This put up is a part of a collection sponsored by AgentSync.
Digital transformation is taking the insurance coverage trade by storm as extra businesses, carriers, and MGA/MGUs replace their guide processes in favor of recent, automated options. In the case of a know-how revamp, who an insurance coverage group companions with issues. The very last thing enterprise leaders need is to spend a major period of time, cash, and assets implementing an answer just for it to fail to supply worth.
The precise tech accomplice will help you and contribute to your success all through each stage of what you are promoting. The improper accomplice will price you greater than they’re value and go away you feeling extra like a transaction than a real accomplice. Overhauling legacy know-how (or changing your present not-so-perfect resolution) can positively influence each facet of what you are promoting, however the course of isn’t a simple one. To discover a accomplice that’ll actually energy your progress, begin by nailing down your RFP course of.
Conducting an insurance coverage compliance vendor RFP
An RFP, or request for proposal, is a technique generally utilized by companies to match distributors earlier than deciding which one to accomplice with. The method entails sending inquiries to a shortlist of potential distributors to get extra element into their resolution and the way it can (or can’t) tackle a corporation’s ache factors. Not all compliance options are the identical, so an efficient RFP will help you identify which vendor is best for you.
Whereas conducting an RFP will be overwhelming, there are some issues you are able to do to set your self up for fulfillment and be sure to’re getting the knowledge it’s good to make the correct resolution.
To make the method as clean as doable and keep away from having to repeat it once more within the close to future, know these 5 widespread obstacles to profitable RFPs and learn how to overcome them:
1. Conducting inadequate market analysis
Typically, firms will start their procurement course of by making a shortlist of distributors to ship an RFP to. This shortlist ought to embody the highest three to 5 distributors most aligned together with your compliance administration wants.
Figuring out who makes the shortlist is the primary very important step to find your long-term compliance accomplice. Companies might go into the RFP course of already realizing one or two distributors they wish to think about, however neglecting to do any additional analysis can restrict your possibilities of discovering the very best accomplice for what you are promoting. The folks in control of selecting who makes the shortlist might have bias towards a specific resolution, however that doesn’t imply they need to neglect taking a look at some other choices.
On the flipside, inviting each potential vendor out there to take part in your RFP is rarely a good suggestion, both. The extra RFPs you ship, the much less time you need to correctly consider every response. It will be an enormous waste of everybody’s time to ship an RFP to each single vendor out there.
Conducting ample market analysis will help you discover the three to 5 distributors which are probably to satisfy your distinctive enterprise wants. Researching which of them you’d like to ask to the method reduces the hassle required downstream and will increase the chances of receiving high quality responses.
2. Asking the improper questions
Uncovering the true worth of an answer isn’t doable if you happen to’re not asking the correct questions. Tech distributors aren’t thoughts readers. Should you’re in search of particular data, it’s good to make certain the questions you ask are detailed sufficient to uncover the knowledge you need.
For instance, with regards to pricing questions, you don’t wish to simply ask how a lot an answer prices. As an alternative, ask concerning the resolution’s complete price of possession. That manner, distributors gained’t be as more likely to pass over any extra charges they cost for issues like information pulls or customized stories and also you gained’t be in for a shock once you obtain your first bill. For extra particular examples of questions you have to be asking in your insurance coverage compliance vendor RFP, take a look at our free trade useful resource: 10 Questions NOT to Ask in Your Insurance coverage Compliance Vendor RFP (And What to Ask As an alternative).
Utilizing the knowledge you’ve gathered from your individual inner discussions and market analysis, divide your RFP into completely different sections, every with its personal subset of questions. Sections may embody:
- Pricing
- Basic enterprise questions
- Product performance
- Safety
- Aggressive information
- Buyer help
In every part, ask a mixture of closed- and open-ended questions to permit distributors to supply a major quantity of element with out overwhelming you with data. Together with just a few easy sure/no questions in every part lets you extra simply rating responses.
3. Asking too many questions
Simply as you don’t wish to spend time evaluating too many distributors, you additionally don’t wish to ask too many questions in your RFP. Keep in mind, the extra questions you ask, the extra responses you’ll have to dig by means of. Whereas it may be tempting to ask as many questions as doable proper off the bat, your RFP needs to be reserved for extra high-value queries.
You’ll all the time have an opportunity to dig into the small print in a while within the vendor choice course of. For instance, the demo stage of an analysis could also be a greater time to ask extra detailed and particular questions on an answer’s options and performance.
4. Relying solely on vendor-supplied data
Whether or not intentional or not, vendor responses comprise a sure stage of bias. It’s straightforward to get caught up in all the guarantees a vendor makes, however how will you know in the event that they’ll really ship on these guarantees when you’ve signed a contract?
You may complement the knowledge you obtain from a vendor with data from third-party sources. This might embody reaching out to folks in your community who’ve expertise working with a vendor, studying evaluations on in style software program evaluate web sites like G2, studying by means of buyer case research, and asking the seller to give you buyer references.
Neglecting to do any exterior analysis and solely counting on what a vendor is telling you about their product and repair may go away you with a skewed notion of the true worth of an answer.
5. You already made your choice and are simply going by means of the method
We talked about earlier that some companies go into an RFP with two to a few distributors in thoughts already, however typically it goes a step additional. Organizations that go into an RFP course of with their thoughts already made up about who they’re going to decide on are doing themselves and the distributors they’re evaluating a disservice.
Not taking the RFP course of critically wastes distributors’ time, cash, and assets, in addition to your individual. After all it’s OK to suppose you realize who you wish to accomplice with, however that doesn’t imply you shouldn’t go into the RFP course of with an open thoughts. You may uncover that the answer you had been certain was the very best match can’t really supply the extent of reporting that you simply’re in search of, or that its producer information is de facto solely correct about half of the time.
Compliance is mission-critical for insurance coverage carriers and businesses
Compliance is a vital a part of any insurance coverage group’s operations and selecting who to accomplice with is a choice that shouldn’t be taken calmly. Whether or not you’re prepared to start out the choice course of for the primary time, otherwise you’re sad together with your present vendor and able to consider potential replacements, conducting an RFP is in your future, so set your self up for fulfillment by avoiding these widespread pitfalls.
For extra particular assist and pattern questions, obtain our information right now.
And if you happen to haven’t already, think about including AgentSync to your record of potential compliance know-how distributors. We equip insurance coverage organizations throughout the nation with seamless, automated options for his or her distinctive compliance wants. Plus, our workforce of specialists is devoted to offering glorious customer support from analysis to implementation and past. To be taught extra, view our demo right now.