Asia Pacific Insurance Distribution Management Systems by Celent

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Business & Economics
Research Reports
<p> 
 
 
Wenli Yuan, KyongSun Kong 
May 22, 2013 
 
ASIA-PACIFIC INSURANCE 
DISTRIBUTION MANAGEMENT 
SYSTEMS 
GROWTH THROUGH SUPERIOR PRODUCER SERVICE 
This authorized reprint contains an excerpt from a Celent 
report profiling and evaluating 11 different distribution 
management systems. The full report is 77 pages long. The 
report was not sponsored by C2l Biz Solutions Private Limited 
in any way. This reprint was prepared specifically for C2l Biz 
Solutions Private Limited, but the analysis has not been 
changed. For more information on the full report, please 
contact Celent at www.celent.com, info@celent.com.  
 
 
CONTENTS 
Executive Summary ............................................................................................................ 1 
Introduction.......................................................................................................................... 2 
Distribution Management Systems: Definition and Functionality ........................................ 4 
Definition .......................................................................................................................... 5 
Report Methodology ............................................................................................................ 6 
Criteria for Inclusion ......................................................................................................... 6 
Evaluation Process .......................................................................................................... 6 
Celent’s ABCD Vendor View ............................................................................................... 7 
The XCelent Awards ........................................................................................................ 8 
About the Profiles ................................................................................................................ 9 
C2L BIZ Solutions: SymbioSys - Distribution Management System................................. 10 
Company and Product Background .............................................................................. 10 
Lines of Business .......................................................................................................... 11 
Functionality .................................................................................................................. 11 
Usability, Analytics and Document Management .......................................................... 16 
Technology .................................................................................................................... 17 
Implementation and Costs ............................................................................................. 18 
Summary ....................................................................................................................... 19 
Leveraging Celent’s Expertise .......................................................................................... 21 
Support for Financial Institutions ................................................................................... 21 
Support for Vendors ...................................................................................................... 21 
Related Celent Research .................................................................................................. 22 
 
 
 
 
 
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 
Insurers are increasingly using producer service excellence as a tactic to retain and grow 
business. The activity level is high in the distribution management automation space 
among both insurers and vendors. From January 2011 to January 2013, 26 insurers 
licensed one of the new systems profiled in our report. 
This report helps insurers refine their distribution management system strategies and, 
where appropriate, establish a list of vendors for evaluation. Six distribution management 
systems are fully profiled. All are used in Asia-Pacific for at least one line of business in 
life, annuities, health, or property and casualty insurance. Five limited profiles are 
included for market entrants, systems that did not meet the criteria for a full profile, or (in 
one case) a vendor that chose not to be included in the full profiles. 
This report also names the winners of the XCelent Awards. 
 
 
 
 
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INTRODUCTION 
Insurers are increasingly using producer service excellence as a way to retain and grow 
business. Expanded functionality and improved technology mean that insurers continue 
to have a wide spectrum of systems and vendors to consider when they are looking for a 
solution that fits their needs. This review helps insurers refine their distribution 
management system strategies and, where appropriate, create a list of appropriate 
vendors for evaluation. 
This report includes full profiles for six Asia-Pacific distribution management systems that 
met the inclusion criteria described in the Report Methodology section. Five limited 
profiles are provided for market entrants, for systems that did not satisfy all the inclusion 
criteria, and, in one case, a vendor that chose to not be included in the full profiles.  
This review also uses Celent’s ABCD Vendor View, which is our standard representation 
of a vendor marketplace, designed to show at a glance the relative positions of each 
vendor in four categories: Advanced technology, Breadth of functionality, Customer base, 
and Depth of client services. Insurers should consider which factors are most important to 
them, and review the detailed profiles in this report with these in mind. 
In evaluating alternative systems, Celent urges insurers to develop a clear understanding 
of their needs in these key areas: 
 
Level of insurer control in maintaining the system: How important is it to be self-
sufficient in making updates to the application, and how much does the insurer want 
to rely on the chosen vendor for services? Support models vary between suppliers, 
from complete independence after implementation to significant dependence on 
vendor resources for modifications. 
 
Level of IT control in maintaining the system: How important is it to transfer system 
maintenance from a technical (IT) area to business users / business analysts? 
Systems also vary regarding their design and the utilities provided to allow 
nontechnical personnel to build and modify commission plans, change screen 
layouts, and even set up automated data exchange between systems. Before 
evaluating alternatives, insurers should determine the extent to which they want 
updates performed outside of a technical systems area. 
 Enterprise or division scope: Will the system be used for multiple lines of business 
across the enterprise, or will it be applied to divisional and/or targeted, monoline 
organizations? If multichannel/multiline support is needed, applications must be 
carefully vetted regarding their ability to effectively handle this requirement effectively 
with acceptable performance. 
 
