Bill Brower (Solera)
Bill Brower serves as the Senior Vice President of Industry Relations and Claims Solutions at Solera. With more than three decades of experience leading claims teams for Nationwide, Liberty Mutual and LexisNexis Risk Solutions, Brower has developed an instinct for opportunities such as AI. Brower championed the creation of Solera’s Intelligent Triage, which uses AI …
Individual
Design by Chris Nicholls
Illustration: xy/Adobe Stock
Claims Innovation
Ampion Group offers a comprehensive range of services that rely on innovative techniques to aid insurers with many aspects of claims handling. The company’s specialty claims management helps insurers navigate the intricate web of regulations and industry standards to better control costs and improve satisfaction of claimants. Their dispute resolution services can provide insurers with everything from subject matter experts, appraisers, building …
Ampion Group
Company
Ampion Group offers a comprehensive range of services that rely on innovative techniques to aid insurers with many aspects of claims handling. The company’s specialty claims management helps insurers navigate the intricate web of regulations and industry standards to better control costs and improve satisfaction of claimants. Their dispute resolution services can provide insurers with everything from subject matter experts, appraisers, building consultants and neutral umpires to help smooth disputes between claimants and insurers. Ampion also can provide experts whose clear and compelling testimony can help with litigation. In addition, their sophisticated fraud detection systems and data analytics enables insurers to identify and mitigate risks more efficiently. These services help insurers to streamline their operations while continuing to provide the claims service their policyholders demand. https://ampiongroup.com/
Bill Brower serves as the Senior Vice President of Industry Relations and Claims Solutions at Solera. With more than three decades of experience leading claims teams for Nationwide, Liberty Mutual and LexisNexis Risk Solutions, Brower has developed an instinct for opportunities such as AI. Brower championed the creation of Solera’s Intelligent Triage, which uses AI to help insurers and their repair shops document vehicle damage via photographs to distinguish reparable vehicles from total losses. The solution is easily accessible online, allowing insurers to make these determinations on the go. Brower also helped in the creation of Sustainable Estimatics, Solera’s solution for helping insurers measure, analyze and offset Scope 3 CO2e emissions. Brower sees this program as helping the insurance industry achieve its sustainability goals and satisfy customers while protecting their bottom line. www.solera.com
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Product
Carpe Data’s ClaimsX Ultra brings AI to bear on the $309 billion problem of insurance fraud. While fraudsters use increasingly sophisticated methods, most insurers only review 5% of their claims for fraud. ClaimsX Ultra proactively monitors online activity related to 100% of open claims to identify and capture evidence of fraud. ClaimsX Ultra starts looking for this evidence at First Notice of Loss, to give enough time for fraud detection before payout. …
ClaimsX Ultra (Carpe Data)
Clearspeed’s voice analytics technology helps insurers evaluate the risk of individual claims as they are processed. Rather than relying on historical records or modeling, Clearspeed uses a quick, simple, automated claimant interview. Analysis of the vocal characteristics of the responses reveals indicators of fraud risk that makes it easier for insurers to distinguish between low-risk claims and high-risk …
Clearspeed
Team
The Cyber Claims Team at Coalition is trying to transform how insurers and policyholders respond to cybercrime incidents. Instead of having insurers contacted late in the process, they hope to become the “Cyber 911” for policyholders by offering numerous benefits. First, they offer rapid response, often guiding policyholders’ actions in dealing with cybercrime within five minutes. They coach policyholders through the immediate incident, and help them prevent future …
Cyber Claims Team at Coalition, Inc.
Program
The Enhanced Care Program (ECP) by the State of Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, developed in conjunction with ODG and Integer Health, began as a pilot program in 16 northeast Ohio counties focused on knee injury protocols that would give physicians more flexibility. Key success metrics showed that ECP resulted in a 30% faster return to work time for injured workers, in part by getting workers into their first care provider five days faster than traditional care. ECP …
Enhanced Care Program (ECP) Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC), ODG by MCG, and Integer Health
Alpine Intel identified a problem in the handling of fire claims: Fire investigators took too long to visit a site or delivered inconclusive reports. To address this, they launched National Fire Experts (NFE) in January 2024. By developing new origin and cause reports, NFE helped deliver more actionable information to adjusters. NFE created a certification program for its fire investigators that included …
National Fire Experts (Powered by Alpine Intel)
Chelsea Perkins serves as Chief Claims Officer at Accelerant, where she manages claims and drives innovation in their data-driven risk exchange. She recognized that the lengthy, complicated and opaque claims journey typical for many insurers was problematic for their exchange.I If their model was to function properly, the claims process would have to be transparent, and, above all, …
Chelsea Perkins (Accelerant)
Myleah Shrimpton serves as the Vice President of Claims & Administration at Ollis/Akers/Arney Insurance & Business Advisors. She consistently strives to better understand and administer the claims process for the benefit of carriers and clients. Shrimpton’s dedication to improving the process goes beyond her firm as she actively advocates for legislative reform, including tort reform in Missouri. She has authored a Policy Brief on Third-Party Litigation Funding, which was adopted …
Myleah Shrimpton (Ollis/Akers/Arney Insurance & Business Advisors)
Vitesse offers an pioneering approach to handling claim funds that allows for fast payments and a reduction in capital requirements while allowing carriers to maintain ownership of their funds. Vitesse holds funds with Tier-1 bank partners to safeguard the assets. Meanwhile, it connects to local banks to allow for rapid distribution of funds in more than 200 countries and currencies. The claim funds remain …
Vitesse PSP Ltd.
Carpe Data’s ClaimsX Ultra brings AI to bear on the $309 billion problem of insurance fraud. While fraudsters use increasingly sophisticated methods, most insurers only review 5% of their claims for fraud. ClaimsX Ultra proactively monitors online activity related to 100% of open claims to identify and capture evidence of fraud. ClaimsX Ultra starts looking for this evidence at First Notice of Loss, to give enough time for fraud detection before payout. ClaimsX Ultra detects enough fraud that it delivers an average ROI of 10 times to insurers that use the program. The service also benefits claimants by identifying potentially fraudulent service providers, and claimants can take advantage of ClaimX Ultra’s ability to corroborate legitimate claims so they can be paid faster. https://carpe.io/products/claims/
Clearspeed’s voice analytics technology helps insurers evaluate the risk of individual claims as they are processed. Rather than relying on historical records or modeling, Clearspeed uses a quick, simple, automated claimant interview. Analysis of the vocal characteristics of the responses reveals indicators of fraud risk that makes it easier for insurers to distinguish between low-risk claims and high-risk claims. The insurer can fast-track low-risk claims and focus investigation resources on high-risk ones. As a result, the overall transaction handling time for clients using Clearspeed dropped by an average of 35%, and fraud loss savings per claim increased by 35%. In addition, claim investigation costs dropped by 65% for clients. Overall, clients saw an ROI of 35 times with this technology. www.clearspeed.com
The Cyber Claims Team at Coalition is trying to transform how insurers and policyholders respond to cybercrime incidents. Instead of having insurers contacted late in the process, they hope to become the “Cyber 911” for policyholders by offering numerous benefits. First, they offer rapid response, often guiding policyholders’ actions in dealing with cybercrime within five minutes. They coach policyholders through the immediate incident, and help them prevent future incidents. This tactic reduces Coalition policyholders’ cyber claims by 64% compared to the industry average. Second, Coalition’s “pay on behalf” policy lets the team handle out-of-pocket expenses for policyholders, reducing financial hardship after the incident. Finally, the Cyber Claims Team helps businesses “claw back” lost funds. In 2023, they recovered 66% of stolen funds, more than $38 million. https://www.coalitioninc.com
The Enhanced Care Program (ECP) by the State of Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, developed in conjunction with ODG and Integer Health, began as a pilot program in 16 northeast Ohio counties focused on knee injury protocols that would give physicians more flexibility. Key success metrics showed that ECP resulted in a 30% faster return to work time for injured workers, in part by getting workers into their first care provider five days faster than traditional care. ECP also allowed for faster claim decisions. Although ECP has higher care costs overall, the system has potential to provide significant savings by managing outlier claims. Under ECP, claim costs tended to be stable, whereas traditional care claims could more often be very expensive. Ohio is considering expanding the program to back and shoulder injuries. https://info.bwc.ohio.gov/
Alpine Intel identified a problem in the handling of fire claims: Fire investigators took too long to visit a site or delivered inconclusive reports. To address this, they launched National Fire Experts (NFE) in January 2024. By developing new origin and cause reports, NFE helped deliver more actionable information to adjusters. NFE created a certification program for its fire investigators that included investigation, reporting, and litigation support. As a result, 63% of clients have identified NFE reports as more useful than others. These reports received an average rating of 4.82/5. Meanwhile NFE offers a fast turnaround time for reports: an average of two business hours for first contact after assignment, two business days for a visit to the site, and five business days for report delivery after the site visit. https://nationalfireexperts.com/
Chelsea Perkins serves as Chief Claims Officer at Accelerant, where she manages claims and drives innovation in their data-driven risk exchange. She recognized that the lengthy, complicated and opaque claims journey typical for many insurers was problematic for their exchange.I If their model was to function properly, the claims process would have to be transparent, and, above all, consistent so it would not imbalance the risks each party assumed on the exchange. To achieve this goal, Perkins championed a fourfold philosophy based on: Quality and Integrity, Timeliness and Efficiency, Partnership, and Consistency. In addition, she rolled out several innovations at Accelerant: a team of dedicated claim managers, making key analytics of claims accessible on the Accelerant platform, and allowing specialty underwriters to access larger and more complex claims. https://accelerant.ai/
Myleah Shrimpton serves as the Vice President of Claims & Administration at Ollis/Akers/Arney Insurance & Business Advisors. She consistently strives to better understand and administer the claims process for the benefit of carriers and clients. Shrimpton’s dedication to improving the process goes beyond her firm as she actively advocates for legislative reform, including tort reform in Missouri. She has authored a Policy Brief on Third-Party Litigation Funding, which was adopted by legislators and lobbyists. Shrimpton also initiated a monthly Claims Connect call and roundtable for Beyond Insurance Global Network to help share insights about the claims process. Shrimpton’s fundamental perspective is that “claims are why people have insurance,” and that improving the claims process is the single most important way an agency can serve its clients. https://ollisakersarney.com/
