The fundamental challenge for insurers and their IT departments is keeping up in a world where, according to Matthew Josefowicz, managing director at Novarica, "the only constant is change."

Keeping pace with technological change means spotting trends early, before they merge with the mainstream, says Josefowicz. Companies that can't consistently do so will ultimately find themselves at a competitive disadvantage, whether they're in the property-casualty or the life-annuity side of the insurance business. "Insurers have to stop skating to where the puck is," he explains, using an ice hockey reference, "and instead skate to where they believe the puck is going to be."

Where's the proverbial puck heading for the insurance industry? What key trends in technology, agile development, product development and elsewhere should insurers and their IT departments be watching in order to stay a step ahead strategically and operationally? Those questions were the focus of a panel discussion among Josefowicz and fellow analysts Kimberly Harris-Ferrante, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner, and Mike Fitzgerald, senior analyst at Celent at the ACORD LOMA Insurance Systems Forum. The session is titled, "Certain Strategies for an Uncertain Future."