Learning Paths Less Traveled

Over time, we've seen the industry move toward specialized claim positions. No longer a Bartholomew Cubbins with 500 proverbial hats, today's adjuster is focused on a single line of business: property, liability, commercial property, commercial liability, or uninsured and underinsured motorist claims. Specializing positions makes processes more efficient. In turn, this improves customer service by allowing a professional to obtain quicker responses for policyholders and claimants. It helps claim employees spend more time focusing on their specific areas, as well. Thus, they can become more proficient and knowledgeable in their roles.

For obvious reasons, this approach doesn't lend itself to standardizing materials for all claim employees. So the key is to not only make training and educational resources readily available, but to also ensure that they are relevant and meaningful to each employee.

A Wise Investment

The idea of specialized training may sound time-intensive, overwhelming, or perhaps even impossible. But investing in a dynamic infrastructure now can create a big payout in the long-term. By developing a comprehensive curriculum with specialized location-specific training, a company can meet each group's specific needs with consistent messages. This can help relieve undue stress on managers while easing new hires into the culture of that particular office.

Employees in specific lines of business should have access to focused, relevant training and developmental resources. This will enable them to fulfill their roles within the organization, thereby helping companies meet business goals. Nurturing employees' unique skill sets and knowledge through specialized training — as well as ensuring that they have the right tools to succeed in their jobs and grow their careers within an organization — will increase the likelihood that they'll stick around. This can minimize the cost and time involved with hiring and training new staff.

At Erie Insurance, a close working partnership between claim subject matter experts (SMEs) and our corporate learning staff was crucial in developing an effective and comprehensive claim curriculum. Once the company identified core fields of focus — adjusting, small claims, and material damage — it posed the question, "What does an employee need to be successful in this area?" The claim SMEs provided valuable input on this topic. Erie then built the curriculum around the answers.

The result is what the company refers to as learning paths, which are recommended sequences of topics, materials, activities, and assignments. They are organized by week and intended for individuals in a specific line of business. Each path is designed to be completed over a designated time period that varies by function.

While the majority of activities and resources included in the learning paths already existed, they were previously accessible on an ad-hoc basis. The SMEs reviewed materials to confirm they were relevant and effective for inclusion in the learning paths. The team developed and introduced some new job-specific resources as well. The learning paths comprise classroom modules; online courses; online support; on-the-job observations; hardcopy materials and pictorials; phased-in claim experience; and online discussions and surveys.

Other resources set the stage for success, including job aids, such as quick reference guides, and a glossary of key terms, which could include everything from absolute liability to vicarious liability and adjudication to wage authorization. Also available are links to helpful industry Web sites, such as car rental companies, legal dictionaries, state departments of insurance, the phone numbers of insurance companies, accident reconstruction resources, and skid-speed calculators. Erie provides contact information for various internal claim experts. These dedicated individuals can assist by answering questions about claim letter composition, dictation, insurance law, writing denials, and more.

Emphasizing Education

An employee who is new to either the organization or to a particular claim division is assigned a peer mentor with whom to journey down the entire learning path. The mentor works in tandem with the individual to complete the training. Together, they track weekly progress on the intranet-based learning path site, reporting those results to the employee's supervisor.

The learning paths also benefit more seasoned employees. Instead of traveling down the entire path, an experienced claim adjuster may gain access to resources by topic based on new information, updated best practices, or personal interest. An employee also can look at an individualized career development plan to answer the question, "Where should I step onto the path?"

To better match up existing employees with resources along the learning paths, Erie pilot-tested and then administered a skill assessment to all claim supervisors and employees. Six Web-based assessments were established: workers' compensation, material damage, subrogation, inside claims, property, and liability. Claim SMEs in conjunction with the company's corporate learning staff developed them in order to identify gaps in knowledge and processes.

The aggregate results revealed some key opportunities for education. On an individual basis, supervisors worked with each claim handler to identify topics for improvement. The branch-specific results also revealed gaps and opportunities by geographic location. Managers were able to guide them toward specific areas of focus along the learning paths.

Pairing employees with specialized training was intended to maximize job performance, but doing so also revealed a need for additional education in areas lacking resources. This prompted the claim and corporate learning teams to beef up the learning paths. The teams added training about the estimating software used by material damage adjusters, and they developed an online soft-tissue evaluation program to help claim handlers effectively analyze, evaluate, and settle low-velocity impact claims. In addition, the teams made training available for several soft skills, such as negotiation techniques; providing service while under stress; and communicating effectively with various personalities and behavior styles.

Learning Path Detours

Along with the encouraging results of specialized training came some challenges. During the same period of time that the learning paths were being implemented, plenty of other activities were occurring at Erie. For instance, the claim staff was transitioning to a common annual review date, and a talent management program was introduced. The company had to be sensitive to the parallel nature of the many changes. Time constraints could pose another challenge, as new employees participated in the learning paths while working in their new positions. However, the benefit of real-life experience helps drive home the lessons included in the learning paths.

The hurdles will keep coming for the corporate learning staff and SMEs. As time goes by, they will need to maintain up-to-date information and resources; archive those that have become obsolete; and continue marketing the learning paths to various audiences. These substantial measures are worth the payoff, though. The investments pay huge dividends in terms of employee job satisfaction, quality of work product, and an engaged workforce.

Erie's specialized claim curriculum is designed to provide a training infrastructure as both the industry and the company continue to grow and change. The resources are dynamic and can be adjusted as necessary; they can be used to address additional competencies; or they can be updated to include new resources. In fact, participants are invited to contribute resources they feel may help others in the same position. Since the curriculum's inception, more than 1,650 users or groups have walked the learning paths. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.

Matthew Myers is senior vice president and division officer of claims at Erie Insurance. He may be reached at matthew.myers@erieinsurance.com.