Vitesse offers an pioneering approach to handling claim funds that allows for fast payments and a reduction in capital requirements while allowing carriers to maintain ownership of their funds. Vitesse holds funds with Tier-1 bank partners to safeguard the assets. Meanwhile, it connects to local banks to allow for rapid distribution of funds in more than 200 countries and currencies. The claim funds remain transparent and visible to meet both regulatory requirements and investor demands. However, by pooling and streamlining claim funds, much of the capital traditionally tied up in claims operations is now free for business operations. The system allows companies to make payments to claimants in seconds rather than days while freeing up to 80% of funds previously tied up in claims operations. https://www.vitesse.io/
Technology Innovation
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Megan Woods (WestPac)
Megan Woods has been in the insurance industry for more than 8 years with a specialization in E&S placement for personal lines solutions. She’s had experience with top wholesalers including B&W and most recently Amwins Access. At Amwins, she was a SPIN candidate: a part of the 2022 UPD/SPIN Underwriter Development Program. This program focuses on developing an underwriter who spins out their own book of business. Woods started and maintained her own book of …
Arden Insurance Services LLC launched its groundbreaking wildfire exposed program (WEP) in 2023 to help residential condominium associations that were experiencing non-renewal of their policies. These associations were often faced with having either no insurance or accepting policy limits that covered only 10% of their total insurable value while costing five to 10 times more than they paid in the past. The WEP approach splits off wildfire coverage from the rest of a client’s …
Arden Insurance Services LLC
At-Bay launched the world’s first InsurSec solution, At-Bay Stance, to provide end-to-end cyber protection to small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs). These businesses have been the source of 98% of cyber insurance claims in the past five years. SMBs tend to lack the in-house resources and cybersecurity expertise to grapple with the complex and ever-changing technological landscape. At-Bay believes that insurance is the remedy to market failures in SMB …
At-Bay
CFC believes that insurance has an important role to play in helping decarbonize the economy by offering insurance for carbon credits in the voluntary carbon market (VCM). However, the VCM has plateaued in part because of fears about risks in this unregulated market. Providing insurance for carbon credits can protect against the risks of buying on the VCM, which include: fraud, nonstandard regulations, political instability that delays …
CFC
Practice
Carriers tend to focus on increasing customers’ claims satisfaction. LexisNexis Risk Solutions Research has revealed that carriers are losing the battle for attorney trust. Its 2023 study centered on 555 claimants who hired an attorney to represent their injury claim. It discovered that 57% of them hired their attorney before filing their claim with the insurer. Of that 57%, 80% retained counsel within the first 24 hours of the accident. Of those hiring an attorney, 85% were contacted by an attorney …
LexisNexis® Risk Solutions claims attorney research
Arden Insurance Services LLC launched its groundbreaking wildfire exposed program (WEP) in 2023 to help residential condominium associations that were experiencing non-renewal of their policies. These associations were often faced with having either no insurance or accepting policy limits that covered only 10% of their total insurable value while costing five to 10 times more than they paid in the past. The WEP approach splits off wildfire coverage from the rest of a client’s insurance. Associations can get up to full coverage for risks other than wildfire, then choose wildfire coverage in the specific dollar amount they can afford. Since its inception in 2023, the WEP program has written over $9 million in premiums, covering approximately 30,000 California condo residents previously deemed uninsurable by the market. https://www.ardeninsure.ai/
At-Bay launched the world’s first InsurSec solution, At-Bay Stance, to provide end-to-end cyber protection to small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs). These businesses have been the source of 98% of cyber insurance claims in the past five years. SMBs tend to lack the in-house resources and cybersecurity expertise to grapple with the complex and ever-changing technological landscape. At-Bay believes that insurance is the remedy to market failures in SMB cybersecurity. They achieve this by embedding their cybersecurity solution within their policies. These offerings empower insureds to proactively manage their cyber risk. As a result, At-Bay policyholders are up to 5 times less likely to experience a ransomware attack compared to the industry average. https://www.at-bay.com/
CFC believes that insurance has an important role to play in helping decarbonize the economy by offering insurance for carbon credits in the voluntary carbon market (VCM). However, the VCM has plateaued in part because of fears about risks in this unregulated market. Providing insurance for carbon credits can protect against the risks of buying on the VCM, which include: fraud, nonstandard regulations, political instability that delays issuance of credits, or disasters that destroy trees or other carbon sinks purchased with carbon credits. To achieve this, CFC launched two unique carbon insurance products in 2024. Carbon Delivery Insurance covers both the physical and political risks faced by businesses purchasing credits on the VCM. Carbon Cancellation Insurance safeguards purchased carbon credits from financial and management risks in the event of cancellation or invalidation. https://www.cfc.com/en-us/products/class/carbon-insurance/
Carriers tend to focus on increasing customers’ claims satisfaction. LexisNexis Risk Solutions Research has revealed that carriers are losing the battle for attorney trust. Its 2023 study centered on 555 claimants who hired an attorney to represent their injury claim. It discovered that 57% of them hired their attorney before filing their claim with the insurer. Of that 57%, 80% retained counsel within the first 24 hours of the accident. Of those hiring an attorney, 85% were contacted by an attorney after their accident, and 60% were contacted by more than one. The research also showed that attorneys shaped the medical process, with the attorney driving medical decision in 25% of cases. The research also revealed that attorney representation is here to stay for injury claims, with 93% of respondents saying that they would hire an attorney for their next injury claim as well. https://risk.lexisnexis.com/insurance
Megan Woods has been in the insurance industry for more than 8 years with a specialization in E&S placement for personal lines solutions. She’s had experience with top wholesalers including B&W and most recently Amwins Access. At Amwins, she was a SPIN candidate: a part of the 2022 UPD/SPIN Underwriter Development Program. This program focuses on developing an underwriter who spins out their own book of business. Woods started and maintained her own book of business at Amwins while consistently engaging in a minimum of 20 retailer visits per month. Woods has since moved over to WestPac to start growing a new personal lines division for the company. This operation aims to successfully build out the personal lines division by targeting non-admitted business. https://westpacins.com/
IICF helps communities and enriches lives through grants, volunteer service, and leadership. Through talent, DEI, and community initiatives, IICF has provided critical support to address the industry’s talent gap and build an inclusive future of work. IICF’s mentoring alliance is an industry-wide, cross-company program aimed at inspiring, preparing and empowering diverse talent. It pairs rising professionals with role models and allies from leading companies across the industry. In a post-program survey, 100% of mentors and mentees said they would participate in the program again, while 84% of mentees …
Company/Organization
Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation (IICF)
Caryn Siebert promotes diversity, inclusion and cultural-competency development and execution in the workplace personally and via her role on the Include@GB Steering Committee. She consistently reminds and challenges leaders as to whether they have included a diverse slate of applicants and interviewers. She keeps the company informed of diverse cultural events and history through the Include@GB Teams Channels. Siebert doesn’t just participate in industry- …
Caryn Siebert (Gallagher Bassett)
Pat Caldwell is a passionate and driven leader with an intuitive ability to identify and elevate human capital. His data-driven decisions have optimized talent and influenced business growth at Send. He joined Send as its first Chief People Officer. Caldwell has since left Send and will soon be helping other organizations transform their workplace culture. …
Pat Caldwell
INSTANDA is an insurtech that’s deeply invested in cultivating a workplace that engages and inspires employees while allowing them to grow professionally. Employees enjoy Dynamic Days, one day per month to do something they love. This is in addition to 28 PTO days and two paid volunteer days a year, and a paid four-week sabbatical after 6 years with the company. More than 10% of its workforce …
INSTANDA
RISE: Empowering Women in Insurance was created to bring women in insurance together through supportive programming. Camp RISE was a three-day virtual summer camp for women where campers could learn something new, make new connections with other women working in independent agencies, and have some fun. The initial goal of 200 registrations was exceeded with 1,138 registrations and a daily average attendance of 337. The LinkedIn community was given a LinkedIn Activity badge for high user engagement. …
RISE: Empowering Women in Insurance (Liberty Mutual)
A leading global provider of cloud-based insurance software for 40 years, Applied Systems is also dedicated to innovating its workplace culture. Specific initiatives include celebrating diversity, fostering a culture of learning, and sponsoring key partnerships to spread their influence within the communities they serve. …
Applied Systems
The Include @GB Program executes Gallagher Bassett’s (GB) goal of being the employer and risk/claims provider of choice by: Creating an inclusive environment; Ensuring career and progression opportunities for all individuals; Striving to ensure our talent reflects the communities and clients the company serves; and …
Include @GB Program (Gallagher Bassett)
Monika Baraket shows that agency acquisition doesn’t have to negatively impact either employees or customers. After her company, Forge3, was acquired in 2022, there were three different reorganizations. However, Baraket was able to maintain 100% of her team at the one-year mark by demonstrating her personal commitment through better-balanced compensation and advancement paths. This required reallocation of resources, which she was able to do by consolidating …
Monika Baraket (Agency Revolution)
As a member-driven nonprofit organization with a 50-plus year history, ACORD constantly strives to improve its workplace culture. To help overcome the looming talent gap in the industry, ACORD hosts an Insurance Technology Career Center, which shows young professionals and recent graduates in areas like technology and software that the insurance industry offers rewarding careers. As a cofounder of …
ACORD
Innovation in Workplace Culture copy
Openly’s benefits include zero-cost premium healthcare options for employees from day one, with reimbursement for holistic wellness. Plus, employees get paid for volunteer service hours. Openly offers funds for professional development and promotes managerial talent from within the company. Openly takes the cultural challenges of remote work head-on. They host multiple in-person events each year, including Openlyfest. …
Openly
PLM invests in innovative talent strategies to support its mutual foundation while developing tomorrow’s insurance leaders. PLM presents most of its team with front-line opportunities to gain exposure to different aspects of the business and to better connect employees to our customers. PLM also invites team members to attend trade shows, participate on industry boards, and offer their expertise for thought leadership. Last year, PLM sent more than half of its employees to trade shows, …
Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual Insurance Co.
