Identify FirstBest as “Hot Insurance Technology Company to Watch in 2009” and FirstBest UMS as “Key Technology that will Affect the P&C Insurance Industry”
BEDFORD, MA, February 10, 2009 – FirstBest® Systems, Inc., developer of advanced Underwriting Management Systems™ (UMS) for commercial insurance carriers, announced today that the company and its Web-based software have been recognized in recent reports from independent research firms Forrester, and Novarica. These industry reports underscore the demand for new technologies to help property and casualty insurers streamline systems and offer FirstBest Systems as an option for the sector. Additionally, FirstBest has been listed in a Gartner report.
Forrester report “Hot Insurance Tech Companies To Watch In 2009: Profiles Of Technology Companies That Are Reinventing Insurance IT,” December 12, 2008, by Ellen Carney, Senior Analyst, named FirstBest Systems one of seven insurance technology vendors meeting “diverse or emerging insurance industry needs,” including “flexibility to respond to customer, agent, and carrier requirements at the speed-of-market.” In this first document in Forrester’s “Hot Companies to Watch in Financial Services” series, analysts profile several emerging or smaller companies to watch in 2009 and beyond and provide brief descriptions of companies noted for their “inventive approaches and solutions.”
FirstBest Systems, Inc. was also listed as a sample vendor in Gartner, Inc.’s “Hype Cycle for P&C Insurance, 2008,” by Kimberly Harris-Ferrante, Vice President Distinguished Analyst, June 27, 2008. According to Gartner’s report, "The use of EBUW (exception-based underwriting) solutions will help P&C insurers reduce subjectivity, improve data collection at the point of sale and improve consistency in underwriting decisions. Low-level decisions and underwriting for straightforward product lines…can be completely automated… while complex product lines can benefit from using EBUW to automate manual tasks and simple decisions, which will improve the workload for underwriters. Collaborative capabilities between agents/intermediaries and the underwriters can also result in such benefits as quicker underwriting completion, which may drive increased revenue and agent satisfaction."
Additionally, FirstBest was profiled as one of nine insurance technology vendors in Novarica’s “Market Navigator™ US Property/Casualty New Business solutions 2008 (Q4),” December, 2008. The report, authored by Matthew Josefowicz, Director, Insurance Practice, Novarica, provides “an overview of the current solution provider marketplace for property/casualty new business systems, and to assist insurers in drawing up their shortlists of potential providers based on vendor market position and offering details.” Based on factual responses and subsequent conversations with vendors, the report covers details about the organization, client base and key functionality.
"At its base, each of these solutions includes an Agent Portal, which provides a web-based environment for agents to submit new applications through an electronic form, as well as perform other activities like messaging with underwriters and managing client information. Some of these solutions also include Underwriter Workbench elements, providing an environment for underwriters to interact with submitted applications, or Rating Engines, which generate rates," said Josefowicz.
“FirstBest strives to be as innovative as our customers– forward-thinking companies that are investing in new technologies to leapfrog their competitors, grow and scale their businesses profitably and become the carrier of choice to their agents,” said John Belizaire, Founder and CEO of FirstBest Systems. “Company and technology recognition from Forrester and Novarica further validates the business need for UMS and our timely value proposition for property and casualty insurers.”
About FirstBest
FirstBest® Systems, Inc. delivers advanced Underwriting Management Systems™ (UMS) that enable insurance companies to write more business and write better business. The FirstBest UMS™ combines a next-generation underwriting workstation with a point-of-sale agency portal for commercial lines carriers. Insurers can achieve greater speed and business agility, provide real-time collaboration to make it easy for agents to do business with them, promote enhanced underwriting discipline and best practices, scale their book of business profitably, and empower underwriters and agents with greater visibility into the business. For more information, visit www.firstbest.com or call 1.888.863.6095.
Press contact:
Meira Primes
VP, Marketing
FirstBest Systems, Inc.
781.863.6005
mprimes@firstbest.com