Current Offerings

Effectiveness and Efficiency Roadmap

Operational Maturity Assessment

Website Redesign and Back-End Integration

Agency-Carrier Automation Map

Business Continuity Guidance

Cost-Benefit Analysis

Project Assurance

IT Staff Augmentation

CIO Part-Time Outsourcing

PM/QA Training

CIO Part-Time Outsourcing

The role of a CIO is now important for the smallest of insurance agencies - even if it's just a part-time basis. This job has shifted from the technical business of data processing to the more strategic job of workflow and knowledge management. So important has managing our processes and knowledge become to the success of an agency that it may just be the most pressing challenge. Where is your agency heading with its Operations and IT?

Problem Statement - The CIO's scope of competencies is so wide that it is unrealistic to expect a small company to have or afford all these skills in its regular management team - to keep up with the latest technology, and to manage the IT platforms for an agency, and to guide decision-making and planning. Just because a small company cannot afford a full-time CIO does not mean this expertise is not needed. Agencies should look to outside sources of expertise - even for just one day per month and over time the company can internalize these skills / strengths.

CIO Competency Areas

Evidence of Maturation in Area

Policy

IT Mission Statement Documented and is communicated to organization

Strategic Planning

CIO has voice in strategic planning for organization, business decisions are reviewed by IT for congruence with architecture and project planning

Performance & Results Based Management

Key metrics exist for all roles within and outside IT/OPS allowing for scoring performance assessments

Process Improvement

Processes are documented

Capital Planning and Investment

A capital budget exists and procurement processes include update/review of budget consumption

Leadership / Management

A formalized training and mentoring plan exists for all OPS/IT staff

Technology Assessment

Processes and process owners exist to evaluate hardware posture and current platforms against current and future business needs

Security

Documentation in the form of policies, procedures and controls exist within department and architecture that protect the physical and intellectual property of the organization

Architecture

The architecture is flexible enough to respond in a non-critical path method to changing business needs

Acquisition

Procurement and outsourcing (vendor) relations are controlled through documented processes and key metrics are used to evaluate purchases alignment with business need and the status of relationships

Right Approach - CIO’s should adopt a "point-in-time" assessment approach to their ongoing operations using the list of ten target competencies to guide the review. For each of the 10 there is a specific set of procedures that make up this area. Each process has a known set of critical to quality CTQ aspects and key metrics that can be reviewed/scored against prior performance, peer experience or best practices. Where Opportunities for Improvement (OFI) exist, course correction steps can be instituted and the results monitored for impact.

Info724 Outsourced CIO Support Offering - Info724 will work with your team to review the key metrics analyze the results and then develop document suitable "best practices" or course corrective action steps for you. Info724 staff can then serve either as an independent and objective reviewer or as an integrated member of your internal team. We can help you to:

  • Identify key process development and documentation of CTQ’s and metrics for analysis.
  • Identify potential pitfalls and associated risks and create mitigation strategies.
  • Develop a dashboard to monitor and measure key indicators (metrics) in an ongoing fashion to help insure the health of the OPS/IT organization.
  • Determine the direction for the organization's future Operations and IT.

The offering will also serve as on the job training for participating team members from your organization – by interaction and observation they will learn best practices and structured analysis and will begin to adopt them for their own.

This service is priced at a very affordable quarterly fee plus expenses and is intended to provide guidance every month by one of our qualified professionals. You will find our resources to be insurance savvy, very knowledgeable, enthusiastic, and armed with our proven “field methodology”. We are very adaptable to your needs.
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