Willis Towers Watson launches Radar Workbench underwriting software

Insurance consulting and technology provider Willis Towers Watson has launched Radar Workbench, new software technology it says will “transform the performance of frontline underwriters, allowing them to make better decisions at pace and with confidence”.

Willis said that while big data, advanced analytics are recognised by commercial insurers as critical to underwriting excellence, underwriting has been slow to adapt, as significant challenges obstruct efforts to adopt new technologies - such as fragmented processes, multiple legacy platforms and lack of data strategies.

Many insurers, for example, rely on manual processes and spreadsheets that are not equipped to deal with the size and complexity of data insurers access today, limiting their ambitions to develop more robust, sophisticated pricing and accurate claims reserving.

Dave Ovenden, global head of product, pricing, claims and underwriting (PPCU) consultancy, Willis Towers Watson, said: “Commercial products are complex, with underlying exposures making effective technology responses challenging and often expensive. With margins tight and risks increasingly unpredictable, insurers are under pressure to improve performance whilst still operating within historic constraints.

“Radar Workbench has been developed to provide the optimal environment that supports underwriters in making complex decisions at pace and with confidence. The user is supported by contextually relevant insights about the client and risk being underwritten, framed in a modern and intuitive user interface that enables the frictionless flow of data.”

Willis said that Radar Workbench, designed to harness a broad range of internal and external data assets, delivers configurable, rich and contextual analysis for specific cases to the underwriter’s desktop in real time. The Radar technology is also designed to improve connectivity across the value chain. For example, it supports better communication with portfolio managers, who can then perform granular analysis, test scenarios and implement changes seamlessly to underwriters.

Ovenden said: “Radar Workbench is built for commercial insurers by people who have worked in the industry and understand its challenges. Technology can support complex judgements involved in commercial insurance, but has to work intelligently and fit the organisational culture. This principle underpins Radar Workbench, an ‘out of the box’ revolutionary analytical platform designed to help the role of the insurance professional evolve and meet the industry and customer needs of tomorrow.”

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