This article is based on the recent exclusive interview of Kevin, senior Vice President and general Manager of China of CCCIS Group, by "Molecular Lab", a professional media in the insurance industry. Author: Liu Yang.
Shanghai in May, the temperature is suitable.
Afternoon, familiar Yishan Road.
Today's interview is with Mr. Kevin Ho, Senior Vice President and General Manager of CCC Information Services in China.
Founded nearly 40 years ago, CCCIS China is the top information technology and consulting service provider for auto insurance claims and auto aftermarket in the United States. Cccis China has always kept a low profile, just like its low-key and simple workplace.
Face to face, a cup of tea, relaxed atmosphere, from overseas to domestic, from insurance to car, from claims to after-market, chat.
I was a little surprised that the communication lasted for several hours. What was more unexpected was that the process of communication was rarely brain-burning. As a professional "we media" writer and consultant, brain-burning or quality dialogue is exciting, and it is even more rare to meet someone who can make you think brain-burning.
We didn't get into specifics about what CCCIS is doing, but I do believe that our casual chat touched on many of the current and future nature and trends of the auto insurance industry.
Insurtech is not a concept. It's hard work. It's a 10-year grind
Insurance technology has been developing in the United States for 40 years, but you rarely hear people talk about "subversion" and "revolution". In recent years, the Internet of vehicles claim settlement, human injury claim settlement and other technologies make people look sophisticated and shocking, but the technology developers themselves do not think it is a disruptive innovation. Technological progress is a long-term thing, and we need to work hard step by step. After laying the foundation, the superstructure and application construction will be gradually increased.
So Insurtech and technology is not a fancy concept, it is solving a problem, and solving this problem often requires sustained time and investment. When I think back to the emerging insurtech startups around me, all of them have inherited the advanced methods accumulated through years of work, and achieved today's achievements after three or four years of hard work.
Therefore, I have always suggested that traditional insurance entities should cooperate and complement each other with excellent insurtech startups in the process of digital transformation. Insurtech is not a group of people with strong ability and enough effort, but also need to focus on one thing. Taking such a long time to accumulate, it is impossible to take a shortcut.
The development of CCCIS
1980
In 1981
In 1983
In 1991
In 1993
In 2008
In 2013
2015
Entrepreneurship such as Wang Guowei in the "human words" about the triple realm of life: "ancient and modern into a big career, the university asked, must go through three realms: 'Last night the west wind marred green trees. Alone on the high-rise, look at the end of the world road. 'This is the first state. 'I will not regret when I widen my clothes, but I will pine away for her. 'And this second realm. 'The crowd looked for him, suddenly look back, the man was in the dim lights. 'And this third land."
Technology is a time line, is a decade of grinding a sword, do the right thing, the rest to time.
Foundation consolidation of reality, is the most valuable
If you want to build a tall building, you have to lay a good foundation. Underneath the towering trees are the ever-expanding roots. What we see and hear is often the phenomenon, rather than the essence. In reality, the illusion and story of "building tall from the ground up" are everywhere, but very few companies really settle down to solve specific problems, do basic research and lay foundations. Therefore, there are always few excellent companies that have been settled down over time. Start-ups fail not because many people make mistakes, but because most people are too smart.
American auto insurance technology has roughly gone through three stages:
The first generation: 30 years ago, the first generation of automobile insurance claims began to sprout, and the main work at this stage is boring data collection and processing, and this foundation project has been done for ten years.
From the perspective of comparison at the same stage, 20 years have passed since the development of insurance technology in China. Along the way, both the rise of local innovative companies and the entry of foreign industry giants such as CCCIS.
In 2001, Seiyou Times was founded
In 2007, Audatex established a wholly owned company in Shanghai
In 2007, Jia Zhidao Auto Consulting (Timing auto) set up a data center
In May 2008, Shanghai Liyang was established
In 2010, the Data Resource Center of China Automotive Technology and Research Center Co., Ltd. was established
In July 2010, CCC Information Services Inc. Officially enter the Chinese market
In July 2013, Sinosure was established
In September 2015, Mingjue Technology was founded
Car models and parts data in China are far more complex than those in North America, but Chinese people are also more diligent. Now, China's major automobile data acquisition and processing enterprises have also gone through a decade of history, ten years of grinding a sword, this is the harvest season, but also the Chinese auto insurance market to the next stage of a new starting point.
