After almost three decades in the industry, I think it’s fair to say that I’m an “insurance nerd”. And yet, I still find the insurance industry to be among the most fascinating ones out there. It’s mainly the variety of tasks that keeps me and my curiosity excited. I also always have the opportunity to work very closely with our partners and customers.

As Head of Clients & Markets at CSS Insurance, my role revolves around customers and the market. This includes managing all sales channels: our nearly 100 agencies in Switzerland, our agents and brokers, the online and telephone channels, the entire customer service area, our digital customer solutions, and CX management.

The big challenge here is to achieve an end-to-end customer experience across all these channels while building trust. To do this, it’s essential that we collect and use data correctly. Adobe Real-Time CDP and Adobe Journey Optimizer, along with Adobe’s other solutions, are our tools of choice. A 360-degree view of our customers is crucial for gaining insights into the customer journey. Only then can we target our policyholders’ needs at the right time and through the right channel. Our customers value the freedom to use their preferred channel of contact, whether it’s the web, our My CSS customer portal, the customer service center, or an agency. While around 50 percent start their journey online and the other half starts at the agency, our sales agents are always our top performers. They need comprehensive information to provide the best possible customer experience.

https://video.tv.adobe.com/v/3476983/

I created this short video in collaboration with Adobe. Here, you can learn how we’re optimizing our customer experience management and how AI is changing customer interactions.

Retention begins at every interaction

To guarantee long-term customer loyalty, every interaction, no matter how small, is crucial. We make sure to continuously monitor the entire customer experience and regularly look for feedback: “Were you satisfied with the phone call? With your last agency visit? With how your last claim was processed?” By listening to our customers, we also strengthen our relationship with them. I have a similar personal experience: My flight out of Rome was canceled, and I was stuck and feeling a bit lost. The customer experience at the counter where I rebooked my flight was outstanding. It is exactly emergencies like those that offer enormous potential, not only to retain customers, but also to gain new ones.

Looking to the future: AI and curiosity

Technologies like generative AI (GenAI) offer great potential for us and our workflows, but the data must be right for them to be used efficiently. The future is promising, and we’re working hard to take advantage of everything that AI has to offer. We already see potential applications in customer service and internal copilot applications. But AI systems could also serve as intelligent insurance assistants in customer-oriented systems such as My CSS or our premium calculators.

To seize these new opportunities, our employees only have to be one thing: curious! You have to be willing to learn, and a healthy dose of courage is also needed; otherwise, you’ll miss out on many opportunities. In my career, at least, curiosity has always kept me ambitious.

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