A musical metaphor is appropriate when it comes to the work ACORD does in developing and implementing standards. In essence, the insurance industry is an orchestra, and ACORD's job is to create harmony amid the cacophony. In that scenario, the conductor for the past 30 years has been Greg Maciag, who keeps faithfully waving his baton in hopes of convincing everyone to stay in tune. I don't envy him his job.
I've always thought of ACORD as a sort of United Nations of the insurance industry, bringing together many disparate elements under one roof, asking everyone to put aside short-term competitive advantages for the long-term good of the business. Their goals are laudable–to lower costs, improve efficiency, boost productivity and ultimately make it easier for clients to do business with carriers, producers and vendors.
ACORD has taken its share of abuse, as everyone, myself included, is impatient for faster progress. Perhaps part of the problem is that people expect ACORD's efforts to have an absolute end-game–that someday standards will be established across the board, and the organization literally won't be needed anymore.
Therefore, anything falling short of that utopian vision is seen as a failure of effort or will, which leads to a cynical view that perhaps ACORD isn't really trying to settle the standards debate once and for all–that the organization is self-perpetuating.
I think it would be more accurate to view the standards campaign as a journey rather than a destination. With the industry and global marketplace forever changing, new standards challenges will arise, and ACORD is the only group positioned to keep the campaign on course.
That was basically the theme of Mr. Maciag's recent address at the opening general session of the recent ACORD LOMA Insurance Systems Forum in Orlando.
Contending it is difficult to be a one-man band in a mashed-up world, he urged attendees to be leaders and advocates in the ongoing insurance standards drive so that we can all make beautiful music together.
In his speech , Mr. Maciag conceded that significant barriersbehavioral, logistical and technological–must yet be overcome to achieve universal implementation. In some instances, we as an industry are still hampered by self-erected silos. We have barriers erected around companies, around products and even among some people, he said.
Such a silo mentality persists at some organizations despite great advances in standardizing forms and communication protocols, he added, because some still see self-interest and a competitive advantage in erecting barriers.
Mr. Maciag urged everyone to future proof their companies by looking at the big picture, in which the long-term value of standards become clear.
In this increasingly interconnected world, he said, the true competitive advantage will go to those who break down silos and barriers and enjoy the cost and time savings inherent in the use of industry-wide standards.
Even though tremendous progress has been made on the standards front, much work remains to be done, according to Mr. Maciag, who indicated that the effort to keep standards current in an evolving industry and global marketplace must be ongoing.
Regardless of what you hear, our world is not seamless, he said. But a seam is just an interface opportunity. Standards dont eliminate these seams, but they enable the parties to interconnect despite them.
A day earlier, in a panel discussion on Getting the Most From ACORD Standards Implementations during the annual ACORD awards ceremony, Tom Neff, director of industry standards at Aon Re, said he realized that offering advice to his fellow award winners is like preaching to the choir.
However, he emphasized to everyone in the all-volunteer army working with ACORD staff that standards are not going to implement themselves. Youve got to remain actively involved, both internally and externally.
His best advice, he said, would be that you cant look at [standards] as an [information technology] project. Its a business process project. You have to get everyone involved, not merely IT.
A second panelist–Gary Plotkin, vice president and chief technology officer at The Hartford–said that because standards change and evolve, you need to be active in the standards debate. We dont always agree [on standards], but we benefit by having our point of view heard and by taking part in the effort to achieve compromise.
Much like the United Nations, ACORD will always be a lightening rod for criticism when progress (on global standards, not world peace) is slow, or as snags inevitably result. It comes with the territory.
But if ACORD wasn't around to facilitate cooperation among bitterly competitive rivals on standards, this industry–still techno-challenged and bogged down by maddening operational inefficiencies–would be a lot worse off.
Bottom line, if ACORD didn't do this job, who would?
What are your thoughts?
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