Digital transformation is becoming a necessary process for most insurers and brokers. It holds the key to better customer service and experience, improved compliance, and enhanced productivity and value.

However, it’s not always the easiest thing to deliver. Changing the way that you use data and technology throughout all areas of your business has the potential to be highly disruptive and to throw up a diverse range of challenges.

The core challenges of digital transformation and how to overcome them.

Inadequate research

If you know there are problem areas in your business, it’s easy to make quick decisions. We’re failing with compliance/fraud detection/customer experience – we need to make systemic changes. However, unless you take time to critically analyse the root cause(s), it’s easy to make the wrong decisions and implement the wrong solutions for your needs. That said, it can be hard to objectively assess your own business, meaning that identifying the end deliverables, and how to judge success or create ROI models, can be impossible.

That’s where working with a third-party specialist can help. A strategic consultancy can bring the impartial insights you need to ascertain which processes need to be changed, and how changing them can transform your business and the customer experience you deliver.

Poor change management

So, you know what you want to achieve but if you don’t understand the mechanisms of digital transformation, the implementation will never deliver the expected benefits. Do you need to just update your interfaces, modernise or find entirely new solutions? Are your legacy systems sound, or do you need a complete replacement? What are the knock on effects of the changes you are proposing? How will the transformation impact your customer experience?

An experienced digital innovation team can provide the specialist independent advice you need for the best integration experience.

Poor data management

Data loss is one of the biggest mistakes that can be made within digital transformation. It can cost money, customers, and brand reputation. So, data management must be a priority for any firm looking to undergo digital transformation.

Whether you decide to modernise legacy systems or implement something entirely new, you must ensure that your data is not only safe but stored in the right place and format for system updates or migration.

Employee resistance

It’s safe to say that change is rarely popular and it’s tempting to think that even the most entrenched employees will come around to a new way of working. The problem is that if your teams aren’t on board, they can dramatically impact the success of any digital transformation. Being passively obstructive or deliberately difficult can lengthen the entire process for everyone. It can damage customer service and reduce the effectiveness of any change.

Your role, as a manager, is to get the nay-sayers onboard. Ask their opinions – why do they object to the changes, and what would they change instead? Show them the benefits. And reassure them that their position is safe. Otherwise, they will continue to cause unnecessary difficulties. 

Understand the scale of your digital transformation

Digital transformation has the potential to be tremendously expensive, especially if you enter into it without a clear digital/data/automation strategy. You need to fully understand the requirements of any system upgrades, including time, budget, and training before you begin. Without this initial groundwork, you may find yourself short of the necessary resources to enable successful implementation.  And that’s where working with third-party experts can help. Not only providing the professional insights you need to strategise, but the momentum to help you achieve your goals,

Working with a technology solutions provider can be a good way to fully ascertain the projected demands of the project, so you know what will be required before you start.

Digital transformation is a way to breathe new life into a business; to enhance productivity and customer experience while reducing costs and optimising compliance. But it’s not without its challenges. So, it’s always good to go in with your eyes wide open.

If you need support finding and delivering specialist digital transformation solutions for the insurance sector, get in touch today.