As the light and sound show of the main ballroom dazzled and the audience waited for the main speakers to take the stage, we all sat waiting for hints of what the future of insurance would hold. Finally seated, senior leaders and speakers from Google and Microsoft were ready for their first question, “Will Google be getting into the business of insurance?” His response, ‘No. We have no plans to do that at this time.’
I swear with my hand on the Bible, the audience breathed an audible sigh of relief…. and the rest of the questions were materially very boring.
In a few short paragraphs I want to share with you my thoughts about this year’s Insuretech Connect (ITC) conference, from my perspective. (If you are reading this you might know who I am- probably not, real quick, Vice President of one of the largest agencies in the US. Lots of carrier background, lots of agency background, leadership positions, and a true friend to the industry.)
- The day prior to Insuretech kicking off (which is officially called Agency Connect) I heard something multiple times that made me literally laugh out loud. I heard Insuretech folks say on stage, ‘If the insurance carriers would share their data, this insuretech ‘disruption’ and progress would move a lot faster.’ I also heard some say, ‘For the social good they should share their data.’ To that I would like to go on the record and say, “That’s not going to happen! NO ONE WILL SHARE THAT, EVER! Period….” Outside of what little they do share……
One carrier in particular has a competitive advantage on their competition because they have been plugging in telematics devices 10 years longer than anyone else. That gave them the confidence to surge forward in the market a few years ago when everyone else retreated on the personal auto line by taking HUGE increases or taking action to control their auto losses. That data helped them drop their loss ratio and pawn off selected risks to other carriers who are either, willingly and or, unknowingly, picking up those risks. The company with 10 years more telematics data, has enough data, to support the business decision they made to run risks off the books (Billions in WP), because the data is strong enough to do so. Their results prove the data and the decision were sound.
- I was sitting in a breakout session led by Mark Purowitz, Senior Partner at Deloitte (I am a huge fan… of Mark…. not investment firms) and there were two major take a-ways. 1st: Mike LaRocco, is on point as an industry leader and taking State Auto into the future with great directional vision. 2nd: That Insuretech companies are now replacing the word “Disrupt” with “Evolve”. Subtle but important. In 2018, the feeling at insuretech Connect, was that, “All you incumbent PUNK A$$ juggernaut carriers, get out of the way and make some room for the new kids on the block!” Now the feeling is more along the lines of, “Hey juggernaut carriers, we want to help you evolve and succeed, can we be friends? Oh and do you want to buy us for a Unicorn price tag?”
Long story short here: Carriers are acting like Startups in some cases and not relying on their “Big and Established” status to save them and Don’t count the carrier incumbents to roll over as the industry transitions, expect to see some acquisitions!
Appendix:
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- Synonyms of Disrupt: Distort, Damage, Buckle, Warp
- Synonyms of Evolve: Develop, Progress, Advance
3. This one blew my mind this year. A DRIVING SCORE like a credit score or FICO score. Envision the consumer empowered one day to show themselves as a hot commodity carriers want to win as a client because they have the driving score all the carriers want. (Telematics gives us the info. The driving score would prove I drive my Mini Cooper John T. Works edition like a good boy and therefore all carriers would then bend over backwards to insure me)- Fun to Imagine.
4. As an agency owner I looked at insuretech as a threat to the distribution channel, however this year I saw an incredible example of how Insuretech is disrupting, enhancing, and shortening the claims cycle as the carriers increasingly empower the insured to own parts of the process that they are more than willing to own. (I think I heard State Farm covers over 30,000 auto claims a day! Being able to shorten the process within the industry is key. One question that was asked generally as it relates to an industry claims statistic, “Where else in society/ what other industry is it OK to wait 10 days for a deliverable?”
5. Alright, this one is going to hurt some feelings. Insuretech feels like a Salesforce show. That’s probably OK. Salesforce (And all the companies that exist on the Sales force platform) are great. But I lost a bit of respect for the conference as a whole, when the main stage was used to announce huge Salesforce updates and tout customer testimonials of “How you too can enjoy these things, if you give us your first born” (Please note again, I am on the agency side and I recognize, I was not the target audience for this paid commercial.)
6. Insuretech Connect exists to facilitate the interaction of Carriers and Tech companies. There are auxiliary parties in attendance like agencies and tech companies with products geared towards agencies, but they are the second class citizens at Insuretech. It seems like everyone in attendance at this conference is either managing a billion dollars in WP or someone looking for someone managing a billion dollars in WP. My $400,000,000 was lost in the mix. (Which does not hurt my feelings at all)
7. It amazes me how many people I bump into at ITC that I know and how many people I bump into, quite by accident, that are on my short list of folks I need to get to know. If you are not there, you probably should be.
The Wrap up: If you are present and engaged you will learn, you will meet people you need to meet, and you will feel overwhelmed! It simply is too large of an opportunity to take in, in 48 hours. It is a great event to gain insight, enhance your knowledge, and grow as an industry professional no matter what your current role is within the industry. It is cool. It is informative. It is a great conference.
About Shawn Walker
Shawn has over 14 years managing company resources on both the AGENCY and CARRIER side of the Independent Agency equation. While attending the University of Utah, he managed one of the largest independent agencies in Salt Lake City. Upon graduating he took a job in Sales Management on the carrier side. He was promoted to a Leadership role where he managed company resources and Territory Sales Managers in the states of Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico (126,000,000 in WP). He returned to CO to team up with Premier Group Insurance. Today, As Vice President of Premier Group Insurance, He works with their only client: PGI Agents, and their only stakeholder: Insurance Carriers, to maximize growth and earnings. He loves speaking with and helping insurance agents (Captive and Independent). He’s met 1000’s of a agents across the country throughout his career. And when he has time, he wants to speak with you. Shawn Michael Walker can be reached at: Shawnw@pgiagents.com
Shawn has over 14 years managing company resources on both the AGENCY and CARRIER side of the Independent Agency equation. While attending the University of Utah, he managed one of the largest independent agencies in Salt Lake City. Upon graduating he took a job in Sales Management on the carrier side. He was promoted to a Leadership role where he managed company resources and Territory Sales Managers in the states of Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico (126,000,000 in WP). He returned to CO to team up with Premier Group Insurance.
Today, As Vice President of Premier Group Insurance, He works with their only client: PGI Agents, and their only stakeholder: Insurance Carriers, to maximize growth and earnings.
He loves speaking with and helping insurance agents (Captive and Independent). He’s met 1000’s of a agents across the country throughout his career. And when he has time, he wants to speak with you.
Shawn Michael Walker can be reached at: Shawnw@pgiagents.com