Dawnyel Smink has created a culture at CLI best described by a word that people rarely use to characterize the insurance industry: Fun. As a brilliant, caring, giving, others-focused leader, Smink has developed opportunities for joy, learning and community across the company. Smink’s model of fun is first-and-foremost inclusive: People at all levels of the …
Dawnyel Smink (CLI Select)
Team Focus Insurance Group provides an array of programs dedicated to safeguarding employees’ rights and ensuring inclusivity and protection for all. As a result, 96% of employees perceive DEI and belonging to be an important part of the company’s future, and 96% feel supported and respected at work. Team Focus Insurance Group also has instituted a robust employee recognition program so that …
Team Focus Insurance Group
As a member-driven nonprofit organization with a 50-plus year history, ACORD constantly strives to improve its workplace culture. To help overcome the looming talent gap in the industry, ACORD hosts an Insurance Technology Career Center, which shows young professionals and recent graduates in areas like technology and software that the insurance industry offers rewarding careers. As a cofounder of AllInTent, the insurance industry’s hub for diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) initiatives and a cofounder of Women in Insurance Initiative (WII), ACORD aims to improve representation and support for all workers in the industry. ACORD also aspires to improve its employees’ lives through professional development and initiatives to support physical, mental and emotional employee health. https://www.acord.org/
A leading global provider of cloud-based insurance software for 40 years, Applied Systems is also dedicated to innovating its workplace culture. Specific initiatives include celebrating diversity, fostering a culture of learning, and sponsoring key partnerships to spread their influence within the communities they serve. Launched in 2020, Applied’s diversity program now sponsors five communities of interest and offers more than 80 events a year. In addition to a formal mentorship program, this year Applied launched a new and improved learning management system. Employees can choose instructor-led, self-paced, video-based, podcast-style, and audiobook courses, using the system to track their learning goals. Applied’s key partnerships have allowed it to help students from underserved communities prepare for college and careers, which helps the students while providing the insurance industry with access to diverse talent. https://www.appliedsystems.com
Monika Baraket shows that agency acquisition doesn’t have to negatively impact either employees or customers. After her company, Forge3, was acquired in 2022, there were three different reorganizations. However, Baraket was able to maintain 100% of her team at the one-year mark by demonstrating her personal commitment through better-balanced compensation and advancement paths. This required reallocation of resources, which she was able to do by consolidating redundant tools and systems. The process not only allowed better rewards for the team, it also made their daily work easier and more scalable. Normally, this type of internal reorganization might negatively affect customers. However, under Baraket’s strong leadership, numerous indicators of customer satisfaction have gone up. For example, Support CES (customer effort score) improved from 6.6 to 7.0 and Implementation CES improved from 6.4 to 6.9. www.agencyrevolution.com
Pat Caldwell is a passionate and driven leader with an intuitive ability to identify and elevate human capital. His data-driven decisions have optimized talent and influenced business growth at Send. He joined Send as its first Chief People Officer. Caldwell has since left Send and will soon be helping other organizations transform their workplace culture. His work has been recognized globally. In 2021, he was recognized by OUTstanding and Yahoo Finance as a Top 100 LGBT Executive and in 2019 his B Corp was honored as a “Best in the World” company in the people category. In November 2023, Caldwell published People Ops through Springer Nature and Apress. This collection of lessons learned, stories, and principles in leadership is available internationally in leading bookstores and online retailers. https://send.technology
The Include @GB Program executes Gallagher Bassett’s (GB) goal of being the employer and risk/claims provider of choice by: Creating an inclusive environment; Ensuring career and progression opportunities for all individuals; Striving to ensure our talent reflects the communities and clients the company serves; and Using our position as an industry leader to support and enhance inclusive initiatives and causes In practical steps toward achieving these goals for GB North America, Include @GB monitors the progress toward a more inclusive and diverse culture, utilizing several strategies such as awareness and education, offering career opportunities and professional development equitably, and supporting inclusive initiatives and causes. As a result, since 2020, 44% of new hires have been people of color, and 39% of the leadership (VP and above) are women. www.gallagherbassett.com
INSTANDA is an insurtech that’s deeply invested in cultivating a workplace that engages and inspires employees while allowing them to grow professionally. Employees enjoy Dynamic Days, one day per month to do something they love. This is in addition to 28 PTO days and two paid volunteer days a year, and a paid four-week sabbatical after 6 years with the company. More than 10% of its workforce has been trained as Mental Health First Aid Responders to help the team stay physically and mentally healthy. The company’s robust cultural committee plans events to foster togetherness within its diverse workforce. INSTANDA promotes professional development with its 2023 launch of a 10-week Impact Your Outcome program, which helps participants achieve professional goals. These efforts have reduced turnover, improved diversity, and increased employee engagement. https://instanda.com/us/
IICF helps communities and enriches lives through grants, volunteer service, and leadership. Through talent, DEI, and community initiatives, IICF has provided critical support to address the industry’s talent gap and build an inclusive future of work. IICF’s mentoring alliance is an industry-wide, cross-company program aimed at inspiring, preparing and empowering diverse talent. It pairs rising professionals with role models and allies from leading companies across the industry. In a post-program survey, 100% of mentors and mentees said they would participate in the program again, while 84% of mentees reported that they wanted to maintain a relationship with their mentor. IICF also promotes its work with an annual conference series. With more than 11,000 attendees, these conferences have raised roughly $10 million for IICF’s nonprofit partners. https://www.iicf.org/
Openly’s benefits include zero-cost premium healthcare options for employees from day one, with reimbursement for holistic wellness. Plus, employees get paid for volunteer service hours. Openly offers funds for professional development and promotes managerial talent from within the company. Openly takes the cultural challenges of remote work head-on. They host multiple in-person events each year, including Openlyfest. Openly is widely recognized for its great culture. CEO Ty Harris is recognized in the top 5% of CEOs for employee satisfaction. Openly has been recognized as an Inc. Best Workplace honoree in 2023 and 2024, a Forbes America’s Best Startup Employer in 2023 and 2024, a Quartz Best Companies for Remote Workers in 2022 and 2023. It has a voluntary turnover rate of just 7.6%, nearly half the industry average, and employee happiness was 4.8/5. https://openly.com/
PLM invests in innovative talent strategies to support its mutual foundation while developing tomorrow’s insurance leaders. PLM presents most of its team with front-line opportunities to gain exposure to different aspects of the business and to better connect employees to our customers. PLM also invites team members to attend trade shows, participate on industry boards, and offer their expertise for thought leadership. Last year, PLM sent more than half of its employees to trade shows, representing every level of the organization. This helps the team deepen relationships, stay ahead of policyholder needs, and leads to invitations for service on boards and committees. Almost all (99%) PLM employees pursue continuing education opportunities, and this has a positive impact on our client relationships. PLM boasts a 90% client retention rate. www.plmins.com
RISE: Empowering Women in Insurance was created to bring women in insurance together through supportive programming. Camp RISE was a three-day virtual summer camp for women where campers could learn something new, make new connections with other women working in independent agencies, and have some fun. The initial goal of 200 registrations was exceeded with 1,138 registrations and a daily average attendance of 337. The LinkedIn community was given a LinkedIn Activity badge for high user engagement. The true measure of the event’s impact, though, comes from user stories like this one: “I work in a very small office so for me, having a chance to hear from other female agents and insurance industry staff was awesome. … This really made me feel like a connected member of the independent-agent community.” https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14061493/