Level of agent self-service: To what degree will the agent/producer force be involved 
with the system? The degree of self-service varies between applications, with some 
allowing only basic demographic viewing or updating, others handling simple 
transactions such as problem reporting and routing, and some enabling more 
advanced transaction processing for producers such as creation of custom, ad hoc 
reports. 
 Use of BPO services: Insurers are encouraged to determine if selected activities 
involved with distribution management can be outsourced. For example, the 
administration of licensing, first-level call center support for agents, and onboarding 
assistance are candidate processes for placement with a vendor.  
 Number/depth of prebuilt components: Vendors vary in the number and 
sophistication of insurance-specific frameworks that are delivered with the base 
 
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system. Examples include common commission plan structures/calculations, basic 
workflows for onboarding, and simple escalation logic for the routing of problem 
tickets. The availability of prebuilt components accelerates the implementation 
process and can be a source of best practice. Insurers should discover how many 
such utilities are offered by each vendor and evaluate the functional depth of the 
activities with the highest priority. 
 
 
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DISTRIBUTION MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS: DEFINITION AND 
FUNCTIONALITY 
Distribution processes involve disparate administrative functions that are focused on 
operational issues such as configuring compensation plans, administering payment and 
reconciliation, registering and licensing producers and tracking education requirements. A 
conceptual view of what Celent calls “producer lifecycle management” is depicted in 
Figure 1. 
Figure 1: Producer Management Lifecycle 
 
Source: Celent 
To a producer, all of these tasks are part of maintaining and growing a relationship with 
an insurer. When service issues arise, agents are not interested in knowing that different 
people handle different parts of the process using systems that do not “speak” to one 
another. They would like their commission or licensing or contracting problem resolved 
immediately with as little time investment as possible. 
However, in a typical insurance environment, multiple departments perform separate 
tasks in the cycle. Coordination of activity and integration of information is minimal. This 
is especially problematic since producer management involves a substantial volume of 
transactions and data from multiple sources. Typical processes and automation were 
designed for an environment that has long since passed—one that was much more 
stable and predictable. 
These conditions result in multiple issues including poor service, a lack of insight into 
producer performance, unreliable data, and high support costs. It is critical to increase 
production within existing agents (to keep them happy), necessary to expand into new 
producers (to bring them onboard quickly and with minimal hassle), and essential to 
monitor performance of all sales activities (to know who is doing what and take action 
appropriately).  
 
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Many insurers are also expanding into additional distribution channels, such as 
bancassurance, direct marketing, and online channels.  
Celent believes there is an opportunity for insurance companies to gain market share 
through the execution of a strategic approach to producer lifecycle management. Carriers 
can gain competitive advantage in their distribution efforts if they bring together and 
consolidate these various processes to create an integrated approach that delivers higher 
quality service, more reliable information, and lower costs.  
Accomplishing this goal will require process optimization and integrated automation, both 
of which are highly dependent on technology. However, in the past, system solutions 
have also been fractured. Separate vendor applications were required to accomplish all 
the tasks across the lifecyle because no offering “did it all.”  
In this report, Celent reviews distribution management systems as a single set of 
activities that includes what has historically been labeled enterprise incentive 
management (EIM) and licensing and compliance systems. Applications are evaluated 
based on their ability to address the full lifecycle of a company-producer relationship. 
DEFINITION 
This broad approach to distribution management results in the following components 
being in scope for review (see Table 1). 
Table 1: Distribution Management System: Components 
 
COMPONENT 
MAJOR TASKS 
 
Compensation Management  
Commission calculations, commission hierarchy, 
plan management 
 
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) 
Coordination of customer data and 
communication 
 
Document Management 
Creation and maintenance of commission 
statements and correspondence with distribution 
resources; may extend to correspondence with 
end customers as well 
 
Producer Appointment Management (licensing, 
hierarchy management, renewal, termination) 
Appointment, hierarchy management, renewal, 
termination activities 
 
Producer Licensing and Licensing Compliance 
Management  
Producer licensing, renewal, and termination; 
including interface with states for reporting and for 
updating of compliance requirements 
 
Producer Onboarding Management 
Workflow and task automation to speed process 
of establishing a new agent 
 
Producer Portal 
Agent self-service inquiry and, in some systems, 
transaction support 
 
