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Role of Information Technology in enhancing the customer reach at IDBI Federal Life Insurance Company Ltd. Background of the Study
Information technology has been providing wide range of benefits to all the business sectors. It has become hugely beneficial to the Insurance industry also. The key area in which it has provided major improvements and benefits is customer support. Insurance industry is perhaps the best example of an information-based industry, because its activities consist of gathering, processing and distributing information. To drive growth and profitability of the company, efforts are required to interact with and retain the customers. Information technology is driving changes in the functions of the insurance companies with its innovations. The companies that fail to keep up with the latest technologies have the risk falling behind in competition by relinquishing their leadership positions. Making no mistake, the insurance industry is at a pivot point as further success is likely to rest on todays technology strategies and decisions. With increased competition among insurers, service has become a key issue. Customers are looking for more and features that add to better service. So, any insurance company today must meet the need of the hour with more and more sophisticated approaches while handling the customers. Today, managing the customer intelligently is very essential for the insurer, especially in this highly competitive environment. This project aims to study the importance of information technology attached with its business processes at my SIP Company, IDBI Federal life Insurance Company limited. It also identifies the new developments in Information technology that can be applied to this company. Also, it analyses whether the company can gain any strategic advantage through e-insurance. It also aims at understanding how customers attitudes and behaviours are changing.

Company Profile
IDBI Federal Life Insurance Co Ltd is a joint venture of IDBI Bank, Indias premier development Bank and commercial Bank, Federal Bank, one of the Indias largest leading

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private sector banks and Ageas, a multinational insurance giant based out of Europe. In this venture, IDBI bank owns 48% equity while Federal Bank and Ageas own 26% equity each. The company was started in March 2008. Soon after its inception, within five months it has become one of the fastest growing Insurance companies in India to garner Rs. 100 crores in premiums. The company offers its services through a vast nationwide network across the branches of IDBI bank and Federal bank in addition to a sizeable network of advisors and partners. As on 31st March 2012, the company has issued over 3.76 Lakh policies with over 21,578 Cr in sum assured.

Role of Information Technology in the Insurance sector

Insurance companies are making significant investments in information technology to align business strategies, to enable innovative functional operations and provide extended enterprise networks. Information technology has been adopted by these companies to foster changes in managing customer relationships and to enhance their competitive capabilities. As many innovation activities involve adding new services, expanding existing ones and/or improving the service delivery process, the success of an organization hinges on how well it implements its service innovation to create new markets. Information technology has delivered the following benefits to the industry: 1. Increased revenues over the years 2. Improved decision support 3. Increased profitability 4. Increased efficiencies at least by 20% at lowered costs Global information technology spending by insurance companies is expected to reach US$140.6 billion in 2012, an increase of 6.3% over 2011. According to a research reports by Netscribes, ICT spending by insurers in India is anticipated to grow from last year's Rs76.17 bn with a CAGR of around 14% through 2015.

Objectives of the Research project

The primary objectives of the research project are: 1. To study the role of Information Technology in various business processes at IDBI Federal.

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2. To identify the importance of Information Technology in enabling the customer service. 3. To identify the new developments in Information technology that can be applied to IDBI Federal. 4. To analyse whether IDBI Federal can gain strategic advantage through E-Insurance. 5. To examine the customer adaptability, readiness and expectations while using the online services provided by the Insurance companies. 6. To help the customers know about the IDBI Federal company, its products and their services.

Research Methodology
1. In this project, primary is collected from the customers and prospective clients through questionnaire. A set of 25 questions is used. These questions were easily administered by the customers. 2. Secondary data pertaining to the study of the importance of Information technology in the Insurance Industry was studied. 3. Data Collection Method: Questionnaire Method 4. Sample Size: 100 5. Sampling frame: Business men, Working professionals, Retired employees, Graduates 6. Sample Units: Individual clients 7. Sampling Technique: Random sampling 8. Questionnaire Design: I have designed the questionnaire by keeping the following the following things in mind. Questions are kept simple and to the point. Hypothetical questions are avoided. Questions that require memory work are avoided. Questions are easy to understand. Questions that require numerical calculations are avoided. Questions can be easily administered by the respondent. The sequence of the questions was adjusted so as to avoid pre-dispositions.

