IAG has confirmed changes to its IT function almost a year after a restructure that saw the creation of separate customer experience and digital teams, with IT operations sitting within the latter.
In early December 2015 IAG announced the restructure that saw the creation of three customer-facing business units (Australian consumer and business, and an international business unit), as well as three internal divisions to support them: Customer Labs and Digital Labs, both sitting under the IAG Labs banner, and Operations.
Customer Labs was tasked with driving customer experience strategy and product innovation, data analytics, brand architecture, and new business incubations.
IAG’s then-CIO, Claire Rawlins, was appointed group executive, digital and technology and given the job of leading Digital Labs, which as well as digital innovation was responsible for IAG’s core IT systems.
The Operations division was given responsibility for claims and a number of operational functions, including procurement and supply chain management.
IAG announced in early October this year that Rawlins had left company though it did not detail the associated changes taking place within the IT team.
The new round of changes involves the merging of Digital Labs’ digital-focussed teams into Customer Labs, which is led by IAG chief customer officer Julie Batch.
Responsibility for core IT platforms has been shifted into Operations, led by chief operating officer Mark Milliner.
The move makes the COO responsible for a consolidation program that will see the insurer migrate from 32 to policy and claims platforms to two, with the company set to roll out GuideWire ClaimCenter across Australia and New Zealand (parts of IAG already use the system).
IAG has not confirmed whether there will be an overall change in headcount associated with the changes.
Milliner used a strategy update last week to detail the insurer’s core systems consolidation program, which is taking place as IAG implements an optimisation strategy to shave $250 million off its operating costs.
“IAG’s technology operating platforms are overly complex and expensive,” the COO said.
“We have some big opportunities,” Milliner said. The program “will provide a simplified claims business and technology architecture across all IAG brands in Australia and New Zealand”.
“It will be done in incremental steps to minimise risk whilst we transform how our people work. The focus is now on completing the implementation of claims across all brands to one system by June 2018,” the COO said.
Milliner said IAG will begin planning the migration of its policy systems next year.