Things havent changed much since Leif Ericson first stumbledupon North America a thousand years ago. (You didnt think wed givethe credit to Christopher Columbus, did you?)

Europeans have always looked at America as the land of milk andhoney, and that hasnt changed in the 21st century. There arethousands of successful businesses in Europe, many wondering, CouldI make it in the States? The answer to that is, as always, Itdepends. Do you have a good product? Will people want to buy it? Doyou know how to market it?

The companies weve interviewed here believe they can answer yesto all the above questions. Theyve taken the major step of enteringthe U.S. market, and they know its not like home. The rules aredifferent, the markets bigger, and everything is so, well, spreadout. The risks are great, but the rewards, ah the rewards. AsSinatra put it: If I can make it there, Ill make it anywhere.

These vendors are coming to America with more than a slideshowand some fancy brochuresAmerican insurance carriers can get allthat from vendors already here. But Europe-based technologycompanies do offer some thingsadvantages, they insistthat Americanvendors dont. Some of them come from the differences between thetwo markets, and some from the fact that foreigner, internationalcompanies have to try a little harder and do a little more to crackinto those Yanqui dollars.

We found five things that overseas vendors need to, and oftendo, bring to the North American market:

A serious, long-term commitment in terms of investment, support,and sales.

An expertise in dealing with three areas Americans dont usuallydeal with: multiple currencies, languages, and customs. (Would youknow what not to do with your left hand in Turkey?)

Some of the great technology that Americans have been hearingabout for the last decade, particularly analytical tools andwireless services.

- A broad knowledge of the worldwide insurance industry,particularly from the London market perspective.

The ability to help an American insurer become a globalplayer.

The Europeans arent just coming, theyre already here. And a newone seems to be stepping up to the plate (or, if you prefer,stepping in front of the wicket) every day. One of the latest isData Distilleries (www.datadistilleries.com), aDutch company that opened offices in New York and San Franciscolast October. Its analytical CRM product has been a success inEurope, according to Marcel Holsheimer, president and founder. Thecompany chose to secure some U.S.-based partners as a way ofentering the North American market. Others have chosen to purchasea U.S. firm. Still others have taken what is probably the mostdifficult routthe one selected by Sherwood International (www.sherwood.co.uk): Back in 1996,it came here armed only with its Amarta product and a salespitch.

Of the half dozen companies we spoke with, all believe they havebuilt the better mousetrap for American insurers, but thedifficulty for them lies in getting the word out on their productto this massive market.

That First Step Is a Doozy

Michael LaPorta is global leader of insurance practices forDeloitte Consulting and was involved in Sherwoods move to the U.S.Hes currently working with another European vendor thats close toannouncing its entry into the U.S. market.

American [insurance] companies have to believe there is a levelof commitment from the European companies, LaPorta said. That meansmore than opening a sales office. One sales guy is not sufficient,he said. You need a real team. This market is so much bigger thanEurope. There is more opportunity for them, but you need more thanjust one sales rep in an office.

But what about the renewed American patriotismwhat some mightcall isolationism? LaPorta doesnt believe American insurancecarriers are worried about where its vendors call home. Companiesneed to believe that the vendor is real and that they [wont be] theonly one using the product, he said.

Bill Rich, an independent consultant for Sherwood, has workedwith the company since it entered the U.S. market back in 1996. Hebelieves Sherwoods commitment to its U.S. customers has been thekey to its success. You have to put your money where your mouth is,Rich said.

LaPorta is heartened by the fact that Sherwood has a users groupamong its North American customers, and it has proven to bebeneficial for a technology company without a long history in thismarket. The carriers here in the U.S. are able to share bestpractices on installations and other aspects of the product, heexplained.

By demonstrating that Sherwood was here for the long haul, thecompany was able to alleviate any misgivings carriers might haveabout dealing with a new player. What carrier wants to make acommitment if the vendor is going to shut down in North America andgo back home? Rich asked.

