Accenture (NYSE: ACN) will provide QBE Europe, a subsidiary of QBE Insurance Group, with application development and maintenance (AD/M) services under a five-year, agreement. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Under the terms of the agreement, QBE will outsource to Accenture its AD/M activities to help accelerate its current business transformation program, which is designed to improve service levels to brokers, customers and underwriters, and enhance operational efficiency. Accenture will also provide a change management program to QBE to help accelerate the roll-out of the insurer's core underwriting systems, improve its underwriting front-end and simplify its IT infrastructure.
"It is critical that we look to shape our business to maximize the opportunities that a rising market will present," said Steven Burns, CEO QBE European Operations. "Our decision to partner with Accenture will help fulfil our strategic need to rationalize the platforms supporting our underwriting and product delivery and to simplify our legacy IT estate for future growth and acquisitions."
"Achieving an up-scaled IT capability will be critical to driving continued sustainable and profitable growth for QBE," said Sushil Saluja, Managing Director of Accenture's Financial Services group in the U.K. "With more than 20 years of experience in application development and maintenance combined with our deep expertise in the Insurance Industry and more specifically in the Commercial Lines market, we will help QBE increase its IT performance while improving cost management."