Customer Solution Case Study
/ Legal Protection Specialist Gains Real-Time Access to Accurate Business Data
Overview
Country or Region:Italy
Industry:Insurance
Customer Profile
Difesa Automobilistica Sinistri (DAS) is a leading European insurance company specializing in legal protection.
Business Situation
The Italian branch of DAS historically operated outdated enterprise resource planning systems that could no longer provide the required visibility intokey business processes or performance.
Solution
Microsoft® Business Solutions–Navision® business software was deployed with support from Microsoft Certified Partner Observing.
Benefits
Data integrity across the business
Access to accurate management data in real time.
IT staff free to focus on value-added activities
Increased autonomy for end users
Better management decision making / “Because data is stored centrally and updated in real time, managers have increased visibility intothe company’s performance overall.”
Roberto Grasso, General Manager, DAS
Historically, leading legal protection specialist and insurance company Difesa Automobilistica Sinistri (DAS) worked with enterprise resource planning systems that were outdated and difficult to manage. In addition, support for the technologieshad come to an end. To increase visibility intokey business process and performance data, the company decided to deploy Microsoft® Business Solutions–Navision® business software, now part of Microsoft Dynamics™. DAS managers now have access to real-time,key management data across the enterprise,which more effectively supports managers'decision making. Because the system is highly intuitive, staff can access and print the information they need—without intervention from technical employees or the DAS data processing center. As a result, the company has improved employee productivity overall, and IT staff are now free to focus on value-added technology initiatives.
Situation
Difesa Automobilistica Sinistri (DAS), one of Europe’s most experienced providers of legal protection and insurance services, works with a complex IT infrastructure and a range of software applications to support its daily activities. Its operating system, which historically administered all DAS in-house applications, was becoming outdated and difficult to manage. In addition, its supplier no longer offered support for the technology, and product updates were no longer available.
The outdated technology was beginning to compromise the performance of critical business processes. Roberto Grasso, General Manager, DAS, explains, “The enterprise resource planning [ERP] tools for monitoring the progress of our business would not support real-time performance analyses. We wanted to improve the speed of our operations and visibility across the enterprise. We could not have achieved this using our existing ERP systems.”
To achieve the required levels of business visibility, the new solution needed to support full integration with systems at DAS's subsidiaries, Toro Assicurazioni and DAS Versicherungen. This was particularly important due to increasing requirements for financial and performance-related reporting across the organization.
Grasso advises,“DAS managers are requesting increasingly detailed quarterly reviews, including a range of reports, from all areas of the business. As a result, the ability to support in-depth analysis of business data was a key requirement for the new technology. Better reporting was needed to deliver a range of benefits in terms of our internal organization and financial decision making.”
Solution
Specifications for the new ERP system, including customization requirements, scalability, raw materials purchasing, and management costs, were drawn up at the DAS head office in Germany. After an extensive evaluation of available solutions, Microsoft® Business Solutions–Navision®business softwarewas chosen as the basis for the new IT infrastructure. Leading technology solutions provider and Microsoft Certified Partner Observing was engaged to support all stages of the implementation.
In the first phase of the deployment, which was completed at the beginning of 2005, financial accounting and management modules were rolled out. Previously, applications such as value-added tax management as well as assets and inventory management were accessed through separate applications. Now, they can be viewed through a single user interface, saving time and increasing productivity for administrators.
In phase two, existing technical systems that support core business processes, such as portfolio and accident management, were replicated and interfaced with the new business management infrastructure. In the third and final phase of the project, the sales network was connected to the new system through a Web extension, integrating operational data from a network of 1,000 agents and brokers across the business.
The new system, which fully integrates ERP functions across the business, supports real-time analysis of accounting data. Queries can be conducted in a range of formats, according to the needs of business decision makers.
Microsoft Navision has been installed on the Microsoft Windows® 2000 Server operating system and the Microsoft SQL Server™ 2000 database. The new system will be available to 70 authorized users at a number of DAS branches.
Benefits
Enhanced Visibility Improves Decision Making Across the Business
Because the new system relies on a centralized database, ERP functions such as accident management and portfolio management always use data that is current and correct. This improves visibility across the entire company and supports accurate business decision making.
Egon Fassetta, Project Manager on the Microsoft Navision project for DAS, reports, “The centralized database provides up-to-the-minute operational data for customers, sales staff, agencies, and other authorized parties. It is possible to navigate through the data store and view every report, policy, accident report, and payment that exists across the organization. As a result, we can get a much clearer view of our business activities and make the best possible management decisions.
He adds, “We can now see the progress of the business through various levels of real-timedata aggregation, and I can ask members of my team for reliable performance-related information.”
