Tech Decisions March 2010
Cover Story
The (Business) Intelligence Community for Insurance
Karlyn Carnahan recalls that when she was a senior executive at an insurance carrier 10 years ago, "business intelligence" meant getting a box of reports.
Features
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BPM Making Sweet Music for Insurers
If BPM was born to make life simpler for the business side, SOA probably was born to make BPM simpler for IT departments. They are like instruments in an orchestra: Separately they are pleasing; together they are divine.
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Making Data Shovel Ready for Predictive Analytics Projects
Blindly digging through data is how the insurance industry used to operate. Today, with predictive models and analytics, carriers have something to guide their efforts to make the best decisions possible.
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The BI and Analytics Treadmill
Although a continuous "work in progress," these decision-enabling solutions do provide rock-solid basics.
Columns Editor's Note
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Some Flakey Ideas on Predictive Modeling
If Moscow's mayor had gotten his way, he'd probably put a kink in the profits of some predictive modeling companies. Why predict the climate when you can control it?
Columns Trends & Tech
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When Ease of Access and Security Collide
I had an interesting encounter this past week. I was called into a client meeting to discuss final details on implementing an extranet.
Columns Shop Talk
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Software Projects Are Like Skating on Thin Ice
The October 2009 edition of "Shop Talk: A Nightmare Before Halloween" took a somewhat cavalier look back at a project my company was involved in that went very wrong.
Columns Stats Watch
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Insurance CIOs in the Pressure Cooker
It should come as no surprise insurers on both the life/health and property/casualty sides of the aisle believe growing the business is the top business issue for 2010.
Departments Industry Intelligence
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Policyholders Are Leading the Way to Direct Channel
There once was a time when independent agents felt insurance carriers were looking at ways to squeeze agents out of the distribution process through the use of the Internet.
Departments Business Solutions
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Agency Portal a Place to Turn for Insurer
Harford Mutual Insurance is the exception to many regional carriers in that the company has built most of its own systems.
Departments Top Tech
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Longevity Adds Value at ACUITY
Neal Ruffalo is a prime example that one does not need to bounce from company to company to experience new challenges within IT.