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Technologies for Insurance

The technologies that are emerging, depicted here under can be put into the four quadrants. These technologies will have impact on several of the business areas; each has a primary impact on one of them. Some of these technologies are already adopted by the insurers, while some of them are being adopted and some of them are likely to be adopted in the near future.

Major Findings
1. 94%of the respondents felt that the insurance product is a necessity for them. So the customers are becoming involved in their purchasing decisions.
2. 76% of the customers use internet to find the information about the insurance

products, whereas 24% dont. This shows that majority of the customers are using internet to get the insurance information. Customers attitudes are changing while buying insurance. They are becoming self-decisive.
3. 63% of the customers use internet to compare the features of different insurance

products online. They are using websites like policy bazaar.com etc.,
4. Almost 94% of the customers are influenced by the agents for buying the insurance.

However, they are facilitated by the internet while taking decisions.

G.RajyaLakshmi_11079 5. 70% of the customers are ready to pay the premiums online and 51% of the

customers are ready to buy insurance online.

6. 50% of the customers prefer to Shop Online-Buy Online, and 50% of them prefer

to Shop Online-Buy Offline. 7. Despite increased promotions of the company, IDBI Federal Life insurance Company Ltd, 35% of the customers are unaware about this company, even without hearing to its name.

RECOMMENDATIONS The company needs to majorly build the trust with its customers. The product and service delivery models must be able to meet the customers
changing needs and expectations because they are becoming more and more selfdirected. The company needs to project its brand and reputation consistently and broadly. It must increase its presence on the websites like insurancemall.com, my insurance club.com etc. Presently it is seen on only Policy bazaar.com. Social Media marketing must be initiated by the company and it needs to prepare strategies to present effectively to the customer. The company must invest on presenting its brand online. The company needs to invest in new generation technologies to enable them to target existing customers with a propensity to buy appropriate products. The company must focus more on building long-term relationship with the customers by knowing what they want, giving what they want and thereby it could derive value. By using techniques like predictive models, it could track the customers who are likely to switch over to another company and target them with what they exactly need, and thereby it could retain its existing customers in the future. The company needs to integrate both online as well as offline channels in a better manner to meet changing customer needs. Customers expect price discounts for more than one product. Offering them these kinds of discounts will enhance the customer loyalty.

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Internet can help agent to become info-mediary instead of intermediary, with the help of which he can communicate the information in an effective manner. E-security is a very serious issue. So effective measures should be constantly taken to mitigate the risks. The company must continuously be updated with techniques and technologies to fight against frauds in the claims. If these fraudulent claims are left unchecked and proper actions are not taken, they are likely to bring great losses to the company. So investing on these technologies that may control fraud must be initiated.

Company executives must better understand the underlying business strategies and how their IT projects would drive significant ROI; they needed to work closer with the business than in the past and this may be going to become a key contributor to driving new revenue.

Technology must be well utilised by the company to gain greater efficiencies in processing and managing claims, add new products and services, deal with regulations, and maintain an edge against their competitors.

CONCLUSION
The insurance sector is rapidly growing at a faster rate. Rise in middle class population and growing disposable income of the nation are allowing the sector to grow better. The insurance sector as a whole is improving the risk capabilities of our nation. But, the Indian companies in this industry are stacked up against each other with cut throat competition and hence, those companies that make their edge by implementing effective strategies carefully are likely to succeed. For a company like IDBI Federal Life Insurance Co. Ltd, use and application of information technology in variety of its operations is strategic in the sense and it can improve the productivity of the company by improving its efficiencies in marketing, accounting, servicing, claim processing, fraud- detection etc. New opportunities must be identified and new products, services, work practices must be created with the help of innovations in information technology. By gaining strategic advantage through the benefits provided by IT, it may even become the market leader by competing with LIC.