MarkLogic Corporation has released a report revealing that complex legacy IT systems and inefficient processes are slowing the efforts of insurers to digitally transform and achieve a single customer view, which is critical to business.

The report on the global insurance industry is based on research conducted by Research in Insurance, a specialist market intelligence provider to the insurance industry.

The report explores the challenges insurance companies face as they battle to deliver value to their customers.

The research, gathered from in-depth interviews with over 200 senior professionals, reveals a disparity between what insurers want and what they can achieve with existing systems and processes.

Nine in ten survey respondents do not have a single unified view of their customers, yet 70% say that achieving a “SCV” is either critical or very important to their business.

Many insurers still rely on complex, legacy IT systems that keep large amounts of big data siloed across the organisation, thereby preventing them from gaining actionable customer insights.

Over half (55%) of insurers surveyed believe the complexity of their systems is the primary barrier to achieving a SCV. More than a third (34%) say the inability to integrate data across the organisation prevents them from achieving a SCV.

“Insurance companies have an enormous amount of data available to them; in many ways it is their most important asset – but only if they can access it and leverage it across the enterprise,” commented Steve Forcash, chief strategy officer for Insurance at MarkLogic.

“This research highlights the enormous challenges insurers face in extracting data from multiple, siloed sources and using this to enhance efficiencies and improve customer experience in all areas, from pricing and underwriting to claims.”

More than half of insurance professionals recognise the benefits of achieving a SCV, with 56% agreeing it will bring better customer satisfaction and 53% saying it will improve customer loyalty and retention, the research shows.

Meanwhile, 43% of survey respondents believe achieving a SCV will improve fraud detection, and over a third (39%) say it will reduce overall risk.

“In order to differentiate in an increasingly competitive industry, insurance companies must become more customer-oriented,” Forcash added.

“Other industries, plus InsureTechs, have raised the bar, and insurers need to respond. This means adopting the innovative technologies that will allow them to achieve a single customer view by integrating data stuck in silos and legacy systems and becoming truly customer focused.”