Insurance, as an industry, demands constant innovation and adaptation. For many, a significant hurdle in this journey is the continued reliance on legacy tech systems. These outdated technologies, while once foundational, often become bottlenecks, hindering agility, increasing operational costs, and preventing companies from seizing new market opportunities.
The insurance sector, in particular, is grappling with this challenge, as customer expectations for seamless digital experiences soar. This case study highlights how King Price, a forward-thinking insurer, successfully navigated the complexities of replacing their legacy tech infrastructure in an impressive six-week timeframe, demonstrating a powerful blueprint for others looking to modernize and thrive.
About King Price: A Visionary Insurer Challenging the Status Quo
Headquartered in Pretoria, South Africa, King Price Insurance was founded in 2012 with a clear mission: to disrupt the insurance industry. They began by offering personal lines insurance, quickly distinguishing themselves with a customer-centric approach that prioritizes transparency, affordability, and exceptional service.
Their commitment goes beyond inspiring positive reviews; it aims to genuinely change the world for the better through fair practices. King Price is relentlessly focused on the customer experience, providing genuinely cheap premiums, equitable claims payouts, and policies that are remarkably easy to understand.
This dedication to innovation and customer well-being naturally led them to seek out technological solutions that could match their ambitious vision, rather than being constrained by the limitations of legacy tech
The Crippling Limitations of Legacy Tech: Functionality and Data Access Barriers
King Price’s journey towards modernisation began when they recognised that their existing legacy tech infrastructure was no longer serving their dynamic needs. They sought a policy administration system with the advanced functionality and flexible data access required to support a revolutionary motor insurance product, one where, as the value of a car depreciates, the premium automatically decreases too.
This kind of innovative product demands a level of algorithmic sophistication and real-time data integration that most traditional legacy tech systems simply cannot offer.
When selecting a technology partner, a shared customer-centric and value-driven philosophy was paramount. Both King Price and Genasys are deeply committed to putting the end-customer first, making their partnership a natural and strategic alignment.
George Parrott, Partner, Commercial Insurance at King Price, vividly explains the frustrations they faced with their existing legacy tech: “At the time we realised there were not a lot of systems that could offer this functionality, and this extended to the commercial and actuary side of our business too.”
“We were using one of the AS/400 systems which did its job, but time caught up with us, and it couldn’t match what we needed. This kind of legacy tech often struggles with modern demands. We couldn’t keep up with the newer developments and functionalities, and integrations with newer software became a significant challenge.”
“As we grew, our system lagged further and further behind, becoming a genuine form of technical debt. It was clear that this legacy tech was holding us back from true innovation.”
The challenges inherent in their legacy tech were multifaceted. Beyond the lack of specific product functionality, the AS/400 system presented hurdles in terms of scalability, the ability to integrate with new APIs and digital ecosystems, and the sheer cost of maintaining an aging infrastructure that required specialised, often scarce, expertise.
Overcoming these legacy tech constraints was crucial for King Price’s continued growth and competitive edge. Genasys was able to provide King Price with this much-needed strategic boost away from the confines of their legacy tech in an astonishingly short period, just six weeks.
Realising the End Goal: Unlocking Operational Efficiency Beyond Legacy Tech
While searching for a tech partner, King Price initially encountered a common challenge: identifying a company with developers proficient enough to work with their outdated legacy tech system, or even willing to try. Their ultimate goal for a new system was to achieve a profound new level of efficiency across the entire business by significantly increasing productivity and substantially lowering overall operational costs.
A critical aspiration was to avoid finding themselves in another discussions about replacing legacy tech only a few years down the road. They needed a future-proof solution, not just a temporary fix for their immediate legacy tech problems.
George elaborates further on their strategic shift: “We realised that to achieve our end goal, we needed rule-based automation, a function our old legacy tech system did not have. This was a non-negotiable requirement for efficiency.
So, in 2019, we partnered with Genasys and started on the Genasys platform with one of our engineering insurance products as a test case to evaluate the speed of delivery and the comprehensive functionality it could offer. It was a rigorous test of whether the Genasys platform could truly overcome the limitations of our legacy tech.”
“As a compliment to Genasys, this was deployed within six weeks, which was incredibly impressive, and even more so with this being Genasys’s first engineering product, demonstrating just how product-agnostic and adaptable the Genasys platform is, and its inherent ability to replace complex legacy tech systems with speed and precision.”