The second generation of American auto insurance technology development mainly focuses on the construction of technical system, the establishment of rule engine and risk control system. The evolution of this generation of insurance claim settlement development still focuses on the cost efficiency optimization of insurance enterprises' own channels and the enhancement of risk control ability.
The symbol of the third generation is represented by the socialized and networked upstream and downstream industrial collaboration. Insurance enterprises gradually join hands with excellent upstream and downstream enterprises, and gradually establish a new claim settlement mode and after-market ecology with the help of solutions provided by excellent insurance technology companies.
With the continuous consolidation of foundation work and the progress of science and technology, in recent years, China has also emerged a risk control company, represented by Kai-Ming Technology, which is dedicated to exporting third-party rule engine services. CCCIS is undoubtedly the pioneer and leader in the industry in terms of overall solution of auto insurance claims settlement and collaborative construction of accident vehicle service ecology.
CCCIS products and services cover all aspects of the whole process of auto insurance claims, including loss determination/verification, claims management, maintenance enterprise management, parts supply chain management, business intelligence analysis and other application solutions and regular consulting services provided to insurance companies, maintenance enterprises and appraisal companies.
Surprisingly, since its entry into China, CCCIS has clearly defined the localization strategy of R&D, delivery and service system. Such "down-to-earth" vision is not common among foreign technology companies. Relying on the solid local service strategy, CCCIS has established in-depth cooperation with many large property insurance companies in China. CCCIS technology tools for claims management and aftermarket operation have reached an annualized 25 million vehicles.
The best companies are win-win-win in terms of cost, efficiency and user experience
Compared with China and the United States, the world's two largest auto insurance countries, although the U.S. auto insurance market is twice as big as China's, the number of insurance companies is seven times that of China, and many of them can be profitable.
The market concentration of the top ten auto insurance companies in the United States is about 73-74%, and that of China is 91%. The market share of small and medium-sized companies is not high, but many companies in the United States are engaged in market segmentation and customer segmentation, while most insurance companies in China are engaged in homogeneous competition (homogeneous business philosophy, process, service, product, channel, cost driving, etc.). On the one hand, small and medium-sized insurance enterprises into a piece of losses, on the other hand, users do not understand, high premium, low compensation, why large-scale losses.
Looking back at the history of auto insurance in the United States, we find that the United States also went through the historical stage of auto insurance chaos, and the Chinese and American auto insurance markets are only at different historical stages of development. China's current car insurance mess and predicament precisely shows that the time is ripe for "reform". The reform or reform of auto insurance fee is only policy guidance. The auto insurance wants to leap to a new stage of development mainly depends on the data of the auto industry, the consolidation of the technical foundation, the progress of science and technology and the improvement of the operating ability of the insurance enterprises.
Through this obstacle, the future size of China's auto insurance market will be equal to or even exceed that of the United States, and the roadmap of the development of auto insurance technology in the United States and the reality of the development of China's insurance technology also make us believe that this day will come as expected. We believe that in the future, China will have more and bigger auto insurance market, more auto insurance operators and more profitable insurance enterprises.
How to overcome this obstacle and share the dividends of future development, the core lies in the three elements of enterprise survival: cost, efficiency and user experience. At the critical moment of the "evolution" of auto insurance, data, technology and cooperation have become the necessary options for insurance companies, and the most successful and excellent enterprises must be those who break the curse of cost growth and realize the win-win-win of cost, efficiency and user experience.
Today, the auto insurance claims service industry in the United States has only a fifth of the manpower input of China, but more than 40% of the time improvement and lower claims management costs (or lower per capita premium expenditure).
To achieve all this, we mainly rely on three things:
1. Complete basic data, standards and transparent and efficient collaborative operating system;
2. Scientific and technological progress promotes the improvement of compensation control ability and significantly reduces fraud leakage;
3. Socialized division of labor and networking technology, combined with in-depth analysis of industry data, make claims management enter the stage of pursuing optimal industry practice from simple and superficial management of black and white.