Producer Recruitment Management 
Agent self-service inquiry and, in some systems, 
transaction support 
 
Registration Management for Producers of Variable 
Products 
Interface with regulators to ease administration of 
agents selling variable products 
 
Sales Performance Reporting and Management 
Tracking, reporting and predicting past, present, 
and future producer performance 
Source: Celent 
 
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REPORT METHODOLOGY 
CRITERIA FOR INCLUSION 
Celent’s objective has been to include in this report as many as possible of the leading 
distribution management systems being used or actively sold to Asia-Pacific insurers. 
The report contains two types of profiles: full and limited. The topics covered in both 
types of profiles are broadly similar; however, full profiles are written with more detail and 
include comments from reference insurers. Additionally, vendors with a full profile are 
included in the Celent ABCD Vendor View; limited profile vendors are not.  
The criteria to be included as a full profile are: 
 At least two Asia-Pacific life/annuities, health, or property & casualty insurance 
customers in production.  
 Participation by at least two reference customers. 
 
These criteria were designed to maximize the number of systems that can be reasonably 
expected to remain available (and viable) based on vendor size and strength, maturity of 
product and client base, and other important factors. 
One exception is for C2L BIZ Solutions. Its SymbioSys - Distribution Management 
System was developed in 2011 and 2012. In a short period it already has one client in 
production and two more clients in implementation. We included this solution in the full 
profile section.  
The limited profile section includes five vendors that did not meet the criteria for a full 
evaluation but did provide significant information about their offerings. In one case, a 
vendor chose not be included as a full profile. When initiating a solution search, insurers 
are encouraged to contact these suppliers and receive an update on their current 
activities in Asia-Pacific. 
EVALUATION PROCESS 
Celent sent a detailed RFI to a broad set of distribution management system vendors. 
After receiving completed RFIs, each full profile vendor provided a briefing concentrating 
on usability and functionality for everyday users, and rules, tools, and connectivity for IT 
or administrative users.  
Celent also asked at least two references provided by each vendor to complete an online 
survey in order to obtain their view of the system’s business and technology value.  
Both the RFIs and the reference surveys provided quantitative and qualitative data. 
Vendors had an opportunity to review their profiles for factual accuracy but did not 
influence the overall evaluation or the placement in the ABCD Vendor View. Celent has 
retained final authority over the content of the published profiles. Some of the vendors 
profiled in this report are Celent clients, and some are not. No preference was given to 
Celent clients either for inclusion in the report or for the subsequent evaluation. 
Not all data gathered from the detailed RFI, vendor briefing and demo, and reference 
surveys has been included in each profile. Celent has attempted to capture key points 
and values about each vendor at an appropriate level. Unpublished information remains 
in the Celent knowledge base and is available to Celent’s subscription and consulting 
clients. 
 
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CELENT’S ABCD VENDOR VIEW 
Celent’s framework for evaluating vendors is the Celent ABCD Vendor View. This is a 
standard representation of a vendor marketplace designed to show at a glance the 
relative positions of each vendor in four categories: Advanced technology, Breadth of 
functionality, Customer base, and Depth of client services. 
The Celent ABCD Vendor View shows positions of each solution evaluated. Each vendor 
solution is judged relative to the others in the group.  
While this is a standard tool that Celent uses across vendor reports in many different 
areas, each report will define each category slightly differently. For this report, some of 
the factors used to evaluate each vendor are listed in Table 2. 
Table 2: Factors Used in the Distribution Management System ABCD  
Advanced Technology (and 
flexible technology) 
 
Usability for both business and system administration users 
 
Code base, including modernity of language and consistency of 
architecture 
 
Range of databases, operating systems, application servers, and 
integration methods supported  
 
Ability to modify system using visual tools rather than through code 
 
Method of extending data model (tools only, mix, coding only) 
 
Extent of business user involvement in making changes  
 
Reference comments regarding technologies and flexibility 
Breadth of Functionality 
 
Components as well as functions and features provided in base 
offering  
 
Functions and features provided through configuration by a 
nontechnical business user 
 
Power and ease of use of rules, workflow, and product configuration 
capabilities 
 
