Get more done with less: a guide to no-code for insurance CIOs

Insurance organizations are constantly looking for new ways to streamline processes and drive more value to the end customers. CIOs are under tremendous pressure to find effective ways to improve business performance and meet business objectives.

No-code platforms enable organizations to achieve more with less manpower, go to market faster, boost customer experience and minimize development and IT costs.

No-code development accelerates the delivery of insurance applications. Time to market and time to value are dramatically reduced by no-code/low code development approaches, empowering CIOs to focus on releasing valuable software solutions faster. For example, VGM insurance used a no-code solution to accelerate their digital transformation plans from 5 years to 3 months.

This guide will cover how no-code/low-code development approaches help organizations in general and specifically how they can help Insurance CIOs answer some of their toughest business challenges. It will include the following sections:

• What is no-code/low-code?
• How does it work?
• Why is no-code/low-code important to Insurance CIOs?
• What are the main benefits of no-code/low-code platform adoption for Insurance organizations?
• Key considerations before implementing a no-code platform
  

What is the no-code/low code approach?

No-code/low-code platforms are tools that allow non-technical users to create applications without writing code. No-code/low code development bridges the gap between business users and developers by enabling non-technical employees to independently perform more of the work involved with application development.

This approach has gained a lot of traction in recent years, as a majority of the organizations have a shortage of required development resources to meet growing business needs.

How does no-code/low code work?

There are two types of no-code platforms: purely visual and intelligent visual. Both types do not require any coding, but they still allow for some level of customization. The main difference is that users of purely visual no-code platforms don't need technical knowledge. In contrast, users of intelligent visual no-code platforms need some programming background to establish logic and create more complex connections.

Why is no-code/low-code important to Insurance CIOs?

No-code/low-code technology enables line of business (LOB) application development to be accessible to non-coders and non-IT professionals. This empowers organizations to amplify existing resources and achieve more with less. Additionally, no-code/low-code tools solve one of the largest problems businesses face today: how to quickly adapt and prosper in a constantly evolving market.

Using no-code/low-code platforms, organizations can now embrace the digital transformation process without relying on lengthy internal development projects or costly software development contracts with outside firms.

With no-code/low code tools, CIOs can increase their workforce efficiency and boost customer experience at a much lower cost.

No-code/low-code technology enhances enterprise IT resources by helping organizations amplify existing resources and achieve more with less. In terms of business benefits for P&C insurers, no-code/low-code platforms can help:

• Reduce development costs by as much as 90% compared to traditional development methods.
• Speed up time to value (i.e., time from idea to delivery of the first working product) by as much as 70%.
• Reduce reliance on external resources and service providers by empowering internal resources and constituents to create business applications quickly and easily for a fraction of the cost.
• Access continuous innovation by deploying apps that automatically scale to meet changing business requirements without relying on IT teams or external service providers to customize applications.
  

What are the key differences between no-code/low-code platforms and traditional development methods?

No-code/low-code platforms differ from traditional development methods as they:

• Empower non-technical business users to create business applications without needing any coding experience or expertise
• Allow organizations to decrease development cycles for new market-facing initiatives and quickly adapt to changing market dynamics.
• Enable consumers, employees, and external constituents to create their own self-service applications via an easy-to-use web interface.

What are the main benefits of no-code/low-code platform adoption for Insurance organizations?

CIOs looking to improve their business performance can significantly benefit from no-code platform adoption. No-code platforms provide the agility required to rapidly release high-value software solutions.

There are many opportunities that we see evolving with no-code platforms and applications. For example, there's a lot of potential around integrating data from legacy systems and disparate sources.

A low code platform is a great way to quickly clean and integrate large amounts of data without relying on IT resources that may be overburdened with other initiatives.

Here are some key benefits of implementing no-code tools for Insurance CIOs:

• Quickly build valuable applications without writing code
• Reduce time, effort, and costs associated with developing software solutions.
• Faster time to market for new products and services
• Boost workforce efficiency
• Streamline internal processes
• Increase customer satisfaction
• Reduce development time and costs, allowing organizations to release valuable software solutions faster.
  

Many industry experts predict that no-code/low-code platforms will continue to grow in popularity over the next several years, further accelerating their integration into various business processes.

What are some common low-code use cases in insurance?

No-code platforms enable customer service employees, marketers, agents, and brokers to actively create customer-facing digital journeys such as policy management, claims, or onboarding.

Some everyday use cases in insurance include:

• Policy management
• Claims management
• Enrollment/Onboarding of new customers
  

For example, a broker in New York can build a customer-facing journey that will enable them to work with customers in real-time to complete the quote/underwriting process in minutes rather than days or weeks.

By reducing the learning curve, increasing development speed, and improving project management, no-code/low code platforms help organizations achieve a competitive advantage. 

Some of the key benefits include:

• Scaling quickly on limited budgets and resources
• Collaborating smoothly across business units or teams by self-service access to development tools
• Reducing application delivery time from months to weeks, days, and even hours, thus improving agility and competitiveness.
  

How does no-code technology help Insurance CIOs answer some of their most significant business challenges?

The list below gives examples of some of the most significant business challenges Insurance CIOs face and how no-code/low-code tools can help them solve these problems.

• Achieving faster time to market for new applications
• Reducing the time between idea conception through delivery
• Be agile and quickly adjust to market changes
• Increasing IT productivity by reducing manual tasks and facilitating reuse across processes
• Delivering new capabilities to market faster
• Leveraging IT talent without the need for full-stack development expertise
  

Key considerations before implementing no-code platforms

While no-code platforms enable non-technical users to create custom applications, several important decisions still need to be made. It's essential for CIOs and application owners to carefully weigh their options and map out a strategy based on business requirements, current IT capabilities, and future vision. Here are some questions to ask:

• What specific problems will no-code help us solve?
• Will it increase business agility by enabling faster time to market for new applications, more efficient collaboration across teams and organizations, or increasing IT productivity?
• What is the state of the current application landscape, and how do we plan to move forward?
• What use cases would be the best fit for no-code platforms? For example, will quickly launching digital journeys for policy onboarding, claims, payment processing, and policy servicing support the business objectives?
• What is our budget? Are we open to learning new tools and investing in the process of building no-code applications?

