（英文）行业资料 Klaus-Jürgen Heitmann on the journey to mobility ecosystems 2023 -mckinsey

March2023

InsurancePractice

Klaus-JürgenHeitmann

onthejourneyto

mobilityecosystems

HUK-COBURGGroupCEOKlaus-JürgenHeitmanndiscusseswhyandhowtheinsurerisusinganecosystemstrategytoexpanditstraditionalbusinessofdirectandmotorinsuranceinGermany.

byStephanBinder,UlrikeDeetjen,andHeikoNick

©McKinsey

Significantshiftsinmobilitypreferencesandbehavior—triggeredbytechnologicaladvances,changingconsumerpreferences,awarenessofclimatechange,andnewregulations—havecreatedloomingthreatstoinsurancecarriers’corebusiness.ButKlaus-JürgenHeitmannwelcomesthedisruption.Heitmann,CEOoftheHUK-COBURGGroup—Germany’sleadingmotorinsurer,with13millioninsuredvehicles—isintentonaddressingcustomers’changingbehavioraspartoftheorganization’scorebusinessandcapitalizingonitsstrengthstopowernewbusinessmodels.Mostnotably,HeitmannhasledHUK-COBURGincreatingamobilityecosystembuiltonthecompany’snewerdigitalcapabilities,accesstomotorcustomers,strongbrand,andleadingmarketpositionindirectinsurance.

McKinseySeniorPartnerStephanBinderandPartnerUlrikeDeetjenmetHeitmanninCoburgtotalkabouttrendsintheinsuranceindustry,directinsurancestrategies,andhowmobilityecosystemscancreatevalueforinsurersandcustomers.Thefollowingtranscripthasbeeneditedforclarity.

Mobilityecosystemsarethefuture

StephanBinder:HUK-COBURGisahouseholdnameinmotorinsuranceinGermany.You’vebuiltasuccessful,trustedbrandinthatarea,sowhyhastheconceptofmobilityecosystemsbecomeimportantforyou?

Klaus-JürgenHeitmann:Motorinsuranceisourcorebusiness,soofcoursewepaycloseattentiontowhat’saheadforthistypeofcoverageor,betteryet,formobilityingeneral.Afterall,mobilityisanunderlyingneedthatpeoplehave.Webelievethatthemobilitymarket—thatis,thewaysinwhichconsumerspurchaseandconsumemobility—ischanging,andtheroleofmotorinsurancewillchangealongwithit.

Specifically,weexpectthatmotorinsuranceasweknowittodaywillgenerallybecomelessimportant.Differentfactorsaredrivingthisdevelopment.Newtechnologiesplayarole,butsodoesconsumerbehavior.Motorinsuranceisthefirstpointofcontactformanyofourcustomers,andwetakeadvantageofits“pulleffect”todrawthese

customersintotheHUK-COBURGuniverse.Iftheimpactofthistouchpointdeclinesinthefuture,becausemotorinsuranceeitherattractsfewercustomersorresultsinlessintensecontact,wewillneedtoknowhowtorespond.

StephanBinder:You’rebuildingyourecosystemoncustomertouchpoints.What’syourthinkingabouthowcustomerswillaccessmobilityservices,andwhatotherelementsdoyouseemakingupamobilityecosystem?

Klaus-JürgenHeitmann:Allourideasaboutanecosystemandourpositionwithinitarebasedonthekeyassumptionthatmobilitywillremainafundamentalneed.Inotherwords,peoplewanttobemobile.Whatwillchangeishowtheypurchaseandusemobilityoptions.Ifmotorinsuranceisgoingtobelessimportantinthisoverallcontext,wewanttoofferadditionalwaystoconnectwithcustomersandmeettheirfundamentalneedformobility.

Fornow,weareassumingthatindividualmobilityasweknowittoday—thecarasthemainmodeoftransportation—willcontinueforthenearfuture.Forthisreason,weofferourcustomerssupplementalservicesfortheirpersonalvehicles.Examplesoftheseservicesincludeprovidingoilchangesandcarinspections,buyingcustomers’usedcarswhenthey’rereadytomakeachange,orofferinghigh-qualityusedcarsforpurchase.Theunderlyingideaisalwaystobuildmorepointsofcontactwithcustomersthatarerelatedtotheirfundamentalneedformobility.

