Grand-App

Chief Executive Officer

American Family Insurance

Enterprise Small Commercial Vice President

Homesite Insurance

Leading the commercial transformation, the aim was to drive change encompassing business strategy, technology, and organizational culture. Faced with managing multiple teams, systems, and 34 products, achieving profitable growth was challenging. We adopted the "OnePlatform, OneTeam, OneProductSuite" strategy to streamline operations. I spearheaded the creation of a groundbreaking small business offering, integrating AI and big data for improved product design and efficient policy and claims handling. Our focus was to align teams across the American Family Group, optimizing our differentiation strategies. This resulted in over $18 million in savings, a lowered loss ratio, faster growth, and a new direct distribution channel. This transformation positioned the American Family Group as an industry front-runner, ready to innovate and adapt for ongoing success.

VP, Small Commercial General Manager

Homesite Homeowners insurer carrier has earned a strong reputation for delivering exceptional service, consistently ranking among the top companies in claims handling and customer care nationwide. However, we were determined to push even further and become the best in claims handling.

Efficient and prompt claims handling is crucial to minimize processing expenses, reduce "leakage," and ensure customer satisfaction. Unfortunately, our legacy claims administration platform was no longer capable of meeting these demands. We identified several key objectives that needed to be achieved: reducing claims cycle time, minimizing allocated and unallocated loss adjustment expenses, creating a flexible platform to adapt to business needs and market conditions, and serving a continuously evolving customer base.

Recognizing the need to upgrade our claims technology, we launched a project to develop a technology strategy that would enable best-in-class claims processing. As the leader of the team, I oversaw a range of services including business capabilities analysis, application architecture and strategy, integration architecture and strategy, buy vs. build analysis, package and solution evaluation, time and cost analysis, implementation strategy, roadmap development, high-level requirements, training, user acceptance testing/model office, and contract negotiation.

We delved deep into understanding Homesite's goals and objectives for optimizing and differentiating our claims process, as well as assessing our existing systems environment and enterprise architecture. Through collaboration with business staff and senior management, we established and prioritized goals and objectives. We analyzed both strategic challenges and operational pain points, identifying the root causes of problems and linking them to limitations in our current claims platform and architecture. This process allowed us to define new business and architecture requirements that would drive our transformation.

Director, Platform Solutions

I spearheaded the launch and integration of the Homesite product suite with several major national partners onto the Homesite platform. This integration involved implementing a private label solution that adhered to strict brand guidelines throughout the policy lifecycle, encompassing the web experience, call center branding, and print mail documents.

The integration was designed to provide a seamless and consistent experience across multiple lines of business, specifically auto and home insurance, across various organizations. A prime example of this successful integration is the Progressive Bundler, where customers can bundle their auto and home insurance policies seamlessly through a single platform.

By collaborating closely with our partners and ensuring a smooth integration process, we were able to deliver a unified and cohesive experience for customers. This integration not only showcased our ability to meet the unique needs of each partner but also demonstrated our commitment to providing a streamlined and efficient experience across multiple lines of business.

The launch and integration of the Homesite product suite with major national partners has been instrumental in expanding our reach and solidifying our position as a trusted insurance provider.

Director, Partner Solutions

Homesite recognized the need for rapid growth while maintaining an expense advantage over the industry. With most internal resources focused on new business acquisition, it was crucial not to neglect the back-office operations, which were labor-intensive and placed a strain on middle and senior management.

To address this challenge, I developed a vision and led the transformation of the back-office operations through a three-step approach: automation, outsourcing, and simplification. By automating processes, leveraging packaged software, and collaborating closely with Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) partners, we were able to streamline and optimize the back-office operations.

This infrastructure transformation played a pivotal role in enabling Homesite to achieve rapid growth in a cost-effective manner. Without this transformation, such growth would not have been possible. Homesite continues to leverage this strategy and infrastructure, resulting in an expense advantage of 4% to 6% within the industry.

Director of Operations and Technology

Under my leadership, we successfully built the Homesite Insurance platform, becoming the first insurance company to offer customers the ability to purchase home insurance directly online in a single visit. This innovation allowed us to meet the evolving needs and expectations of our customers.

Our goal was to be recognized as the best in homeowner insurance, and we have achieved that title. We recognized that to address the profitability challenge in the industry, we needed to develop a platform that could quickly adapt to change and expand data sources to simplify the complex interview process for customers.

By building a strong foundation, we enabled Homesite to rapidly innovate and adapt to market changes. This allowed us to grow faster than the industry's profitability and establish ourselves as the leading provider of homeowners insurance. We have successfully supported major brands across multiple channels, solidifying our position as the best in the industry.

Our strategy has not only solved the profitability challenge but has also positioned Homesite as a pioneer in the insurance industry. We continue to prioritize innovation and meeting the evolving needs of our customers, ensuring that we remain at the forefront of the market.

Chief Technical Architect

ITSA

I conceptualized, created, and led the implementation of an innovative insurance rating platform, as well as the development of insurance products based on this platform. Our groundbreaking system utilized a cutting-edge DBMS to store both rating rules (a first in the industry) and underwriting rules. 

My team successfully designed and built the very first online property and casualty insurance rating engine that had the capability to bind a policy directly on the internet. This was a significant milestone in the industry. 

My team achieved another remarkable feat by developing the initial web-based insurance policy transactional processing system. This advanced system had the ability to support multiple insurance lines of business and multiple insurance carriers. Through a secure web connection, agents were able to provide comparative quotes, underwrite policies, and issue insurance products at the point of sale. 

The implementation of this groundbreaking technology platform played a pivotal role in enabling ITSA and its parent company to secure over $110M in venture and institutional funding. This substantial financial support further propelled our company's growth and success in the insurance industry.

AVP of Technology

Agency Management Systems

I spearheaded the successful conversion of a DOS-based Insurance billing system into a more advanced client-server architecture. This conversion involved migrating major billing functions such as Payroll Deduction, Account Billing, Agency Bill, Commissions processing, Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT), and Credit Card Processing to the new system.

Additionally, I came up with the concept of an image-based tab system, which proved to be highly effective and efficient. This innovative tab system was later adopted by AMS as their enterprise platform, further validating its value and impact in the industry.

Software Developer

Experienced professional with a proven track record of spearheading successful transformations, leading innovative projects, product, and operations in the insurance industry. Skilled in developing and implementing cutting-edge technology platforms, driving rapid growth, profitability, building high performing teams and achieving operational excellence. Committed to delivering exceptional service and meeting the evolving needs of customers.

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