(Church of Our Lady, Guelph, Ontario. Photo credit: Alethe.)
The Co-operators Group, a Guelph, Ontario-based multi-line insurer, has selected Guidewire (Foster City, Calif.) Data and Digital products to enhance customer experience and service. Guidewire PartnerConnect Consulting member EY has been selected to team with The Co-operators and Guidewire on the implementation project. The Co-operators has been a Guidewire InsuranceSuite client since 2008.
Carol Poulsen, EVP, CIO, The Co-operators.
Guidewire reports that The Co-operators selected Guidewire Quote and Buy Portal for Policyholders and Account Management Portal for Policyholders to enrich the online experience of its members. The insurer also selected Guidewire Live apps, Claim Canvas and Hail Forensics, to understand the impacts of past weather events, gauge the impact of current events and help triage major catastrophes as they occur. The Co-operators plans to extend its current customer portal with transactional capabilities from Quote and Buy Portal and Account Management Portal for its Property and Casualty lines of business in each province where it conducts business. The company plans a phased implementation approach, likely starting with claims functionality, followed by account management, then billing and payment, according to Guidewire.
Seamless, Omnichannel Experience
“One of our key strategic pillars is to offer a seamless, omnichannel experience to our customers,” said Carol Poulsen, executive VP and CIO, The Co-operators. “Guidewire Digital Portals was the obvious choice for us to accomplish this. We will be able to offer more online services much more quickly than other options, with a partner we already know and trust, who listens to its customers about what enhancements, improvements and continued evolution is required in its products.”
The vendor describes the benefits of Guidewire Digital Portals and Live apps to The Co-operators as follows:
- Provide its customers with more choice in servicing options;
- Increase customer engagement and satisfaction;
- Lower the cost of high-volume/low-value service transactions such as bill payments and vehicle substitutions;
- Allow advisors and service centers to focus on higher value services to their customers; and
- Be more effective in dealing with major claim events.
Paul Mlodzik, VP of marketing and communications, The Co-operators.
“We are excited to continue our strong partnership with Guidewire through our selection and implementation of their Digital Portal and Live products to help us better serve our customers,” comments Paul Mlodzik, VP of marketing and communications, The Co-operators. “We are looking forward to all of the benefits we will receive from the breadth of functionality, increased speed to market, commitment to quality, rapid release cycles, and ability to leverage our previous InsuranceSuite investment.”
“The EY team is excited to work with The Co-operators and Guidewire on this next phase of their transformation journey,” comments Neil Pengelly, Partner, EY. “We look forward to successful Digital Portal and Live implementations.”
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