SMA Releases Third Report in Insurance Ecosystem Research Series

BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - November 17, 2009) - SMA Strategy Meets Action, a leading insurance industry analyst firm, announces the availability of "Managing the Wave: Technology Spending and Solution Alignment," the third report in the SMA Insurance Ecosystem Research Series.

This report compares insurer IT plans with solution provider offerings across the value chain for the North American property and casualty segment. It is a companion to "Riding the Wave: Insurer Technology Spending, Drivers and Approaches," another report in the series which investigates insurer IT plans over the next three years.

"Solution providers have a solid understanding of insurer IT investment triggers when it comes to operational issues, including business drivers such as cost containment and business process optimization," said Mark Breading, partner at SMA and co-author of this report. "However, the more strategic business drivers oriented towards future growth and profitability are not well understood by solution providers."

"Managing the Wave" is based on data gathered from nearly 200 industry respondents, knowledge gained through more than 100 hours of interviews with senior insurance leaders, plus a substantial body of secondary research. This 30-page report includes detailed findings and analysis focused on the business drivers, insurer IT spending, insurer capabilities and perceptions of IT solutions available compared to the solution provider viewpoints for these same areas. The report includes analysis by insurance company size and provides insights on areas of alignment, gaps in the alignment and opportunity areas for both insurers and solution providers.

"With significant spending shifting to front-end capabilities, both insurers and solution providers need to seek ways to utilize current and emerging technology, including new data capabilities, to truly be successful in this changing marketplace," said Karen Furtado, partner at SMA and co-author of the report. "There are white spaces that exist in the market, especially in the areas of marketing, product development, and underwriting, where insurers' required capabilities are evolving, and there are only a few insurance-centered IT solutions to address the real need."

Additional research reports in the Insurance Ecosystem Research Series will continue to be published throughout 2009 and into 2010 for the property and casualty and the life and annuities segments of the insurance industry.

For more information about the SMA Insurance Ecosystem Research Series or SMA's services, please contact Deb Smallwood at 603.770.9090 or dsmallwood@strategymeetsaction.com, or visit the company's website at www.strategymeetsaction.com. All reports are available for purchase online at www.strategymeetsaction.com/our-research.

About SMA Strategy Meets Action

Exclusively serving the insurance industry, SMA is a new breed of strategic advisory firm offering a unique blend of research, advisory and consulting services to both insurance companies and solution providers. By leveraging best practices from both the management consulting and research advisory disciplines, SMA's advisory services are actionable, business-driven and research-based -- a good fit for companies eager and ready to embrace change and achieve business success by taking strategies to meet action. Additional information about SMA can be found at www.strategymeetsaction.com.

Contact Information: Media Contact: Jennifer Overhulse-King St. Nick Media Services (859) 803-6597