SCM is the largest independent, privately-owned provider of claims management, risk management, medical evaluations, and related services in Canada.
Challenge
If it’s one thing their customers have in common, it’s coping with paperwork. In 2019, Mike Ackroyd, CIO for SCM, recognized that the company was relying solely on manual processes to handle claims, and had to cope with forms from each customer in a different data format. There was too much time spent on duplicate data entry or data extraction, and automation seemed to be a logical way to solve the problem. That’s why he turned to The Burnie Group, specialists in management consulting and intelligent automation, including UiPath integration. SortSpoke was also involved as a Tech Alliance Partner.
Solution
By assembling the right internal team and working with both Burnie Group and SortSpoke, implementation was quick, with production in eight to 12 weeks. Similar technology projects that rely heavily on IT can take months or even years. In the last 12 months, SCM’s developer team has been able to launch 10 bots with more in the pipeline.
The most useful aspect of automation was to shorten time to data extraction – a solution that has value in underwriting, claims, loss, and other channels. As Ackroyd says, “you can do so much with that data once it’s extracted – the sky’s the limit.”
After Automation
SCM now can handle any type of customer paperwork faster and more efficiently. For example, using RPA has eliminated manual data entry for First Notice of Loss (FNOL), so new insurance claims can now be completed 80% faster. When you consider that claim volume spikes when there is a natural disaster, such as a fire, flood, or blizzard, being able to scale claims processing capacity is critical. And with automation, the claims paperwork is delivered faster and is more accurate, which saves insurance companies money. Worker satisfaction is higher as well. SCM employees say they are pleased to be relieved of mundane tasks such as data entry so they can focus on more strategic tasks.
In the video below you can get more details on how and why SCM chose their business partner, The Burnie Group, and their RPA vendor to start their automation journey.
