Intelligent process automation: The engine at the core of the next-generation operating model

Since the financial crisis of 2007–09, many companies have applied lean management to improve cost efficiencies, customer satisfaction, and employee engagement simultaneously, and many programs have achieved substantial impact on all dimensions. Progress on digital, however, has been more uneven. In the insurance sector, for example, an October 2016 FIS study found that 99.6 percent of insurers surveyed admitted they face obstacles in implementing digital innovation, while 80 percent recognize they need digital capabilities to meet business challenges. This difficulty has been compounded by the boom in "insurtech" investments in 2016--topping $3.5 billion in funding across 111 deals since 2015. As macroeconomic conditions continue to put pressure on profit margins across sectors, cost productivity and unlocking new value are back at the top of the senior-management agenda.