INTRO
I just took over as IT director at an established 4 person Independent Brokerage. We've already made a lot of changes and have many more exciting changes in the pipeline.
My goals for 2013 are as follows:
1. Consolidate Technology.
2. Cut down on unnecessary technology costs.
3. Implement Modern Solutions.
4. Simplify and optimize workflow.
CURRENT SETUP + WHAT WE'VE DONE ALREADY
1. Replaced all Windows machines with new iMacs running 10.8.2 Mountain Lion.
2. Implementation of hosted exchange for email, contacts & calendars - the top of the line solution for business collaboration.
3. Implementation of a hosted, virtual environment, accesable from any device via RDC (Remote Desktop Connection) or Jump (iOS). The Virtual Environment runs on Windows Server 2012.
-Internet Explorer allows us to access carrier websites that haven't been updated to latest web standards (Hartford, Safeco, Traveler's etc.).
-Eclipse (Agency Management) has been migrated to the Virtual Environment.
4. Banished the fax machines and setup eFax through our exchange domain.
5. Implemented one-click, wireless scanning from ScanSnaps (1 per workstation) to each iMac.
6. Setup Box as our Hosted File Sharing System.
7. Launched new website
2013 QUARTER 1 TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STEPS
1. Replace Eclipse (Agency Management) with a cloud-based, modern, insurance-specific agency management system. As many of you know, the task isn't easy.
2. Replace Box with SkyDrive Pro (yet to be released)
-Box is great except sync between the Mac and PC (Virtual Environment) technically isn't supported. Dropbox for Teams was a consideration and is a great product, however, as per goal 1 for 2013 (consolidation), SkyDrive Pro is a better fit as it will be a simple upgrade to our existing Exchange accounts and will also be cheaper than Dropbox for Teams.
AGENCY MANAGEMENT
Requirements:
1. Cloud-based
2. Significant investment dollars going into maintenance and development of products/services.
3. Clean, modern interface.
4. Modern backbone (no Citrix server hosting the product)
5. Commission tracking
6. Accord integration
7. All-lines support
8. Good customer service
I've looked at the following agency management solutions:
•AMS 360
•Agencybloc
•Agency Matrix
•Quomation
•Aspire
•Applied
•SugarCRM
•Salesforce
Agencybloc seems the most modern, with a lot of investment dollars, a clean interface, great accessibility etc. The problem is that it doesn't support Accord Certificates of Insurance or some other features. They advertise themselves as a Life/Health agency management but when you speak with a rep, they will say that's just because of high entry barriers in the P&C market. At any rate, after almost joining, I've taken a step back and began weighing other options.
-----------------
CONCLUSION + YOUR FEEDBACK ENCOURAGED!
I would love input/questions. This is exciting to me and I feel like there is so much to do that can help this agency. This is applicable to most insurance agencies, at least from the research I've done. Many have been around for decades and have older managing partners that have lost touch with technology the last 5-10 years.
Looking forward to hearing from all of you!
-Marin
I just took over as IT director at an established 4 person Independent Brokerage. We've already made a lot of changes and have many more exciting changes in the pipeline.
My goals for 2013 are as follows:
1. Consolidate Technology.
2. Cut down on unnecessary technology costs.
3. Implement Modern Solutions.
4. Simplify and optimize workflow.
CURRENT SETUP + WHAT WE'VE DONE ALREADY
1. Replaced all Windows machines with new iMacs running 10.8.2 Mountain Lion.
2. Implementation of hosted exchange for email, contacts & calendars - the top of the line solution for business collaboration.
3. Implementation of a hosted, virtual environment, accesable from any device via RDC (Remote Desktop Connection) or Jump (iOS). The Virtual Environment runs on Windows Server 2012.
-Internet Explorer allows us to access carrier websites that haven't been updated to latest web standards (Hartford, Safeco, Traveler's etc.).
-Eclipse (Agency Management) has been migrated to the Virtual Environment.
4. Banished the fax machines and setup eFax through our exchange domain.
5. Implemented one-click, wireless scanning from ScanSnaps (1 per workstation) to each iMac.
6. Setup Box as our Hosted File Sharing System.
7. Launched new website
2013 QUARTER 1 TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE STEPS
1. Replace Eclipse (Agency Management) with a cloud-based, modern, insurance-specific agency management system. As many of you know, the task isn't easy.
2. Replace Box with SkyDrive Pro (yet to be released)
-Box is great except sync between the Mac and PC (Virtual Environment) technically isn't supported. Dropbox for Teams was a consideration and is a great product, however, as per goal 1 for 2013 (consolidation), SkyDrive Pro is a better fit as it will be a simple upgrade to our existing Exchange accounts and will also be cheaper than Dropbox for Teams.
AGENCY MANAGEMENT
Requirements:
1. Cloud-based
2. Significant investment dollars going into maintenance and development of products/services.
3. Clean, modern interface.
4. Modern backbone (no Citrix server hosting the product)
5. Commission tracking
6. Accord integration
7. All-lines support
8. Good customer service
I've looked at the following agency management solutions:
•AMS 360
•Agencybloc
•Agency Matrix
•Quomation
•Aspire
•Applied
•SugarCRM
•Salesforce
Agencybloc seems the most modern, with a lot of investment dollars, a clean interface, great accessibility etc. The problem is that it doesn't support Accord Certificates of Insurance or some other features. They advertise themselves as a Life/Health agency management but when you speak with a rep, they will say that's just because of high entry barriers in the P&C market. At any rate, after almost joining, I've taken a step back and began weighing other options.
-----------------
CONCLUSION + YOUR FEEDBACK ENCOURAGED!
I would love input/questions. This is exciting to me and I feel like there is so much to do that can help this agency. This is applicable to most insurance agencies, at least from the research I've done. Many have been around for decades and have older managing partners that have lost touch with technology the last 5-10 years.
Looking forward to hearing from all of you!
-Marin