The C Word

Mark Hobart, CIO for the Sirius Group (www.siriusgroup.co.uk), knowsfirsthand how a lack of commitment can hurt. His company found outthe hard way when it attempted to enter the South African marketwith just a sales force. The opportunity was there, but it wasdifficult to establish ourselves with just a sales force, he said.Sirius eventually pulled out of South Africa and made sure not torepeat that business plan when it came to the United States.

Sirius based its U.S. push on successes it had in the Caribbean,Africa, and the Far East. It began to develop its plan for NorthAmerica in the mid-1990s. This time, the company chose to establishitself on a new continent through acquisitions of American vendors,most notably Policy Master. We needed a company with the skills onthe ground in the U.S. to tap into, said Berney Bradley, vicepresident product development for Policy Master. In January, PolicyMaster re-branded itself as Sirius Financial Systems to fall inline with the corporate identity.

Rebus (www.rebusis.com)also believes that support people make the difference for a companyentering a new market. Its U.S. operation employs about 60 people,but Gavin Hunter, chief operating officer for those U.S.operations, said he is the only sales representative in the U.S.Sixty is a nice team to manage, he said. Development is still donein Europe and India, so the North American staff supports NorthAmerican customers. (Of the companies we contacted for this story,Rebus was the only one that is no longer owned by Europeaninvestors. It was purchased by American venture capitalists,including General Atlantic Partners.)

The Innovation Group (TiG, at www.tigplc.com) also makes it clearthat its commitment to the U.S. market is serious. The companyspent close to $500 million in acquisitions as it prepared to enterthe United States, according to Bill Hickey, president of U.S.e-insurance for TiG.

Show Them the Monies

Its been a long time since Americans have had to deal withmultiple currencies (although some would argue it was as late as1865), and except for converting the occasional Canadian dollar,working with anything other that greenbacks is a bit out of theordinary.

But even as Europe finds itself with a common currency, theworld does not. And American carriers looking to expand theirbusinesses across the Atlantic or Pacific will need to becomfortable withand their systems will need to be capable ofdealingwith dinar, euros, forint, kroon, levs, pesos, pounds, schilling,yen, and who knows what else.

Knowledge of multiple currencies and cultural standards make theEuropean vendors stand out for American companies interested inentering the global market. The international insurance market isnot driven by standards the way North America is. Flexibility isking, Hunter said. You have to be light on your feet to meet theneeds of the customers.

Although Rebus is not driven by American companies looking to goglobal, Hunter admits, When people want to go that way we win handsdown. We have a healthy mixture of clients.

European vendors are different than their American counterparts,but Hunter knows that Rebus has to adapt as well. The world doesntoperate the same as London, he said. That was part of the learningprocess when Rebus came to America 15 years ago. We had five veryugly years of learning, the next five years were much better, andthe last five years have been a delight.

Policy Masters Bradley agreed that flexibility is a valued traitin Europe. Its easier to get the software to be flexible than thecustomer, he said.

The flexibility continues as the new parts of the companyevolve. Mergers and acquisitions create a new dynamic for acompany, particularly when a major part of the restructuring isadding a market as large and diverse as North America.

Earning credibility with consultants and customers was the keyfirst step for Sherwood. In 1997, Deloitte recommended SherwoodsAmarta product to Northwestern Mutual Life. The product had beendeployed internationally in eight or 10 countries, according toRich. Its international flavor is one of the factors that enticedNML and other American insurers to European vendors.

Its quite likely that many American insurers dont know theyredealing with a European-based vendor at the initial meetings, butRich doesnt think theres any reason to hide the fact. I dont thinkanyone is trying to Americanize their name, he said. No one comesup with kitschy names for products anymore. If you are going to bea global player, you have to be adaptive to any environment.

Ahead of the Curve

Technology is truly global, butdespite how many Americans mightsee thingsEuropeans have been deploying it well for much longerthan their American counterparts. As Hunter put it, What washappening 10 years ago in Europe is what is happening today inNorth America. While the U.S. may not be a decade behind, it isclear that some issues have already been dealt with over there thatAmerican companies cant quite get a handle on. The most obviousexample is wireless technology, which has always been a stepand ayear or twoahead in Europe than in the States.