Partnershipscanenhancemobilityecosystems

StephanBinder:HUK-COBURGrecentlyacquiredastakeinachainofautomotiverepairshops.Canyoutalkabouttheimpactofthattypeofpartnershiponyourservicesanditsroleinyourecosystem?

Klaus-JürgenHeitmann:Foryears,ourstrategyhasbeentobuildtouchpointsinautomotiveservicesalongsidethosewehaveasaninsurer.Partneringwithautomotiverepairshopsfollowsthislogicpreciselybecauseitsignificantlyexpandsourcarservicepresence.Butthat’snotall.Inanecosystem,wecanalsousethegaragelocationsto

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handlephysicalaspectsofourwork,suchasquicklyinspectingandevaluatingcarsthatwewanttobuyfromourcustomers.

StephanBinder:Couldthisbeamodelforotherfutureservicesaswell?TosaythatHUK-COBURGdoesn’tneedtodoeverythingonitsown—thatitcanworkwithothersinpartnershipsorasco-owners?

Klaus-JürgenHeitmann:That’sexactlyright.Inthepast,ourfirstreactionwasoften,“OK,wehavetobuildthatonourown.”Butovertime,wereflectedonhowwellwesucceeded—ordidn’t.Inthiscase,wedecidedtotryanewapproachbybuyingastakeinsomethingthatalreadyexistsandisagoodfit.Asweconsiderthenextstepstocompletethemobilityecosystemforourcustomers,wewillcontinuetoaskiftherearealreadysuitableprovidersforustoworkwithandwhatformofcooperationmakessense.

Anobligationtocustomersfuelsnew

products

StephanBinder:Itsoundslikeyou’reincreasinglymovingawayfromthemotorinsurancebusinessandintootherpartsoftheautomotivemarket.Insuranceisstillyourcorebusinessrightnow;willitstopplayingaroleatsomepoint?

Klaus-JürgenHeitmann:Letmebeclear:motorinsurancewillbethefocusofourbusinessactivitiesforsometime.Butwecanseechangesaheadinthelongtermandweneedtobereadyforthem.

Asaninsurer,wehavemillionsoftouchpointswithcustomersyearafteryearacrossallthechannelsweuse.Weobviouslyknowexactlywhatcarstheyhaveinsuredwithusandwhetherthecarshadclaims.Andthankstotelematics,weknowmoreandmoreaboutcustomers’drivingbehavior.Inshort,we’resittingonatroveofdatathatwe’renotfully

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leveragingtoday.Thereareendlessopportunitiestousethisdataforactivitiesbeyondourcoreinsurancebusiness.

Andit’snotjustourtrulycomprehensivedatabasethat’svaluable—ourregularcontactwithcustomersis,too.Insuranceproductsrepresentanongoingobligation.AndHUK-COBURGhasveryloyalcustomers,withrelationshipsthatstretchovermanyyearsorevenmanydecades.Allthismeansthatweknowourcustomersextremelywell.Wewillmakesurethatthisadvantagedrivesourthinkingaboutnewproductsandservices.

StephanBinder:Soyouarebuildingonyourexistingcustomerbasetopromotethesenewservices.Doesitworkintheotherdirection,too?Dothesenewservicesalsoboostyourcorebusiness?

Klaus-JürgenHeitmann:That’stheidea,eventually.Toputitsimply:wehopethatifwecanoffercustomersrealvalue—intermsofanattractiverangeofusedcars,repairandmaintenanceoptions,orotherservices—wewillbuildthoseinitialcontactswiththem.We’restrongtodaybecausecustomerscometous,andwewantthemtokeepcoming,notonlyformotorinsurancebutalsoforotherproductsandservicesthatappealtocustomers.Inevergettiredofrepeatingthis:it’sourobligationtoofferproductsthataregoodandaffordableandfitwithourbrandasaresult.

