Property and Casualty Insurance Firms and Technology Spending: Some Determining Factors and Outcomes

Abstract

Investments in information technology (IT) have long been assumed to correlate positively with business value and market share. In response to these assumptions, firms invest in technology to improve various business functions to include customer service, profitability, and efficiency. However, despite these long-held beliefs, there is little consensus in the literature regarding how to measure the business value created by increased investment in information technology. Variability in firm type and individual organizational goals, data availability, and other factors may explain the lack of consensus in measurement. The authors investigate IT spending in the property and casualty (P&C) insurance industry. Specifically, the paper attempts to determine the factors that drive technology spending and the outcomes of information technology spending for P&C insurance firms. Additionally, this paper investigates whether technology spending increases market share for insurance firms in P&C insurance. This study identifies several factors unique to the P&C insurance industry that affect technology spending.