Policy Master benefited from Siriuss European technologicalexpertise, according to Hobart; the combination of technical skillsand business analysis has kept the company focused. Hobart said thesupport team was supplemented by additions from the UK, althoughthe development staff remained in England.

Bradley added, Its amazing to me that in the U.S. the systemsare so fragmented. Were not used to the multiple components likeyou have here. Our product is set up to handle everything with apowerful set of technology. When we have gone up against U.S.products in other countries we win on functionality every time.

Data analytics is another area in which European companies feelthey have an edge. For example, there is hardly a shortage of CRMsolutions in this country, but when Data Distilleries made thedecision to join the fray, the company decided to launch the newversion of its product at the same time it entered the Americanmarket, hoping to have its products analytics stand out in its newmarket, Holsheimer said. (The company had achieved some success inEurope working with claims departments; its analytical systemuncovers patterns of fraud, giving high or low probability towhether a claim might be less than kosher.)

The decision to push Data Distilleries analytics came afterHolsheimer visited the U.S. in early 2000 to meet with consultantsand other vendors. They told me there was a huge need for analyticshere, he said. That in mind, in August 2000 Holsheimer was able tosecure investors; one of them was Accenture, which took a stake inthe company and introduced Holsheimer to its clients. DataDistilleries has also hooked up with Siebel. The partnerships havebeen a blessingHolsheimer expects to grow to four or six offices inthe next few years. (The company currently has offices in New Yorkand San Francisco.) This is a huge market here, but we wanted to bevery sure before we moved in, Holsheimer said. We knew we could besuccessful, but partners are crucial for us.

Knowing the Industry

The European insurance market, particularly in London, is like afraternity. Businesses are concentrated in one geographic area inLondon, and that means communicationformal and informalis a dailyoccurrence. Hunter believes that familiarity has bred a strongerknowledge of both software and insurance by those dealing with oneanother.

The London market is localized, Hunter said. There are hundredsof companies located in one area. You sold on your reputation.People simply talked to one another about what worked and whatdidnt. Thats the environment we grew up in. You can only succeed ifyou are good. You were forced to build your software in aprogressive path. People can hide their sins in the U.S.

International insurance knowledge helps TiG build the bestpractices into its technology, according to Hickey. Changes arehappening globally and our customers need to know how we deal withthings such as deregulation, he said. It allows our clients to geta fast start on the way they run their business.

TiG has worked closely with IBM, and that association helped thecompany establish a strategy for U.S. acquisitions. Within sixmonths of entering the U.S. market, TiG made three majoracquisitions: Huon, MTW, and Pyramid.

We are taking the U.S. expertise of these companies plus we arebringing in what we know from Europe, Hickey said. Yes, we have UKheadquarters, but we see ourselves as a global company.

Andy McDonald, vice president of TiGs product management group,said the company isnt concerned about the size of Americaninsurers; its used to dealing with top-tier writers with its claimsmanagement system. We had some initial success with it in the UK,and we are combining it with what we have here in the U.S.

ROOM Solutions (www.roomsolutions.com) has beenin the U.S. market for almost a decade, although at first there wasno intent or structured plan, said Kevin Curtis, head of strategicmarketing. Most of our business came from brokers referring ourproduct to their customers.

ROOM is unique in its understanding of the insurance businessand its project delivery record, he said. Being UK based but activeinternationally provides customers with a breadth of understandingof how, essentially, the same business is conducted differently ininternational markets, Curtis said. In reinsurance and largecommercial risk insurance, geography has little impact, butcultural sensitivity is paramount. (Curtis said that ROOM iscontemplating further expansion into the North American market, butdidnt elaborate.)

Its a Small World

For many of the reasons European software vendors are headed toNorth America, American insurers are looking to make their presencefelt around the globe.

Hunter said the strategy for success in the U.S. was fairlysimple. Its a large, dynamic market with great revenueopportunitiesif we did things right, Hunter said. The company choseto grow organically rather than through acquisitions. It was lessstrategy and more evolution, he said, but coming to Americapresented quite a challenge. We did well in Europe, but you alwayswonder if you can replicate that in the North American market, hesaid.

