How Outsourcing Changed the Insurance Industry

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Outsourcing has become a popular means to cut costs while improving productivity. Companies around the world are beginning to create independent silos whose work can be shifted to an outside third party helper with little to no drawbacks.

That being said, outsourcing is simply out of the question for certain types of businesses. For example, a coffee shop can never outsource its waiting staff. Outsourcing is only a variable option for white collar workers but even then, there are exceptions.

In insurance companies, confidentiality is paramount and companies are very sensitive about what kind of data leaves their premises. But with demand rising for faster productivity, many changes have been introduced to insurance workflows in order to open the doors for outsourcing.

1. Faster Sales Process

Outsourcing has significantly changed the sales and underwriting process for most companies. Previously, most companies needed to cross check all the necessary information and regularities in house. This would occupy the time, money and resources from multiple departments. With sales regulation policies only becoming stricter in countries like the US, it is becoming more and more cumbersome to get the ball rolling on a sales proposition.

Therefore, insurance outsourcing has stepped in to speed up the entire sales process from top to bottom. With flexible operating models, third party insurance teams help relax some of the bottleneck that’s holding back most companies. 

This is thanks to the utilization of modern tools and technologies but is also due to the fact that while a third party handles insurance, companies can focus on other things such as handling the legalities of a sale. By simultaneously tackling multiple tasks rather than doing them one by one, the entire sales process has become quicker than ever.

2. Cost Reduction

The expenses involved in Insurance handling has skyrocketed in recent years. The amount of manual work required for underwriting, claims processing and payment means that companies have the foot the bill for costly insurance work. Time consuming administrative tasks have long been the bane of enterprises trying to cut costs, but it has been especially difficult for many of them to target insurance.

Recently, new technologies have been introduced to streamline the insurance processes and automate most of the administrative labor. Problem is that many companies still haven’t integrated them within their internal systems.

Outsourcing, however, is a great alternative. Most BPO’s offer companies the ability to streamline their insurance process by utilizing said technologies thanks to well trained staff ready to provide IT help desk outsourcing. No extra cost is involved in training and licensing since a third-party will already have all the necessary resources to begin working.

3. Improved Security

The number one concern for most people when it comes to outsourcing is security. Entrusting a third party to handle sensitive information, especially those linked to clients, carries immense risk that not many are willing to take. There’s always a chance of leak or data breach to occur that could potentially cause massive damage to a company's reputation.

This has forced many third parties to bolster their security measures. Nowadays, data leaks have been extremely rare and have convinced even the most risk averse to invest in data management services.

In fact, outsourcing might in fact improve security. By shipping data to a third party that a company is not obligated to disclose, client data remains safe in a separate location. It becomes increasingly difficult for targeted cybersecurity attacks to extract sensitive information from a company since that information is not even in the same building anymore.

4. Workload Reduction

Perhaps the biggest change outsourcing has introduced for the better is the volume of work companies are now able to undertake at any given time. Complex workflows have always meant that there is a limit to how many projects a company can handle at any given time.

This is especially true for insurance firms that have one of the more complicated process flows with things like underwriting, legal verification, claims processing and so much more.

Outsourcing has eased many of the throughput challenges faced by insurance companies that struggle to maintain a steady pace with multiple projects at hand. With the aforementioned advantages to cost, speed and security, there is no better time for insurance firms to minimize their workload by outsourcing it off-company.

Conclusion

The increased demand for outsourcing is fueling profound changes within the insurance industry. It is becoming increasingly advantageous to partner with a third party. With numerous BPO companies available to help anyone make that transition, it is easier and cheaper than ever to get started. IdeasUnlimited, with over 10 years of experience and 500 clients, has been a leading partner for companies of all scales by helping them outsource safely and effectively. For more information on contact center outsourcing and how you can get started, be sure to visit our contact page and let us know a bit about your business requirements.

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