MiddleOak Selects Guidewire Solution for Underwriting and Policy Administration

Guidewire PolicyCenter® to enable speed to market, improve agent ease of doing business and increase operational efficiencies

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. & SAN MATEO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul. 3, 2012-- MiddleOak®, a provider of Personal, Commercial and Specialty insurance, and Guidewire Software, Inc. (NYSE:GWRE), a provider of core system software to Property/Casualty insurers, today announced that MiddleOak has selected Guidewire PolicyCenter® as its new underwriting and policy administration solution. PolicyCenter will initially be used for MiddleOak’s Specialty Habitational and associated Umbrella lines of business.

MiddleOak needed a flexible system that would enable it to get product updates to market quickly, and with higher quality. The company wanted to become easier for independent agents to work with, and they wanted to reduce the number of manual tasks staff had to perform during the course of their work to save both time and money and free them up to better serve customers and agents.

“We were looking for a system that would allow us to take control of our own destiny and make product changes and system upgrades ourselves - how and when we wanted,” said Anne Tarryk, senior vice president, Distributed Technology, MiddleOak. “Guidewire PolicyCenter’s out-of-the-box functionality and workflows will empower our users and the system’s flexible design will allow us to become much more self-sufficient.” This self sufficiency will enable MiddleOak to develop products and capabilities internally rather than relying on vendor support.

“The deciding factors which led us to select Guidewire PolicyCenter were Guidewire’s implementation process, the caliber of its people, and the degree of success the company has had with past deployment projects,” continued Tarryk. “We are confident that Guidewire will help us transform our underwriting and policy administration operations based on its impressive track record and focus on customer success.”

PolicyCenter will enable MiddleOak to:

• Readily and independently make system changes to bring new products to market more quickly and with higher quality to better keep pace with changing business and technical demands;
• Increase the ease of doing business for agents, enabling them to quote business more quickly and accurately via the system’s quote option;
• Enhance operational efficiency through proactive workload management and the automation of formerly manual tasks; and
• Improve data analytics and real-time reporting capabilities.

“We are honored to welcome MiddleOak to the Guidewire family,” said Steve Sherry, vice president, The Americas, Guidewire Software. “We applaud MiddleOak’s objectives and desire for self-sufficiency. We look forward to helping them realize project and business success.”

Guidewire PolicyCenter is a flexible underwriting and policy administration system that enables property/casualty insurers to grow business profitably by improving efficiency, while responding with agility to market opportunities and enhancing relationships with agents and customers. Designed to support both commercial and personal lines, PolicyCenter helps insurers streamline front and back office processes, from new business submission and quoting through policy renewals. PolicyCenter is available as a standalone system or as part of Guidewire InsuranceSuite™, and can be integrated to an insurer’s legacy systems or third party applications.

About MiddleOak®

MiddleOak provides auto, home, umbrella, business, flood, watercraft and specialty insurance in selected states through Middlesex Mutual Assurance Company, formed in 1836, and Holyoke Mutual Insurance Company in Salem, founded in 1843. MiddleOak agencies and policyholders understand that MiddleOak’s commitment to Making Insurance Right® is the core value driving its business. The MiddleOak companies have a financial strength rating of A+ (Superior) by A.M. Best. For more information, please visit www.middleoak.com.

About Guidewire Software

Guidewire Software is a provider of core system software to the global general (Property/Casualty) insurance industry. Designed to be flexible and scalable, Guidewire solutions give insurers the capability to deliver excellent service, increase market share and lower operating costs. Guidewire InsuranceSuite™, consisting of Guidewire PolicyCenter®, Guidewire ClaimCenter® and Guidewire BillingCenter® spans the key functional areas in insurance – underwriting and policy administration, claims management, and billing. Guidewire is headquartered in San Mateo, California, with offices in Beijing, Dublin, Hong Kong, London, Munich, Paris, Sydney, Tokyo, and Toronto. For more information, please visit www.guidewire.com.

NOTE: Guidewire, Guidewire Software, Guidewire ClaimCenter, Guidewire PolicyCenter, Guidewire BillingCenter, Guidewire InsuranceSuite, Deliver Insurance Your Way, Guidewire PartnerConnect, and the Guidewire logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Guidewire Software, Inc.

Source: Guidewire Software

Guidewire Software, Inc.
Diana Stott, +1-650-356-4941
Public Relations Manager
dstott@guidewire.com