more capacity to focus on complex issues to provide claimants with the level of care they expect.
However, the IT associates’ assistance should not be omitted in the post-implementation capacity discussion.
Learn more about insurance company claims automation because it can reduce the cumbersome claims journey by as much as 30%.
How Automation is Revolutionionizing Insurance
Adopting automation within the claims and servicing operations will save time, dollars, and workforce hours.
Here are the proven benefits of applying automation in the claim process.
1. Enhance Human Interaction Without Removing It
Automation fast-tracks straightforward claims, giving associates more capacity to focus on complex claims.
Automation supports the complex claim experience by freeing associates from time-consuming tasks and manual processes. Instead, they can focus on customer-related experiences that provide claimants with the level of care expected.
Automating processes does not necessarily mean firing your valued team members but rather it enhances their skills and provides tools that reduce their cognitive load, training times and lets them complete tasks quickly and more effectively through rules-based workflows.
2. Evaluation is Critical to Determine the Automation Needs
For every claim processed, there are hundreds of sub-processes, many of which don’t need to be done by a person.
For instance, automating certain correspondences means associates have capacity to provide exceptional “human interaction” when it makes sense.
Carriers and their technology partners go through a detailed assessment process to determine where in the claims process automation makes sense, when human interaction is needed and when beneficiaries may want an omni-channel experience where they use self-service resources at times and reach out to a claims specialist at other points in the process.
3. Don’t Assume Automation Mean Months of Data Clean Up
It is much quicker to cleanse data through automation than by having humans do it.
Did you know data cleansing and exploratory analysis can take up 80% of data scientists’ time?
All carriers have multiple systems with disparate data formats. Companies like Benekiva take that burden off the carrier.
However, we do not require any specific schema or format. Benekiva’s platform is “BYOB”, meaning Bring Your Own Integration. Our configurable Data Configurator and Innovation Gateway allow carriers to provide content in their unique way, requiring significantly less resources involved in implementation and maintenance.
4. Learn Fast and Adjust Intelligently
Automating things like phone scripts and calculations helps reduce errors and speeds up the process.
Automation facilitates faster data collection, analysis, filtering, and absorption.
Usable data feeds faster analytics and modeling to help carrier leadership make informed decisions.
Moreover, you can take corrective actions swiftly when necessary with the availability of correct data.
5. Fraud Reduction and Claims Automation Efforts Needs Analysis
Analyzing fraud mitigation expenses against claims fraud amounts requires analysis to determine action.
Fraud detection models can be built into the claims process to detect discrepancies as they occur and report to the concerned team promptly.
Claims automation can elevate the end-customer experience and improve carrier retention and new business opportunities.
A dissatisfied beneficiary is a lost prospect. The need to provide a positive experience doesn’t stop with the customer but extends to associates, advisors/agents, and third parties.
Benekiva’s SaaS Solution
Benekiva’s SaaS solutions leverage an agile deployment model offering frequent releases to reduce the chance of carriers accruing “technical debt” and deploy software that can be upgraded without recurring fees.
The beauty of the agile model is that the technology adopted is modern and user-friendly, and users with minimal knowledge can use it comfortably.
My recommendation to carriers facing the “Legacy Dilemma” is to adopt a Crawl, Walk, Run transformation strategy.
Do not spend years executing a core system that is a legacy mess.
The Crawl, Walk, Run approach lets you function in an agile environment where carrier leaders can learn quickly and adjust accordingly to support business goals in a technologically scalable way.
Benekiva is the technology partner that whos’ intelligent claims automation platform transforms your claim and servicing processes.
