Buying a software product from a vendor doesn't necessarily make a partnership between the two firms, but Allianz Life of North America felt it needed more than a software solution when it went shopping for a new illustration system. Hooking up with Coss Development provided that extra relationship that has made the deal work for both sides.
The need to replace the company's old DOS illustration system with a Windows package was “a simple business decision,” according to Ron Berger, chief financial officer for Allianz Marketing, one of the seven business groups that make up Allianz.
The DOS system was easy to use, according to Berger, but Allianz wanted something that would be even easier for its 117,000 independent agents in North America. Allianz believes in field training, but Berger said, “We teach our agents about our products, we don't want to have to teach them how to run an illustration system.”
Berger said Allianz identified outside firms that might provide what it needed, and looked at several options. “One of the first things we asked ourselves is whether we could understand their demos,” he said. “If we couldn't understand them, they were rejected.”
With an independent agent force, many Allianz agents were familiar with different illustration products, so the company asked them for suggestions. “When we asked our agents, they almost invariably mentioned Coss,” he said. Allianz wanted someone who had done this type of thing before and Coss already had 80 insurance clients.
After getting the selection process down to three vendors, Berger said there were some specific aspects of the system that needed to be studied. “We looked at how to load the software,” he said. “We wanted something that was easy to use. We also didn't want something that takes up a lot of space on the hard drive.”
Keeping a happy agent force was important. “We look at how agents run their business,” Berger said. “We want to take some of the cost out of their operation whenever we can.”
Berger said that the IRIS system from Coss was “pretty efficient. It worked well with Windows.” Coss was invited to the Allianz office and the companies discussed a long-term partnership. “We wanted a good cultural fit,” Berger said. “Do they get it from a business perspective?”
The Allianz team traveled to Milwaukee to watch Coss build the system. “We weren't interviewing a developer,” Berger said. “We wanted a partner. Our product is unique in the market place and we wanted that built into the calculation engine.”
Being able to discuss technology and insurance made for a good partnership. “They had people who understood actuaries,” Berger said. “The communication was quite clear.”
Allianz didn't want anything off the shelf. “Our products are like no other, so we needed to do a lot of customization with Coss,” he said. “There were some bumps in the road, but we were all adult about it and worked through the problems. We had to customize everything. We didn't take one thing that was standard.”
It took between five and six months to develop the first illustration tools, but both sides learned the ropes-now new product illustrations can be completed in six weeks.
The best measure of the product's success comes from the users. Berger said that the first thing Allianz heard back from its agents was, “You're finally on Windows.”
Because most agents were already familiar with Windows, training was minimal. “Under one percent of our agents had problems on the first distribution,” Berger said. “Mostly that came from trying to install the software on older PCs.”
The relationship between Allianz and Coss is solid. “I think the real tribute to a good relationship is the ability to solve problems,” he said. “Coss has a partnership conference each year and they look for honest feedback. They get it and they also give it back to us.” The two are working together on an Internet application now that will probably be ready soon, according to Berger.
“The program has worked well so far,” Berger said. “That's what happens when both sides are vigilant. It does feel like they are part of us.”
The Company: Allianz Life of North America
Premium income: $1.8 billion
www.allianzlife.com
The Product: IRIS from Coss Development
www.cossdev.com
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