Читать книгу Analytics for Insurance - Tony Boobier - Страница 9

The starting point of this journey is over 350 years ago, in 1666, when Sir Christopher Wren allowed in his plans for rebuilding London for an ‘Insurance Office’ to safeguard the interests of the leading men of the city whose lives had been ruined by the destruction of homes, businesses and livelihoods. Some might even argue that a form of insurance existed much earlier, in China, Babylon or Rome. Before the end of the 17th century several insurance societies were already operating to provide cover in respect of damage to property and marine, and the insurance of ‘life’ emerged in the early 18th century. It might be argued that mutuals and co-operatives existed much earlier, but that debate can be put aside for the moment.

The principles of insurance are founded on case law with the foundations of insurable interest, utmost good faith and indemnity being enshrined in the early 18th century, and remain substantially unchanged. Even some of the largest global insurance companies themselves have their feet in the past albeit with some name changes. Royal Sun Alliance can trace their history to 1710 and Axa to about 1720. Those walking the streets of London will be familiar with names and places on which are founded the heritage of the insurance industry as it is known today.

It is against that background of tradition that the insurance industry now finds itself in a period of transition, perhaps transformation, maybe even radicalization. Traditional approaches for sale and distribution of insurance products are being cast aside in favor of direct and less expensive channels. The industry is on the cusp of automated claims processes with minimal or perhaps no human intervention. Fraudsters have always existed in the insurance space, but are now more prevalent and behaving with a degree of professionalism seldom seen before. Insurers are increasingly able to develop products suited to an audience of one, not of many. Quite simply, the old rules of engagement are being reinvented.

Coupled with this is the challenge of different levels of analytical maturity by market sector, by company, by location, even by department. Figure 1.1 starts to give some indication of the way the insurance industry is structured.

But this is not just a book about an industry, or an insurance company, or department. It is as much a book about how individuals within the profession itself need to become transformed.

Figure 1.1 The insurance industry

Traditional skills will increasingly be replaced by new technologically driven solutions. New job descriptions will emerge. Old campaigners who cannot learn the new tools of the industry may find it difficult to cope. Professional institutes will increasingly need to reflect this new working environment in their training and examinations. The insurance industry as a whole also comprises multiple relationships (Figure 1.2), some of which are complex in nature.

Figure 1.2 Relationships between parties

Even within single insurance organizations there are many functions and departments. Some operate as relative silos with little or no interference from their internal peers. Others such as Head Office functions like HR sit across the entirety of the business (Figure 1.3). All of these functions have the propensity for change, and at the heart of all these changes rests the topic of Big Data and Analytics.

Figure 1.3 Insurance functions