A company's chief financial officer, or CFO, holds the position where the buck normally stops when it comes to managing corporate financial risks. In a way, any company CFO is a risk manager. In smaller companies, the CFO might actually be the one making insurance purchases and handling other aspects of managing risks, but in larger companies, the office may oversee a risk manager or even an entire risk management department. This means that a typical CFO office is very involved in insurance renewals, one of the critical tasks of risk management.
How Can Risk Management Information Systems Save the CFO Time on Renewals?
Actually, RMIS software can not only save the CFO time, it can help save time for everybody involved in the process. This includes people in many departments that need to report data about property values and incidents, brokers who need accurate and accessible information to properly suggest and shop for coverage, and of course, any managers who need to make decisions based upon renewal information.
Some time-saving features of an RMIS include:
- Consolidated data source: Some companies still rely upon multiple spreadsheets, databases, and unintegrated computer systems to access all of the information needed for policy renewals. While there is a role for spreadsheets during the renewals process, having one integrated and consolidated source of relevant information allows for less redundancy and more accessible reports. For example, a CFO can push a button to see claims or policies that he or she needs to review.
- Error reduction and auditing: Input forms can be designed to check data at the source and reduce errors. Because data is consolidated in one spot, it is also easier to audit. Catching errors at the source and spotting them easily always saves time over having to account for mistakes later.
- Graphs and analytics: A number of different reporting tools are available to make analyzing information faster and more productive. There is no need to produce reports, charts, and graphs manually or with another third-party system.
- Questionnaires: A sophisticated RMIS can create and distribute surveys and questionnaires all over the company. Information provided by these questionnaires is directly entered into the system, so there is no need for more manual data entry.
If you ask most corporate chief financial officers if they would prefer to find a way to make insurance policy administration, including insurance renewals, faster, easier, and better, they would certainly express an interest. Risk management has become an increasingly critical part of the success of thriving companies, and RMIS solutions like RiskConsole provide the right tools. At Ventiv Technology, we have studied the field, listened to our clients, and produced the best insurance policy administration tool on the market. Learn more about how RiskConsole and insurance renewal software can save you time on insurance renewals and other policy administration duties.
Joe Fitzpatrick is Director of Commercialization with the Ventiv Technology Global Product Management team. Joe works in the Atlanta Ventiv office and can be reached at joe.fitzpatrick@ventivtech.com or by phone at 770-308-5446.
