A Time-proven Blueprint for a Successful Conversion
Like snowflakes, every software conversion is unique.
While no two claims software conversions are alike, there is a blueprint that paves the way for a fluid conversion. Over ClaimPilot’s 20-plus-year history, we’ve identified a number of best practices for dodging pitfalls, avoiding unnecessary delays, and maintaining open communications.
Experienced, Knowledgeable Personnel
Regardless of whether you are a third-party administrator (TPA), independent adjuster (IA) or self-insured (SI) entity, it’s imperative to have experienced, knowledgeable personal involved in your conversion. These people should be experienced, available, connected and involved.
Ideally, your conversion personnel have a firm grasp on your company’s data structure and can provide information that can be interpreted easily. They should know the workflow, understand the roles everyone involved in the conversion, have a grasp on regulatory issues and concerns, and be available and knowledgeable to answer conversion-related questions.
This breath of knowledge is somewhat all-encompassing, so it’s rare that one person will have all the answers. What’s we generally see, particularly with larger companies, is several people who collectively fill those roles.
Key takeaway: Little things can snowball into big things, so the conversion team must never kick the can down the road. Everyone involved in your conversion must be able to prioritize how questions are answered to ensure nothing falls through the cracks that could lead to breaches in state and federal reporting requirements and associated fines.
Communication is Key
From the onset, open two-way communications are an important cornerstone to a successful conversion.
- After you provide sample data and loss runs, it’s crucial to review the data in the sandbox test environment and respond to questions in a timely manner.
- The actual organization of communications is critical. Each email should be addressed and responded to separately.
- The bigger the conversion, the more complex it becomes. This complexity involves details and issues that must be addressed and resolved.
Key takeaway: Open two-way communications, organized client feedback and timely input pave the way for the successful conversion of data that’s been thoroughly reviewed.
A Defined System Administrator
Having an internal system admin who is trained in security management empowers you to internally manage users and permissions in the system.
- If you’re a claims manager at a large company and have 50 adjusters working for you, their security controls are separated by data and function, and changes may be required from day to day. Having someone trained on your team for security management makes this type of change fast and simple.
- The person who needs a change – an adjuster in the example above – may not be authorized to request that change, and you need a designated internal gatekeeper to manage and execute requests.
Key takeaway: Having an internal system administrator trained to make specific changes to security permissions enhances your operational efficiency and boosts productivity.
A Well-defined Workflow
A meticulously defined workflow does many things. It tells your team what to do, when to do it, how to do it and which best practices to follow. It also pinpoints deficiencies and backlogs. Having a well-defined workflow also has critical implications during a claims software conversion because that workflow is being configured in the system.
The risks of not having a well-defined workflow are numerous. If your conversion team doesn’t know or understand the workflow, there will be a laundry list of questions that have to answered about your processes. If the answers aren’t readily available, your team then becomes dependent on the knowledge and availability of managers or others in your organization who were not included in the initial conversion process.
Key takeaway: Knowing your workflow and being able to articulate it eliminates time delays, uncertainties and misinterpretations.
Single Point of Contact
Once your sample data and loss runs have been imported into the sandbox test environment, the most efficient funnel for communications is through a single point of contact who streamlines all communications.
Imagine this chaotic scenario. Your conversion has gone live. Fifty adjusters can’t find a specific field they need, and 50 adjusters bombard their claims management software provider with 50 requests. The result: an inefficient, confusing and redundant path to resolution.
Key takeaway: The most efficient way to communicate and resolve issues during and after a conversion is through a single point of contact.
Weekly Calls
Back to the snowflakes. Every conversion requires a unique level and frequency of communications.
A small conversion may require a few if any, weekly calls. Larger conversions, however, have a different progression that likely includes weekly calls that are laser-focused on problem resolution as you progress toward End User License Agreement deadlines.
Key takeaway: pre-conversion calls are proactively focused on progression toward a common goal, and post-conversion calls are reactive for issue resolution.
Training
Training deserves a capital T.
Interactions during training lead to open communications and strong working relationships between the client team and the support team. Importantly, training provides an opportunity for everyone to become comfortable with the workflow, processes and functionality of the platform.
For small conversions, there may only be one person who receives training. For larger companies, everyone who is a decision maker and has the authority to create, read, update or delete data in the system should participate in training to ensure workflow accuracy.
Regardless of a company’s size or the number of people on its conversion team, pre- and post-conversion training should be customized to each unique conversion to ensure optimal use of the claims management software platform
Key takeaway: Training is key to utilizing claims management software efficiently and effectively, and decision makers must participate in training relevant to their respective workflows.
Are You Ready?
Anticipating, understanding and addressing the uniqueness of each conversion has armed ClaimPilot with a time-proven set of best practices. If you’re ready to take the first step in making a claims management software decision, or if you’re curious about ClaimPilot’s best practices in action, request a ClaimPilot demo here.
