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INTERVIEWXXXXXXXXXXX
DIGITISATION?
TRANSFORMATION
IS CRUCIAL!
“Digitisation is an essential prerequisite for succeeding in business. If you
don’t do it you’ll miss the boat. But it takes more than just a website or an
app. Digitisation calls for the transformation of the whole company. “We’re
working hard at it; but there’s still a lot to do.” The words are those of Frank
van Wessel, Digital Officer at the Dutch insurer Delta Lloyd.FRANK VAN WESSEL, DIGITAL OFFICER DELTA LLOYD

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FRANK VAN WESSELINTERVIEW
rank van Wessel is responsible
for digitisation at Delta Lloyd
and he’s an enthusiastic pro-
ponent of the process. He flags
up any changes that are necessary, and is
constantly aware of challenges that his or-
ganisation faces.
WHAT ARE DELTA LLOYD’S
AMBITIONS IN THIS AREA?
Today’s customers are almost continuously
online. At night we put our smartphone or
tablet next to our beds and during the day
we’re not averse to taking them to the toilet
with us either. Customers want one-touch
service and a high level of user-friendliness.
And companies like Picnic and Uber are
meeting that need by using modern techno-
logy. Companies like these are also setting
the benchmark for the financial sector. At
Delta Lloyd we’ve some way to go, but our
ambition is really no different. Customers
expect it, and it saves money. That’s why
we’re investing in digital programmes. The
two brands in our group are in a different
phase. Customers of our direct label OHRA
can already do a lot themselves online and
on mobile. For the most recent customers
there is no longer a paper option; they have
to accept digital service. Thinking digitally is
also ingrained in employees’ DNA, because
at OHRA they are used to having direct con-
tact with customers and, above all, offering
simple-risk products. Delta Lloyd’s products
are more complex. For customers it’s wise,
even mandatory sometimes, to be helped
by an advisor. Here, the digital ambition is
no different but the transformation process
is a bit slower.
AND WHAT DOES DIGITISATION MEAN
FOR CUSTOMERS AND ADVISORS?
We’re seeing a shift in the behaviour and
the needs of both advisors and customers.
Advisors prefer to spend their time advising
customers, as opposed to doing admini-
stration. Customers meanwhile, want to be
better orientated before asking for advice
and prefer to do the simple administrative
things themselves. The need for advice
is thus non-negotiable. Through digital
projects we are working hard on
providing digital support for the whole
customer journey, for both our customers
and our advisors. By the end of this year
Delta Lloyd wants to digitise 90 per cent of
all contact between customers and advisors.
WHAT KIND OF CHALLENGES DOES
THE INSURANCE SECTOR FACE?
A user-friendly digital process might seem
like a no-brainer, but even achieving
something relatively easy − like logging in
− can often be complex and requires a lot
of expertise. Straightforward is not necessa-
rily the same as simple. Above all, a digital
strategy entails more than just having a
user-friendly website and an app. Creating
a fully digital mindset and applying new
business models are real challenges. Ulti-
mately it’s about the transformation of the
whole company. “Digital” must be part of
the DNA of every employee. However, the
transformation of a company, that’s been
doing things differently for so long, calls for
a lot of energy. And it doesn’t make it any
easier if we continue to fall back on existing
business models, and neither does the men-
tality of “doing nothing” does no harm in
the short term. But “doing nothing” when it
comes to digitisation is not an option; we’d
soon be out of business. It’s mainly about
being careful to find the right speed.
AND WHAT ABOUT ORGANISATIONS’
CAPACITIES?