Supported and in production lines of business 
 
Reference comments regarding functionality 
Customer Base 
 
Number of Asia-Pacific clients on current or previous version 
 
Number of Asia-Pacific clients on last upgraded versions 
 
Number of new Asia-Pacific clients since January 2011 
 
Number of Tier 1/Tier 2 Asia-Pacific clients 
Depth of Customer Service 
 
Size and experience of professional services and support team 
 
Reference comments on implementation experience 
 
Reference comments regarding quality of on-going support 
 
Flexibility in pricing models  
Source: Celent 
 
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THE XCELENT AWARDS 
Within this framework, the top performers in each of the ABCD dimensions are 
recognized with a corresponding XCelent Award:  
 XCelent Technology for the leading Advanced Technology score 
 XCelent Functionality for the leading Breadth of Functionality score 
 XCelent Customer Base for the leading Customer Base score 
 XCelent Service for the leading Depth of Service score 
 
Celent advises insurers to look at complete solution profiles at the next part of this report 
to better understand each solution. We suggest that insurers consider their specific 
needs and evaluate each vendor against those needs. Although they are very successful 
in one or more of the criteria, the XCelent Award winners may not be the best match for 
an insurer’s specific business goals and solution requirements. 
 
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ABOUT THE PROFILES  
Each of the profiles presents information about the vendor and solution, professional 
services and support capabilities, customer base and reference customer feedback, 
functionality and lines of business deployed, usability, product configuration, and 
workflow abilities, technology, implementations, cost, and some summary comments. 
Concerning fees, Celent asked vendors to provide first year license and first year other 
implementation costs (work by the insurer, vendor, or third parties) for two hypothetical 
insurance companies:  
 
Insurance Company A, a single licensed insurance company with eight lines of 
business, producing annual premium of US$250 million; 
 
Insurance Holding Company B, with four sub companies, writing in five countries with 
annual premium of US$2.5 billion. 
 
When discussing insurance customers of the various solutions, the profiles use the terms 
very small, small, medium, large, and very large insurers. Very small insurers (Tier 5) 
have under US$100 million in annual premium; small (Tier 4) have US$100 million to 
$499 million; medium (Tier 3) have US$500 million to $999 million; large (Tier 2) have 
US$1 billion to $4.9 billion; and very large (Tier 1) have US$5 billion or more. 
Each profile includes a table of available components which lists the vendor’s breakdown 
of its system into component parts. The profiles also include a list of in production and 
supported lines of business and the number of clients using the system for those 
products. Additionally, the profiles include tables detailing functional capabilities and the 
vendor’s estimate of the use of these features in existing implementations. 
 
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C2L BIZ SOLUTIONS: SYMBIOSYS - DISTRIBUTION 
MANAGEMENT SYSTEM 
COMPANY AND PRODUCT BACKGROUND 
C2L BIZ is a privately owned insurance industry solution and service provider.  
Table 3: C2L BIZ SOLUTIONS Snapshot 
COMPANY INFORMATION 
 Company Size  
Approximately US$ 225,000 derived from the agency management solution. 
98 employees, 27 of who provide professional services / client support for 
the agency management solution, with an average of 7 years of industry 
experience. 
 
Headquarters Location 
Global HQ: Mumbai, India 
APAC HQ: Singapore 
DISTRIBUTION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM 
 System Name  
SymbioSys - Distribution Management System 
 Launch Date 
2011  
 Last Major Release 
Version 1.1, Aug 2012 
No major technology change 
 Target Market 
Life, health, non-life for all geographies 
 SaaS Offering 
N/A 
CUSTOMER BASE 
 Asia-Pacific Clients 
1 in production in India 
2 in implementation 
 New Asia-Pacific Clients 
Since January 1, 2011 
3 
 Clients Outside Asia-Pacific 
0 
 Marquee Clients 
Future Generali Life Insurance company limited 
Source: Vendor RFI 
 
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LINES OF BUSINESS  
SymbioSys - Distribution Management System is designed for all lines of business, but 
currently only has life business in production. Non-life and health insurance will be in 
production by December 2013. 
Table 4: C2L BIZ Solutions - SymbioSys - Distribution Management System: Lines of Business 
LINE 
STATUS 
NUMBER OF ASIA-PACIFIC 
CUSTOMERS 
NON-LIFE, COMMERCIAL LINES 
Supported but not in production 
0 
NON-LIFE, PERSONAL LINES 
Supported but not in production 
0 
SPECIALTY 
Supported but not in production 
0 
LIFE 
In production 
1 
ANNUITY  
Supported but not in production 
0 
HEALTH 
Supported but not in production 
0 
Source: Vendor RFI 
 FUNCTIONALITY 
The components of SymbioSys - Distribution Management System include hierarchy 
management, performance management, compensation management, and Finance & 
MIS. Its support status for components surveyed for by Celent is listed in Table 5. 
Table 5: C2L BIZ Solutions - SymbioSys - Distribution Management System: Components 
 COMPONENT 
STATUS 
 Compensation Management (commission 
calculations, commission hierarchy, plan 
management) 
Can be licensed/installed as stand-alone component 
(without Distribution Management solution)  
 
