Jonas Huonder
Marketing Lead CMO, Microsoft Switzerland
When a severe hailstorm hits Switzerland, Mobiliar’s actuaries face the challenge of quickly and accurately estimating the financial impact of the storm. Their experts analyze a variety of information – from the size of the hailstones to the affected regions and historical damage patterns. To handle complex tasks like these more efficiently, the actuarial team relies on cloud technologies and machine learning.
In the world of insurance, actuarial science forms the mathematical foundation on which risk assessments and strategic decisions rest. „We are essentially the company’s crystal ball,“ explains René Burkhard, Head of Actuarial Dynamic Models at Mobiliar. By leveraging Azure Cloud and machine learning, this complex work receives a significant boost. Mobiliar’s actuarial team has established a frontrunner team, an interdisciplinary group of mathematically trained employees and IT specialists, to drive the digitalization of actuarial processes with Microsoft’s support. The combination of traditional expertise and cutting-edge technology opens up entirely new possibilities in risk analysis and product design.
At the heart of this transformation is Microsoft Azure’s cloud infrastructure, which fundamentally changes the actuarial work processes. „The transition from monthly data preparations to near real-time analyses marks a significant step in our work,“ explains René Burkhard. This new temporal quality is evident in the evaluation of natural disaster events. Integrated Azure services allow data to flow seamlessly from various models directly into the calculation models, substantially improving the response time and accuracy of forecasts.
In addition to near real-time data processing, the actuarial team has made significant progress in other areas of data analysis. To optimize premium and tariff calculations, actuaries use Databricks, an analytics solution based on the Azure platform. Databricks enables efficient processing of large datasets without interfaces, providing deeper insights. „The models help us identify patterns in the data that are often invisible to the human eye,“ explains the actuary. This leads to more accurate calculations and enables more informed decision-making.
Moreover, Microsoft Azure enables significantly more efficient and transparent collaboration. „With automated workflows and tests, we can now work much more efficiently,“ reports the actuary. „This reduces copy-paste errors and allows for much faster machine verification of our calculations.“ The new way of working also helps eliminate so-called ‚knowledge monopolies‘ – distributing knowledge and expertise more broadly within the team. The cloud infrastructure supports this process by making data and analyses accessible to all team members.
Collaboration with other departments has also intensified. „Data exchange has become much closer,“ says the expert. „We can now capture data at the source and provide early feedback.“ This benefits not only management but also improves communication with the media, who often request timely information on damage events.
A key element in this context is data visualization. Power BI plays a crucial role here. By transforming complex data into meaningful visual representations, the exchange between the actuarial team, management, and other stakeholders is significantly facilitated. This way, more informed decisions can be made at all levels of the company.
Despite the impressive technological advancements, human judgment remains indispensable in Mobiliar’s actuarial team. The COVID-19 pandemic has vividly demonstrated to the responsible parties that, especially in unprecedented situations, the judgment of experienced professionals is irreplaceable. „Ultimately, it’s about providing our customers with optimal protection – even and especially in extreme situations,“ summarizes René Burkhard. „Technology enables us to work more efficiently and purposefully, but it is the combination of human judgment and machine precision that makes the difference,“ concludes the actuary. The human factor remains of paramount importance at Mobiliar.
Our partnership with Microsoft enables us to make quick and precise decisions even in challenging situations, providing our customers with the best possible protection. Thanks to Microsoft’s technologies, we can significantly improve our processes and work even more purposefully. Mobiliar’s strength lies in the combination of technological innovation and excellent human expertise.
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