Atradius Credit Insurance

Jörg Müller

Jörg Müller, the chief information officer of Atradius Credit Insurance, is a business and IT executive with more than 20 years of experience in managing business units and IT services under strategic leadership in the insurance and financial services sectors. His responsibilities are managing different worldwide stakeholder groups, collaborating with internal and external partners, promoting digital innovation, and developing business possibilities through technology.

How has hybrid work culture affected operations in the insurance sector?

Due to the significant disruption caused by the pandemic in the insurance industry, incorporating backward integration into the insurance administration processes is imperative. To make administrative tasks more efficient, executive officers should develop excellent models or systems of work.

Atradius is currently in the backward integration phase of digital transformation. Currently, we are focused on providing new products and services through our digital channels. All processes within the digital channels are integrated into the backend programming system that serves customers worldwide. Atradius is the first company to implement a platform for credit insurance fully integrated with business processes such as policy management, claims management, underwriting, and reinsurance. Over 80 percent of our credit processes are automated from our ERP system to our customers' systems, including the policy generation process. Automation of our IT infrastructure has enabled our company to grow significantly over the years while maintaining a stable staff level.

What technologies do you access in your daily functioning as a CIO?

While underwriting a policy, the company utilizes artificial intelligence and natural language processing systems. Our mathematical underwriting processes provide pre-vetted additional information in support of underwriters. Several processes associated with the policy, such as customer engagement and the creation of offers, are automated and incorporated into the backend product catalog.

Our backend system at Atradius has many complex features to create a unique modular system. Our policies are automatically generated based on what we offer rather than what our sales organizations develop.

Can you explain why digital transformation is imperative for the credit insurance industry?

The digital revolution is not limited to insurance companies but extends to consumers. With a new digital front, our company can provide customer services via the web and integrate them into an ERP system. For instance, if a client uses Microsoft Navision as the backend system, the systems developed by Atradius are directly integrated into the software, or clients can also choose a stand-alone version of our platform. Oracle and SAP also support our insurance processes to manage database processes. Infratech services require the integration of data into the backend system. For this purpose, Atradius provides its clients with analytical services for accessing their risk portfolios and consolidating worldwide trade overviews.

"While underwriting a policy, the company utilizes artificial intelligence and natural language processing systems"

 What advice would you like to share with your industry peers to further their careers in the insurance industry?

In recent years, business models have undergone significant changes. I would suggest avoiding the term agility when discussing the mode of collaboration with partners and your ecosystem of IT enablers. It seems a bit overhyped to me. A DevOps organization is more than just an agile way of working. In other words, it's a matter of how quickly you can change and how you should execute for the business area and content you want to serve. Choosing the right technology solution is not easy, and you must consider the business capabilities you intend to enable. The final should be to eventually find the right approach so that you can create the speed needed to implement your solutions.