The Katie School of Insurance at Illinois State University recently conducted a study of insurance carriers, TPAs, and risk managers to determine the impact of technology and automation on workers' compensation claim practices. The two-year study consisted of interviewing executives, performing a pilot study, and finally conducting a national survey.

The goals of the research were to identify the pain points in the claim process, assess the value of technology in addressing these pain points, benefits derived from technology, and to determine the barriers and obstacles organizations face in trying to implement claim technologies. The following excerpts from this study address the issues of:

• Identification of key "points of pain."
• How to improve information management.
• How to more effectively handle claims across venues.
• How to deal with the "technology paradox."

Key Problems and Concerns

The survey began by asking respondents to rank thirty different claims issues on a scale of zero to 10. Ten signified that a problem was critical; five indicated the problem was significant. Exhibit 1 shows a chart listing the 30 claim issues participants were asked to consider.