"We've seen the future of e-commerce . . . and we're nowhere in the picture".
At least that's what some 175 insurance executive said when they described their companies' futures in e-commerce for KPMG. Those executives have high hopes of being there -- someday --although some of them have been saying the same thing for years.
KMPG conducted its survey for its insurance industry conference and learned that only two per cent of the executives surveyed believed their companies were "greatly ahead" of the competition with respect to their e-business strategies. More than half of those who responded (53 per cent) believed that they were "even" with the competition. Treading water seems to be where most insurers are today. Those that aren't treading water apparently believe they are drowning, since nearly a third (30 per cent) say they are "significantly behind" the competition.
Many of those surveyed (40 per cent) believe their company lacks strategic vision. More than a quarter of them (26 per cent) are in the old "chicken or the egg" mindset, believing that the biggest threat to conducting e-business in their company is not knowing how to conduct e-business. And, of course, when something isn't working, we all revert to our days in the playground: nine per cent of executives believe there is no one running the e-business initiatives within their company ("I thought you were in charge." "I thought you were.")