Caryn Siebert promotes diversity, inclusion and cultural-competency development and execution in the workplace personally and via her role on the Include@GB Steering Committee. She consistently reminds and challenges leaders as to whether they have included a diverse slate of applicants and interviewers. She keeps the company informed of diverse cultural events and history through the Include@GB Teams Channels. Siebert doesn’t just participate in industry-related multicultural events, she also encourages GB to sponsor the event and may even be a personal sponsor as well. Another way that Siebert personally promotes diversity is through mentorship. She works with mentees of diverse backgrounds and helps them move on to higher positions. Her mentees appreciate her help and continue to seek her advice long after completing the mentorship program. https://insurers.gallagherbassett.com/about/meet-the-team/caryn-siebert/
Dawnyel Smink has created a culture at CLI best described by a word that people rarely use to characterize the insurance industry: Fun. As a brilliant, caring, giving, others-focused leader, Smink has developed opportunities for joy, learning and community across the company. Smink’s model of fun is first-and-foremost inclusive: People at all levels of the organization are invited in rather than cut out. The opportunities for fun are broad-based and constantly changing to ensure that everyone experiences enjoyable and instructive activities. For additional value, these challenges also encourage the team to do what’s best for their community and for themselves, and they often give team members the opportunity to earn points toward travel opportunities. www.canyonlandsinsurance.com
Team Focus Insurance Group provides an array of programs dedicated to safeguarding employees’ rights and ensuring inclusivity and protection for all. As a result, 96% of employees perceive DEI and belonging to be an important part of the company’s future, and 96% feel supported and respected at work. Team Focus Insurance Group also has instituted a robust employee recognition program so that individuals feel recognized by their direct manager. Finally, the company recruits individuals from outside the field and offers continuous training. As a result, 94% of employees feel empowered to seek growth opportunities, and 95% feel their training aligns with their career goals. The result is that 94% of employees indicate that they plan to stay with the company, and 98% say they are proud to work for Team Focus Insurance Group. https://www.teamfocusins.com/
The California Department of Insurance’s mandate that insurers must incorporate a set of 12 specific wildfire mitigation factors into their rating system put insurers in a bind. The complexity of integrating these factors could be expensive, but failing to meet the CDI’s requirements could be worse. CoreLogic created an easier path for California insurers, lenders and other service providers by establishing the Wildfire Mitigation Score (WFMS), a fully compliant comprehensive risk score …
CoreLogic’s Wildfire Mitigation Score
Jewelers Mutual increased its investment in loss prevention solutions to combat the significant rise in crime witnessed by the jewelry industry. Its new loss prevention program helps jewelers mitigate risk through expert guidance, educational tools and resources as well as progressive technology that leverages data and analytics to help keep jewelers, their staff, and their property safe. Personalization is crucial to these loss-prevention solutions, which leverage technology and data …
Jewelers Mutual's Risk Services & Loss Prevention Program
Minerva is a proprietary store of data on more than 90% of insurable business across the U.S., designed to help underwriters deal with complex business risk factors and economic uncertainty. Minerva is cleansed, categorized and standardized for rapid incorporation. Filterable predictive scores and indexes deliver a real-time view of business operations, advanced classifications, customer reviews, performance and risk to underwriters’ fingertips. Within 15 seconds, an underwriter can get enough information to confidently rate, quote and bind a policy in a single phone call. …
Minerva (Carpe Data)
Nearmap’s ImpactResponse system integrates high-resolution imagery and advanced AI models to revolutionize the way insurers respond to catastrophic (CAT) and severe weather events. By providing immediate, critical data post-event, the system supports operational efficiency and ensures that help reaches policyholders fast. ImpactResponse’s benefits start before the event hits. It can continuously monitor developing …
Nearmap ImpactResponse System
Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual Insurance Company (PLM) provides our high severity niche industry with best-in-class risk management services that can keep lumber businesses running despite their many risk exposures. PLM’s Anytime Risk Management (ARM) tool puts the insured in control of their own risk management review process, with the same support and advice they receive regularly from …
Launched in 2023 and hosted by Pete Miller, CPCU, President and CEO of The Institutes, the Predict & Prevent® podcast addresses the most pressing risk challenges facing society today. Through insightful conversations with experts, the podcast explores how cutting-edge technology and resilience principles can predict and prevent losses before they occur. The podcast features a diverse range of topics, but it …
The Predict & Prevent® Podcast presented by The Institutes
The Renewable Energy Unit at FM (formerly FM Global) seeks to help clients design, build and operate utility-scale energy assets that will be reliable for the long term. New product offerings will include market-competitive operational and construction policies, delivered by renewable energy experts. FM’s experience partnering with power generation clients for 70 years informs its mission to assist the renewable energy sector in its development through rigorous research and innovation. …
FM's Renewable Energy Unit
For more than 25 years, SambaSafety has been dedicated to reducing roadway risk in our communities, pioneering the online delivery of motor vehicle records, and establishing comprehensive, flexible, risk-management solutions. By harmonizing disparate data from diverse sources, SambaSafety enables insurers and businesses to enhance their driver risk management …
SambaSafety
Dave Tobias co-founded Betterview with a mission to not only help insurers gain a full picture of risk but also improve expense ratios, loss ratios and customer satisfaction. Understanding that roof condition accounts for a significant portion of property insurance claims and losses, Tobias focused on leveraging advanced technologies to provide more precise and timely insights such as the Betterview Property Intelligence Platform (2019), which applies AI and computer vision to …
David Tobias (Nearmap)
The California Department of Insurance’s mandate that insurers must incorporate a set of 12 specific wildfire mitigation factors into their rating system put insurers in a bind. The complexity of integrating these factors could be expensive, but failing to meet the CDI’s requirements could be worse. CoreLogic created an easier path for California insurers, lenders and other service providers by establishing the Wildfire Mitigation Score (WFMS), a fully compliant comprehensive risk score that evaluates a property based on wildfire mitigation factors. CoreLogic also understands the human element necessary to support the technology and offers expert assistance when insurance carriers file rating plans with the Department of Insurance, including providing a validation of the WFMS. This helps insurers use a simple mechanism for establishing more effective, CDI-compliant wildfire underwriting processes. https://www.corelogic.com/insurance/hazard-risk-solutions/wildfire-mitigationscore/
Jewelers Mutual increased its investment in loss prevention solutions to combat the significant rise in crime witnessed by the jewelry industry. Its new loss prevention program helps jewelers mitigate risk through expert guidance, educational tools and resources as well as progressive technology that leverages data and analytics to help keep jewelers, their staff, and their property safe. Personalization is crucial to these loss-prevention solutions, which leverage technology and data to tailor security measures to specific customer behaviors and patterns. This allows jewelers to more effectively identify and mitigate potential risks to strengthen security, minimize losses, optimize resources and enhance customer trust and loyalty. Jewelers Mutual conducts both onsite and virtual inspections of insured properties and provides access to 16 modules with nearly 3 hours of content on best security practices, tactics and techniques. https://www.jewelersmutual.com/jm-risk-services
Minerva is a proprietary store of data on more than 90% of insurable business across the U.S., designed to help underwriters deal with complex business risk factors and economic uncertainty. Minerva is cleansed, categorized and standardized for rapid incorporation. Filterable predictive scores and indexes deliver a real-time view of business operations, advanced classifications, customer reviews, performance and risk to underwriters’ fingertips. Within 15 seconds, an underwriter can get enough information to confidently rate, quote and bind a policy in a single phone call. Minerva continues to improve, with eight new upgrades culminating in “The Carpe Risk Score,” a single decision point that underwriters can trust. The Minerva platform also provides 200-plus dynamically updated business characteristics, making it easy for underwriters to parse risk at their desired granularity and according to their appetite. https://carpe.io/products/commercial/
Nearmap’s ImpactResponse system integrates high-resolution imagery and advanced AI models to revolutionize the way insurers respond to catastrophic (CAT) and severe weather events. By providing immediate, critical data post-event, the system supports operational efficiency and ensures that help reaches policyholders fast. ImpactResponse’s benefits start before the event hits. It can continuously monitor developing situations such as hurricanes, tornadoes and wildfires to provide real-time warnings and recommendations so insurers can stage claims response teams in preparation for the event. The immediate intelligence from ImpactResponse lets insurers reach out proactively to customers, jump-starting the claims process even before the first notice of loss. Meanwhile, AI models of the affected area let insurers see the financial impact of an event across their portfolio. https://www.nearmap.com/products/impactresponse