The new system also helps DAS to understand the “ranking” of insured customers and view the sales progress of various products offered. The new solution alsosupports rapid amendments to the company’s portfolio, which were previously impossible without extensive system configuration.
Better Performance Analysis for Long-Term Success
The new Microsoft Navision solution is helping DAS to perform more effective profitability analyses. This includes reports on accidents and premiums that are delivered in real time. Performance can be viewed by product, region, area, or specific agent, with information segmented according to the purpose of each analysis.
Grasso observes, “Because data is stored centrally and updated in real time, managers have increased visibility intothe company’s performance overall. In addition, every business managerhas the opportunity to generate customized reports based on their own requirements. This gives them a clearer idea of how they are performing as individuals. As a result of these capabilities, we have increased efficiency across thecompany.”
Simplified Product Structure for Improved Operational Efficiency
The new solution will help to rationalize the DAS product structure and reduce the complexity of management overall. This is because it integrates the calculation and management of 2,300 individual risks into new, centralized business logic.
This new approach allows business managers to monitor and report on profitability much more accurately. While data extraction and analysis previously required complex procedures and the involvement of the DAS data processing center, these data manipulation and analytical taskscan now be conducted quickly and easily throughintuitive user interfaces.
Online Communications Improve the Efficiency of Sales Operations
A network of more than 1,000 agents and brokers now has access to the new solution online. As a result, DAS can improve management, reduce data anomalies when sharing information, and strengthen the sales structure. In addition, DAS's agencies will enjoy fast and comprehensive connections to the head office.
Grasso notes, “Agents can access current data that relates to their area of competence and share policy documentation with other employees effectively online. This reduces costly back-office activities surrounding managing anomalies, such as transcription errors. It helps us outsource some management responsibilities to our agencies and reduce central management costs.”
The new system also increases the efficiency of budget allocation to agencies and promoters and helps to monitor their progress at the company's headquarters. Commissions can be assigned to individual products quickly and effectively, thanks to centralized management tools.
Access to the new solution will ultimately be extended to include employees with wireless devices. Initially, Windows Mobile® powered Pocket PCs and mobile telephone systemswill provide access to the shared database, increasing remote working opportunities and further enhancing productivity across the DAS organization.
Simple Customization to Meet Specific Business Requirements
The new Microsoft Navision solution deployed at DAS was quickly and effectively customized to support specific insurance and legal security requirements. In addition to this flexibility, the new technology also offers customized user interfaces, according to the specific requirements of individual users.
Fassetta comments,“Microsoft Navision is a very flexible software package that is easy to customize and update. Despite the large number of interfaces and views supported by the system, data always remains secure and unambiguous.”
Full Integration for More Effective Working Practices
The new solution is fully integrated with DAS's data sources and applications. As a result, communications between branches and the head office have been greatly enhanced. In addition, employees no longer need to undertake complex information management and data consolidation operations.
DAS'susers can also take advantage ofcentrally stored data and export it to a range of presentation formats, including spreadsheets created in Microsoft Office Excel®2003 spreadsheetsoftware. This reduces duplication of effort and supports fast, effective reporting on business performance.
Increased User Autonomy Frees IT Staff for Value-Added Tasks
The new solution supports enhanced data integrity and easier access to centralized business information. As a result, non-technical employees can now access and create reports on the data they need, without intervention from technical staff.
Giuliano Cipolletto, Project Leader in the Insurance Department at Observing,advises, “Most customization and reporting can now be performed by the user—without the need for support from external IT specialists. This increases the autonomy and productivity of regular system users and frees our IT staff to focus on value-added projects. It also increases our IT competency internally.”
Automated ERP Processes Increase Employee Productivity
The automation of key ERP processes has increased overall operational efficiency and reduced the workload for the DAS data processing center.
Fassetta comments, “The new system generates documents and bills automatically. As a result, we no longer depend on the data processing center to print the documents we need to perform our work on a daily basis, including daybooks, tax records, and other reports for analysis.
“By the end of the project, the data processing center, which was previously obliged to maintain and manage the complex legacy system, will be able to focus on exclusively value-added business activities,” he concludes.
Microsoft Dynamics
Microsoft Dynamics™ is a line of integrated, adaptable business management solutions that enables you and your people to make business decisions with greater confidence. Microsoft Dynamics works like familiar Microsoft software such as Microsoft Office, which means less of a learning curve for your people, so they can get up and running quickly and focus on what’s most important. And because it is from Microsoft, it easily works with the systems your company already has implemented. By automating and streamlining financial, customer relationship and supply chain processes, Microsoft Dynamics brings together people, processes and technologies, increasing the productivity and effectiveness of your business, and helping you drive business success.
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