Author Archives: Greg Henkin- iXchange
As consumers, we are all flooded with TV ads from GEICO, Progressive and other insurance companies that are providing insurance coverage direct to consumers. In fact, it seems the Gecko is TV’s most famous and recognizable celebrity today (at least he is to me). So, why do these companies sell their insurance products directly to the consumer instead of through insurance agents? The reasons are simple: Increased profit margin A direct relationship with the buyer The intermediary/agent provides little added … More
Just like most of you, I live in a town that has to purchase various forms of commercial insurance. The goal is for the town to create a fair bidding process for qualified insurance brokers to bid based upon the specifications provided. To accomplish this, Municipalities and Governmental Agencies use what is known as a “Sealed Bid” process where the bidders submit a sealed envelope that no one can tamper with. We understand that this is a fairly common practice. … More
At long last, the ability to see inside the “black box” of commercial insurance purchasing has arrived! Like almost everything else, commercial insurance purchasing is going live online. Buyers are seeing the benefits of using technology to improve the cost and coverage terms for their companies. Sourcing technologies are enabling CFOs and other stakeholders to go to their ipad or mobile device and view the auctioning of their commercial insurance. The benefits just keep piling up because they get all … More
Commercial insurance companies are experiencing a lack of transparency, efficiencies and fairness in the traditional insurance buying process, which is resulting in increased costs. In addition, buyers often form long-term relationships and do not engage in a process that yields the best financial results. Costs can spiral upward in some cases significantly above the actual pricing that is available to the buyer on equal or better coverage terms. Furthermore, there are no solid benchmarks for buyers of commercial insurance. The … More
Greg Henkin Managing, Partner iXchange, has more than 30 years of experience in the insurance industry. He has held senior management positions in several major insurance brokerages, owned his own brokerage and risk management consulting firms, and now owns and operates the iXchange. In his experience, reverse auctions in the insurance space are most successful when the sourcing event follows these six steps: Establish goals and parameters. Agree on the timing and date of the auction. In addition, you should … More
The use of reverse auctions has significantly reduced the costs of many commodities that corporations purchase. The “art” of spend management and Group Purchasing Organizations (GPO’s) using reverse auctions is becoming common among private equity firms. The principal focus of spend management is on goods and commodities. The successful application of reverse auctions to such corporate service “spend” categories as legal, accounting and insurance is relatively limited. A few large corporations have experimented with the use of reverse auctions for … More
