Duck Creek, a leading US software-as-a-service (SaaS) developer for the insurance sector, has outlined its plans to overhaul Suncorp’s key policy infrastructure, as part of the insurer’s centrepiece core platforms revitalisation program.

The multi-year agreement assigns Duck Creek, a specialist insurance technology developer, to overhaul Suncorp’s key policy systems, replacing multiple on-premise legacy systems with cloud-native SaaS systems.

This includes the deployment of new policy and billing systems, integrated with Suncorp’s pricing engine CaPE, and adoption of Duck Creek’s data insights and AI solutions platform, Clarity – touted as a cloud-native data management, reporting and analytics platform, analysing data sourced from policy, billing, claims and external systems.

Duck Creek will also be responsible for providing a new reinsurance management platform.

The vendor boasts that its cohesive and comprehensive suite of technologies would support Suncorp’s key transformation priorities, including reducing technological complexity, enhancing customer value and personalisation, and improving operational efficiency.

“Suncorp aims to develop more customer-centric, data-driven and brand-specific propositions and experiences without the associated complexity; and deliver value to market faster and more efficiently across its personal and commercial brands in Australia and New Zealand,” Duck Creek said in a release.

The focal point of policy systems overhaul will be the adoption of Duck Creek’s cloud-based, modular, and low code ‘OnDemand’ platform, which houses all Duck Creek applications. Adoption of the platform is expected to “accelerate Suncorp’s innovation timelines”, the vendor says, with material reductions in new product time-to-market (“from months to weeks”) and product changes (“from weeks to days”).

The OnDemand platform will support an “increase [in] automation, eliminate manual processes and enhance data-driven decision making” across Suncorp’s tech infrastructure.

Suncorp’s AA Insurance brand is set to be the first business onboarded to the Duck Creek policy administration system (PAS).

The overhaul of Suncorp’s PAS forms a key pillar of its multi-year, $560 million ‘Digital Insurer’ platform modernisation program, announced last month.

Group chief executive Steve Johnston said the centrepiece program would serve to reduce complexity, support product innovation and improve customer service personalisation, including the ready embrace of artificial intelligence technologies.

“Modern, intelligent, cloud-based core systems that allow agility and innovation in product design will be the rule rather than the exception,” Johnston said.

“Claims processes will become frictionless but with enhanced safety nets to manage complexity and vulnerability. Alongside this, process and operational efficiency will reduce the burden on pricing when input costs rise.”

Suncorp chief risk officer Bridget Messer added that the program would seek to “reduce product complexity and manual processing risk over the long term, improving our operational risk profile”.

Among the key priorities of the program include:

• 100 per cent shift to digitally enabled products – creating fully end-to-end digitised processing (as opposed, Suncorp said, “to a digital ‘wrapper’ at the front end”).
• A single set of modular product coverages, targeting more than 90 per cent reuse within product lines;
• Business processes as common as possible across all brands and products; and
• Better propositions and experiences for our customers.

The overarching program aims to deliver on Suncorp’s technology ecosystem target state, which involves the wholesale adoption of cloud-based SaaS solutions.

Duck Creek, which Suncorp said was selected in a competitive request for proposal process, was recognised as “leading provider of core insurance solution”.

The vendor has supported transformation programs across a number of large-scale global insurance companies, Suncorp said, including more than ten Australian and New Zealand implementations that are complete or are underway.

“Modernising our core insurance platforms will help us deliver innovative and affordable customer propositions, simplify and streamline our operations, and importantly enable our people,” Suncorp chief executive of consumer insurance Lisa Harrison said.

“Through a rigorous RFP process, we selected Duck Creek as it has a proven track record both globally and locally.”

She added: “This is a multi-year program designed to roll out new capabilities in a safe, smart and efficient way. We have assigned dedicated business and technical leadership to work alongside Duck Creek and our integration partner, with strong governance structures and oversight.”

Christian Erickson, Duck Creek’s managing director (APAC) said the pair were “ideal partners” to deliver on the PAS overhaul program.

“Our policyholder-centric solutions are designed to equip Suncorp to overcome any technological obstacles and refocus resources toward delivering new innovative customer propositions and experiences,” Erickson said.