This rapid deployment showcased Genasys’s capabilities and provided King Price with the confidence that they had found the right partner to shed the burdens of their legacy tech.
A Robust Data Migration Strategy: Implantation and Integration for Sustainable Growth
A meticulously planned and executed data migration strategy was absolutely key to ensuring operational continuity throughout the transition, and, most critically, to guarantee that there was absolutely no negative impact on King Price’s impeccable service to its policyholders. This strategy was meticulously underpinned by the principle that the Genasys platform would first ‘clone’ King Price’s existing system, effectively creating a foundational mirror image of their data and processes.
This step was crucial for ensuring a stable transition away from their legacy tech. Once this foundation was in place and deemed stable, Genasys then methodically enhanced their data structures, optimised data formats, and implemented the powerful rule-based automation capabilities that were sorely missing from their previous legacy tech system.
A phased approach to policy and data migration was deemed necessary to smoothly manage the transition of King Price’s extensive and complex existing data formats and structures into the agile Genasys system. This strategic, gradual shift minimises risk and ensures data integrity, a common concern when moving away from deeply embedded legacy tech.
This transition involved King Price’s team identifying seven critical sections of their old system that were used most frequently and were paramount to their daily operations.
Working in extremely close collaboration with the Genasys team, these vital sections were then meticulously mapped and automatically migrated onto the new, modern platform. This collaborative, systematic approach is vital when dealing with the intricacies of data locked within legacy tech.
All testing took place in a secure sandbox environment, allowing King Price to clearly visualise the outcome and understand the precise impact of the data migration before it went live. Such a proactive approach enabled Genasys to work hand-in-hand with King Price to identify and promptly fix any data anomalies or inconsistencies, long before the official data migration took place.
This foresight prevented potential disruptions often associated with large-scale shifts away from legacy tech.
George commented on the seamless process: “Testing was completed over weekends so that work was not disrupted, and no surprises were ever found because of Genasys’s proactive process. This careful planning meant the move away from our legacy tech was smooth and predictable. We are absolutely delighted with what was done then and where our system is now.”
The inherent flexibility and innovative architecture of the Genasys platform meant that integrating it into other existing systems within King Price’s broader tech stack was, as George succinctly states, ‘a very smooth process’. This ease of integration is a stark contrast to the common difficulties encountered when trying to connect modern solutions with rigid legacy tech.
George also noted that the intuitive low-code tools provided by Genasys have significantly empowered the King Price team. They are increasingly utilising Genasys’s Build toolkit, finding it particularly useful for implementing quick changes or desired integrations independently.
For more substantial issues or complex enhancements, they leverage Genasys’s dedicated maintenance hours, a service they find immensely useful for ongoing support as they continue to evolve beyond their legacy tech past.
Expanding with Genasys: A Future Unburdened by Legacy Tech
With their South African offices now operating efficiently on Genasys with seamless integrations into other systems, King Price has even more ambitious plans. They intend to make Genasys the sole, all-encompassing system they will work on in Namibia, a significant project that is currently underway. This strategic decision underscores their confidence in the platform’s ability to handle all their operational needs, completely removing the need for any lingering legacy tech components.
George also required a system that could rapidly deploy functionality in complex European markets, such as Denmark, and he found this precise solution in Genasys, highlighting a key differentiator that other legacy tech providers simply could not offer. The adaptability and global readiness of the Genasys platform are crucial for King Price’s international expansion, free from the encumbrances of regional legacy tech variations.
Find Out How Genasys Can Help You Get Off Your Legacy Tech
The success story of King Price serves as a compelling testament to the transformative power of shedding legacy tech and embracing modern, agile platforms. It demonstrates that with the right partner and a clear strategy, even deeply embedded legacy tech systems can be replaced quickly and efficiently, paving the way for unprecedented innovation and growth.
If you’re an insurer looking to break free from the shackles of legacy tech, streamline operations, bring new products to market rapidly, and accelerate your revenue growth, it’s time to take action.
Don’t let outdated legacy tech hold your business back any longer. Speak to our team at Genasys today to learn more about how you can leave legacy tech behind, get to market quickly, and truly grow your revenue in the digital age.
