Related Items
  FREE Insurancenetworking.com Site Registration!
Sign up today and access the leading source of Insurance I.T. information on the Web.

Your FREE site registration entitles you to

FREE Insurance Networking eNewsletters

Search more than 7 years worth of archived data

White Papers and Industry Research that provide valuable insights on a variety of technologies and implementation issues

Access our Web Seminar series

   

Product Watch

Three-Part Sales Series for Health Execs

July 18, 2008

Atlanta — A three-part Webinar series designed to help health insurance executives plan for improving operations with a sales automation solution in 2009 is being conducted by Connecture Inc., an Atlanta provider of Web-based sales, service and process automation solutions to the health insurance industry.

Titled “A 2009 Planning Guide for Health Insurers on Sales Process Automation,” the series will include insight from industry analysts, as well as Connecture industry experts, that is designed to provide health plan executives guidelines in planning, preparing and implementing an automation solution that streamlines new business and renewal processing.

The series kicks off July 23, at 1:00 p.m. EST with “Streamline Individual & Group Business with Sales Automation,” followed by “Best Practices in Insurance Software Vendor Selection,” presented by Matthew Josefowicz, director of insurance at New York-based Novarica in August; and, “Tangible Business Benefits for Sales Automation: Build Your Business Case” in September. Registration and more detail about the first Webinar can be found on the Connecture Web site at www.connecture.com/webinars.

“We are looking forward to presenting this series to executives with the intent that it helps them prepare a business case that identifies measurable areas for improvement resulting from the implementation of an automation solution,” stated Bob Barry, SVP of product and market strategy at Connecture. “We know from experience there are many efficiencies to be gained throughout the sales process with an automation solution, and we will be providing health plans the information that will help them convince internal peers that moving from manual processes to automation will improve service, member retention and profitability in a significant, measurable way.”

Source: Connecture Inc.

Allegient Launches Legal Expense, Performance Management Upgrade

July 18, 2008

Wilton, Conn. – Allegient Systems, a Wilton, Conn.-based provider of software and services that focus on legal expense and performance management, announced availability of Version 5.7 of its Expense and Performance Management Suite software system, an ASP-delivered, litigation management and bill review solution.

Version 5.7 enhancements include a new Appeals Module, as well as a variety of additional functionality and performance capabilities. This latest version is deployed on a new hardware platform, offering additional performance and scalability as well as expanded storage capacity, the company says.

By soliciting ongoing input and feedback from its users, Allegient says it is able to continuously improve its products and services for carrier clients and their partners. Feedback on the appeal process from Allegient clients and law firm users was instrumental in the changes to the Appeals Module; further enhancing the already collaborative online appeal process.

With Version 5.7, Allegiant claims users are now able to review the appeal in context of the invoice, save draft work and more easily communicate with the law firm regarding the overall appeal, various areas of concern or specific line item discrepancies. Expanded navigation provides the user the ability to review case/matter, invoice, item, vendor details  and maintain their place in the process while responding to an appeal.

In addition to the Appeals Module, other 5.7 enhancements include:
•    Improved audit reports by adding navigation for multi-page invoices
•    Updates to further support the recently revised UTBMS Litigation Code Set
•    Added functionality for Independent Adjuster bill review

Source: Allegient Systems

Adjuster’s Manual Trip Plans Now Can be Automated

July 14, 2008

Pittsford, N.Y. — Scene Genesis Inc., a Pittsford, N.Y., provider of Web-based workflow and connectivity solutions that automate business processes, has launched RouteDirector, software designed to enable carriers to optimize their adjuster’s route planning via "best time" appointment scheduling.

Using pinpoint geo-coded addresses, RouteDirector is designed to automate driver scheduling, route planning and appointment calendaring. It replaces manual planning with a streamlined visual process. During appointment setting, RouteDirector lets carrier representatives offer callers a choice of "best times" based on other scheduled appointments in the system.

The software takes advantage of Microsoft MapPoint's full-color aerial maps, which can be viewed on each representative's desktop. This makes it easy for underwriters to see the exact address where every driver is traveling during the day. RouteDirector adjusts the master schedule in real time as appointments are registered.

Targeted scheduling reduces the number of missed appointments and late arrivals, and helps to save gas by creating a mileage-efficient schedule. The optimized engine performs a nightly schedule refinement. With one click, the system can adjust driving times and work schedules to maximize routes.

