meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Scouting for Growth

Oliver Wyman Series: Unlocking Value by Leveraging Commoditised Tech

Scouting for Growth

Sabine VdL

Business, Entrepreneurship

51.8K Ratings

🗓️ 1 May 2024

⏱️ 19 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

On this episode of the Scouting For Growth podcast, Sabine VdL introduces the a series of podcasts featuring Steve Abel, Partner at Oliver Wyman, Brian McDermott, Chief Technology Officer at Victor Insurance and Esther Becker, Partner and Captive Actuarial Leader at Oliver Wyman.

The objectives of the following four episodes are to:

  • create an all rounded viewpoint of what is happening in insurance 
  • demonstrate how an insurance managing general agent has grown its business to over 3 billion dollars in Direct Written Premiums (DWP)
  • and how the world of captive insurance is evolving when emerging risks are so present in our day to day lives.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • Legacy system optimization is crucial for insurance companies to not only reduce costs but also to enhance the value of existing investments. By addressing the historical oversights and implementing effective strategies, insurance companies and carriers around the globe can extract comprehensive value from your legacy systems.
  • Insurers out there… You've made substantial investments in your core systems, but it's possible that some decisions that we made were not aligned with the best long-term outcomes of your business or enterprise. Revisit past decisions critically to assess whether they still serve your company's current and future needs. Look for signs as to whether you've been locked into proprietary solutions which may hinder adaptability or interoperability long term. I have talked about those with many insurers and this is certainly an area of concern today.
  • Implement APIs that allow more flexible interaction with your core systems and introduce modular upgrades that can provide new capabilities without a complete system overhaul. These targeted improvements can significantly increase value and extend the lifespan of your core systems, helping you stay competitive in a rapidly evolving insurance market.
  • Finally, I wanted to dive into the world of captives and self-insurance programs offer a strategic approach to managing emergent non-insurable risks. A captive’s ability to navigate complex technological challenges and optimize technology choices is crucial in reinforcing the relevance and efficiency of the captive’s operations.

BEST MOMENTS

‘To unlock the value from your core systems, adopt a three-pronged approach: Simplify. Innovate. Collaborate.’

‘When you invest in technology startups, scaleup and growth ventures… recognizing the common missteps is going to be essential to avoid them.’

‘In leveraging commoditized technology, your goal should be to build more relevant applications. Utilizing established technologies allows you to focus on innovation without reinventing the wheel.’

‘By proactively shaping your approach to these areas of advancement, you're preparing to meet the demands of 2030 and propel the insurance and insurtech sectors forward.’

 

ABOUT THE HOST

Sabine is a corporate strategist turned entrepreneur. She is the CEO and Managing Partner of Alchemy Crew, a venture lab that accelerates the curation, validation, & commercialization of new tech business models. Sabine is renowned within the insurance sector for building some of the most renowned tech startup accelerators around the world working with over 30 corporate insurers & accelerating over 100 startup ventures. Sabine is the co-editor of the bestseller The INSURTECH Book, a top 50 Women in Tech, a FinTech and InsurTech Influencer, an investor & multi-award winner. 

Twitter

LinkedIn

Instagram

Facebook 

TikTok

Email

Website

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

The Welcome to this prelude episode of Scouting for Growth, where I will be introducing our

0:21.7

upcoming podcast series featuring Stephen Abel, partner at Oliver Wyman,

0:27.2

Brian McDermott, Chief Technology Officer at Victor Insurance and Esther Baker, partner and captive actual leader at Oliver Wyman.

0:37.5

The objectives of the following four episodes are to create an all-rounded viewpoint of what is happening in

0:46.2

insurance, demonstrate how an insurance managing general agent has grown its business to over $3 billion in direct written premiums, and how the

0:58.8

world of captive insurance is evolving when emerging risks are so present in our day-to-day lives.

1:07.0

In this four-part series we'll dive into the challenges and solution related to one reducing legacy debt and unlocking value from existing systems to reinventing in short tech and technology development.

1:22.0

Three, diving deep inside a $3 billion sized

1:27.2

in show tech success and four, enabling captives and self-insurance programs to

1:32.4

make better design decisions.

1:35.0

So let's introduce briefly each of the four upcoming sessions.

1:40.1

So we'll start with delving into the world of legacy system and unlocking value from existing systems.

1:47.1

During this first podcast session, T. Will join me to talk about the world of legacy systems. The goal here is to help

1:54.7

incumbent insurers understand the mistakes they potentially make when

1:58.4

investing in core systems. Even though we know that there are some highly respecting brands out there. We must recognize that.

2:06.8

But the world of tech is moving at so fast-paced right now. So one of my first question to Steve will be are they all about able to meet the needs of a digital insurer that needs tech that works efficiently and is delivering at speed yesterday.

2:26.0

Then the next question which come to mind is,

2:29.0

how can incumbent insurers unlock the value from those systems while adapting to new customer demands

2:36.7

and technological advancements. We will then dive into the world of insurance technology.

2:44.0

I will ask Steve, can we actually reinvent

2:48.0

InsioTech and what technological development we need to pay attention to. In the second session we wanted to

2:56.5

address the world of technology for sure, young ventures and also talk about our insurance

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Sabine VdL, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Sabine VdL and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.