Steeringtheorganizationthroughnewterritory

StephanBinder:Basedonwhatyou’resayingnow,you’reenteringnewterritory.Howistheorganizationrespondingtonewtechnologies,andhowdoyouaddressthechallengesorresistancethatmightcomeup?

Klaus-JürgenHeitmann:Wehavebeenextremelysuccessfuloverdecades,especiallyinmotorinsurance.Now,thetimehascometoconvinceourorganizationthatthingsmaynotalwayscontinueastheyhavebeen.Peoplearequicktooffercounterarguments.Let’stakeamajortechnological

driverofchange:self-drivingcars.Thefirstcounterargumentisusually,“Idon’tbelieveforaminutethatself-drivingcarswillreallyneverhaveaccidents.”Myansweristhatwemayindeedbefarfromthatpoint.Buttheproblemdoesn’tfirstappearwhentherearenomoreaccidentsatall;itemergesalongthewayasthenumberofaccidentsgoesdownsignificantly.Asecondcommonreflexistheideathatotherinsuranceproductscansimplytakeontheunique

rolethatmotorinsuranceplaysforustoday:gettingcustomerstocometousontheirown.ButIdon’tbelievethatotherproductcategoriescancomeclosetoplayingtheroleofmotorinsuranceforus.MotorinsuranceismandatoryinGermany,anditrepresentsasignificantfinancialoutlay,atleasttoday.Germanconsumersareusedtocomparingmotorinsuranceoffers,too.Youcaneasilyfindreasonstoavoidaddressingwhetheracertaindegreeofreinventionisnecessary.Ittakesawhilefortheorganizationtointernalizethisneed.Butit’simportanttodrivethechangesothattheorganizationcanworktomakenewthingspossible.Andasweworkonthesenewtopics,thechallengeisnotforgettingtomaintainourstrengthinmotorinsurance,becausethisisthefoundationthatallowsustodevelopnewmodelsforourfuturesuccess.Wedon’tthinkadramaticshiftiscomingnextyearoreveninthenextthreeyears.Instead,we’reexpectingchangeinthemediumorlongterm.Soit’snaturaltoask,“Whyarewemakingthiseffortnow?”

Buttheanswerisrelativelyclear:changetakestime.

StephanBinder:Itsoundsliketherearestillquiteafewskeptics.You’vesaidthatthebusinessisgoingverywell,whichgivesyouthetimeyouneedtoprepareforanychanges.Howareyouusingthattime?Howareyougettingyourpeopleonboard?Klaus-JürgenHeitmann:Irefertomotorinsuranceasa“magnet”becauseitdrawscustomerstoourcompany.Ifyouaskourpeopleaboutthetopicswe’reemphasizing,youwillquicklyhearthatwhat

4Klaus-JürgenHeitmannonthejourneytomobilityecosystems

I’mdiscussingnow—theworkonnewmagnets—getsalotofattention.

Criticsquestionwhetherthisamountofattentionisjustified.Butinfact,wearedoingmanythingsatonce,andwediscussthemregularly,aswealwayshave.Wehavealsosetrelativelycleartargetsandquantifiedwherewewanttobein2025—ayearIconsidertobeanimportantmilestoneinourjourney.Ourpeopleneedtobreakdowntopicsintotheiressentialparts,almostmechanically,andassigncleartaskstowardaccomplishingspecificgoals.

Here’sanexample:toapproachcustomersaboutmanydifferentproductsandservices,includingthosebeyondinsurance,youneedalegalbasisthatpermitsyoutohavetheseconversations.Justgraspingtheimplicationsasacompanyisabigjob.Consentmanagementisjustoneoftheareasyouneedtoconsider.

Intheend,it’svitaltotalkabouttheseissuesandwhatcouldcomesothatpeoplenotonlyunderstand

itbutalsoideallyshareit.Andallthisshouldhappenwithoutmakingpeoplefearthefuture.Theyshouldhavethefeelingthatchangeisahead,butwearecapableofadaptingandfindingagoodwayforwardforourselves.

