Surety carriers—both established players and new entrants—recognize the industry's urgent need for modernization. However, short of building a new platform from scratch, determining the right starting point can be challenging. Platform modernization presents a major opportunity to increase efficiency, lower costs, drive revenue, and enhance customer satisfaction. It is also a strategic imperative for staying competitive. A recent Datos Insights report underscores the role of digitization in enabling carriers to “enhance product capability to pursue new opportunities or accommodate market demands,” improve “data accessibility as BI and analytics become critical to insurers’ strategic objectives,” and “attract and retain top producers while providing policyholders and claimants with a seamless experience.”
The guide below serves as a jumping-off point for prioritizing digital transformation.
Invest in Technology— Strategically
Modern Surety platforms enable carriers to accelerate workflows, minimize manual processes, and reduce errors—all while allowing teams to focus on high-value activities. Selecting the right solution is critical. Carefully weigh the pros and cons of building versus buying [download our helpful guide], and thoroughly evaluate SaaS providers based on scalability, security, and industry expertise.
For carriers operating on legacy systems, it’s time to evaluate if your platform yields the results you want and if it’s capable of scaling in years to come. According to Datos Insights, “many insurers report that more than 75% of their IT budgets go toward ‘keeping the lights on’” in maintaining outdated systems, “leaving little capacity for new product innovation or improving existing capabilities.” Consider whether it is more cost-effective and sustainable to continuously upgrade a legacy system or to transition to a cloud-based SaaS solution where platform enhancements are a core component of the service.
Additionally, digital transformation increases data exposure, making cybersecurity a top priority. Whether building an in-house platform or adopting a SaaS solution, ensure that security measures are robust, adaptive, and aligned with evolving threats and regulatory requirements.
Leverage Third-Party Integrations and Data Analytics
For both established Surety carriers and new entrants, automation is critical to improving operational efficiency and decision-making. Implementing automated workflows and advanced analytics can optimize pricing strategies, streamline underwriting processes, and enable real-time risk detection. Intelligent monitoring tools enhance bond performance oversight, provide early warnings of potential defaults, and improve Work-in-Progress (WIP) management—allowing carriers to proactively mitigate risks and drive better outcomes.
A modern Surety platform centralizes data from multiple sources, providing deeper insights for the end-to-end bond lifecycle. This data-driven approach reduces human intervention, improves accuracy, and dramatically streamlines workflows so your team can do more business.
For example, Tinubu recently worked with a new entrant to centralize reporting and analytics and provide carrier partners with platform access—dramatically reducing their manual reporting burden. When choosing a SaaS provider, ensure their platform offers comprehensive reporting capabilities and secure data-sharing tools for key stakeholders.
Prioritize User Experience
A well-designed user experience is not a nice-to-have; it’s fundamental. As the Datos report states, “Newer generations of producers and policyholders have higher expectations for technology and usability and won’t tolerate the inefficiencies and poor user experience that legacy solutions offer.” Inadequate UX can lead to underutilization of the platform, forcing employees to rely on inefficient workarounds.
At Tinubu, recognizing the need to continuously adopt UX best practices, we have brought in new experts to enhance platform usability, ensuring intuitive experiences and addressing customer feedback. Whether developing a custom platform or selecting a SaaS provider, prioritize solutions that invest in good user interfaces and intuitive self-service portals for agents and clients.
Train Your Team
Even the most advanced Surety platform will fall short if users and key stakeholders are not equipped to leverage it effectively. Modernizations, big and small, benefit from comprehensive training to ensure employees can maximize platform capabilities. When evaluating SaaS providers, verify that they offer robust onboarding, ongoing training, and responsive tech support to facilitate adoption and long-term proficiency.
Focus On Innovation and R&D—or Have Someone Do It for You
A Surety platform is not a one-time investment; it requires continuous maintenance, upgrades, and innovation to remain competitive. Carriers opting for in-house development must dedicate teams to ongoing R&D, ensuring compatibility with emerging technologies and market shifts.
Alternatively, partnering with a SaaS provider like Tinubu offloads this responsibility, giving carriers access to a continuously evolving platform backed by industry research and best practices. A reputable SaaS provider will actively participate in industry groups, attend conferences, and invest in new technology, ensuring their platform remains at the cutting edge while carriers focus on core business objectives.
