Within the first submit on this collection, we checked out a number of the total findings of Accenture’s large-scale survey of insurance coverage CFOs, performed throughout the context of a multi-industry CFO survey.
We discovered that insurance coverage CFOs had been wanting to tackle the challenges of digitalization. One central challenge, nevertheless, is the possession throughout the group of the info wanted for classy analytics and improved decision-making. Insurers have at all times relied on knowledge to evaluate, calculate and switch threat, however now knowledge is turning into a useful resource to create new worth and strengthen processes throughout the present enterprise.
Our analysis signifies that insurance coverage CFOs are taking steps to exert higher management over knowledge throughout the enterprise. Effectively over half (57 %) say that finance ought to take a number one position in figuring out and managing management of probably the most vital knowledge. That’s considerably greater than in different industries and, in contrast with these in different sectors, they’re extra doubtless to consider the finance operate because the rightful proprietor of the group’s knowledge. Greater than eight in ten insurance coverage respondents (82 %) are already beginning to take possession on this means, in contrast with 75 % in banking.
This pattern could also be attributable partially to the normal significance of knowledge in insurance coverage, together with the complexity of accounting throughout the . The finance operate’s oversight of knowledge can ship the standard and specificity wanted for enterprise decision-making wants, in addition to for industry-specific accounting challenges corresponding to deferred acquisition prices.
New challenges come up, nevertheless, as insurers search to develop modern enterprise fashions and compete in opposition to and non-industry rivals. Insurers are combining heritage inside knowledge with new exterior knowledge sources, together with utility programming interfaces, wearable applied sciences, the Web of Issues, and telematics-related “black containers.”
A lot of this knowledge is unstructured, in unfamiliar codecs, or is tough to hint. Finance can oversee that any use of mixed knowledge is carried out successfully and with a concentrate on enterprise outcomes. In reality, a couple of in three (35 %) respondents to “The CFO Reimagined: from driving worth to constructing the digital enterprise” survey stated the finance operate needs to be accountable for growing “greatest practices” for combining totally different knowledge units. This pattern is anticipated to speed up as insurers begin to work with bigger and bigger volumes of exterior knowledge.
Within the subsequent weblog on this collection, we'll take a look at one other problem going through insurance coverage CFOs as they shepherd their group’s transfer towards digitalization: the necessity for brand new expertise.
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Click on right here to obtain the total multi-industry examine on the altering position of the CFO.