Hong Kong – Manulife, an international financial services firm, has recently announced that it has further strengthened the adoption of artificial intelligence with the implementation of new capabilities and tools designed to transform businesses and accelerate customer service in Asia.
The integration encompasses significant tools such as optimised contact centre technology, a sales agent enablement tool, and using GenAI for underwriting.
Speaking about the initiative, Karen Leggett, global chief marketing officer at Manulife, said, “GenAI is accelerating our transformation, driving growth, and highlighting innovative opportunities to drive efficiency across our organization. Our market-leading progress in deploying and scaling multiple global use cases are resulting in deeper customer engagement and satisfaction.
“The significant investments we’ve made in cloud, data capabilities, and talent are enabling our speed, efficiency, and innovation to lead in the GenAI space,” added Leggett.
Through the contact centre, Manulife will enable the utilisation of GenAI to improve the efficiency and accuracy of client interactions. The said technology will automate call summaries, performs daily trend analysis, and manages complex contract lookup within seconds, allowing servicing colleagues to deliver faster, more accurate responses.
For its first launch in Asia, the tool will be scheduled for rollout in Singapore by the end of the year.
Meanwhile, the sales agent enablement tool will equip agents with deep insights into customer preferences and needs, significantly enhancing the personalisation of customer interactions. It also employs a combination of traditional AI, automation, and GenAI to generate engagement ideas unique to each customer.
Furthermore, the underwriting assistant uses GenAI to streamline the underwriting process by automating the analysis and summarisation of documents. Through this solution, the firm can now accelerate the process from a 5-day window down to a target process window of 3-days. This new tool is slated to launch in October 2024.
Its automation capability, moreover, enhances accuracy in decision-making, thereby streamlining the underwriting process and freeing up underwriters to focus on more complex cases.
Mark Czajkowski, chief analytics officer, Asia, and chief marketing officer at Manulife Singapore, also said, “The launch of these AI-driven tools in Singapore will significantly improve customer interactions by providing faster, more accurate, and personalised service.”
“By automating routine tasks in underwriting and streamlining customer support through AI, we are furthering our commitment to delivering exceptional value to our customers and colleagues alike,” he concluded.
Looking ahead, the company has published its Responsible AI Principles to deliver impactful solutions for its customers, colleagues, and society.