Nowadays, China's automobile industry and auto insurance industry are facing the "most difficult moment", and only at this extreme moment can the strongest innovation momentum be unleashed. In 2018-2019, insurance technology and reform and innovation are no longer the talk of the insurance industry leaders, but the industry consensus.
Car market winter, car insurance chaos, fee reform pressure, is a dilemma, but also an opportunity, in the right direction, everything will come naturally.
Technology leading, mutual benefit and win-win, prosperity of auto insurance ecology
Bruno Roche, a reciprocity economist, said: "The downside of traditional business models is that they are self-centred, like the geocentric view that the earth is the centre of the world. In fact, the Earth is just a planet in the solar system. So reciprocity economics is' decentralized 'because it's closer to the truth of business. When a business is not self-centered, it sees itself more clearly, has more lasting relationships with others, and thus performs better."
Reciprocity may be the way to win the future.
Kevin, who is well versed in the auto insurance market of China and the United States, believes that "the establishment and network deployment of the auto insurance claim settlement and after-market service ecology in the future should be based on data and system as the carrier. The key is to let all parties in the auto insurance claim service ecosystem reach consensus and sustainable development in terms of interests under the premise of data transparency."
Auto insurance claims and services should not only be upstream intensive. Insurance must also cooperate with downstream to promote integration and transparency through data, systems, reasonable benefit distribution and incentive mechanism, so as to reduce transaction costs, improve service efficiency and improve user experience.
Car and auto insurance operators have now reached a crossroads, and we must ask ourselves two questions:
1. For auto insurance operators, is auto insurance a price-driven product, a service-driven product, or a technology, data-driven product?
2. For automobile dealership enterprises, if insurance policy sales is not the core competitiveness, what is the core competitiveness?
Gone are the days when a single picture of sales covers a hundred ugly things. The balance of profits of users, partners and shareholders, the efficiency, customer satisfaction and cost are acceptable. A more friendly and lasting relationship between channels and suppliers is the foundation for sustainable development in the future.
Winter has arrived, and only when people stay together can they have more chances to survive. China's auto and auto insurance industries have gradually completed their data base, technology reserves and application services, creating conditions for common difficulties and win-win cooperation.
In recent years, CCCIS has been committed to promoting the Direct Repair Program of DRP repair enterprises, aiming to realize the real collaboration between the upstream and downstream business forms through the cooperation between insurance companies and maintenance enterprises, through authorization for compliance, compliance for development, and pursue the industry value of "trust visualization, management visualization". The establishment of DRP ecology will redefine the relationship between insurance, auto repair and parts suppliers and the end customer, aiming to build a transparent, mutual trust and win-win ecology.
Through DRP ecology, the main players enjoy their own benefits:
Insurance company: reduce claims cost, reduce claims cost, improve customer satisfaction, improve claims limitation, reduce fraud, improve renewal rate
Maintenance enterprise: send repair resource acquisition, quick audit of damage, easy to use maintenance enterprise loss determination system
Accessory supplier: Reduce the intermediate link, better inventory management, better profitability, more efficient supply chain, closer ecology
Customer: Service, trust, quality, convenience
If we make too much profit, we end up hurting the ecosystem that we're part of. Burning Bridges will only aggravate the crisis and sink the company deeper.
If companies focus on higher goals, they no longer see themselves as the center of the ecosystem, but as one of the stakeholders. They no longer want to own the resources of the ecosystem, but want to, decide to use the resources; They no longer want to control resources, but to use them wisely; They are no longer self-centered, but focused on the ultimate development goal. (Bruno Rochmar Group Chief Economist)
Science and technology benefit mankind regardless of national boundaries, rich or poor. As the largest auto insurance claim settlement and auto aftermarket technology company in the United States, CCCIS is deeply engaged in the Chinese market, insisting on localization, insisting on doing difficult things, insisting on win-win cooperation, insisting on spreading goodwill, insisting on using technology to make the industry more transparent, more efficient and more harmonious.
The interview is over. The truth of practice relieves the confusion in our hearts, but what is more precious is the humility and calm we can learn from CCCIS.
I wish insurance technology colleagues like CCCIS to realize their vision as soon as possible. I also wish Chinese auto insurance practitioners and relevant partners to get out of chaos and achieve win-win cooperation.