American companies are no longer satisfied with their own marketand have looked to other nations for opportunities. Europeanvendors such as Sherwood are able to show their expertise inlanguage, culture, and monetary units that many American vendorssimply dont have.

Sherwood has returned the favor to American insurers byinvesting in their new market as well. Armed only with their ownproduct five years ago, Sherwood has since acquired severalAmerican vendors, expanding into the reinsurance andproperty/casualty markets.

The company didnt come to North America with a plan to acquireother vendors, but Rich believes every business plan is subject tochange. By making a financial commitment in this country, he feelsSherwood has earned the respect and trust of customers andpotential customers.

As the global insurance market has become even more of a factorfor U.S. carriers, they will continue to look for expertise fromour European neighbors. Familiarity with technology; foreigncurrency, languages, and customs; and the nuances of the globalmarketplace makes these vendors valuable partners both here andabroad.

Its easy to see why European software developers have such aninterest in the U.S. market. The challenge for both Europeanvendors and U.S. carriers will be to find the right combination oftechnology, commitment, and flexibility to allow both sides toshine, not only on these shores, but over there as well.

Over There

One European vendor we contacted is not quite ready to make thecommitment to come to America. Aspect Software (www.htmect.ie) is based in Dublin andhas a suite of customer process management products forinsurers.

Aspect has been rated as one of Europes top 100 emergingtechnology companies, but company representative Feargal Duffy saidAspect is not quite ready to join the European invasion just yet.There are still enough [insurance] companies here in Europe toallow us to be successful, he said. We cant ignore America forever,though.

Aspect does venture beyond its Irish borders. It has had 40installations in eight countries, according to Duffy. But coming tothe U.S. would involve a major marketing campaign. Its far easierto sell with references than it is to enter the U.S. market,according to Duffy. A lot of companies opened offices [in theStates] and shut down in 12 months without any sales.

Aspect examines its business strategy all the time, Duffy said,and thinks Aspect will enter the U.S. when the markets right.

In This Story

Data Distilleries

www.datadistilleries.com

International headquarters: Amsterdam

U.S. offices: New York, San Francisco

Company information: Data Distilleries offers open analyticalCRM solutions. Its DD Series analyzes cross-selling opportunitiesand offers a claims solution that helps adjusters detect possiblefraud.

The Innovation Group

www.tig.com

International headquarters: Whitetley, Hampshire, England

U.S. office: Danbury, Conn.

Company information: The Innovation Group offers a variety ofinsurance products, ranging from an imaging solution to a claimssystem. Its Innovative Proposition Management Solution offers anintegrated approach to personal lines management.

Policy Master

www.siriusgroup.co.uk

International headquarters: London

U.S. office: Denver, Co.

Company information: Policy Master specializes in agencyautomation systems for the MGA market. Its flagship product,General Agency Automation System, manages all aspects ofadministration and accounting. Through its parent, the SiriusGroup, it also offers Sirius for Underwriters, a back-officeadministration and accounting system for carriers, and Gemininet,an electronic rating engine.

Rebus iS

www.rebusgroup.com

International headquarters: London

U.S. office: Secaucus, N.J.

Company information: Rebus offers solutions for the insuranceand reinsurance sectors as well as for agents. It has alsodeveloped e-business tools for the insurance and financial servicesfields.

ROOM Solutions

www.roomsolutions.com

International headquarters: London

U.S. office: Noneyet.

Company information: ROOM offers Subscribe 2000, a coreadministration system that allows carriers to plan, execute, andmonitor insurance business with a single application. It alsooffers business analytics and risk analysis solutions.

Sherwood International

www.sherwoodinternational.co.uk

International headquarters: London

U.S. Offices: Hartford, Chicago, New York

Company information: Sherwood provides software and solutions tothe global insurance industry. Its best-known product is Amarta, abusiness process implementation environment designed specificallyfor the insurance industry. It also has e-business architecture forcommercial lines, international risk, and professional reinsuranceas well as management and administration systems for carriers.