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Allstate Life & Retirement Continuous Improvement

Allstate Life & Retirement Continuous Improvement. Producer survey findings. July 2014. Context and methodology.

malissa-economos
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Allstate Life & Retirement Continuous Improvement

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  1. Allstate Life & Retirement Continuous Improvement • Producer survey findings • July 2014

  2. Context and methodology • As part of the Continuous Improvement (CI) effort focused on delivering end-to-end improvements to the New Business and Underwriting (NB/UW) process, Allstate Life and Retirement conducted a survey to capture producer perspectives on pain points and opportunities with the NB/UW process • Key objectives for the producer survey • Understand what parts of the process of selling life insurance between application submission and policy delivery that producers see as critical to ease of doing business • Identify opportunities for ALR to enable producers to more effectively and efficiently provide for the life insurance needs of their clients • 317 producers completed the survey (~26% response rate) and responses will be used to identify and inform high-impact process improvements • Survey results include 309 Financial specialists, 6 agency owners, and 2 Life licensed LSP • Survey distributed to all 1,200 Financial specialists and select EAs from 3 targeted groups (Council for Life Leaders, National Advisory Board, & Producer Advisory Network) • Insights from the survey will be used to inform the CI transformation and design of the target state solution

  3. Key findings • Primary opportunities for improvement voiced by producers include: • Initial rate classification and quote not matching final Underwriting (UW) decision • Cited by ~30% of respondents as an opportunity for improvement, with nearly half reporting final quote as greater than initial quote 25%+ of the time • Turnaround time from policy submission to delivery • Reported by ~51% as reason for lost business; seen by 34% of producers as not being competitive • Quality of service provided by Allstate vendors • ExamOne: professionalism of tele-interviewers and turnaround time for requested information cited as key opportunities for improvement • EMSI: turnaround time for requested information and back-and-forth with producers for more information reported as areas to improve • High volume and uncoordinated nature of when/how requests for amendments are made • High volume of requests (62%) and lack of effective batching of requests to agents (55%) reported as contributing to negative producer experiences • Lack of communication and education around Underwriting decisions with field • 54% of producers cite insufficient information currently being provided on UW decision as being important • Producers report very positive experiences with many of the tools available, especially with AOL, Eclipse, and AccessAllstate website • Positive experiences reported with Eclipse (86%), AOL (84%), and AccessAllstate website (81%) • For tools like UW quote email folder and Quick quote, most producers report not having experience with the tools, but those that do use cite positive experiences with them

  4. Next steps: Producer feedback from survey & interviews being incorporated into redesign of NB / UW process For any additional questions about ALR CI Voice of Producer work, please contact Tara Stille at Tara.Stille@allstate.com

  5. Appendix

  6. Several improvement opportunities identified to better support producers in providing for client life insurance needs Field underwriting & presales Application submission Lab/APS collection Policy processing & UW decision Policy issue & delivery Slow turnaround time for policy application Actual turnaround time below producer expectation, cause of lost business 1 • Initial rate classification and quote may not always match • Lack of fast access to UW when needed • Available tools not robust enough • Lack of up-to-date UW guidelines • Design and functionality of AOL interface • Lack of offline access to AOL • Non-intuitive design for AOL platform • Hassle with making changes to Part I & II • Quality of ExamOne service • Tele-interviewers not professional • Long APS turnaround time • Additional back-and-forth to collect more info from clients • ExamOne &EMSI do not document all info needed High volume of amendments Requests for additional info not batched to minimize visits to client Insufficient explanation of UW decisions to enable agents to explain to clients High volume of amendments Requests for additional info not batched to minimize visits to client 2 3 4 5 6 7 Communication with home office Lack of clarity around where to direct questions, poor experiences with offshore help desk

  7. UW guidelines reported as a factor causing producers' to be less competitive, turnaround time ranked third Turnaround time 1 Competitiveness on policies with face amounts <$2M or annual premiums <$5K Does Allstate Life and Retirement currently set you up to be competitive with producers from other insurance companies in servicing standard life insurance needs of your customers on the following dimensions? UW guidelines 4% Avg # of req. per std. application Turnaround time from policy application to delivery 4% Product features 5% Customer service -7% Electonic app -4% -3% % of respondents Significantly worse than competitors Slightly better than competitors Slightly worse than competitors Significantly better than competitors Clear process opportunity to increase competitiveness & producer experience by decreasing turnaround time for applications Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317. Survey responses may not add to 100% - "Neutral" and "Don't know /not applicable" categories not shown. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey.

