Harleysville Insurance and Connective Technologies 'TEAM-UP' to make it easier
and more efficient for agents to do business
Houston, TX, (Business Wire) December 21, 2005-Harleysville Insurance has announced that its independent
insurance agents now have the capability to upload personal auto and homeowners new business quotes and policy submissions
in real time through "TEAM-UP Upload," an interface bridging solution developed by Connective Technologies, Inc.
"One of our key business priorities is to make doing business with Harleysville easier and more efficient for our
agents," explained Akhil Tripathi, senior vice president and CIO for Harleysville. "TEAM-UP Upload allows our agents to
work in real time directly from their agency management systems to rate, quote, bind and issue a policy in a matter of
minutes. This new capability is just one more step toward our longer-term strategy of providing true upload to our agency
business partners."
"Our goal in the design and development of TEAM-UP Upload was to address the long-time need of the insurance industry
to have real-time processing in a manner that is simple and easy for agents to use," said Dic Marxen, founder of
Connective Technologies. "By utilizing the Internet and Web services built specifically for carrier-side processing,
we are offering a single-solution environment that replaces the need for companies like Harleysville to maintain
redundant processes and communication platforms for each agency system used within their distribution networks."
With TEAM-UP Upload, duplicate data entry is no longer necessary. All ACORD standards are fully supported and
workflow processing provides transactional integrity regardless of the source system. Error handling is also built in
for all the various types of transactions encountered during the upload process. Time-to-market development and
implementation have been dramatically reduced based on Connective's years of experience with agency-side systems and
third-party providers, as well as the ability of TEAM-UP Upload to integrate with a carrier's data access layers for
their Web sites.
Agents representing Harleysville Insurance should call 888.547.8547 to learn how to take advantage of this new
opportunity to upload their personal auto and homeowners business with the company.
Harleysville Insurance is a leading regional provider
of insurance products and services for small and mid-sized businesses,
as well as for individuals, and ranks among the top 60 U.S. property/casualty
insurance groups based on net written premiums. Harleysville Mutual
Insurance Company owns 56 percent of Harleysville Group Inc. (NASDAQ:
HGIC), a publicly traded holding company for nine regional property/casualty
insurance companies collectively rated A- (Excellent) by A.M.
Best Company. Harleysville Insurance-which distributes its products
exclusively through independent insurance agencies and reflects
that commitment to its agency force by being a Trusted Choice®
member company-currently operates in 32 Eastern and Midwestern
states. Further information can be found on the company's Web
site at www.harleysvillegroup.com.
Connective Technologies, Inc. is a leading provider of
e-Commerce business solutions for the property and casualty insurance
industry, specializing in Internet interface solutions for carriers
and their agents. Connective has used its many years of experience
with leading agency management systems and traditional batch EDI
to pioneer the approach, which has helped it become the leading
provider of bridging and Internet-based interface solutions in
the industry. Connective provides implementation services for
its flagship products, TEAM-UP Upload, Download,
and Data Translation Services. To learn more about Connective
products and services, contact Deborah Osborn at 713.690.6789
ext. 136 or dosborn@connectivetech.com
or visit our website at www.connectivetech.com.
