Brokers will be empowered by technology, including automation and artificial intelligence, and need not fear for their jobs, an expert has said.
While much has been made of investments in automation and AI over recent years, brokers still hold a vital role in the insurance industry. Muthu Kumaran, global practice head, insurance, at Cognizant, said that while some in the industry may be worried about the future of their jobs, their fear is unfounded.
“There’s a natural fear within the insurance sector, as with many industries, that technology will push people out of jobs,” Kumaran told Insurance Business. “The fact is, brokers will be empowered by technology, rather than replaced by it.”
Kumaran said that automation and similar technologies represent a “huge opportunity” for the industry as a supplement to human work.
As knowledge-based work, broking will always require human intervention, Kumaran continued, and relationships will remain key. Meanwhile, automation will provide benefits to the broking community that will come to fruition over the coming years.
“Empowered by bots and other automated technology, knowledge is suddenly able to be used in more interesting and productive ways,” Kumaran continued.
With many claims services looking toward automation to improve efficiency and customer experience, Kumaran said that the emergence of so called robo-advisors will be used to create a more personalised offering for clients.
“This has the benefit of freeing brokers of tedious work, in order to concentrate on relationship-building,” Kumaran said. “Brokers are seeing these moves as revenue additive, enabling them to focus more on the complex aspects of providing advice.”
AI will help the industry perform underwriting activities in terms of research and aggregation, Kumaran noted. For example, robo-advisors or virtual assistants will be able to manage low-value activities such as lead management and scheduling, which will boost a brokers’ ability to add value to clients.
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