The idea of sharing a company's technology initiatives between information technology (IT) and business executives was a key point the group examined.

"The role of IT has changed," said Vittorio Severino, senior vice president and chief information officer of Hartford-based Hartford Life. IT departments at one time were innovators for insurance carriers, he noted, but the job increasingly has taken on the image of cost-saver.

Yom Senegor, senior vice president, CIO and chief strategy officer for Safeco, based in Seattle, said it is important for the CIO to "sit at the table" with other top executives. To acquire the full benefits of what technology can do, however, it is helpful to have a CEO who understands the technology. "Technology is not that magical," he noted. "It's hard work."

Glen Headley, vice president and CIO at Dallas-based Republic, asserted that CIOs need to change the perception of what information technology is. "You are a business leader first and a technology leader second," he said. "Carriers no longer can have an IT strategy. They have to have a business strategy with IT falling within those business plans. You can no longer have ?them vs. us.' You have to have ?we.'"

Mr. Severino agreed, noting that Hartford Life doesn't have an IT strategy. "We have a business strategy with an IT component," he explained.

Mr. Senegor stressed that business and IT partners have to choose the right projects. "A lot of good ideas turn bad because of the amount of money that is spent," he said. "[IT] can build a great solution, but if the business side doesn't get the value from it, it isn't really a great solution."

The insurance industry has changed drastically over the last decade, Mr. Headley noted. "Ten years ago I was the promoter of change. Today, I'm more the moderator of change," he stated. Insurers were once willing to tackle projects that might take 18 to 24 months to implement, but those days are gone. "The business climate changes too much for long-term projects," said Mr. Headley.

Mr. Severino asserted that a project must reach the break-even point within 18 months, but Mr. Headley said that 12 months is as far out as most insurers want to look.

Robert Regis Hyle is associate editor of Tech Decisions.