Robert Oakes, president and CEO, InsPro Technologies

In some cases insurers do view their vendors as partners, but unfortunately this is not always the case–and almost every insurer and vendor has felt that pain at some point. From our perspective, we believe it is critical to the success of the project that vendor and insurer view the other as a trusted partner. However, that is a trust that must be earned and continually nurtured.

Open, honest, and close relationships between insurer and vendor must be established at all levels within the organizations. Senior management of both companies need to stress the importance of a close partnership, while establishing relationship standards to ensure that the partnership lasts–through the project's duration and well beyond. There will always be stress, challenges, and differences during a project; however, strong partnerships built on trust will persevere where weaker relationships would turn adversarial.