Pennsylvania Lumbermens Mutual Insurance Company (PLM) provides our high severity niche industry with best-in-class risk management services that can keep lumber businesses running despite their many risk exposures. PLM’s Anytime Risk Management (ARM) tool puts the insured in control of their own risk management review process, with the same support and advice they receive regularly from PLM. By simply clicking on a link, insureds can walk through their operations and see their exposures from the insurer’s perspective, using a survey that includes all the questions that insurance carriers consider when reviewing a policyholder’s insurance coverage. ARM lets them take the survey at their own pace, and then receive advice and consultation over the results. With over 594 unique insureds and prospects performing 936 surveys, PLM has received only positive feedback so far. https://www.plmins.com/
Launched in 2023 and hosted by Pete Miller, CPCU, President and CEO of The Institutes, the Predict & Prevent® podcast addresses the most pressing risk challenges facing society today. Through insightful conversations with experts, the podcast explores how cutting-edge technology and resilience principles can predict and prevent losses before they occur. The podcast features a diverse range of topics, but it focuses consistently on leveraging technology to mitigate risks. The podcast has gained significant global impact with 38,360 all-time downloads and 36,066 all-time unique listeners. The podcast’s relevance and importance in the global industry is demonstrated by its international audience, with less than half of downloads coming from the U.S. and the rest coming from the UK, Canada, Australia and other countries. https://www.predictandprevent.org/
The Renewable Energy Unit at FM (formerly FM Global) seeks to help clients design, build and operate utility-scale energy assets that will be reliable for the long term. New product offerings will include market-competitive operational and construction policies, delivered by renewable energy experts. FM’s experience partnering with power generation clients for 70 years informs its mission to assist the renewable energy sector in its development through rigorous research and innovation. The innovative strategic construction of this unit reflects challenges of the sector it is ensuring. Since losses have often outstripped premiums in this sector, the Renewable Energy Unit has distinct capacities, underwriting requirements and reinsurance treaties that allow it to offer tailored solutions that meet the unique demands of renewable energy projects. This approach not only mitigates risk but also fosters resilience and sustainability within the industry. https://www.fmglobal.com/
For more than 25 years, SambaSafety has been dedicated to reducing roadway risk in our communities, pioneering the online delivery of motor vehicle records, and establishing comprehensive, flexible, risk-management solutions. By harmonizing disparate data from diverse sources, SambaSafety enables insurers and businesses to enhance their driver risk management programs, streamline processes, and significantly improve overall safety. The aggregation and normalization of driving data from diverse sources provides a comprehensive near real-time view of risk and reduces a fleet’s manual processes by up to 50%. This approach also enables more effective deployment of risk mitigation. The continuous monitoring of behavioral driving data allows for targeted training tailored to specific incidents, vehicles, and driver types, which reduces violations by 77% and crashes by 14% within the first year. https://sambasafety.com/
Dave Tobias co-founded Betterview with a mission to not only help insurers gain a full picture of risk but also improve expense ratios, loss ratios and customer satisfaction. Understanding that roof condition accounts for a significant portion of property insurance claims and losses, Tobias focused on leveraging advanced technologies to provide more precise and timely insights such as the Betterview Property Intelligence Platform (2019), which applies AI and computer vision to accurately evaluate roof condition and overall property risk. This essentially eliminated the need for costly on-site roof inspections. In 2023, Betterview joined forces with Nearmap to create the insurance industry’s first comprehensive property intelligence tech stack. Since then, Nearmap has equipped more than 200 insurance companies with the comprehensive Betterview Property Intelligence Platform. https://www.nearmap.com/products/betterview
AgencyZoom, powered by Vertafore, is a powerful customer relationship management (CRM) tool purpose-built for insurance agencies, as CRMs built for the general market often don’t meet insurers’ needs. AgencyZoom is accessible to insurance agencies of all sizes. It’s designed to automate processes that agencies need while integrating with technologies agencies typically use. The tool improves the …
AgencyZoom (Vertafore)
While at Agency Revolution, Stefanie Altman transformed the company’s marketing landscape and enhanced focus on the education and empowerment of independent insurance agents. The company implemented advanced marketing data usage, AI-supported analytics and innovatively structured, targeted campaigns. These innovations streamlined marketing operations, improved customer and prospect engagement, and delivered measurable ROMI for …
Stefanie Altman
Applied Pay is a powerful remedy to the historically paper-driven, manual, inefficient payment process. It is a natively integrated digital payments solution built specifically for the insurance industry. Applied Pay seamlessly integrates into agency management systems, Applied Epic® and EZLynx, and the client portal Applied CSR24®, to automate payment collection, processing and reconciliation. Unlike competitors, integration is embedded directly into the code framework, allowing for more specific automations while keeping all data securely managed within a single system. …
Applied Pay (Applied Systems)
Arch Apex is an online platform for accident insurance quotes that simplifies the quote-bind-issue process, improves efficiency and provides a seamless digital experience for brokers and clients. Arch Apex reduces this traditionally cumbersome process of quote-bind-issue from weeks to minutes. With just a few questions over the phone, a broker can have a ready-to-buy proposal emailed to potential customers, making sales easier. …
Arch Apex (Arch Insurance)
Arturo is a property intelligence company that is trying to restore eroded trust between homeowners and insurers. It empowers people with actionable insights into the past, present and probable future of property through portfolio-wide underwriting, risk, claims and catastrophe-driven event insights. These insights are delivered in under 300 milliseconds, enabling insurers to make critical decisions, mitigate risks, and foster transparency between stakeholders and …
Arturo
Ascend’s leading financial operations automation platform addresses the dated and fractured financial systems that hurt both top-line growth and bottom-line efficiency. Streamlining accounts receivable and payable workflows, facilitating premium collection, allocation and reconciliation of commissions, Ascend enables financial teams to eliminate time-intensive low-value work and focus on high-ROI initiatives. Meanwhile, Ascend …
Ascend
The Betterview Roof Age Solution by Nearmap leverages AI and advanced computer vision technologies to analyze historical aerial imagery to provide insurers with unprecedented precision in determining roof age. Launched in 2023, Roof Age uses imagery covering 87% of the U.S. population. New imagery per location is provided up to three times per year, enhancing the solution’s accuracy. Traditional methods of determining roof age have significant inaccuracies that often result in …
Betterview Roof Age (Nearmap)
As a leader at Crum & Forster’s Surplus & Specialty (S&S) division, Bryan Brizzi has driven a comprehensive digital transformation, revolutionizing their underwriting processes. Brizzi’s guiding principles have fostered a collaborative and innovative environment. As a result, the digital transformation has not only improved business agility and customer satisfaction but also significantly reduced regulatory and security risks. …
Bryan Brizzi (Crum and Forster)
CCC Intelligent Solutions wants to reduce casualty claim cycle times and costs. Between 2021 and 2022, there was a more than 1 billion day increase in the time between when claims opened and when they closed. CCC’s solution is its CCCIX Cloud™ platform, powered by AI that connects companies across the auto insurance ecosystem including repair facilities, parts suppliers, insurers and OEMs, to improve …
CCC Intelligent Solutions
As Chief Global Digital Officer at Sedgwick, Leah Cooper oversaw the launch of Sidekick. This industry-first integration of GenAI using ChatGPT technology with its established claims management tools lets claims officers spend their time in claims management engagement rather than in traditional administration work. Under Cooper’s leadership, the Sidekick rollout took a phased approach, …
Leah Cooper (Sedgwick)
Duck Creek Clarity simplifies the process of accessing, managing and unifying data originating from Duck Creek’s software-as-a-service (SaaS)-based core systems including policy, billing and claims solutions. It helps carriers make smarter and faster underwriting, pricing, claims and marketing decisions. Duck Creek Clarity leverages the Snowflake Data Cloud, simplifying data integration into AI/ML models, consumer and agent/broker applications, and third-party systems. …
Duck Creek Clarity
