The U.S. again has garnered worldwide acclaim for successin the 2012 London Olympic games. While there were somequestions early on about Lady Liberty's ability to outperform theChinese, there was no doubt in the end as to the prowess of ournation's Olympic athletes.

From the 2012 “Dream Team” defeating Spain and Michael Phelpsrecord breaking medal count, to dominance in the sand and amazingfeats on the bars, the diversity of success should be a model forthe world. It should also be a model for our claimsorganizations, where putting on an Olympic performance should be adaily occurrence.

Consider the myriad of triathlons faced in these organizationson a daily basis.

• People, processes, procedures.
• Coverage, liability, damages.
• Hiring, promotion, retention.
• Training, development, research.
• Contacts, inspections, resolution.
• Communication, Customer satisfaction, policyholderretention.
• Investigation, evaluation, settlement.

Now consider the tri-athletes who must effectively execute eachand every day. While these adjusters, managers and executivesmay not have the finesse Gabby Douglas or the wow factor of MistyMay Treanor, they must have the ability to fundamentally block andtackle in every aspect of the claims process.

But there is also an important lesson that we should learn fromour Olympic stars; they didn't do it alone. The Dream Team,while extremely talented, leveraged the genius of Coach K and awhole slew of support staff and sponsors. It is these behindthe scenes, often transparent, business relationships that helptake sports heroes from ordinary to extraordinary. The sameholds true for your claims organization, where leveragingpartnerships can create a competitive advantage.

Consider the claims organization that develops a state of theart auto physical damage repair process. While there are manysuch relationships, the success is derived from the relationshipbetween the carrier and network.

So too would this hold true for things like forensics experts,defense counsel or technology companies. As is stated in theRe-Adjusted: 20Essential Rules To Take Your Claims Organization From Ordinary ToExtraordinary, success is derived from people, processes andtechnology. It is this triathalon of the business world thatallows claims organizations, or any organization for that matter,to begin to exceed the wildest expectations of customers,shareholders and employees.

Consider the example of a run of the mill bodily injuryclaim. In many organizations, the adjuster reviews the claim,settles the property damage, reviews the attorney demand andattempts to settle the claim without the need for litigation. But,was there an effort worthy of the Olympics in doing so?

During my tenure overseeing process and quality for a largemultinational insurer, such claims were common place. Whatwasn't commonplace was consistency, such as what we saw during theOlympics.

It was rare that comparative negligence was assessed, despitejuries' nationwide assessing shared fault nearly half thetime. Medical bills were often considered at face value, eventhough it was evident that treatment and charges appeared to beexcessive. Attorney demands became a starting point foradjusters to negotiate against themselves. Across the board,opportunities accounting for millions of dollars wereidentified.

Yet, our organization wasn't alone. This is a commonoccurrence in many claims organizations faced with multiplecompeting challenges. With a tough economy, people are doingmore with less. The workload of today is greater than at anypoint in recent history. Hence the need to leverage technologyto assist the adjusters in achieving accurate outcomes, whilelimiting leakage.

There is no question that conducting the “right” investigationtakes longer than just doing a basic investigation. But, it isimperative that this basic blocking and tackling occur. Thinkof the Dream Team leading by just one point going into the finalquarter against Spain. Would a marginal performance have sufficed? The team focused on fundamentally executing the basis tobring home the gold. This is no different than ourorganizations where the basics need to be continually taught andreinforced.

Olympic athletes train for years to shave a mere tenth of asecond off of a 50 meter freestyle. That tenth of asecond is the difference between being a medal winner and goinghome empty handed. It is this level of detail that should bepaid to training claims organizations on achieving the goldstandard in investigation, evaluation, negotiation andsettlement. After all, like swimming, gymnastics orfencing, adjusting claims is an art.

Adjusters should also have the tools to assist them in makingthe proper decisions, such as the price of a quarter panel, thecost of a surgical procedure, bundling of medical codes or theduties breached by a claimant. It is this combination of toolsand skills that sets apart the extraordinary from the ordinary,giving some insurance carriers the ability to bring home thegold. But, unlike the Olympics, there is a chance for everyoneto bring home the gold with the right people, processes andtechnology in place.