As a business case analyst, one of your key responsibilities is to build the right business case for your company’s Guidewire automation upgrade project. It is a critical part of the project, as it will help ensure that the project is given the green light and receives the necessary funding. There are several factors that you will need to take into account when building the business case for a Guidewire automation upgrade project. These include the project’s costs, the project benefits, the risks associated with the project, and the impact of the project on the company’s bottom line.

  • The first step in building the business case is assessing the project’s costs. It includes the costs of the software, the hardware, the training, and the implementation. You will also need to consider the costs of any support that will be required after the project is completed.
  • The second step is to assess the benefits of the project. It includes the benefits to the company’s bottom line, the benefits to the customer, and the company’s employees.
  • The third step is to assess the risks associated with the Guidewire automation Upgrade – to the company’s reputation, the financial risks, and the operational risks. The company must also consider the risks to its customers and its employees.
  • The fourth step is to develop a plan to mitigate the risks associated with the Guidewire automation Upgrade. The plan should include the steps the company will take to reduce the risks and the resources the company will need to implement the plan.
  • The fifth step is to implement the plan. The company should monitor the progress of the implementation and make adjustments as necessary.
  • The sixth step is to evaluate the results of the Guidewire automation upgrade. The company should assess the benefits and costs of the upgrade and decide whether to continue with the upgrade. The company should also consider other options for automating its Guidewire processes. The company should continue with the upgrade if it provides significant benefits and cost savings. If the company does not see substantial benefits or cost savings, it should consider other options for automating its Guidewire processes, by having best Insurance IT services

What does the Guidewire automation upgrade involve?

This business case assumes that the automation upgrade involves only the lift-and-shift from an earlier version of Guidewire to a newer version. But, it doesn’t promote the new business features and functionalities in the latest version of the product. You can focus on these three aspects to drive a strong automation upgrade business case:

  1. Understanding the new features and functionality to build a valid business case. You can follow straight-through processing, improve vendor management, policyholder self-service, or low-touch claims processing, which offers powerful business benefits.
  2. Lower TOC. Replace custom-built functions developed to fill a business need not initially available in the core application with new Out-of-the-Box features and functions.
  3. Reclaim missed benefits. If you did not see sustainable benefits from the initial Guidewire application, these missed benefits could be added to the business case. You can discover the need to add, change, or delete current functionality to drive more realistic business benefits and increase your ROI.

To make the most of software upgrades, insurance companies should develop a strategy for implementing the upgrades. Successful upgrades must be carefully planned and incorporated into the company’s IT roadmap to promote a greater value and optimize ROI. Typically, upgrades can disrupt those involved and cause instability in the system and business processes. They also introduce risk into the IT landscape due to integrations of applications. Therefore, it makes sense for insurers to ask themselves the following questions before an upgrade:

  • Why are they upgrading, i.e., the business case?
  • Which functionalities and processes will need to be upgraded?
  • What is the timeline for the upgrade?
  • How will you execute the upgrade?
  • What skill sets do you need for the upgrade?

Benefits from Guidewire automation upgrade

The answers to the above questions can help create a clear roadmap to Guidewire automation upgrades to ensure several benefits. For instance:

  • Reduced costs
  • Maximum ROI
  • Minimized risks
  • Increased benefits

The functionalities and processes that need to be upgraded include technical, functional, and compliance. However, upgrades may need new skill sets and assigning new roles and responsibilities, including project managers, BAs, Functional consultants, QA, integration consultants, and more. The scope of the upgrade will define the skills of the team.

To conclude

Building a business case for a Guidewire automation upgrade is only the first step, and the assessment, development, stabilization, and deployment of the automation upgrade can disrupt existing processes. However, automation,  digital portals, and the transformation of core systems can enhance the insurance customer experience by empowering underwriting and claims settlement processes, taking the business to greater heights.

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