  8. ~51% of producers cite turnaround time as reason for lost business Turnaround time 1 ~55% of producers cite turnaround time as being slower than expected... ...with ~51% citing turnaround time as reason for lost business In your experience, how rapidly does Allstate issue a policy to customers (from time of application submission to final delivery) compared to your expectations? Have you ever lost business to a competitor because Allstate Life and Retirement took too long or was too unpredictable in the length of time it took to deliver the policy? % of respondents % of respondents 0.9% 3.5% Significantly faster than expected Don’t know Slightly faster than expected No Adequate Yes Slightly slower than expected Significantly slower than expected Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey.

  9. ~30% of respondents see rate classification and quote matching UW decision as opportunity for improvement Field underwriting 2 Percentage of time initial quote greater than final Experience with determining a rate classification and quote What percentage of the time is the final quote… How would you describe your experience with determining a rate classification and obtaining a quote?  "Biggest challenge for me is dealing with rate classification and quote differences between initial and final underwriting quote" Initial rate classification & quote matching UW decision % of respondents 100.0 15.1% -10.4% 80.0 -11.4% Availability of robust tools for rate classification  60.0 -4.7% 40.0 -5.7% Ease of use of available tools  20.0 -2.8% 3.5% 0.0 Same as intial quote Greater than initial quote Less than initial quote Very negative Somewhat negative Somewhat positive Very positive <5% 26-50% >75% 6-25% 51-75% Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317. Survey responses may not add to 100% - "Neutral" and "Don't know /not applicable" categories not shown. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey. Producer interviews, May-June 2014.

  10. Producers report positive experiences with field UW tools & share opportunities to improve tools Field underwriting 2 Most producers indicate positive experience with Eclipse, UW quote, and quick quote Producers' comments for improving Eclipse How would you describe your experience with using the following tools to prepare, submit, and track a typical life insurance policy? Build table ratings into Eclipse "Allow a feature from Eclipse to give an idea on the possible table rating that might occur." -2% Eclipse 1% 0% Make Eclipse more robust "The rate class estimator is not robust enough and often quotes one class above where most of my customers are issued." -3% UW quote email folder -2% Potential missed opportunity: Those that use these 2 tools like them, but most don't use Ability to use Eclipse on other devices -4% " We need to be able to use Eclipse on mobile devices iPad , iPhone, etc." Quick quote -2% % of respondents Very negative Very positive Somewhat negative Do not currently use / not applicable Somewhat positive Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317. Survey responses may not add to 100% - "Neutral" category not shown. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey.

  11. Producers share several ways ALR home office can help them to deliver more accurate quotes Field underwriting 2 Areas for improvement with delivery of accurate quotes Producer comments • Inconvenience of finding and accessing Underwriters for specific applications • Tools and training for rate classification not robust enough • Frequent changes to Underwriting guidelines and limited consistency in their interpretation • Lack of up-to-date UW guidelines "Faster phone access to a live underwriter. 5-10 minute return of an email. -When I'm with a client, I should be able to get an underwriting quote on the fly - faster than current." "Direct communication via phone or email with an underwriter to help determine correct class base on the information the client is providing" "More robust quoting tools to give a better snapshot of where the customer has the best shot of qualifying." "Train on how we are underwriting the policies as a company." "Have all the underwriters and service reps all follow the same guidelines. It seems that certain underwriters are more strict than others." "More information in the underwriting guide concerning table ratings for various issues and general information regarding reasons for ratings and most common conditions causing those ratings." "Publish accurate guidelines and don't change them every 6 months." Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey.

  12. Producers see AOL as differentiator and see clear opportunities to make it even better AOL and application submission 3 ~53% of respondents cite AOL as better than competitors Producer comments on opportunities to improve AOL ~84% of respondents cite positive experience with AOL AOL: Does ALR set you up to be competitive with producers from other insurance companies in servicing standard life insurance needs of your customers with the electronic app? AOL: How would you describe your experience with using the following tools to prepare, submit, and track a typical life insurance policy? Offline access to AOL "Make AOL available offline. Sometimes while in clients home, either they don't have wireless, or I cannot tether to my phone because of weak cellular signal." % of respondents % of respondents Make AOL user interface more intuitive 60.0 100.0 "App on Line is still not a user friendly tool. With experience, it has been easier, but not intuitive." 80.0 40.0 "Challenges result from routing and account number are backwards on the entry screen; Account number should be first, Routing number should be second. Would make data entry more intuitive." 29.0% 60.0 51.1% 20.0 40.0 Enable greater ease of changing Part I & II 23.3% 20.0 • "If you start part II, you have to restart if you need to make a change to part I" 33.1% 0.0 -4.1% -2.8% 0.0 -3.5% Enable client information cloning -2.8% • "If I am doing a term and UL, should be able to just change policy type, not have to re-input all the relevant information." -20.0 -20.0 Significantly better than competitors Very positive Slightly better than competitors Somewhat positive Improve e-signature user interface Slightly worse than competitors Somewhat negative • "Feedback from clients is that it is confusing to complete e-signatures; The initial screen presents 2 options (1) download pages, (2) view and e-sign. Needs to be more obvious that clients should automatically click on "View and e-sign" option." Significantly worse than competitors Very negative Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317. Survey responses may not add to 100% - "Neutral" and "Don't know /not applicable" categories not shown. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey. Producer interviews, May-June 2014.

