ENTERPRISEWIDE SOLUTIONS
CABINET NG OFFERS
CNG-SUPERSEARCH AND
RETRIEVER FOR WEBAPPS
Cabinet NG (CNG), a Madison, Ala.-based provider of document management and workflow software,
announced two new products: CNG-SuperSearch and Retriever for WebApps.
Both products are designed to accelerate user productivity by quickly locating
and accessing documents filed in CNG-SAFE when using the latest Microsoft
technology such as Windows Vista and
Windows 7, or Web-based applications.
Microsoft Windows 7 and Vista feature the use of gadgets—small tools
that install in the Windows sidebar on
the desktop. CNG-SuperSearch is a new
gadget that enables users to immediately locate documents or folders stored in
CNG-SAFE by simply entering a word,
key phrase or number into the search
field.
Additionally, CNG-SuperSearch
enforces all of CNG-SAFE’s security and
user access rights. Searching methods
include document, folder and full-text
search. CNG-SuperSearch also can be
installed as a desktop application, and
used in Windows XP environments.
DTCC SOLUTION ENABLES
UNSTRUCTURED DATA TO BE
ELECTRONICALLY EXCHANGED
The Depository Trust & Clearing Corp.
(DTCC), New York, announced the
launch of “Attachments,” an electronic
solution designed to streamline the pro-
cessing of required paperwork and sig-
natures for pre-sale and post-issuance
transactions in the insurance industry.
Attachments enables insurance carriers
and distributors to electronically
exchange unstructured information,
such as digital or imaged documents,
signatures, and forms that are required
in the processing of annuity and life
insurance contracts.
Developed by Insurance & Retirement
Services (a unit of DTCC’s National
Securities Clearing Corp. (NSCC) subsidiary), Attachments mitigates operational risk by reducing the number of
“not-in-good-order” transactions, and
preventing delays associated with faxing
or mailing paper documents.
It also helps to meet increasing regulatory and compliance requirements by
introducing an automated process that
produces a transparent audit trail, says
the vendor.
Attachments is the second Web service developed by Insurance &
Retirement Services in XML message
format and is based on the ACORD Life
and Annuity Standard. Fund Transfers,
introduced in 2008, automates and standardizes the fund reallocation process
for variable insurance products.
NIIT TECHNOLOGIES PARTNERS
WITH KAAVO TO OFFER CLOUD
COMPUTING SERVICES
NIIT Technologies
Inc., Atlanta, is part-
nering with Kaavo
Inc., to provide secure
cloud infrastructure
management services
to all of NIIT Technologies’ current and
future clients.
NIIT says that while enterprises want
to take advantage of the benefits of on-demand infrastructure offered by cloud
computing, they have questions concerning security, control and reliability
of infrastructure and applications
deployed in the cloud.
The companies will combine NIIT
Technologies’ IT Infrastructure
Information Library-based delivery and
Kaavo’s Infrastructure and Middleware
on Demand (IMOD) engine.
NIIT will use Kaavo’s IMOD platform,
which has a top-down application-focused approach to IT infrastructure
management in public and private
clouds, for delivering superior services
to customers.
ing process with its fully automated system. “The system provides the tools that
enable a user to facilitate any type of training that he wants,” says Tod Browndorf,VP
of the San Jose, Calif.-based firm. “It could
be Sarbanes-Oxley, workers compensation, compliance, or any type of business
knowledge or business intelligence that
you want to transfer.”
Coggno, which charges companies
$5 per seat per course (a seat represents
an e-mail address), has found increased
interest from insurers for its services.
“Instructor-led training is a very expensive way to convey knowledge,” says
Browndorf about traditional, in-class
trainings. “Also, companies are looking
for easier, quicker, faster ways to get
information into the hands of the people that need to receive it—sort of the
lower barrier to entry.”
SUPPLEMENTAL TRAINING
Though burgeoning in popularity,
online training is generally designed to
complement rather than replace on-site
trainings. “We are finding that there is a
larger call for this distance learning, and
that is the road we are going down a little bit,” says Mirabella. “But still, I think
that the relationship is key for us, so we
are increasingly [using] a blended learning approach.”
For instance, Chubb’s underwriters
attend one to two classes per week over
a six-week period in a virtual classroom,
and also take tests online. They then go
to Chubb’s home office in Warren, N.J.,
for one week of face-to-face training.
Next, they return to a virtual classroom
for another five weeks to reinforce what
they have learned, and to learn new
material as well. “That is kind of the
route we are taking in terms of helping
producers and agents as well,” says
Bettina Kelly, SVP, talent strategies group
manager for Chubb.
While continuing to move toward e-learning, Travelers focuses on meeting
its audience where they most want to be
met, whether it be online or through
another medium. It relies heavily on
Claim University, its more than two-year-old training academy in Windsor,
Conn., where subject matter experts
teach Travelers employees in classes and
laboratories. Some 12,000 students
annually go through Travelers’ onsite
labs.
“While we see the benefits from our
existing e-learning resources, and we
intend to continue developing additional e-learning resources, we will certainly always benefit from the sophisticated
lab environments that we offer our people who come into an auto, property or
heavy equipment lab,” says Madelyn
Lankton, SVP of claims shared services at
Travelers.
Insurers such as Aviva make no
bones about the importance they place
on employees proving their competence in the online academic arena.
The carrier’s students need to achieve
an 80% score on their online tests
before they can attend classroom trainings, which focus on practical applications and case studies. Aviva expects
that online learning will be one of various training methods that enjoy
greater currency among insurers.
“More and more organizations overall
are looking at a broader spectrum of
learning offerings, rather than your
standard ones that we all sort of
attended 10 years ago,” says Ardizzi.
“Online learning provides many efficiencies across the board, so it is an
area that most companies are looking
to leverage.” INN
Daniel Joelson is a freelance business writer
based in Arlington,Va.
For more about personnel
matters in the organization by searching
“Automating Talent Management” at
www.insurancenetworking.com.
