NAME: Zaheer Hooda
NEW JOB TITLE: Atlanta-based head of North America, Cytora
PREVIOUS POSITION: Atlanta-based senior vice president, head of data and digital enablement, Hiscox US
INDUSTRY OUTLOOK: Over the past couple of years, the COVID pandemic has accelerated several trends that were already in motion. First, customer expectations have evolved to demand better experiences driving digital innovation across all distribution channels. Second, in order to manage growth, insurers must ensure their expenses do not grow linearly with their growth. This expense ratio pressure is forcing more organizations to focus on digitizing their operations to provide customer services across the value chain in a cost-effective manner. Finally, the availability of internal and external data is enabling insurers to provide more tailored product offerings through price, exposure and rating elements.
GOALS FOR NEW POSITION: Develop a strong team and partner ecosystem that enables the solid foundation for Cytora to support our growing set of clients globally.
CHALLENGES FACING THE INDUSTRY: One of the key challenges I see is the technical debt many of these insurers have built up over the years. Most organizational change will require some level of technology implications, and often that change requires significant capacity to overcome the legacy infrastructure or other technical debt in place.
FIRST EXPERIENCE IN THE INDUSTRY JOB MARKET: During my time at McKinsey & Co., I was engaged with a top U.S. homeowner insurance company to drive productivity improvements by redefining their end-to-end claim handling process based on lean operation principles. Given this was my first exposure to insurance, it was completely eye-opening on the breadth and complexity of the product offering.
ADVICE: Allow yourself to get deep into the core of insurance, underwriting, with a lens of technology. I believe most of the innovation will stem from there and branch out to other aspects of the value chain.
OUTSIDE THE INDUSTRY, A DREAM JOB: Tech analyst/blogger – reviewing and analyzing the latest tech gadgets/trends.
COLLEGE MAJOR: Computer science
LOOKING FORWARD TO: Working with the fascinating and talented group of folks already at Cytora, and, of course, helping them to take Cytora to the next level.
FAVOURITE MEAL: Nihari, a traditional Pakistani dish, would be my favorite, but I can never say no to a burger.
BOOK: “Why the West Rules for Now: The Patterns of History, and What They Reveal About the Future,” by Ian Morris
HOBBIES: Grilling, traveling
TV SHOW: “Arrested Development,” for a laugh; otherwise, “The Wire”
ON A SATURDAY AFTERNOON: Ask my kids. No longer up to me, but typically that means some sort of outdoor activities.