Key benefits for insurers include better adherence to schedules, higher customer satisfaction, more stops per day, a streamlined route-planning process, the ability to set start and end locations for drivers and customizable time windows to offer callers. Drivers can be easily removed for a sick or vacation days, and the system will perform an automatic reallocation of their appointments.

RouteDirector, which can be installed as an add-on to existing systems, is fully integrated with Scene Genesis's SceneAccess software.

Source: Marketwire

iPipeline Raises $18 Million In Series A Financing

July 14, 2008

Exton, Pa. — iPipeline, a provider of on-demand sales distribution software and services to the insurance and financial services markets, reports completion of its $18 million Series A financing, led by NewSpring Capital of Radnor, Pa., and Fidelity Ventures of Boston. iPipeline's management team also participated in this financial venture.

The company plans to use this funding to expand its sales and marketing effort with both carriers and distributors, to develop additional point-of-sale capabilities for agents and to make select tuck-in acquisitions to extend the depth of the offering.

Mike DiPiano, managing partner at NewSpring comments, "iPipeline is well positioned in the insurance technology market to take advantage of the continued shift away from selling insurance through captive to independent agents. As a result, with the significant increase in these independent agents now selling policies, there's a greater need for straight-through processing across a complex value chain."

Roger Hurwitz, partner at Fidelity Ventures, says, “iPipeline provides a compelling value proposition to all market constituents with its content-form repository and technology delivered in an on-demand environment. With iPipeline's distribution reach, we believe the company is well positioned to meet the needs of an underserved insurance industry. We look forward to assisting them with their next phase of growth."

The company, which recorded 400% growth over the past five years, has attracted more than 100 carriers and 700 distributors on its hosted platform.

Source: PRNewswire

AgencyPort Upgrades Portal and Connectivity

July 7, 2008

Boston — AgencyPort Insurance Services, a provider of Web-based solutions designed specifically for property/casualty insurers, has enhanced versions of its two products: AgencyPortal v.3.7 and AgencyConnect v.3.0.

The new features are designed improve the quality, performance and usability of the real-time solutions that Boston-based AgencyPort provides for carriers and their agents.

New AgencyPortal 3.7 features include: AP QuickQuote. This 3.7 feature is designed to make it simple for agents to generate online quotes quickly—whether uploading policy data from an agency management system or keying it in at a carrier’s site. AP QuickQuote leverages all of AgencyPortal’s features, including a simple, easy-to-use Web experience and rules technology to provide a full-featured AP QuickQuote application. Used with AgencyConnect, it provides the best “straight-to-quote” upload experience in the industry. Other AP QuickQuote characteristics include the ability to save and copy quotes, run underwriting rules, provide quote letters and other documentation, interface with company and third-party data sources and allow underwriters a view of submissions.

AgencyPortal 3.7 comes with a new, built-in transaction validation engine and data correction capability. With this technology, carriers can give agents a more streamlined new business-bridging experience. AgencyPortal can examine inbound uploaded policies to validate the data and identify where data issues are in real time. Data correction routines, which are all expressed within the carrier-configurable AgencyPort Product Definition, can then be run to correct invalid or missing data values. For example, this helps correct mismatched policy values by rounding up (or down) to find the best match or substitute missing values.

With 3.7, agents can now create user preferences that can be applied to new work items and uploaded policies. Users can save away values from a work item and use them later as defaults when pre-filling data. These defaults also can be used during a policy upload when data correction has not addressed all of the data issues.

New AgencyConnect 3.0 features also include data correction. Leveraging the same technology applied in AgencyPortal 3.7, carriers using AgencyConnect 3.0 have the ability to validate incoming policy information—identifying where data issues are in real time. Additionally, carriers can configure data correction routines to make corrections to invalid or missing policy information.

Interview—a Web-based application—presents agents with a succinct overview of data gaps and guides them through the issues to make selections quickly and efficiently.

“These, and other product enhancements, are the result of extensive and ongoing research,” says Eric Harnden, CTO at AgencyPort. “Agent/Company workflow and efficiency are at the core of every technology decision we make at AgencyPort. We continually ask agents and underwriters what they need; we come back to them with ideas; and together we test drive the products over and over until we get it right. In the end, it means we bring to market solutions that work in the real world.”
 
Source: AgencyPort

Archive

Vendor Spotlights