It has been one month since the Root team were on the ground at the recent Insurtech Insights Europe conference which saw the annual migration of 5,000 of the great and the good from the world of insurance and technology converge in London. From embedding insurance into customer journeys to the low-code advantage, here are our key takeaways from this leading insurtech event.
The Root team were delighted to land in London in early March once again to further cement our presence in this leading international hub insurance market. Root Co-Founder Louw Hopely addressed the audience on Day 2 for a panel discussion on How Low-code/No-code Redefine Change Management, a topic which was a strong theme throughout the event.
Root is a low-code platform (or should that be “Louw code” - #sorrynotsorry), and it was very interesting to hear how advanced the discussions were around customisation on low-code platforms (vs the inflexibility of no-code platforms). Insurers have an appetite for technology that enables them to achieve their dream insurance products, rather than dictate the parameters of what they can produce.
Root COO Charlotte Koep noted, “There was a lot of discussion about the difference between using low code tools as part of business operations vs core operations.”
Louw agreed, adding: “Root’s low code architecture has emerged as the most viable, compatible alternative to the traditional technology procurement and development process. We were keen to help delegates understand the value of this and the distinction between low code and no code, in particular when it comes to delivering users control over their data and USPs.”
Business Development Lead at Root Sizwe Mase said discussion quickly moved from low-code vs no-code to the challenges of technical change management within big organisations versus a startup:
“Ultimately, there was a hunger for solutions that addressed project management methodology, speed and execution, and grappling with gaining a full understanding of the challenges that an organisation is actually looking to solve.”
Working the floor
Conversations with delegates at the Root booth and networking on the exhibition floor were also illuminating.
Sizwe noted, “Delegates we spoke to were interested in what differentiates Root from our competitors; which is where our tech's autonomy and flexibility shone, especially our CLI tooling/workbench functionality. Interestingly, pricing was a secondary consideration if mentioned at all.”
Root Co-Founder Jonathan Stewart said a recurring theme was the sense of urgency around embedded and distributing insurance via affinity channels:
“Big players are wanting to move quickly to gain market share, and reliable and agile execution is critical for this channel.”
The execution challenge: A key theme
Charlotte agreed. “Finding the distribution doesn’t seem to be the bottleneck, execution and finding the right partner is. Those that move the fastest and deliver value to the affinity brand channel will win the market, and technology is the big enabler for these efforts.”
However, Charlotte noted that embedded strategies were furrowing some brows among traditional players:
“Incumbent insurers admittedly struggle with embedded strategies. We strongly feel there are opportunities for solutions like Root to work alongside more established systems to complement or complete their value proposition. Delegates were surprised to hear that they didn’t need a complete legacy systems overhaul to launch an embedded proposition for instance.”
Jonathan added, “Visitors to our stand were visibly surprised and impressed by the depth of our technology. And our being South African didn’t seem to be a thing at all! There was interest in the level of insurance innovation from SA in fact.”
Louw agreed, “A very welcoming and interesting group of people attended this event. We feel the networking mindset of the event allowed for very direct and specific discussions about a particular pain point or opportunity, even very in depth conversations about technical solutions. We are looking forward to our next visit to the UK!”
Stepping into the UK
We have had some exciting discussion’s following Insurtech Insights Europe last month, and want to thank everyone who took the time to talk to us during the event. If you'd still like to chat to the team Contact us to schedule a call.
Check out this interview between Louw and Mia Wallace for more insight into our UK expansion plans.
