Insurance tech advancements are making everyday processes faster and more efficient, and customers are demanding more digital interactions than ever before. Despite the benefits and increasing customer demand for insurance tech, your team may be hesitant to adopt new technology.
This hesitancy is understandable. Change is difficult, and introducing a new process or system to an individual’s workflow can be frustrating. But, the benefits of integrating insurance tech into your agency far outweigh the challenges of overcoming change.
Here are a few ways we’ve seen agencies work to be more receptive to new technology and system updates.
1. Preempt new tech with training
The best way to help your team adapt to new tech is to provide ample training. When agencies transition to our Partner Platform agency management system suite, we start with a Project Plan outlining what’s to come over the next few weeks of transition. That plan always begins with training. We provide staff-wide training, followed by targeted sessions for individual employees or groups before and after the system goes live.
Beyond initial training, you should also have ongoing support via easy to locate and understand documentation and from an internal or external mentor. In our Partner Platform agencies, we aim to have a point-person in the agency who can answer questions. However, we know there will be issues that only we, the tech partner, can answer and are always available with hands-on support. Plus, we provide online guides and videos agencies can access 24/7 to get a refresher on certain aspects of the system.
2. Be transparent and empathetic
One of the worst things you can do is spring new technology on your team without explanation or warning. Instead, get your team involved in the process. Have staff members evaluate potential new systems and tools and ask for their feedback. Once you have new tech to introduce, talk about how to integrate it into each team member’s workflows. Getting buy-in from your staff in these ways makes a big difference.
Along with transparency, demonstrate empathy for your team. Acknowledge the transition process and its challenges. Assure them it’s okay if things slow down while they’re learning. Encourage them to see change as an opportunity rather than a challenge, inspiring a growth mindset that will make them more open to new things in the future.
3. Trickle in and check in
There are dozens of tech advances in the market, but your agency should only adopt one at a time. Prioritize what’s most valuable or easiest to adapt to, depending on what works best for your agency. If it’s your first new tech in a while, it may be better to start with a tool that’s a minor interruption before moving to something as significant as a new agency management system.
As you introduce new systems and tools, continually check-in with your team. Get their opinion about how the tech is working and identify any issues. Keep in mind that some of your staff may adjust faster than others, and you need to scaffold support to ensure everyone feels comfortable with all your insurance tech.
4. Adapt your hiring
When it comes time to hire someone new, consider their familiarity and comfort with technology. This doesn’t mean you need to hire only people who are a tech wiz, but it’s helpful to build up your roster of individuals who have a high comfort level with technology. Beyond tech comfort, you can also screen for adaptability and a willingness to try new things. Flexibility is a valuable asset in any area.Check Out Some of Our Latest Tech Integrations
See more on Partner Platform’s tech integrations on our Partner Allies page. Some recent additions include:- Commercial Lines Raters
- Semsee
- Digital Payment Software
- ePay Policy
- Online Reputation Management
- Blue Jay Reviews
- VOIP
- Lightspeed Voice
- Esignature
- RSign
- FormStack
- Digital Forms/Supplemental Apps
- AppEase
We Make Tech Transitions Easy at Partner Platform
At Partner Platform, we spend a lot of our time investing in training for all our Partner Platform agencies. We know that investment in helping all agency members fully grasp how to navigate our management system suite is critical – and we designed the suite to be intuitive for just that reason. Hear from our agencies on their training experiences here. And, get in touch today to find out how we can help your team get equipped with our user-friendly, customizable management system experience. Contact us at [email protected] or 800.747.7005, Option 6, to find out more.
Luke Purnell joined SIS in 2012 and has held roles in business development, sales, account management and implementation.
As SIS’ Director of Implementation and Account Management, Luke provides agencies with a point of contact during their transition to the Partner Platform. In addition to client outreach, Luke plays a key role in software demos, providing up to date content for training support and ensures continuous improvement throughout the client transition experience.