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) 
Not available 
 
Document Management 
Not available; Solution provides for ready-made hooks 
to integrate with any third party Document 
Management system 
 
Producer Appointment Management (licensing, 
hierarchy management, renewal, termination) 
Can be licensed/installed as stand-alone component 
(without Distribution Management solution) 
 
Producer Licensing and Licensing Compliance 
Management  
Can be licensed/installed as stand-alone component 
(without Distribution Management solution) 
 
Producer Onboarding Management 
Can be licensed/installed as stand-alone component 
(without Distribution Management solution) 
 
Producer Portal 
Can be licensed/installed as stand-alone component 
(without Distribution Management solution); The next 
release of SymbioSys - Distribution Portal is 
scheduled in June 2013 
 
Producer Recruitment Management 
Not available 
 
Registration Management for Producers of 
Variable Products 
Available ONLY bundled with Distribution 
Management (no additional cost) 
 
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Sales Performance Reporting and Management 
Available ONLY bundled with Distribution 
Management (no additional cost) 
 Others: Replacement of Policy 
Available ONLY bundled with Distribution 
Management (no additional cost) 
 Others: Tax Management 
Available ONLY bundled with Distribution 
Management (no additional cost); Country specific 
taxation rules need to be configured 
Source: Vendor RFI 
Almost all of the commission and hierarchy management functions surveyed for by 
Celent are available either as a base offering or through configuration by a nontechnical 
business user. 
Table 6: C2L BIZ Solutions - SymbioSys - Distribution Management System: Commission and 
Hierarchy Management 
 FEATURE 
STATUS 
USE AMONG 
EXISTING CLIENTS 
 Unlimited-tier commission management 
Available through configuration 
by a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
Ability to consolidate commissions from 
multiple lines / multiple companies in a single 
processing instance 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 
Set up, calculate, pay and report company 
sponsored bonuses for agents, managers, and 
field staff (i.e., bonuses based on production, 
persistency, and other sales incentive 
programs for various members of the 
hierarchy)  
Available through configuration 
by a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
Payment hold/release 
Available through configuration 
by a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
Payment schedules that can be personalized 
for individual agents by insurer staff 
Available through configuration 
by a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
Administration of payments / recoveries other 
than commission 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 
User-defined rules managing recoupment, 
garnishments, and chargebacks 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 
Producer finance history (adjustments, 
advances, recoupments, payment details) 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 
Prebuilt interfaces to common financial 
packages  
Delivered as part of base system 
(Currently available for SUNGL 
and ORACLE Financial) 
●●● 
 
Unlimited levels of hierarchies 
Available through configuration 
by a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
Ability to track relationships beyond basic 
hierarchical relationships 
Available through configuration 
by a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
Territory / office hierarchy management 
Available through configuration 
by a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
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Ability to consolidate multiple operating 
companies, multiple channels, and multiple 
divisions into a single entity 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 
Ability to consolidate and map multiple IDs into 
one  
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 
Single allocation of portfolio on transfers 
Available through configuration 
by a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
Bulk allocation of portfolio on transfers 
Available through configuration 
by a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
Automated portfolio transfers 
Available through configuration 
by a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
User-defined rules management of orphan 
portfolio assignments  
Not available (Orphan portfolio 
can be transferred manually) 
 
Source: Vendor RFI 
Key: ● = 0–33%; ●● = 34–66%; ●●● = 67–100%  
 
SymbioSys supports multiple distribution channels. It supports definition of channels, 
agencies/partners, and branches, as well as agents. Besides supporting unlimited levels 
of hierarchies, the system also allow the same level of hierarchies, as well as skip level of 
hierarchies. System allows configuration of multiple/parallel hierarchies for a given 
producer, such as commission hierarchy, reporting hierarchy, monitoring hierarchy, 
geography, relationship manager, training, etc.  
SymbioSys allows unique compensation and payment rules defined for specific channel, 
partner, designation, as well as to individual producer. Compensation rule can be defined 
with expression.  
In regard to allocation of portfolio on transfers, commission, overriding commission, 
personal KPI, and group KPI all can be configured to retain with existing hierarchy or 
transfer to new hierarchy with transfer percentage. Orphan portfolio can only be 
transferred manually. 
Many functions of contract and licensing management as well as recruiting and 
onboarding management are in the base package. 
Table 7: C2L BIZ Solutions - SymbioSys - Distribution Management System: Producer 
Management 
 FEATURE 
STATUS 
USE AMONG EXISTING 
CLIENTS 
 Recruiting administration 
Not available 
 