  13. ExamOne: Professionalism of tele-interviewers, parameds, & back-and-forth for requirements are areas for improvement Vendor experience 4 Producer comments on ExamOne service Experience working with ExamOne vendor How would you describe your experience working with ExamOne to collect labs on the policyholder on the following dimensions?  "I have had clients complain of the professionalism of examinersand I have had examiners show up w/o the needed equipment to perform the exam. One didn't have a scale." Professionalism of interviewer for tele-interview Freq. of back & forth with applicant for more info • "We need to find someone more professional than [ExamOne] in AZ; I do part II; otherwise it is 30-40 minute antagonistic phone call; when these people go into my clients homes, they reek of body odor or alcohol." Customer service & policy applicant satisfaction Competency & reputation Turnaround time for requested info -5% Professionalism of paramed -5% "I have had numerous issues with ExamOne. I find them unprofessional and [they] put my business at risk because of this. They changed/canceled set appointments on my clients, stood one up on one occasion, and one nurse had the audacity to show up at a clients house sick and got my client sick." Paramed preparedness for appointment Established & trusted relationships % of respondents "Parameds leaving without completing the required items and having to return a second time." Very negative Somewhat negative Somewhat positive Very positive Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317. Survey responses may not add to 100% - "Neutral" and "Don't know /not applicable" categories not shown. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey. Producer interviews, May-June 2014.

  14. EMSI: APS turnaround time & frequency of back-and-forth for requirements seen as improvement opportunities Vendor experience 4 Producer comments about EMSI Experience working with EMSI vendor How would you describe your experience working with EMSI to collect the Attending Physician Statement of the policy applicant? " APS requests definitely slow down the process and it seems like they are being ordered more frequently now than before." Turnaround time for requested info Freq. of back & forth with applicant for more info "Medical records are not secured in a timely manner." Customer service & policy applicant satisfaction "APS vendors make calls and that is all. Never go above and beyond to solve delays. I get involved and usually get issues solved in 1 call what takes them months." Vendor competency & reputation "EMSI needs better follow up on APS's." Established & trusted relationships with vendor • " We typically use Wilshire Porter Medic (an alternate vendor), which seems to get the APS more directly; EMSI not as fast with turnaround" % of respondents Very negative Somewhat negative Somewhat positive Very positive Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317. Survey responses may not add to 100% - "Neutral" and "Don't know /not applicable" categories not shown. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey. Producer interviews, May-June 2014.

  15. >50% of producers view high volume and lack of batching of requirements as challenges with policy processing Policy processing and delivery 5 Pre-UW decision experience with policy processing Producer comments regarding volume and batching of additional information Thinking about when a life insurance policy is under review before an Underwriting decision is made, how much do you agree with each of the following statements? "We have so many duplicate requests, late requests, and lost requirements it is maddening! The worst process I've experienced in 17 years in the industry!" 65.6% 58.7% % of respondents " Additional forms and signatures are posted on an individual basis requiring us to contact insured many times after application. Makes us look unprofessional." 43.5% 39.7% 36.9% " Going back for additional information is never a positive experience for the client. They become skeptical and a reason to shop around or change their minds in purchasing in the first place.." Too many add’l signatures/info requested by home office Requests for info not grouped to minimize client visits Responses to concern not received in timely manner Little transparency on status of life ins. applications Responses to concerns/issues not accurate   "Ask for ALL of the requirements at once such as amendment, eft form to be signed, illustrations, etc." I have never had to revisit a client more than once in my career prior to Allstate. It is a more often than not scenario here." Strongly agree Somewhat agree Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317 Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey.

