Implementation of Online Delivery Channel for an Insurance Company

Background

Our client is a leading Auto insurance company on the West Coast. The client’s business includes marketing and selling insurance policies and processing claims for Auto insurance.

Business Challenge

The client had an existing website primarily used for corporate information and prospect acquisition. However, its main interface was its call centers handling telemarketing, telesales, claims processing, and customer service.

Need for Internet-Based Customer Engagement

To scale, the client aimed to add the Internet as a channel to deliver its services, providing the easiest way to get auto/home/personal insurance online with a seamless online-offline experience.

Limitations of Call-Center-First Model

The call center-centric model was expensive and limited in reach. It demanded a scalable architecture to balance online and offline customer experiences.

Scalability and Flexibility Goals

The architecture needed to support:

New delivery channels (online, mobile)
Product/process flexibility
Geographic expansion with minimal IT cost
Customer/product profitability tracking per channel/location
Low-impact system modifications and easy application additions

Xoriant’s Approach

Xoriant was selected for its system integration expertise, especially with TIBCO middleware, online web technologies, and transaction systems. The client also benefited from Xoriant’s hybrid onsite-offshore delivery model.

Understanding Business and Technical Requirements

Xoriant’s business analysts collaborated with the client team to finalize functional requirements, which were mapped to the new technical architecture.

Redesigning the Existing Architecture

The primary goal was to redesign the architecture to provide scalable Internet access and enhanced functionality without disrupting call center operations.

Existing Architecture

Two-Tier Model Overview

The platform had a two-tier architecture with:

Presentation Layer Components

Perl CGI scripts – Claims (FNOL)
Cold Fusion (CFML) – Corporate Info, Homeowners RFQ, Registration
Java Servlet (Jacada) – Policy Endorsement, Billing
JavaScript – Business rules

Backend Layer Composition

Claims – Text files
Corporate Info – SQL Server
Registration – SQL Server
Homeowners RFQ – SQL Server + VB FTP app
Policy Endorsement – IBM OS/390 Mainframe

Proposed Architecture

Enhanced Presentation Layer (JSP & Servlets)

The front end was redesigned using JSP and Servlets hosted on IBM WebSphere. Perl and CFML were replaced entirely with JSP.

Business Logic via EJBs)

All non-Jacada business logic was moved into reusable Enterprise Java Beans (EJBs), creating a scalable and maintainable logic layer.

Backend Evolution

IBM Mainframe (unchanged for Policy Endorsement)
Oracle replaced SQL Server for Registration, Corporate Info, RFQ, and Claims

Reasons for Migration

CFML was expensive, hard to scale, and less supported
SQL Server scaled poorly at TB-level data volume
Oracle offered horizontal scalability and performance tuning
Perl scripts were difficult to maintain compared to Java/JSP

Technology Stack

Operating Systems: Windows NT, IBM Mainframe
Middleware: WebSphere, Cold Fusion (retired)
Languages/Frameworks: JavaScript, JSP, Servlets, XML, HTML, CFML (retired)
Databases: Oracle, SQL Server (retired)
Security: SSL Certificates

Business Impact & Results

Improved Scalability & Performance

Modular distributed design supported easier geographic and app expansion
Better interface consistency for MIS and statutory reporting

Reduced Cost of Ownership

JSP-based framework enabled faster, cheaper feature additions
Use of open, standards-based technology lowered maintenance costs

Enhanced Customer Experience

Real-time policy quoting and online transactions via CyberSource, Sure-Pay, CyberCash
Self-service options like claim initiation and policy changes
Personalized portals and PDF document transmission for policyholders

Future-Ready Architecture