EZLynx began with independent agencies in mind. The initial comparative rating tool, EZLynx Rating Engine, let agencies look at quotes in one place rather than having to go to separate carrier portals. The system continues to improve, and in April 2024, EZLynx launched Quote By Text, allowing agencies to provide coverage quotes via text messages. The EZLynx Management System has been a desirable solution for insurance professionals. Now …
EZLynx (Applied Systems)
As auto total loss claims increase, Hi Marley, Copart, and Plymouth Rock Assurance came together to reduce cycle times, lower costs and improve customer experiences. In September 2023, Hi Marley (an intelligent SMS conversational platform built for P&C insurance) and Copart (a global leader in online vehicle auctions) announced a strategic partnership to co-redefine how the insurance ecosystem navigates this complex process. With the further assistance of …
Hi Marley, Copart, and Plymouth Rock Assurance
To supercharge insurance innovation, Holmes Murphy co-founded and co-owns Broker Tech Ventures (BTV), a broker-led convening platform and accelerator. BTV is not a single innovation but a comprehensive suite of solutions designed to address the diverse and dynamic technological needs of brokers, insurers and their clients. …
Holmes Murphy
Input 1 is a leading provider of cloud-based insurance-premium collection solutions, enhancing convenience and efficiency for insurers and policyholders. With a 99.99% uptime and $16 billion in annual premiums managed for more than 2 million users, the technology streamlines billing, payments and premium financing. This reduces costs and boosts client satisfaction. Input 1’s solutions feature automated billing, expansive …
Input 1 LLC
IntellectAI’s focus on generative AI is shaping the future of insurance by delivering immediate ROI, precise use cases, and transformative productivity enhancements. These offerings respond to true needs expressed by insurers, making them inherently useful. IntellectAI offers three flagship products. Xponent is an end-to-end …
IntellectAI
InvoiceCloud’s SaaS solution enables continuous enhancements to the customer experience by replicating the online payment experience customers have come to expect. These improvements are critical to the overall policyholder experience because paying premiums is the most frequent customer touchpoint by a wide margin. InvoiceCloud’s variety of payment options such as online, pay by text or phone, AutoPay, digital …
InvoiceCloud
Ivans, the U.S. insurance industry’s agnostic distribution network, connects agents, carriers and MGAs by integrating with more than 45 agency management systems and partnering with more than 20 distribution-focused insurtechs. Ivans has built its commercial lines product portfolio via in-house development and acquisition to enable seamless connectivity between agents and carriers, using the Ivans Distribution Platform …
Ivans
The LUX Digital Vault®, a mobile app by Jewelers Mutual, gives jewelers’ customers the option of jewelry insurance coverage integrated into the app experience, plus a 15-day offer to evaluate their insurance needs while keeping their new jewelry purchases protected. However, the app offers much more for jewelers and their customers. Customers have the opportunity to digitally organize their jewelry collections, store receipts and appraisals, and stay connected with the jeweler through the app. Getting insurance for jewelry is facilitated by taking pictures, providing information and …
Jewelers Mutual Mobile App
Joshu offers a platform designed to empower insurance professionals with a digital-first, self-service experience that includes independence with less reliance on IT and agility to iterate as the market dictates. Joshu’s readymade tech stack leaves product owners free to focus their expertise on bringing new products to underserved markets or improving underwriting quality to maximize business growth for rapid product …
Joshu
For more than four decades, John Kummer has been driving innovation within the insurance industry. Starting as an insurance CPA, Kummer later joined the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) and became the Deputy Insurance Commissioner, responsible for all insurance regulations in Florida. Kummer helped form the Florida Residential Property and Casualty Joint Underwriting Association (FRPCJUA, now Citizens Property Insurance Corporation) and the Florida …
John Kummer (Team Focus Insurance Group)
LexisNexis® Flyreel® is a first-of-its-kind property-risk assessment solution that provides consumers and insurance carriers with better protection, prevention and pricing. Property owners use the simple mobile app to perform a guided tour of the interior and exterior of their home. They will answer questions about their home and take images. Flyreel® utilizes proprietary computer vision technology to capture comprehensive AI-driven insights into a consumer’s property using the property owners’ pictures and aerial imagery, cutting the underwriter review time in half. At the same time, Flyreel …
LexisNexis® Flyreel®
As Director of IT at ALPS, Michael McCullough has encouraged rapid digitization and software optimization across the organization. This includes a complete rewrite of the policy admin system and implementation of new document management software, new portal software and agency management software — while still managing the day-to-day operations. McCullough is focused on integration and cross-system communication to provide efficiencies across the organization. …
Michael McCullough (ALPS)
Mylo is an insurtech company that partners with an array of companies to provide predictive AI-powered solutions to small business owners and individuals. Mylo empowers companies that want to offer insurance to meet customer needs but need support. Its turnkey solution brings this support through patented insurance intelligence engines, coverage guidance built on 50-plus years of expertise, a one-stop shop for a variety of policies, …
Mylo
NeuralMetrics’ introduction of Smart Adaptive Multifunctional Agents (SAMA) is modernizing the insurance industry’s commercial underwriting processes and workflows. SAMA are persona-based AI agents capable of performing underwriting support roles such as risk analysis, appetite determination and premium audit assistants. SAMA are capable of constant …
NeuralMetrics
The Novidea SaaS platform enables brokers, agents specialty and wholesale insurers, carriers and MGAs to modernize and manage the customer insurance journey end-to-end and drive growth across the entire insurance distribution lifecycle. Novidea’s low-code platform delivers agility, speed to market and …
Novidea
With Authentic Insurance, Cole Riccardi is building an entirely new business model for commercial insurance. Rather than franchises and small businesses buying policies through a traditional insurance carrier, Authentic Insurance helps them create captive insurance programs for themselves. Authentic handles all the logistics of setting up a captive insurance offering. To accomplish this, Riccardi has built the platform to adapt and tailor insurance coverage in real time to …
Cole Riccardi (Authentic Insurance)
Keith A. Savino is Principal-Managing Partner and National Cyber and Technology Practice Leader with Broadfield Insurance, a PCF Insurance Services Agency. For more than 30 years, Savino has championed the benefits of technology, especially in independent insurance agencies, including what people often describe as the insurance agency Buy Button. …
Keith A. Savino (Broadfield Insurance)
Schaefer City Technologies developed its AI-driven software NaVel™ (Nuclear Verdict® Exposure Likelihood), an early warning system to identify claims with the potential of going nuclear. A Nuclear Verdict® is an award by a jury in excess of $10 million that is significantly higher than would be expected given the plaintiff’s damages. …
Schaefer City Technologies
Since its inception in 2011, Snapsheet has revolutionized the insurance industry with its innovative all-in-one claims management platform, which now serves over 150 customers, including 16 of the top 20 P&C carriers. With the addition of AI, Snapsheet continually improves claims processing, resulting in more accurate and efficient operations over time. Meanwhile, the platform’s user-friendly …
Snapsheet
AgencyZoom, powered by Vertafore, is a powerful customer relationship management (CRM) tool purpose-built for insurance agencies, as CRMs built for the general market often don’t meet insurers’ needs. AgencyZoom is accessible to insurance agencies of all sizes. It’s designed to automate processes that agencies need while integrating with technologies agencies typically use. The tool improves the efficiency and effectiveness of agencies. The appeal of AgencyZoom makes it the CRM of choice for more than 4,900 agencies and 35,000 users. The users of AgencyZoom see significant benefits including a 14.5% increase in commissions, a 4.5% increase in sales, combining for a 40% growth in the first year using AgencyZoom while seeing a time savings of 30 hours per month. https://www.vertafore.com/products/agencyzoom
While at Agency Revolution, Stefanie Altman transformed the company’s marketing landscape and enhanced focus on the education and empowerment of independent insurance agents. The company implemented advanced marketing data usage, AI-supported analytics and innovatively structured, targeted campaigns. These innovations streamlined marketing operations, improved customer and prospect engagement, and delivered measurable ROMI for Agency Revolution. Her efforts resulted in a more agile and responsive marketing strategy, allowing her team to produce more technology-driven content and campaigns while working within a measurement-minded framework. Meanwhile, she spearheaded numerous initiatives aimed at upskilling independent agents in digital marketing and marketing technology usage. Altman has since started a new venture at Stefanie Altman Consulting.
