VantisLife Insurance Co. receives L/H Agent Award.

VantisLife Insurance Co. is the recipient of the 2006 E-Fusion award for Agent/Broker Management--Life/Health. The company was recognized for AgentWeb, its Web-based quotation and e-application system built for the financial institutions channel.

The project was created to address what the company saw as a disconnect in life insurance applications being sold by banks. "This distribution environment demands a fast, error-free transaction. Until 2003, our application process was all paper-based. As we expanded our operations, we got a wake-up call," said Craig Simms, senior vice president of marketing. The answer, he said, was a fast, streamlined way to submit business that's error-free.

The Web-based system enables straight-through processing, from illustration through application and underwriting decisions. AgentWeb also enables bank representatives and direct salespeople to create a sales illustration and quickly complete and submit an application online in minutes. "With all products, bank agents can make quotes, bring them over into e-app and complete the whole questionnaire in less than 15 minutes. For simplified issue products, a business decision is rendered at the point of sale," said Scott Smith, senior vice president of operations.

The system automatically populates the application with data collected from the customer during the illustration. Implementing a straight-through process allows the company to manage its state-by-state growth strategy and resulting increases in volume without adding operational staff. It's also allowed VantisLife to offer a comprehensive menu of easy-to-sell and easy-to-buy products that makes the agents and customer experience professional and expedient.

The company created AgentWeb by connecting an agent portal, and through one point of access, it brought all possible tools to the desktop to meet the needs of its part-time sales force.

AgentWeb is increasing efficiency and flexibility in the field and operationally, said Smith. Straight-through processing provides benefits in the back room as well, by facilitating a faster and more efficient business process flow.

"As a niche player in the financial institutions channel, this tool allows us to compete effectively against companies many times our size," said Smith.

The other finalists in the category were:

Carroll Enterprises' Teleunderwriting.com provides an Internet-based, life/health insurance application placement tool for insurance producers at the sales stages of the process. It's also designed for case managers for back-office processes and for sales managers, who are able to review information for their sales associates.

Connecture Inc.'s InsureConnect provides a flexible, scalable Web-based solution that meets the online technology needs of insurers' customers, brokers, agents, underwriters, sales support and marketing. The InsureConnect Product Suite includes a Sales Automation module that fully automates a health insurer's sales process; CRM tools that enable brokers, agents and internal staff to better manage their prospective books of business; and broker appointment automation designed to aid producers in managing their relationships with carriers.

Principal Financial Group is increasing productivity and leveraging new distribution channels using a sales and service automation solution from Global IQX. The solution supports the carrier and its agents/brokers/general agents with more than 300 business rules, supporting more than 1,000 plan options and almost 60 different alliance partners, as well as various Principal Financial offices.

OnlineBenefits Inc.'s AgencyWare provides on-screen summaries or "dashboards" to give users an instant overview of all sales, service and commission activity on one screen. They can create requests for proposals quickly and submit them electronically to carriers through an automated process.