Helmsman Management Services
Your claims quarterback: blending talent and technology
Good claims management can have a positive impact on the benefits of owning or participating in a captive—but it takes the right blend of talent and technology to maximise this impact, Karen Reading of Helmsman Management Services tells Captive International.
“It will always be about talent and technology, and blending those resources.”
Karen Reading
Helmsman Management Services
Companies with the sophistication and understanding of their risks to be involved with a captive will also be seeking a payoff on that investment—and one of the best ways of achieving this is through high-quality and efficient claims management, something often best achieved through a third party.
That is the view of Karen Reading, managing director, Helmsman Management Services, a subsidiary of Liberty Mutual, which offers claims management and risk control solutions for a variety of lines including workers’ compensation, general liability, commercial auto, and property. While it operates across the spectrum, it has a keen focus on providing its services to captives.
Reading makes the case that better claims management can be one of the main advantages of captive participation. But maximising the value of being involved in a captive requires a partner with the necessary talent and technology.
“If you consider the capital involved in participating in or forming a captive, you’re talking about very sophisticated companies—and they want a payoff on that investment,” Reading says. “Managing those claims efficiently is the payback. But to do that you need a partner who understands your company, your operation, your industry, and can help you throughout the claim cycle.
“That starts with risk mitigation and risk engineering to help prevent a loss happening. Then comes effective claims management, which requires a blend of talent and technology. You want a claims manager who is highly engaged, resourced and highly trained. That can mean access to predictive models, board-certified medical directors, and a highly engaged legal team that helps set claims strategy.
“Whether we are working with a single parent or group captive, we offer all those things. We look to understand what their exposures are, and partner with them on the best approach. It is about understanding their goals, and their claim exposure, but also having the resources and talent pool so that as the client grows, we continue to add value.”
Good parenting
One reason Helmsman Management Services has access to such deep resources is due to its ownership—it is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Liberty Mutual, although the majority of its business comes from other carriers. It has been in existence for 40 years and offers the resources—from data scientists to claims professionals—available only from a Fortune 100 company. In fact, 80 percent of Helmsman’s staff are claims professionals.
Despite the resources behind it, Reading notes that talent is one of the industry’s biggest challenges. And while Helmsman has managed to get ahead of the game on this and is very well staffed, it is an ongoing issue facing the industry.
“Effective claims management is the be-all and end-all of any claims programme. The goal is to have a positive impact on our customers’ cost of risk. To do this, we provide timely and thorough investigations and claim closures. But you can only do those things with the right people.”
Reading flags the Great Resignation, when many people left their jobs or changed careers during COVID-19, as a key contributor to the labor issues facing the industry. To try to overcome this challenge, Helmsman strives to be an employer of choice. “We provide a home for claims professionals where they feel they can build a career. A lot of that comes with the culture of our organisation.
“It’s a culture of caring, of doing the right thing. That not only attracts talent, it helps provide a tremendous amount of job satisfaction,” she says.
“Our training programme is a key way we accomplish this. It drives our industry-leading employee tenure and retention. This provides customers with two key benefits: first, the stability of our claims teams allow us to work with customers throughout the claims cycle.
“Second, it provides engaged and skilled claims professionals—supported by sophisticated technology—who quarterback each claim. That involves bringing the right resources to bear at the right moment in each claim, including nurses and doctors to collaborate on treatment plans and partnering with our legal team to set settlement and defence strategies.”
Talent plus technology
In addition to its talent, the company has invested in state-of-the-art technology. It has over 30 predictive models that leverage data, both structured and unstructured, to help its adjusters get to better outcomes.
“Everybody’s talking about artificial intelligence (AI) and we certainly use AI in our predictive models, but in a very smart way: to enable our claims professionals to quickly make the decisions that drive better outcomes,” says Reading.
“But it is far from one-and-done. Our feedback loop constantly improves our models and how they’re applied. If you’re not using it in the right way, AI can be less useful. We ensure the information we’re getting is tested and retested to measure the accuracy of those models and the value they provide claims professionals, and ultimately claimants and customers.”
All this allows for a very holistic approach which, Reading says, helps customers better understand, mitigate and manage the cost of risk, including claims-related payments, adjusting costs, and reserving.
“It will always be about talent and technology, and blending those resources,” she says. “We’re a people business—I don’t foresee a time when machines will be adjusting claims, there’s too much of a human component, especially when you are talking about injured workers.
“We have to find the efficiencies—which is why we invest in technology. But ultimately the value we provide customers results from joining the art and science of claims management.”
Karen Reading is the managing director of Helmsman Management Services. She can be contacted at: karen.reading@helmsmantpa.com
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