Applied Pay is a powerful remedy to the historically paper-driven, manual, inefficient payment process. It is a natively integrated digital payments solution built specifically for the insurance industry. Applied Pay seamlessly integrates into agency management systems, Applied Epic® and EZLynx, and the client portal Applied CSR24®, to automate payment collection, processing and reconciliation. Unlike competitors, integration is embedded directly into the code framework, allowing for more specific automations while keeping all data securely managed within a single system. On the agency side, Applied Pay streamlines the general ledger reconciliation process. Agents using Applied Pay spend up to 50% less time reconciling accounts, compared to manual reconciliation, enabling them to settle payments fast and drive a more profitable book of business. https://www1.appliedsystems.com/en-us/
Arch Apex is an online platform for accident insurance quotes that simplifies the quote-bind-issue process, improves efficiency and provides a seamless digital experience for brokers and clients. Arch Apex reduces this traditionally cumbersome process of quote-bind-issue from weeks to minutes. With just a few questions over the phone, a broker can have a ready-to-buy proposal emailed to potential customers, making sales easier. Arch Apex’s interface is user-friendly, making it easy to use and easy to adopt, despite its powerful digital capabilities. The system is transparent, reliable, efficient and incorporates rigorous data security measures to protect client information and brokers from costly leaks. This saves time that used to be spent on paperwork and gives agents more time to develop relationships with clients. www.archaccidenthealth.com
Arturo is a property intelligence company that is trying to restore eroded trust between homeowners and insurers. It empowers people with actionable insights into the past, present and probable future of property through portfolio-wide underwriting, risk, claims and catastrophe-driven event insights. These insights are delivered in under 300 milliseconds, enabling insurers to make critical decisions, mitigate risks, and foster transparency between stakeholders and homeowners. Arturo delivers significant business impact while focusing on the customer experience. The second-largest insurance company in Australia cut their “disclosure list” by 50%, relying instead on Arturo’s AI models. This reduced the burden on customers and increased quote conversions and revenue by 14%. When disaster strikes, the technology allows insurers to assess the impact on homes, prioritize activities, and allocate resources before any ground team arrives. https://www.arturo.ai/
Ascend’s leading financial operations automation platform addresses the dated and fractured financial systems that hurt both top-line growth and bottom-line efficiency. Streamlining accounts receivable and payable workflows, facilitating premium collection, allocation and reconciliation of commissions, Ascend enables financial teams to eliminate time-intensive low-value work and focus on high-ROI initiatives. Meanwhile, Ascend significantly improves client and customer experiences by automating payment processes and increasing transparency. Businesses using Ascend have experienced a 25% increase in agency bill revenue, a 95% decrease in non-pay cancelations, and a 60% savings on operational and accounting expenses. As a result of these benefits, Ascend has acquired more than 2,000 customers, including several of the top 25 largest insurance distributors nationwide and was named a Top 50 Insurtech by CB Insights. https://www.useascend.com/
The Betterview Roof Age Solution by Nearmap leverages AI and advanced computer vision technologies to analyze historical aerial imagery to provide insurers with unprecedented precision in determining roof age. Launched in 2023, Roof Age uses imagery covering 87% of the U.S. population. New imagery per location is provided up to three times per year, enhancing the solution’s accuracy. Traditional methods of determining roof age have significant inaccuracies that often result in costly premium leakage. When asked the age of their roof, 66% of homeowners underestimate by 5 years, and 20% underestimate by 15 years. Inaccurate roof age data results in over $1.31 billion in premium leakage every year. Betterview helps insurers set select appropriate risks to minimize potential losses and reallocate resources by targeting inspections toward older roofs. https://www.nearmap.com/products/insights/roof-age
As a leader at Crum & Forster’s Surplus & Specialty (S&S) division, Bryan Brizzi has driven a comprehensive digital transformation, revolutionizing their underwriting processes. Brizzi’s guiding principles have fostered a collaborative and innovative environment. As a result, the digital transformation has not only improved business agility and customer satisfaction but also significantly reduced regulatory and security risks. Brizzi oversaw the development and launch of the S&S Underwriting Platform (S&S UP), which integrates workflow management, risk data collection, and underwriting processes into a single, cohesive system. It leverages cutting-edge technologies, including machine learning (ML), to triage incoming accounts and generative AI to process submission documents. The use of a Low-Code/No-Code development platform sped creation and customization while application programming interfaces ensured seamless integration of the entire underwriting process. www.cfins.com
CCC Intelligent Solutions wants to reduce casualty claim cycle times and costs. Between 2021 and 2022, there was a more than 1 billion day increase in the time between when claims opened and when they closed. CCC’s solution is its CCCIX Cloud™ platform, powered by AI that connects companies across the auto insurance ecosystem including repair facilities, parts suppliers, insurers and OEMs, to improve productivity, reduce waste and facilitate communication throughout the claims and repair process. New tools added in the last year include AI-based photo analysis that helps users learn more about the accident earlier, intelligent automation of certain repair processes, and the ability to assess inbound demand in minutes, making it the first in the industry to offer an end-to-end AI-enabled subrogation solution. https://www.cccis.com/
As Chief Global Digital Officer at Sedgwick, Leah Cooper oversaw the launch of Sidekick. This industry-first integration of GenAI using ChatGPT technology with its established claims management tools lets claims officers spend their time in claims management engagement rather than in traditional administration work. Under Cooper’s leadership, the Sidekick rollout took a phased approach, starting in May 2023. In phase 1, sidekick was deployed in a limited capacity to read and summarize medical documentation for workers’ compensation claims with a greater than 98% success rate. In phase 2, Sedgwick’s imaging systems fed claims documents into Sidekick’s system. In phase 3, Sidekick has become part of Sedgwick’s strategic digital intelligence suite, in which claims pass through a digital triage process that prescribes optimal workflows, improving efficiency and claims outcomes. www.sedgwick.com
Duck Creek Clarity simplifies the process of accessing, managing and unifying data originating from Duck Creek’s software-as-a-service (SaaS)-based core systems including policy, billing and claims solutions. It helps carriers make smarter and faster underwriting, pricing, claims and marketing decisions. Duck Creek Clarity leverages the Snowflake Data Cloud, simplifying data integration into AI/ML models, consumer and agent/broker applications, and third-party systems. The SaaS-based system makes Duck Creek Clarity flexible and easy to implement. Carriers can use the platform for everything from daily operations to strategic long-term planning. The powerful out-of-the-box solutions mean carriers can get data to go from source to report in six hours or less, access 20-plus pre-built business intelligence reports, and go live in 60 days or less. https://www.duckcreek.com/
EZLynx began with independent agencies in mind. The initial comparative rating tool, EZLynx Rating Engine, let agencies look at quotes in one place rather than having to go to separate carrier portals. The system continues to improve, and in April 2024, EZLynx launched Quote By Text, allowing agencies to provide coverage quotes via text messages. The EZLynx Management System has been a desirable solution for insurance professionals. Now there are more than 38,000 agencies using the EZLynx Agency Management System, featuring more than 110,000 individual users and 7% year over year growth. EZLynx offer real-time quoting with over 330 carriers including 170 auto carriers and 150 home carriers in 48 states. In addition, 96% of customers report being satisfied with EZLynx support services. https://www.ezlynx.com/
As auto total loss claims increase, Hi Marley, Copart, and Plymouth Rock Assurance came together to reduce cycle times, lower costs and improve customer experiences. In September 2023, Hi Marley (an intelligent SMS conversational platform built for P&C insurance) and Copart (a global leader in online vehicle auctions) announced a strategic partnership to co-redefine how the insurance ecosystem navigates this complex process. With the further assistance of Plymouth Rock Assurance, in 2024, they announced Total Loss Assist. Through a seamless integration with the Copart Seller Portal, Hi Marley accelerates the auto total loss claims process. Adopters reported resolving claims 2.5 days faster, a 30-40% cycle time reduction, which saves carriers $125-$150 per total loss claim. Policyholders like it. Users reported an increase in 5-star survey results renewal commitments from total loss claimants. www.himarley.com www.copart.com https://www.plymouthrock.com/
To supercharge insurance innovation, Holmes Murphy co-founded and co-owns Broker Tech Ventures (BTV), a broker-led convening platform and accelerator. BTV is not a single innovation but a comprehensive suite of solutions designed to address the diverse and dynamic technological needs of brokers, insurers and their clients. BTV now proudly represents 58 startups and is comprised of 23 of the most sizeable, innovative, notable and respected brokerage firms, insurance companies, wholesalers and community partners. As of June 2024, the collective valuation of BTV is near $1 billion. Startups from the last five years of cohorts have produced more than 200 proof-of-concepts or pilots and created nearly 1,000 external client engagements directly attributed to BTV. https://www.holmesmurphy.com
Input 1 is a leading provider of cloud-based insurance-premium collection solutions, enhancing convenience and efficiency for insurers and policyholders. With a 99.99% uptime and $16 billion in annual premiums managed for more than 2 million users, the technology streamlines billing, payments and premium financing. This reduces costs and boosts client satisfaction. Input 1’s solutions feature automated billing, expansive digital payment options, real-time policyholder account information, detailed reporting and analytics, and broker commission payments and reporting, ensuring a hassle-free experience for insurers, brokers and policyholders. For more than four decades, Input 1 has maintained a 100% implementation success rate, consistently meeting client needs and fostering long-term relationships. https://www.input1.com/
IntellectAI’s focus on generative AI is shaping the future of insurance by delivering immediate ROI, precise use cases, and transformative productivity enhancements. These offerings respond to true needs expressed by insurers, making them inherently useful. IntellectAI offers three flagship products. Xponent is an end-to-end workbench for account-centric underwriting, with the ability to derive data-driven insights, summaries, risk assessments, and much more from bespoke large language models. Magic Submission is a sophisticated AI-powered intelligent document ingestion solution, which can ingest submissions from any channel, including ZIP files, broker links and email. Risk Analyst can process loss runs in minutes, with greater than 95% accuracy and low touch, allowing the rapid extraction of loss data, with outcomes that are easy to read and easy to follow. www.intellectai.com
