This initiative will help enable compliance with the Solvency II Directive data requirements and improve operational efficiency.

The DataFlux Data Management Platform will be deployed to help control the integrity of data and will provide Ecclesiastical with the means to comprehensively govern its data. The implementation will enable Ecclesiastical to establish a process for monitoring and reporting on the quality of its business data over time, allowing the company to provide the business and regulators with intuitive, auditable metric-based reports.

As an insurer selected for the UK Financial Services Authority (FSA) Solvency II IMAP pre-application process, Ecclesiastical is keen to demonstrate the high accuracy of its business data. The insurer will use DataFlux technology to help validate the information from across the group within its Solvency II capital adequacy models. By proving robust data processes to the FSA, the project will allow the group to conduct risk assessments according to its internal data models, as agreed with the FSA.

Godfrey Morgan, newly appointed data quality manager at Ecclesiastical commented: "Our industry is fundamentally changing the way it manages and reports on risk. As we are undertaking the FSA Solvency II IMAP pre-application process to implement our own internal models for capital requirement calculations, we need to ensure our data management processes are of the highest standards and the data feeding our risk models is of the highest quality."

He continued: "We've been moving early to comply with the Solvency II mandate that data must be 'complete, accurate and appropriate'. In the next 24 months, all UK insurers will need to undertake a similar review of their data management practices - so it's a significant challenge for our industry."

Colin Rickard, EMEA managing director at DataFlux added: "As we have worked alongside insurance companies over the last few years, wewe havee seen their need for robust, auditable and tailored data management solutions for Solvency II. European insurers are looking to prove the validity of data used by their internal capital adequacy models and demonstrate they are processing claims in the best interest of policy holders. DataFlux helps them to do just that, while accessing other benefits offered by high quality data such as operational efficiency and improved decision making."

Ecclesiastical's data management project isn't solely focused on the FSA's mandate for capital adequacy. As part of its ongoing business intelligence programme, the ability to profile, monitor and report on core data sets across the group allows Ecclesiastical to improve its data, quickly make more informed decisions and better meet customers' needs.