Why tech alone doesn't disrupt insurance

"The advantage insurtech startups have is they have more data than the incumbents." - Paraphrased (and subtweeted) Yes, there are some startups with some unique data, like that generated by new kinds of sensors and some of the cyber monitoring. But carriers, especially those with decades of countrywide experience, have a vast sea of data for huge numbers of policyholders. They also have many, many data scientists, actuaries, and analysts to make it usable. Orders of magnitude more data than even large startups. If it's been measurable for a while, they probably already have it. Lack of data is not why insurance innovation is hard. It's not why insurtech has not revolutionized the industry (yet?). Here's what does make improving insurance hard: 🗣 Human factors 🗣 ⚠ Large, complex organizations that slow decision making and hinder communication ⚠ Cautious, conservative corporate cultures (a good thing, until it's not) ⚠ An aging distribution workforce (in the IA channel), deeply knowledgeable people retiring, and difficulty recruiting younger people ⚠ A long history of unsuccessful innovation projects without a Silicon Valley-like tolerance for failure 💰 Economic factors 💰 ⚠ Large, stable, cash generating renewal books (disruption of any sort is usually cash flow negative) ⚠ Fragmented, highly competitive market with high cost of acquisition (paired with higher loss ratios for newer business), so protecting the renewal book is paramount ⚠ Increasing costs of reinsurance related to global economic conditions and climate change are among the most pressing problems, not well addressed by most innovation ⚠ Easier, more certain levers to pull vs innovation, especially in the difficult insurance markets of the last few years (rate increases, coverage reduction, nonrenewal, etc.) ⚠ Social inflation and litigation financing driving higher claims outcomes; also difficult to address with tech innovation Insurance people, what did I miss? #Insurance #Insurtech #InsuranceInnovation

"Insurance doesn’t have a Technology problem; it has a technology ecosystem problem." Michael Witte, CEO of EqualParts, shared this sentiment today with me. I haven't been able to shake it. We're awash in insurtech solutions: AI for underwriting blockchain for claims IoT for risk assessment and on and on. Yet, the industry often feels like it's running on isolated islands, not a cohesive, powerful continent. We're not lacking innovation. We're lacking integration. Think about it: * Data silos prevent a 360-degree customer view. * Legacy systems resist modern APIs, hindering seamless workflows. * Point solutions fail to communicate, leading to duplicated effort and missed opportunities. The real challenge isn't building more tech. It's building the bridges that connect the tech we already have. What if: * Underwriting AI could instantly access real-time IoT data? * Claims processing could be automatically triggered by blockchain-verified events? * Customer portals could seamlessly integrate with personalized risk management tools? This isn't just about efficiency. It's about unlocking the true potential of insurance to provide proactive, personalized, and truly transformative value. Let's shift our focus from individual tech solutions to building a robust, interconnected ecosystem. Let's talk about APIs, data standards, and strategic partnerships. What are your thoughts? How can we move from fragmented tech to a truly integrated insurance ecosystem? InsurTech ATX + Husch Blackwell

A mid-sized carrier spent millions on tech modernization and still failed. Here’s why. They had the tech. They had the budget. What they didn’t have? Leadership alignment. No cultural shift. No accountability. No real change. The truth is, most insurance transformations don’t fail because of the software, they fail because the C-suite treats modernization like an IT project instead of what it truly is: a leadership reckoning. McKinsey says fewer than 30% of digital transformations succeed. In insurance? The failure rate’s even higher. Modernization is not a software rollout. It’s a leadership reckoning. If your C-suite isn’t unified, your culture isn’t change-ready, and no one owns outcomes… no amount of code will save you. 👉 Before your next big initiative, ask: are we ready to lead, or just ready to buy? #leadershipdevelopment #digitaltransformation #InsuranceInnovation #changemanagement