NEOS Life has a unique vision for a very different style of life insurance business. It was obvious from the outset, that technology would be pivotal in achieving their aspirations for both the business and customer experience.
The problem
Building a next-generation life insurance business is a massive undertaking, especially when your goal is to be the best in Australia. NEOS knew that technology could differentiate it from the competition through customer experience and employee satisfaction.
But also, they recognised early, that their expertise lay in insurance, NOT technology. A well-rounded IT team would be needed eventually, but in its early start-up phase, the focus needed to be on building excellent products and phenomenal customer service, not an in-house IT practice.
NEOS knew they needed a partner with the right attitude and a broad range of IT skills, who could be called upon when required, and who would support them as they grew.
So, selecting an IT partner was crucial in allowing the business to focus on developing products, acquiring customers, and scaling quickly.
But NEOS also knew it may be a challenge to find a group of likely partners, and then separate that one partner with the right expertise and service ethos, from the rest.
Starting off with a team of nine industry recognised insurance experts, the first challenge was to get this growing team set up with laptops. At the surface, tha twouldn’t appear to be a huge obstacle, but when you’re building now to cater for rapid scalability in the future, inevitably the company’s focus quickly became locked around agreeing IT best-practice foundations.
These were good challenges. The business was growing, the market continued to evolve, the customer base was expanding, and new staff were continuously onboarding. The life insurance start-up was succeeding, at pace.
Our Solution
Initially, NEOS needed a partner to assist with outsourced desktop support. Knowing the value of a referral, and with several poor experiences in its past, NEOS leadership followed the recommendation from another insurance provider and reached out to Fuse Technology.
Early dialogue quickly demonstrated both businesses held the same values and there was a good symbiotic fit for an ongoing relationship.
When securing the industry’s best and brightest, providing a seamless onboarding experience for highly qualified senior personnel, was of critical importance. Fuse designed an end-to-end onboarding process, with a standardised operating environment (SOE) that could be applied to PCs remotely, with minimal touch and intervention.
On their first day of employment, new recruits merely had to call a phone number, and a few clicks later would have the benefit of a PC that was configured exactly as needed for their role. In addition, Fuse responsibilities extended to IT Asset Tracking, meaning that at any moment, NEOS could have a full view of their IT equipment, what was being used by whom and where it was located.
NEOS grew much faster than initial forecasts, growing out of their first office in under 12 months. With other strategic technology projects already in flight, managing the logistics around a new office deployment had the potential to distract and disrupt the in-house Digital team.
A decision was made to completely outsource the office move to Fuse, with minimal interaction from the NEOS team. A turn-key solution was provided which proved successful and allowed the NEOS team to relocate to new premises and get to work immediately with none of the usual speed bumps.
The variety of projects Fuse is able to deliver, along with commercial flexibility, has allowed NEOS to draw down on IT services, as they are needed. This accommodated a degree of agility in NEOS IT operations, that would have been costly to achieve in-house, or when compared to a less flexible, traditional outsourcing model. This breadth of capability has also meant that NEOS staff know they only have one number to call and are supported by an IT solutions and services organisation who is familiar with their needs, whatever the IT requirement may be.
The Results
The unique range of benefits experienced by NEOS has its foundations in true partnership, not just the technology deployed, or the flexibility of commercial models offered. Along with a solid mutual understanding of each other’s businesses and a joint commitment to success, the most important factor is transparency.
The willingness of both businesses to approach each other with openness and transparency extends to understanding the priorities for NEOS and how service is performing against budget. This understanding enables Fuse to adapt early and proactively assist NEOS in finding savings before they are needed, freeing up CAPEX for other strategic projects, which aren’t necessarily Fuse related.
In addition, the broad range of experience and quality of Fuse staff, which goes hand-in-hand without standing support, underpins the relationship. This is driven by an experienced senior leadership team, combining 110+ years of IT Managed Services experience across small business to enterprise. Their experience encompasses financial services, professional services, not-for-profit, government, education, and healthcare.
Fuse is proactive when it comes to finding ways of saving us money. An open and transparent dialogue with Fuse resulted in knowing our it platforms are being constantly reviewed to ensure the optimal ROI for my business. It has allowed me to instantly justify our relationship when needed, without much work. ALLEN IU, NEOS LIFE
If you’d like to hear about how Fuse can help you with your specific challenges – contact us.
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