Although suspense/follow-up is a big issue when it comes to E&O, there's very little in print about the importance of effective suspense procedures. In this document, Patricia Alexander explains why keeping suspense current is important and how it can affect your E&O.
You probably have an agency management system that has a great suspense module. Your staff might even use the suspense feature in some manner. However, we frequently find service staff who use other suspense systems — either in conjunction with or in place of — the agency management system. Adding new technology and software features to the CSR and sales desktop creates a new phenomenon — feature overlap. The agency management system diary system is duplicated by the Outlook follow-up system, which is duplicated by the new submission tracking system. The list goes on and on.
DEFINE SUSPENSE
A good definition of suspense is “a temporary entry pending the receipt of an expected item or information.” Suspense is the expectation that an event will occur. It also ensures that appropriate action is taken if the event does not occur. Let's use the endorsement process as our example. Most agencies suspense endorsement requests for 30 to 45 days. Is this an appropriate period? Why do we set a suspense when an endorsement is ordered? CSRs usually respond that they set the suspense based on when they expect to receive the endorsement. When we ask CSRs what they do if the endorsement isn't received when the suspense is due (endorsements are seldom received within 30 days), they say that they do nothing or re-suspense for an additional number of days. CSRs know the markets and understand that, in most cases, they aren't going to receive the endorsement within this time frame.
A better approach to setting follow-up for endorsements (or any transaction, for that matter) is to base it on when we want to follow up — not when we expect it. For an endorsement, 60 to 90 days is more appropriate. Ninety-nine percent of endorsements are probably received and processed within this time frame.
Another factor to consider when defining suspense is automatic follow-ups. Many agency management systems arbitrarily create diary follow-ups when a transaction is completed. These are often meaningless. So, every day, when CSRs see their follow-up items, the list gets longer and longer, and the same items appear over and over again. Once in a while, CSRs clean it up because it becomes unmanageable. They do so by reviewing each transaction to see if was completed. This is extremely time-consuming. Reconsider the use of automatic follow-up items.
Setting appropriate follow-up based on when we want to inquire about eliminates unnecessary work. And let's face it: CSRs have trouble keeping up. Eliminating unnecessary work is the first step in eliminating backlog.
ONE SUSPENSE SYSTEM FOR ALL
We frequently find service staff using a variety of suspense systems. One CSR might use the agency management system for follow-up of endorsements, while another uses Outlook follow-up flags. Occasionally, we even find diaries handwritten on desk calendars. The use of various follow-up systems leads to misunderstandings among the service staff. Since you've chosen to have an agency management system with a suspense system, consider eliminating other systems. This includes, but might not be limited to, Outlook or other e-mail calendars, the producer's personal PDA, the 1-31 day tickler system, binder logs and, yes, even the desk calendar.
The exception is the use of flags in Outlook for an ongoing e-mail dialog. The flag follow-up in Outlook works well for these instances. After the dialog is completed, attach the e-mail to the client in your agency management system. Create guidelines for how long these “dialog transactions” can remain in Outlook. We frequently recommend that any client transaction not resolved within seven days should have a follow-up on the agency management system. For marketing activity, more leniency can be granted. The key is to make sure there are guidelines.
SEND A SECOND REQUEST
Before setting suspense defaults in your agency management system or setting your agency standard for suspense times on each item, analyze proper suspense times. Determine the normal number of days from time of ordering the policy or endorsement until the time received. If this number is somewhere between 30 and 60 days, then the suspense should be set for 60 days. If these numbers work for your agency, you'll see very few suspense items appear. These items would've been cleared before the 60 days and only those that hadn't been received would appear.
The purpose of a suspense system is to serve as a reminder for something that you need to do or for catching those items that aren't received in the normal course of business. Most agencies set suspense items for too short a period and spend time simply re-suspending or following up unnecessarily. Setting suspense in an appropriate manner eliminates both the need to clean up suspense items and the long list of pending, past due suspense items that many of your staff members try to manage each day.
DON'T FORGET TRAINING
Everyone in your agency who's involved in setting and monitoring a suspense date must receive proper training and follow the defined procedures of the automated suspense system. Be sure to identify every type of suspense system used in your office so you can be sure that all are incorporated into the automated system.
CLEAN UP
We have a tendency to wait to clean old suspense items until someone tells us to do so. We wait until they're totally out of control, making the cleanup a real project. Then, a few months later, it's a mess again. The best way to clean up old suspense items permanently is to first make sure you have good workflows in place. Design and implement new workflows before you worry about the old ones.
Once you have the new suspense workflows in place, clean up the old ones. We recommend getting rid of five to ten old items a day until they're all gone. If you've been effective with the new workflows, they shouldn't reappear. The suspense system is now meaningful.
How do you know where you stand today? The sample form included at the end of this article will help you evaluate how well you manage your automated suspense system. To complete the form, just count pending suspense items from the report available from your agency management system. Do this for each account manager, CSR, and assistant in your office.
Understanding where you are with your suspense and automation today is critical to your success as you move forward and leverage automation for quality growth without compromising service. The benefits of an integrated suspense system include increased productivity, enhanced management control, and improved client service. Effective suspense management will play an essential part of your firm's continued success.
Effective management of your automated suspense system is the key to reducing servicing omissions and providing consistent follow-ups with your insureds and carriers. The follow-up process controls E&O while, at the same time, providing quality service to your client. Ineffective management of your suspense system actually causes more work, increasing your Errors & Omissions exposure.
Suspense Evaluation Questionnaire
Department: _______________________________________________
Evaluator: _______________________________________________
YES NO
1. Is your suspense automated within your agency management system?
2. Have all employees been trained on the automated suspense system?
3. Is suspense monitored by the department supervisors or managers?
4. Are multiple suspense systems, such as Outlook, Personal Digital
Assistants, desk calendars, etc., maintained in addition to the
agency management system?
If so, please describe.
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
5. Do you print and distribute suspense listings? If so, how frequently?
_______________________________________________________
6. Do CSRs routinely “clean-up” their pending items?
If so, describe the “clean-up” process.
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
7. Casually flip through each CSR's desk calendar. Are there any
reminders penciled in? Are any manual suspense files kept at the
CSRs' desks?
8. View your automated suspense from January through last Friday
and complete the form below:
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EMPLOYEE NAME
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0 TO 30 DAYS OLD
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OVER 30 DAYS OLD
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TOTAL
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