Channel Selector

Rapid expansion in the Indian insurance market meant a startup carrier had to address serious channel management issues.

By ROBERT REGIS HYLE

Since being formed in 2000, Max New York Life (MNYL) has established a wide distribution network for its life insurance policies in India. A joint venture between Max India and New York Life, the company offers both individual and group life insurance solutions to the growing Indian insurance market, according to Amit Kumar, group CIO for the carrier.

After its startup, MNYL found it was being held back by the existing policy administration system it inherited from New York Life. By 2002, the carrier realized the need for an upgraded system. "We made an extensive study and chose Ingenium from EDS SOLCORP as a policy administration system," says Kumar.

A year later, though, MNYL encountered additional requirements for handling agency compensation functions, which Kumar felt were insufficient with the Ingenium product. "We found the MajescoMastek product Elixir and saw it had a rich functionality," he says.

Kumar points to three reasons for the selection of MajescoMastek as an addition to its policy administration system. "The technology was one reason for going with this product, functionality was the second reason, and the cost of it was third," he says.

MNYL turned to Elixir to address such issues as reducing time to market; configuring new channels such as banks, brokers, corporate agents, and independent financial advisors; managing commission calculations and payments across products, channels, and geographies; configuring, launching, and managing bonuses and other incentive schemes; and reducing operational and channel management costs. One reason the carrier adopted the Elixir product, which Kumar describes as a "satellite system," was because MNYL was young and growing rapidly. "I would rather do the changes on the satellite system, not the core system," he says. "Equally important was [Elixir] was a technology platform that was not a legacy system such as what we had with Ingenium. I didn't want to use COBOL."

MajescoMastek proposed its channel management solution (CMS) component to MNYL from the Elixir insurance suite. The CMS incorporates global channel management best practices, notes Kumar. The system's business rules engine provided MNYL the capability to define business rules for managing compensation across channels and products. MNYL could change business processes or add new functionality by tweaking business rules instead of changing code. In addition, the CMS seamlessly integrated with the Ingenium back-office solution used by MNYL.

"Growing business in new markets is always a challenge, especially one that is as competitive and complex as India's," says Kumar. "The CMS was flexible enough to handle our specific needs. It helpedus get a foothold in the Indian market quicker than we expected."

Kumar was pleased with the installation process. "We pretty much stuck to the plan," he says. "The people who came in were very good. The system was ready to go much earlier than expected. This was a very important solution for our business strategy because we have a captive agency model, and this system has everything set up for that. Our business is growing rapidly with the number of new policies processed."

MNYL also implemented MyMoney, a solution the vendor developed that helped the carrier improve collection management. MNYL was able to reduce reconciliation efforts and manual errors, according to Kumar. "Managing collections can be a bit of a headache for any company," he says. "MyMoney streamlined our collection process, making it more efficient and error-free. It also helped us reduce our wage bill."

Besides developing and providing new solutions, MajescoMastek also has been supplying continuous maintenance and enhancement services for Ingenium for the past three years. "[MajescoMastek] understands what we need, and we're confident of its ability to come up with solutions for our future needs," states Kumar.

The vendor is working with MNYL on creating a distribution portal with features such as lead generation, presales support, contact management, financial need analysis, sales illustrations, and quotations, reports Kumar. The changes will enable MNYL to convert more customers, he believes, which will help the carrier deliver proactive and consultative customer service.

"We have a rich functionality that has helped business grow tremendously," says Kumar. "The system can handle the volume, and I'm glad about that. Technology is no longer an issue with the business. It now has become an enabler."

— Robert Regis Hyle