  16. Producers report positive experience with AccessAllstate & suggest some ways to make it even better Policy processing and delivery 5 ~53% of respondents cite positive experiences with AccessAllstate (AA) Agent comments on suggested improvements to AccessAllstate • "AA system is not user friendly. There are too many abbreviations and it doesn't make sense. Not easy to figuring out what the abbreviations are. Critical information is often buried in notes (e.g., drop dates) and the follow up service piece needs to be rebuilt." AccessAllstate: How would you describe your experience with using the following tools to prepare, submit, and track a typical life insurance policy? Make AA design more intuitive Potential missed opportunity: Positive experiences cited, but most don't use % of respondents "It would help if AccessAllstate would be current. Most of the time there is a lag time of a couple of days before AccessAllstate is updated" Make AccessAllstate more current 100.0 1.3% 80.0 "AA doesn't list the full name of the underwriter. Put a link under the name, perhaps a direct link with a hyperlink to email address." 60.0 Access to Underwriter info through AA 40.0 20.0 "I tend to use email a lot; AA allows us to respond to questions that UW has, but offers limited space on what we can type in. This causes agents to need to abbreviate, which can be confusing." Expand response fields in AA 0.0 -3.5% -5.0% -20.0 AccessAllstate site AccessAllstate mobile Do not currently use / not applicable Make AA email alerts more specific • " I get a lot of No Reply email notifications from AccessAllstate stating, "Alert: Pending policy needing action" in the subject. Currently, I get these alerts and they are useless for me until I go search for who the email was for. Would be helpful if subject included customer name and what alert was for. " Very positive Somewhat positive Somewhat negative Very negative Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N= 317. Survey responses may not add to 100% - "Neutral" and "Don't know /not applicable" categories not shown. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey. Producer interviews, May-June 2014.

  17. Post UW-decision, volume & batching of amendments cited as concerns, producers also want more info on UW decision Policy processing and delivery 6 Post-UW decision experience with policy processing, issue, and delivery Thinking about when an underwriting decision is made and the policy is issued and delivered, how much do you agree with each of the following statements? "When something comes back different than applied, the reasons for change are not always clear enough;. Would like more explanation of how they arrived at this decision" Opportunity for ALR to provide additional support: Agents express need for more info on UW decision to explain to clients 61.8% 54.6% 53.6% 51.4% % of respondents Strongly agree Somewhat agree Too many add’l signatures/info requested by home office Requests for additional info not grouped effectively  Not enough info provided on Underwriting decision  Changes to rating / quote were unexpected  Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317. Survey responses may not add to 100% - "Somewhat disagree," "Strongly disagree," "Neutral," "Don't know /not applicable" categories not shown. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey. Producer interviews, May-June 2014.

  18. ~25% of producers want more clarity on where to direct questions & cite inconsistency in responses as concern Communication 7 Experience with communicating with Allstate Life and Retirement home office Agent comments on communication with ALR How would you describe your experience communicating with Allstate Life and Retirement home office?  For the "Other" category, if you do not have any additional aspects of communicating with home office that you would like to provide feedback on, please select the "Don't know / not applicable" option.   Lack of clarity on who to contact 1 " It was very difficult to figure out who to call for what." Clarity of where to direct questions/concerns  -8.5% " Always speaking to different people." -9.8% Number of touch points with home office " Too many people handling one item causes confusion." -4.4% Lack of consistency of answers creates further confusion -9.1% 2 Frequency of communications  -4.1% " Many times the answer is different, unclear or they do not know. You can call back and get a different answer." No. of methods of communicating with home office (e.g.,  -4.4% -3.5% " Never talk to same person and often get different answers to same question." Very negative Somewhat negative Somewhat positive Very positive Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317. Survey responses omay not add to 100% - "Neutral" and "Don't know /not applicable" categories not shown. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey. Producer interviews, May-June 2014.

  19. Many agents also report communicating and working with offshore help desk as needing review and improvement Communication 7 "The foreign help desk is aggravating." " Overseas awful...always ask [to be transferred] back on mainland" Foreign help desk seen as source of frustration " Off shore communication is very poor." " I have no trust in the quality of information given by offshore representatives. They have given me wrong information at times and if they don't know the answer to a question they hang up." " The Philippines call center people are very positive and nice and speak perfect English but can not go off script. They can only answer the simplest of questions. " Offshore staff considered uninformed and unprofessional "The Philippines office is very courteous and can handle easy questions but when it gets a little complicated I don't have confidence and I ask to be switched to a mainland office" " I have to verify and correct changes too often. I am sent to overseas customer service too often. They are extremely undependable and not knowledgeable about our processes and guidelines. I always have to ask them to send me to on-shore support." Agents express strong preference for onshore support, especially for more complex inquiries Note: Reflects data as of June 11, 2014, N=317. Source: 2014 Continuous Improvement in Life New Business and Underwriting: Producer Survey.

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