 
Automated interface to leading job 
boards (Monster, etc.) 
Not available 
 
 
Prebuilt workflow and rules for 
administration of onboarding 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 
Electronic signature support for 
agents/onboarding 
Not available 
 
 
Contract administration 
Delivered as part of base system 
● 
 
User-defined producer authority rules 
management (lines of business allowed, 
Available through configuration by 
●●● 
 
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suspension, no new business, etc.) 
a nontechnical business user 
 
Automated licensing renewal 
Available through configuration by 
a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
Automated background investigation 
(ordering and results) 
Delivered as part of base system 
●● 
 
Administration of awards, honors, 
contests and recognition programs 
Available through configuration by 
a nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 
Administration of training requirements 
for producers 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 
Producer examination tracking 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 
Tracking of errors and omissions 
coverage 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 
Agent self-service portal (commission 
inquiry, contest standings, production 
metrics) 
Delivered as part of base system 
● 
 
Agent dispute tracking and management Delivered as part of base system 
● 
 
Lead management 
Delivered as part of base system 
(Lead tracking is available. Lead 
Management is in roadmap and will 
be available by March 2014) 
● 
Source: Vendor RFI 
Key: ● = 0–33%; ●● = 34–66%; ●●● = 67–100%  
 
Solution allows for defining and computing of multiple awards, honors, contests, and 
recognition programs for all channels for various durations. 
Prebuilt integrations are largely accomplished as base offering. Usage as reported by 
C2L BIZ Solutions among existing clients is high. 
Table 8: C2L BIZ Solutions - SymbioSys - Distribution Management System: Prebuilt Integration 
 FEATURE 
STATUS 
USE AMONG EXISTING 
CLIENTS 
 Prebuilt interface(s) with social networks  
Not available  
 
 Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) with 
external entities for fee processing 
Delivered as part of base system 
(through third party receipting 
system) 
●●● 
 Real time interface with country's 
producer/agent database 
Delivered as part of base system ●●● 
 Prebuilt interface(s) to export and import 
agent demographic data, appointment and 
termination information using 3rd party 
vendors 
Not available 
 
 Automated updating of system to ensure 
compliance with regulations regarding 
license, appointment and registration rules 
Delivered as part of base system ●●● 
 
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 Number of countries interfaced with for 
producer management (appointments, 
terminations, licensing, onboarding, 
general maintenance) 
0-5 
●●● 
Source: Vendor RFI 
Key: ●= 0–33%; ●● = 34–66%; ●●● = 67–100% 
SymbioSys uses a proprietary business rule engine called SymbioSys Rule engine. The 
system has the set of vocabulary based on which the compensation rules can be defined. 
SymbioSys has a built-in workflow tool that provides ability to configure workflow, rules 
pertaining to process management and for escalation management. The process flow is 
defined by using an Excel sheet driven interface. Thanks to its built-in workflow tool, 
SymbioSys allows for backdated movements with commission wind back/ forward to old/ 
new agent.  
Table 9: C2L BIZ Solutions - SymbioSys - Distribution Management System: Business Rules and 
Workflow 
 FEATURE 
STATUS 
USE AMONG 
EXISTING 
CLIENTS 
 Workflow Management (a visual tool set to 
design, execute, and monitor workflows—
without changing core code)  
Available through programmers (e.g., 
adding/modifying the solution’s code 
base) 
●●● 
 Workflow Management graphic design 
environment, with automated code 
generation 
Available through programmers (e.g., 
adding/modifying the solution’s code 
base) 
●●● 
 Workflow rules repository that is searchable 
and version controlled 
Available through configuration by a 
nontechnical business user 
●●● 
 Automated workflow alerts (bottlenecks, 
past due tasks, etc.) 
Available through configuration by a 
nontechnical business user 
● 
 Manager-level reports/audit/inquiry 
capability by staff person 
Delivered as part of base system 
● 
 Manager-level reports/audit/inquiry 
capability by work group 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 Business Rules Management (design and 
execute, externalized from core code). If an 
external package, please indicate vendor in 
comments. 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 Business rules repository that is searchable, 
version controlled 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
 Prebuilt library of compensation rules 
components 
Delivered as part of base system 
●●● 
Source: Vendor RFI 
Key: ● = 0–33%; ●● = 34–66%; ●●● = 67–100%  
 
 
 
