Eoin Kirwan, VP Product Management, FINEOS
While I was touring a customer’s claims department recently, I had a nagging sensation that something was missing. Then it struck me. Clutter. There was no clutter.
In claims departments we have become used to workspace partitions festooned with checklists, reminders, look-up tables and more. Pictures of the kids buried behind compliance checklists, coverage thresholds or the current tax bands. Desktops busy with paper documents, bundles of claim files and a 1980s-era desk calculator.
In this office, all was zen. Claim handlers used no more than their computer screens and their headsets. Desktops were clear of debris, partitions bare or reserved for personal effects (a lot of sports fans). The electronic claims file (FINEOS Claims, need you ask?) contained all the information that they needed to manage the claim and react to new developments. Where related information or documents were stored in other systems, it linked to that data – a few clicks away. No paper. The workflow engine ensured that each claim was being right-tracked. Calculations and validations were being performed automatically (complexity hidden as described by James recently).
They say simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
Simplifying the claims handlers’ environment in this way allows them to devote more time to influencing claim outcomes. In the case of this particular customer I was visiting, this means individualised care and proactive intervention to return each claimant to work or health as soon as possible. And that is what it is all about.