It begins with ambition and there is enough
of that. A digital strategy is translated into
a digital agenda, complete with concrete
projects and deliverables. Among other
things Delta Lloyd is working on the mo-
dernisation of logging in and of its tooling,
the improvement of portals, and the further
development of mobile apps. For example,
at the beginning of 2015 we developed a vir-
tual assistant, a smart tool that can answer
context-relevant enquiries without the in-
volvement of employees. In the meantime,
between 800 and 1,000 enquiries a day are
being processed, with a success rate of 90
per cent. We’ve also introduced “My Delta
Lloyd” in The Netherlands, a digital counter
that brings together all separate portals for
our customers and advisors. Then in July,
we were the first insurer in the Netherlands
to implement Touch ID in the OHRA App. A
few months ago we started using WhatsApp
at OHRA. Customers gave us a 9.1 apprecia-
tion rating for OHRA via WhatsApp, higher
than we dared to expect.
But if I look around, I still think we need
to go faster. We’re used to thinking linearly
so we tend to underestimate the impact of
digital developments until it swings the
other way. And then we’re surprised at its
speed and impact. But by then it’s too late.
I don’t think we’ve yet reached the tipping
point in the financial services industry.
WHAT WILL BE IMPORTANT DURING
THE COMING YEARS?
I think it’s crucial to acquire experience with
data, proactively identifying risks and noti-
fying customers. That’s why I’m interested
in insurance based on usage and behaviour.
It’s a fascinating concept because it mar-
ries several developments. In it, customer
behaviour, digital services, data, technology,
privacy and direct feedback and the
application of insights all come together.
Customer demand is very strong, and as
soon as privacy can be guaranteed the
We’ve not yet reached the
tipping point in the financial
services industry.F
As a 32-year-old Frank van Wessel belongs to the generation Y that grew up with the Internet.
As a trained economist he started up a web design company. Since 2009 he has worked for the
Delta Lloyd Group. Within the Group he worked for several brands: he joined ABN AMRO Insurance
and between 2010 and 2014 he was marketing manager with BeFrank. At the Young Professional
of the Year 2012 ceremony, he won an award for a marketing campaign that he developed.
PERSONAL

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INTERVIEW FRANK VAN WESSEL
market will develop. Just look at the growth
of Oscar Health in New York. I also expect
a transition to “pay how you live” in the Ne-
therlands.
WHICH APPROACH DO YOU
FAVOUR?
I believe in three development phases: inspi-
ration, testing and implementation. I think
an idea should be tested much more before
being implemented into our core systems.
We need to build prototypes, explain it to
customer panels and increase our skills and
knowledge through experience. If it doesn’t
work, we should stop, but if it does work
we should improve it and make it bigger. In
other words, we shouldn’t be too quick to fit
it into existing structures.
WHAT DO YOU MEASURE?
Like digitisation, taking measurements is not
a goal unto itself, but a key way of structu-
rally improving. My objective is to improve
our level of service, based on feedback re-
ceived from our customers and advisors.
One statistic doesn’t tell me much. I’d like
to know what customers and advisors really
appreciate, and what they think could be im-
proved. I prefer to measure real behaviour.
How many screens did the customer have
to navigate? How many clicks? How many
fields did he have to fill in? And what did he
think of it all? The responses we receive will
tell us which adjustments are necessary and
help us set priorities. Asking for input has
never been easier. That’s the role and the
powerofSocial.IregardSocialMediaasafeed-
backchannel,onethatallowsyoutolearnand
engage in dialogue. That’s what the techno-
logy is for; advisors and customers want it, so
why shouldn’t we give it to them?
WHEN WILL YOU BE SATISFIED?
When customers and advisors are truly ap-
preciative of digital services, and see them
as the best option, of course. Another thing
I want to achieve is for employees to see
digital services as an intrinsic part of
business operations. I want to fuel a tran-
sition from a focus on product to a focus on
digital services. Together with customers and
advisors, we want to develop products and
services and learn which risks customers
want to accept, reduce or defer. We want to
listen to customers’ needs and then deploy
modern technology in relevant ways. It
involves working structurally on user-friend-
liness, improving service and reducing costs.
It means that people won’t just become
customers; they’ll want to stay customers.
Digitisation never ends.
Asking for input has never
been easier. That’s the role and the
power of Social Media.