 
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USABILITY, ANALYTICS AND DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT 
SymbioSys provides some user-friendly usability features for end users as well as 
configuration users. For example: 
 
The design of the interface for configuration users (usually nontechnical business 
users) allows quick navigation to different parts of the application. At the top of the 
screen there are tabs and drop-down menus. Users are able to open multiple menus. 
Under each menu there are more tabs that categorize information. There are 
hyperlinks to click for detailed information. 
 SymbioSys provides an intuitive graphical view of hierarchy.  
 Workflow folders displayed as per user privilege.  
 Solution provides for a static portal where a producer can enquire about the 
commission statements, premium due listing, contest ranking, performance tracking 
etc. 
 Dashboards are available to get complete view of activity status, pending  
activities, etc. 
Document management is available through integration with third party document 
management system. Business intelligence and analytics function and management 
reporting dashboard are available but have not been implemented. 
The level of maintenance performed in business areas in reference accounts is high. The 
client Celent surveyed reported that users create and maintain 100% of hierarchy 
management, commission rates and rules, and special incentive plan; 75% of the total 
work effort for “create and change workflow rules” is accomplished by non-IT staff. Based 
on this feedback, it appears that SymbioSys can be business-directed if an insurer so 
chooses. 
Table 10: C2L BIZ Solutions - SymbioSys - Distribution Management System: Analytics and 
Document Management 
 FEATURE 
STATUS 
USE AMONG 
EXISTING 
CLIENTS 
 
Business intelligence and analytics 
Delivered as part of base system 
 
 Management reporting dashboard 
Delivered as part of base system 
 
 Management and financial reporting 
data store 
Not available 
 
 
End user performed modeling (what-if 
analysis) on compensation 
components, compensation programs 
and hierarchies 
Not available 
 
 
User-defined ad hoc reporting 
Not available 
 
 
Electronic document management 
(insurer can customize paperwork for 
onboarding, licensing forms, etc.) 
Not available 
 
 
Forms and correspondence library with 
basic document management 
functionality 
Not available 
 
 
Electronic document management 
(insurer can customize commission 
statements) 
Not available 
 
 
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Support of ACORD producer forms 
Not available 
 
Source: Vendor RFI 
Key: ● = 0–33%; ●● = 34–66%; ●●● = 67–100%  
 
TECHNOLOGY 
Technology options for SymbioSys are listed in Table 11.  
Table 11: C2L BIZ Solutions - SymbioSys - Distribution Management System Options 
CODE BASE 
 
 
Features/functions/screens for everyday 
business users 
100% Java  
 
 
Configuration and Development 
100% Java  
 
OPERATING SYSTEMS 
 
 
Preferred Options 
Preferred option AND in production: Windows 
Preferred option NOT in production: Unix, Linux for z and 
other Linux 
 
Additional Options 
N/A 
INTERFACES 
 
 
Internal Business User 
100% browser-based (HTML) 
100% browser-based (HTML with Ajax) 
100% browser-based (Other Rich Internet Application): As 
part of Web Based interface we are using some Rich 
Internet controls for better UI controls 
 
Configuration and Development 
100% browser-based (HTML): 100% Web Based UI for 
configuration 
100% browser-based (Other Rich Internet Application) 
Other: For Developers to customer the code, we user 
Eclipse as the IDE 
DATABASES 
 
 
Preferred Option 
Preferred option AND in production: Microsoft SQL Server 
Preferred option NOT in production: Oracle, DB2/UDB 
 
Additional Options 
N/A 
Source: Vendor RFI 
As a part of overall architecture, SymbioSys has mobile framework based on MEAP 
technology. Currently C2L BIZ Solutions has developed sales tools for agents on mobile 
platform that covers Sales Collateral, Lead tracking, Sales illustration, e-App, etc. 
The data model is proprietary. To extend Data Model, insurer’s technical staff can use 
standard DB tools. However, this is only required at integration layer. C2L BIZ Solutions 
mentioned that at the Integration layer level, they have also created extensive slots to 
 