InvoiceCloud’s SaaS solution enables continuous enhancements to the customer experience by replicating the online payment experience customers have come to expect. These improvements are critical to the overall policyholder experience because paying premiums is the most frequent customer touchpoint by a wide margin. InvoiceCloud’s variety of payment options such as online, pay by text or phone, AutoPay, digital wallets and more allows organizations to address a range of policyholder preferences, helping them better attract and foster loyalty with policyholders of all ages. One client who adopted InvoiceCloud in 2022 not only saw a 97% policyholder retention rate and a 48% increase in AutoPay adoption within the first 12 months, but also saw the average age of policyholders decrease by nine years. http://www.invoicecloud.net
Ivans, the U.S. insurance industry’s agnostic distribution network, connects agents, carriers and MGAs by integrating with more than 45 agency management systems and partnering with more than 20 distribution-focused insurtechs. Ivans has built its commercial lines product portfolio via in-house development and acquisition to enable seamless connectivity between agents and carriers, using the Ivans Distribution Platform (IDP). This enables agents to use their quoting application, connected to IDP, to search for carriers with appetite so they can bind the policy. Today, 38,000 agents (an 80% increase since 2020) and 650 carrier partners (a 60% increase since 2020) plug into Ivans technology. In 2023, IDP grew at an average of 20% per month, doubling quoted premiums year over year, and more than 1 million transactions flow through the Ivans platform every day. https://www.ivans.com/
The LUX Digital Vault®, a mobile app by Jewelers Mutual, gives jewelers’ customers the option of jewelry insurance coverage integrated into the app experience, plus a 15-day offer to evaluate their insurance needs while keeping their new jewelry purchases protected. However, the app offers much more for jewelers and their customers. Customers have the opportunity to digitally organize their jewelry collections, store receipts and appraisals, and stay connected with the jeweler through the app. Getting insurance for jewelry is facilitated by taking pictures, providing information and choosing coverage options. By offering the app in store, jewelers also can improve the store experience, enhance customer engagement, and build trust and loyalty. The app is free to both jewelers and their customers. It is available on iOS and Android. It integrates with major POS providers through API connections and operates on Azure’s cloud-based platform for seamless insurance experiences. https://www.jewelersmutual.com/luxsurance
Joshu offers a platform designed to empower insurance professionals with a digital-first, self-service experience that includes independence with less reliance on IT and agility to iterate as the market dictates. Joshu’s readymade tech stack leaves product owners free to focus their expertise on bringing new products to underserved markets or improving underwriting quality to maximize business growth for rapid product development. Joshu delivers speed to market. Last year, four of Joshu’s clients launched new products on their platform in 100 days or less. The fastest was K2’s OCONUS, which went live in just 45 days. Beyond the launch, Joshu’s platform empowers K2 OCONUS’s business team to make changes to the system as real-world events dictate changes to their product. https://www.joshuins.com/
For more than four decades, John Kummer has been driving innovation within the insurance industry. Starting as an insurance CPA, Kummer later joined the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) and became the Deputy Insurance Commissioner, responsible for all insurance regulations in Florida. Kummer helped form the Florida Residential Property and Casualty Joint Underwriting Association (FRPCJUA, now Citizens Property Insurance Corporation) and the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund. After leaving the OIR, Kummer helped form and operate the Florida Family Mutual Insurance Company, one of the first FRPCJUA take-out companies. Kummer left Florida Family to form Better Insurance Processing Technology (BIPT), which produced the first entirely browser-based policy processing system, and one of the first SaaS-based policy administration systems. The BIPT system was the basis of Team Focus’ modern policy administration system, PolicyPort®. https://www.teamfocusins.com/
LexisNexis® Flyreel® is a first-of-its-kind property-risk assessment solution that provides consumers and insurance carriers with better protection, prevention and pricing. Property owners use the simple mobile app to perform a guided tour of the interior and exterior of their home. They will answer questions about their home and take images. Flyreel® utilizes proprietary computer vision technology to capture comprehensive AI-driven insights into a consumer’s property using the property owners’ pictures and aerial imagery, cutting the underwriter review time in half. At the same time, Flyreel gives property owners important information about their property’s risks, such as floodplain information, and detects preventable risks, such as roof or electrical hazards. Up to 70% of customers complete the self-guided survey, and 94% of them are satisfied with the easy-to-use application. https://risk.lexisnexis.com/products/flyreel
As Director of IT at ALPS, Michael McCullough has encouraged rapid digitization and software optimization across the organization. This includes a complete rewrite of the policy admin system and implementation of new document management software, new portal software and agency management software — while still managing the day-to-day operations. McCullough is focused on integration and cross-system communication to provide efficiencies across the organization. McCullough also serves as an essential translator in the organization, equally able to explain the insurance business to a SQL programmer and train new employees on the basics of how this system works. Another mark of his leadership is the way his personal calm amid the numerous challenges creates a sense of order in the chaos and inspires the organization to follow his initiatives. www.alpsinsurance.com
Mylo is an insurtech company that partners with an array of companies to provide predictive AI-powered solutions to small business owners and individuals. Mylo empowers companies that want to offer insurance to meet customer needs but need support. Its turnkey solution brings this support through patented insurance intelligence engines, coverage guidance built on 50-plus years of expertise, a one-stop shop for a variety of policies, 100-plus leading carriers, agents licensed in all 50 states, and more. Partners can plug Mylo’s guided insurance shopping platform into their experiences through a no-code widget that they can embed in under 5 minutes. Whether customers shop online or with an agent, the Mind of Mylo™ predictive AI engine recommends ideal coverage, matches risks with leading carriers, and quotes the best coverage and price. https://choosemylo.com/
NeuralMetrics’ introduction of Smart Adaptive Multifunctional Agents (SAMA) is modernizing the insurance industry’s commercial underwriting processes and workflows. SAMA are persona-based AI agents capable of performing underwriting support roles such as risk analysis, appetite determination and premium audit assistants. SAMA are capable of constant self-learning and self-correction, which enhances their performance and precision in their designated roles. For example, SAMA can ingest an insurer’s underwriting guidelines, improve their knowledge to handle risk selection workflows, and meticulously complete assigned quote-to-bind tasks. NeuralMetrics combines its underwriting data workbench with the latest advances in large language models, machine learning, and robotic process automation (RPA) to inform the performance and output of role-based AI agents. SAMA capabilities include automated risk analysis for commercial applications, streamlining premium audits for commercial policies, and flagging policies for premium audits. www.neuralmetrics.ai
The Novidea SaaS platform enables brokers, agents specialty and wholesale insurers, carriers and MGAs to modernize and manage the customer insurance journey end-to-end and drive growth across the entire insurance distribution lifecycle. Novidea’s low-code platform delivers agility, speed to market and lower costs. One of Novidea’s customers found that their manual processes required up to 25 clicks just to issue a single policy (not counting the clicks in their lead, submissions or quoting process), and required multiple reentries of data, which took too much time and resulted in errors. Automating with Novidea dropped the number of clicks from 25 to just two. The company shaved 20 minutes from their renewal process and 25 minutes from their quoting process, adding up to more than $65 million in savings each year. https://novidea.com/
With Authentic Insurance, Cole Riccardi is building an entirely new business model for commercial insurance. Rather than franchises and small businesses buying policies through a traditional insurance carrier, Authentic Insurance helps them create captive insurance programs for themselves. Authentic handles all the logistics of setting up a captive insurance offering. To accomplish this, Riccardi has built the platform to adapt and tailor insurance coverage in real time to increase addressability and offer competitive pricing. Within a year of launching, Riccardi has raised an $11 million series A round, a $5.5 million Seed round, signed 10 partners that touch over one million small businesses, and doubled their headcount. Riccardi is working on plans to roll out new offerings like workers’ compensation and healthcare benefits. https://authenticinsurance.com/
Keith A. Savino is Principal-Managing Partner and National Cyber and Technology Practice Leader with Broadfield Insurance, a PCF Insurance Services Agency. For more than 30 years, Savino has championed the benefits of technology, especially in independent insurance agencies, including what people often describe as the insurance agency Buy Button. With the rise of predictive modeling, agents lost the ability to bind a policy on the spot, which led to many lost sales. Savino says that for an independent agent, the ability to close a sale in real-time and within a single system is crucial. This ability became reality in 2024 when Vertafore introduced “P/L Binds,” the insurance industry’s first bind capability within a personal lines rater. Vertafore’s Chief Products Officer said that Savino’s partnership made the technology possible. https://www.broadfieldinsurance.com
Schaefer City Technologies developed its AI-driven software NaVel™ (Nuclear Verdict® Exposure Likelihood), an early warning system to identify claims with the potential of going nuclear. A Nuclear Verdict® is an award by a jury in excess of $10 million that is significantly higher than would be expected given the plaintiff’s damages. NaVel™ uses predictive analytics based on parameters and attributes identified using more than 10 million data points sourced from tens of thousands of cases that resulted in Nuclear Verdicts®. Through ongoing analysis, NaVel™ provides an ever-updating predictive score throughout the life of the claim. NaVel™ can identify more than 75% of potential Nuclear Verdicts®, potentially saving the insurance industry billions. In 2023, Schaefer City Technologies introduced its chatbot, Bobbi, which provides real-time answers about Nuclear Verdicts®, and what insurance carriers need to know to stop them. https://www.schaefercitytech.com/
Since its inception in 2011, Snapsheet has revolutionized the insurance industry with its innovative all-in-one claims management platform, which now serves over 150 customers, including 16 of the top 20 P&C carriers. With the addition of AI, Snapsheet continually improves claims processing, resulting in more accurate and efficient operations over time. Meanwhile, the platform’s user-friendly interface improves customer experience, simplifying the claims journey for the insurer and the insured. The platform has achieved a 20% improvement in appraisal accuracy, saving clients an average of 50% per claim, while reducing the payment cycle time to just 8 hours. In 2023 alone, Snapsheet improved its customer base by 76 new and notable clients. As a result, Snapsheet has processed over 4.3 million claims and 3 million appraisal estimates, totaling more than $15 billion in indemnity. https://www.snapsheetclaims.com/
