EDII aims to turbocharge creativity and innovation in the insurance industry

Caroline Bedford has launched EDII, which claims to be the insurance industry’s first innovation and creativity company for business practitioners.

EDII, which stands for Educate, Develop, Innovate, Inspire, has been built around the Digital Minds programme, which Bedford founded in 2016 during her tenure at DXC Technology.

EDII is designed to develop innovative, creative, and business-critical skills for industry professionals. It has been designed to encourage and test creative ideas in the digital field in a practical forum, Bedford said, enabling participants to drive change and deliver immediate and long-lasting value within their own companies.

Bedford, who serves EDII as chief executive officer, said: “Companies are struggling to build a culture to truly upskill their valuable business talent, and until EDII, nothing else existed that fully addressed the variety of key development needs of traditional market practitioners such as underwriters, brokers, claims adjusters and more.”

EDII’s flagship programme, Digital Minds, is offered as a 12-month immersive programme, educating insurance professionals on the impact of the latest digital technologies and the skills and behaviours needed to adopt them.

It plans to expand its offering into the wider financial services sector in the coming years, Bedford said.

The Digital Minds programme will continue its support from DXC Technology, which becomes sponsor, alongside Netcall and r10. The programme will draw expertise from institutions including Beazley, BMS and Markel.

Nicholas Line, chief underwriting officer for international at Markel, described Digital Minds as unique among such offerings in the market, due to the variety of topics covered, the networking opportunities and the skills that are taught.

“This really is a special combination, especially when expertly blended with the limitless energy and passion for learning brought by Caroline and her team,” she said.

Paul Willoughby, head of insights and strategy research at Beazley, added: “Caroline and her team have always been dedicated to bringing together people with a diverse range of skills with the aim of affecting real change in the market.”

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