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cater to most requirements for life, health, and general insurance business, and hence 
request for schema change is minimal. Once the data model at the integration layer is 
extended and new data vocabulary for rules is created, the entire rule configuration can 
be done by the business users using the Configuration UI. 
SymbioSys supports multicurrency as well as multilanguage. Multilanguage/multicurrency 
can be supported on a single instance. 
For the largest deployment, SymbioSys is used by 25,000 users with US$155 million 
premium billed annually. 
IMPLEMENTATION AND COSTS 
A typical implementation of SymbioSys involves a team of six to ten people. A typical split 
among C2L BIZ employees and the insurer’s employees is 65:35. The average time from 
project initiation to get the first line of insurance in live use is between four and six 
months, with subsequent lines also taking four to six months. C2L BIZ typically does not 
work with third parties for implementations, but may do so in future. 
The main cost in the first year comes from initial installation and customization, which 
accounts for 69% of total cost. The remainder is split between software license (24%), 
annual maintenance (5%), and training (2%). C2L BIZ offers perpetual license and SaaS 
model, and do not have any preferred option. C2L BIZ is willing to get into Risk - Reward 
model with clearly defined responsibility and accountability. The license fee can be based 
on number of functional components/modules, number of lines of business, or a flat fee. 
Client references were life and annuity insurers. Deep domain knowledge, understanding 
of insurance in different markets, flexible, comprehensive and futuristic solution, 
commitment to outcomes, and “easy to deal with” were identified as specific strengths. 
Reference feedback on implementation and service was high across the board.  
Figure 2: C2L BIZ Solutions - SymbioSys - Distribution Management System: Software 
Implementation and Service Rating 
 
Source: Reference client feedback form 
 
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For a typical single licensed insurance company with eight lines of business, producing 
annual premium of US$250 million, the total cost including license, implementation, and 
maintenance would be in the range of US $400,000 and $800,000, with license fees 
costing around US $100,000 to $300,000. For a typical insurance holding company with 
four subcompanies, writing in five countries with annual premium of US$2.5 billion, a 
larger fee between US$1.5 million and $3.75 million would be charged in the first year, 
with license fees costing between US$500,000 and $750,000. But all above cost is 
depending on country and integration complexity. Assuming the first year is focused on 
implementation of SymbioSys, the year two cost of maintenance is typically 20% of the 
license fee. 
SUMMARY 
SymbioSys is a new solution developed in 2011 and 2012. In a short period, it already 
has a live client and clients in implementation. It is a focused distribution management 
solution with strong hierarchy and commissioning as well as performance management 
features. Its modern technology, easy to use interface, and capability to configure all 
distribution channels and their rules in a single system with configurable workflow make it 
a good candidate for investigation by insurers. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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LEVERAGING CELENT’S EXPERTISE 
If you found this report valuable, you might consider engaging with Celent for custom 
analysis and research. Our collective experience and the knowledge we gained while 
working on this report can help you streamline the creation, refinement, or execution of 
your strategies. 
SUPPORT FOR FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS 
Typical projects we support related to distribution management include: 
Vendor short listing and selection. We perform discovery specific to you and your 
business to better understand your unique needs. We then create and administer a 
custom RFI to selected vendors to assist you in making rapid and accurate vendor 
choices. 
Business practice evaluations. We spend time evaluating your business processes. 
Based on our knowledge of the market, we identify potential process or technology 
constraints and provide clear insights that will help you implement industry best practices. 
IT and business strategy creation. We collect perspectives from your executive team, 
your front line business and IT staff, and your customers. We then analyze your current 
position, institutional capabilities, and technology against your goals. If necessary, we 
help you reformulate your technology and business plans to address short-term and long-
term needs. 
SUPPORT FOR VENDORS 
We provide services that help you refine your product and service offerings. 
Examples include: 
Product and service strategy evaluation. We help you assess your market position in 
terms of functionality, technology, and services. Our strategy workshops will help you 
target the right customers and map your offerings to their needs. 
Market messaging and collateral review. Based on our extensive experience with your 
potential clients, we assess your marketing and sales materials—including your website 
and any collateral. 
 
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RELATED CELENT RESEARCH 
Property and Casualty Insurance E-Business in Asia 
November 2012 
Life Insurance E-Business in Asia  
September 2012 
Deal Trends in Property and Casualty Policy Administration Solutions: 2012 Asia-Pacific 
Edition  
July 2012 
2012 Asia-Pacific Insurance CIO Survey: The Year Ahead  
July 2012 
North American Insurance Distribution Management Systems 
June 2012 
Deal Trends in Life, Pensions, and Annuities Policy Administration Solutions: 2012 Asia-
Pacific Edition  
May 2012 
Asia-Pacific Life/Annuity Illustration Systems 2012  
May 2012 
Asia-Pacific Policy Administration Systems 2012: Life and Pension ABCD Vendor View  
February 2012 
Asia-Pacific Policy Administration Systems 2012: Property and Casualty ABCD Vendor 
View  
January 2012 
Celent Model Insurer Asia 2012  
January 2012 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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