Thrivinginanaggregator

environment

StephanBinder:HUK-COBURGGroupincludesHUK24.Thisdigital-directinsureralsofindsitselfinanewworldwithmanyfintechsandinsurtechs.HowisHUK24holdingitspositioninthisenvironment?Anddoyouhaveanyconcernsaboutyourprogress?Klaus-JürgenHeitmann:Asyoucanimagine,weareextremelyhappyaboutourdecisiontofoundHUK24backintheearly2000s.Thecompanyisonapermanentgrowthtrack,anditsmaincorebusinessismotorinsurance.Anddespitenewcompetitors—aggregatorscometomind—we’resuccessfullykeepingourkey

advantage:independentaccesstocustomers,with

©McKinsey

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nomiddleman.Weconsiderthisaccesstobeaprerequisiteforsurvivinginamarketwherepricecompetitionishigh.

Wearecertainthatwewillneedtokeepmakinglargeinvestmentsinthisbusinessmodel.Developing,expanding,andinvestinginHUK24servicesandfunctionalityaregoodforthe

HUK-COBURGGroup,whichessentiallyhasanomnichannelpresenceasaresult.Justlookatthepositionwehavereachedsofarandthebrandawarenessitbrings,thestrengthofbothbrandsintheHUK-COBURGGroup,andourabilitytoachieveeconomiesofscalefarbeyondthosepossibleforothercompanies.Plus,wecanmakeadditionalsignificantinvestments.

I’mnotworriedaboutwhetherwecancontinuetomakeprogress.That’saworryforthenewwould-beattackers,whohavecometoseethatgettingaccesstocustomersisn’teasy.Toputitbluntly,accessingcustomersisexpensivebecausetodoso,aggregatorshavetoworkwithbigadvertisers.Ourbrandstrength,especiallyforourtwocorebrands,isanenormousadvantagehere.

StephanBinder:Canyoutalkabouthowyouaddmarketshareevenwithoutaggregators?

Klaus-JürgenHeitmann:Ialwayssaythataggregatorstrulyofferabigvaluepropositionforcustomers.That’swhywearefollowingthesedevelopmentssocarefully.Atonepointinthepast,wetriedtodosomethingsimilarourselves.Butthoseeffortsendedwhenwerealizedthatwewerenearlytoolatetobuildourownbrandforthis

purpose.

Now,however,wehaveachievedapositionofstrengththat,inmyview,isinseparablefromthepriceperceptionofourtwobrands.Wewanttofurtherexpandonthispositiontokeepaholdofourunderlyingobjective,whichprovidesthebasisforoursuccessasacompany.Specifically,wedon’twanttoloseourindependentaccesstocustomers.

Growingbeyondmobility

StephanBinder:WhenyouthinkaboutHUK-COBURGintenyears,whatdoyousee?

‘Wehaveachievedapositionofstrengththatisinseparablefromthepriceperceptionofourtwobrands.Wewanttofurtherexpandonthispositiontokeepaholdofourunderlyingobjective.’

–Klaus-JürgenHeitmann

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Klaus-JürgenHeitmann:IseeacompanythatremainsGermany’slargestmotorinsurerandishopefullyevenfurtheraheadofthecompetitionthanitistoday.Iseeusholdingasignificantlystrongerpositioninotherproductcategories,especiallypropertyandcasualty.Iseeourroleasahealthinsurerbeingmuchlargerwithinthegroupstructure.Andfinally,Iseealifeinsurerthatmaynotbeamongthelargestinourindustrybutisoneofthebestandwithgoodgrowth.

That’swhereIseeourinsurancebusiness,butthere’sanotheraspecttomention,atleastintermsofmobility:intenyears,wewillhavebecomeatrulyrelevantproviderthatmeetsafullrangeofprivatecustomers’mobilityneeds.Customerswillturntouswhentheywanttochangecars.Thiscouldmeanbuyinganewcar,obtainingitforuseinsome

otherform,orsellingortradingintheiroldcar.Wewillhandlevehiclemaintenanceandinspections,too,ideallyforastablemonthlyratethecustomercaneasilyplanintotheirbudget.Wewillmanage