To answer these and other questions, it's essential to understand what no-code is, where it fits in the application lifecycle, and how low code development platforms can drive innovation in a modern workplace.

Selecting the best no-code platform for your use case

Once organizations decide they are ready to adopt no-code platforms, some considerations need to be kept in mind while choosing the right product.

As with any industry, different types of no-code platforms exist for specific purposes. Some no-code platforms are designed specifically for high-volume transactions and tasks across multiple departments; some specialize in customer-facing digital journeys. Select the platform that best reflects your business needs.

When considering a specific no-code platform, you must determine the following:

• What features does the platform offer?
• What use cases does it cover?
• What systems can it integrate with?
• Is it a no-code or low-code product? And what does that mean in the context of your business objectives and organizational needs? 
• Who is providing support for the platform, and how responsive are they to client questions and requests for assistance?
• Is the platform easy to learn? If not, how long will it take for your team members to become comfortable with it and start producing results?
• What kind of user base uses the platform? Do they have use cases similar to ours? Has their experience been positive? How do they feel about how quickly they can build applications compared to similar platforms?
  

What technical features should the no-code platform support?

Once you have chosen a no-code platform, consider what technical features are most important to the success of your business objectives.

For example, will your platform need to work across multiple mobile operating systems? If so, which ones are supported - iOS, Android, or both? Will you require application development for specific industries like healthcare or finance? Here are some things to consider:

• Mobile integration - enables mobile access to apps via smartphones, tablets, wearables, and other devices.
• Data integration - allow integration with internal data sources (e.g., insurance policy management systems) and external data sources (e.g., weather services).
• Identity management - support SSO for access to applications built using the platform.
• Analytics - offer reporting on how apps are being used and tools for delivering new features and configurations to app users.
• APIs - provide web service-level access to core platform capabilities (e.g., user management).
  

How to ensure successful no-code platform implementation?

To ensure successful no-code technology adoption and real business value realization, CIOs should follow these steps:

• Understand "where you are" – Gain a clear understanding of the current state of your organization. This will help you create a realistic and measurable no-code/low-code strategy.
• Assess your needs – Conduct a comprehensive project assessment to determine the current state of your technology and the gaps that exist between where you are and where you need to be. You can use this information to build a compelling value proposition for no-code/low-code adoption.
• Create a concrete plan – Develop a no-code/low-code implementation strategy that includes measurable milestones and outlines how you'll roll it out gradually across your organization. Be sure to include key stakeholders in this process to ensure buy-in from the earliest stages of rollout.
• Implement risk mitigation strategies - Plan for unforeseen obstacles by implementing strategies to mitigate risks at the application design stage.
• Create a case for no-code/low-code - Gather tangible, measurable benefits of no-code/low-code adoption that tie back to your organization's overall digital transformation strategy.
• Evaluate ROI - Establish clear metrics and criteria to base the return on your no-code/low-code investment.
  

Why should insurance CIOs look into using no code in 2022?

There are many factors why Insurance CIOs should adopt a no-code/low-code approach, including faster time to market, improved business results, and minimal development costs.

No-code/low-code platforms enable organizations to rapidly go from concept to production without waiting on costly software development projects. Since no-code/low-code tools are easy to learn, faster ROI can be achieved through quick time-to-market and low labor costs. As a result, organizations can meet business objectives and reduce time to value.

No-code/low code development allows CIOs to achieve the following benefits:

• Accelerate time to value by empowering line of business users, partners, and external constituents to create applications that solve critical business problems. Since no-code/low-code technology is accessible to non-coders and non-IT professionals, it enables an organization's internal resources to focus on high-value activities while creating a low-risk environment for innovators.
• Drive business transformation by accelerating the rate of change within their organizations through rapid deployment of business initiatives that can enhance competitive performance. No-code/low-code platforms allow business users to rapidly create customized solutions for specific business problems, which can then be quickly deployed and tested for optimal impact.
• Rapidly react to changing market conditions by providing non-technical stakeholders with the ability to quickly design apps that meet unique customer needs, workflows, or processes. Since no-code/low-code is accessible to non-coders and non-IT professionals, it provides an organization's internal resources with a low-risk environment for innovators.
• Leverage the vast knowledge of their IT team by empowering them to focus on strategic initiatives that require significant technical expertise and speed up time to value for less complex applications. 
• No-code/low-code gives IT teams a way to satisfy requests from business users for simple applications while also helping organizations scale rapidly into new markets.
• Access a large application ecosystem with pre-built ready-to-use apps that allow organizations to work smarter without hiring additional developers or IT staff.
• Access continuous innovation as no-code/low-code platforms automates software development from initial idea to final product, making application development fast and low risk.
  

No-code/low-code tech empowers departments across an organization to quickly create new business applications that can help insurers engage consumers, transform operations and enhance overall customer experience.

No-code/low-code tech helps insurers deliver faster time to value, increase development speed, and reduce reliance on external resources.

As we see more no-code applications coming into the market, there is an increased need for digital transformation skills. IT leaders and technology stakeholders across the industry should look to build teams that can quickly learn no-code/low-code platforms and empower employees to launch applications without depending on heavy IT overhead.

The one thing is clear - the no-code approach will help insurance CIOs stay ahead of their competition and move faster than ever before.