Key takeaways
Host: Sam Friedman, insurance research leader, Deloitte & Touche LLP
Presenters: Britt Van Dalen, Kelly Cusick, Andy Ferris, and Nikhil Gokhale
1 Overview CPE credit | Specialized Knowledge
Underwriting transformation means more than automating routine tasks and augmenting teams with emerging technologies and alternative data sources. Insurers need to hire and develop exponential underwriters with new skill sets and enhanced responsibilities. This requires implementation of interdependent initiatives. We’ll discuss:
- New roles underwriters will fill, including tech trailblazer, data pioneer, dealmaker, portfolio optimizer, and risk detective
- The gap between capabilities that exponential underwriters will need versus what insurers advertise
- A road map to coordinate the transformation of data and analytics, technology, strategy, and governance, as well as talent and culture
Meet the speakers

Kelly Cusick
Kelly is a managing director in Deloitte Consulting LLP’s Actuarial & Insurance Solutions practice, focused on the innovation of underwriting and product management capabilities in the property and casualty insurance marketplace. As an actuary with experience across a variety of commercial and specialty lines of business, she works with clients to develop and implement competitive strategies for insurance product management and underwriting, leveraging emerging technologies and data sources, analytical decision-making approaches, and improved business processes.

Britton Van Dalen
Britton Van Dalen is a principal at Deloitte Consulting LLP and serves as the US Underwriting Transformation Leader in the insurance practice. He brings more than 20 years of experience in the Property & Casualty, Life & Annuity, and Insurance Brokerage Sub-Sectors. Within the underwriting function, Van Dalen specializes in automation and process design, predictive model business implementation and rules development, development of the underwriting workbench and the underwriting future of work.

Andy Ferris
Andy Ferris is a managing director in the insurance practice of Deloitte Consulting LLP, where he leads product, risk management, and operational excellence strategies for life insurance companies. Ferris focuses on transforming new business and underwriting operations to deliver a modern-day, digital, omni-channel customer experience enabled by a more efficient internal operating model. His initiatives leverage new data sources, digitization, automation, big data, predictive analytics, and related innovations and technologies. Ferris has served on the board of directors of the Society of Actuaries, The American Academy of Actuaries, and the Actuarial Foundation.
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