Remember the old saying, "children should be seen and not heard at the dinner table"? The insurance industry has expanded that concept, because they often act as if customers should be seen but not heard, period. To invite feedback and establish more trust with consumers, perhaps it's time for carriers to launch social media sites.

That was the theme at this morning's opening general session here in Las Vegas at the ACORD LOMA Insurance Systems Forum. The keynote speaker was Barry Libert, chairman of Mzinga, a consulting firm based in Burlington, Mass., which, according to its Web site, "provides on-demand solutions that leverage the power of workplace and customer communities for growth and innovation." (Click here for more information about his firm.)

I frankly rolled my eyes a bit when I heard the topic of the speech was "Going From Me To We." I figured I was in for some new-age nonsense about how we all need to join hands and sing Kumbaya. Even the name of the firm–Mzinga, which means beehive in Swahili–seemed a bit over the top.