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New York Life Insurance Finance

To empower financial security and peace of mind through enduring solutions while building lasting customer trust for generations to come

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To empower financial security and peace of mind through enduring solutions while building lasting customer trust for generations to come

Strengths

  • STABILITY: 178+ years of financial strength and AA+ ratings
  • MUTUALITY: No shareholders means decisions favor policyholders
  • LIQUIDITY: $723B in assets under management provides flexibility
  • DIVERSIFICATION: Balanced product portfolio reduces market risk
  • TALENT: Deep bench of experienced financial professionals

Weaknesses

  • DIGITAL: Legacy financial systems slow modernization efforts
  • AGILITY: Complex approval processes delay financial decisions
  • ANALYTICS: Limited real-time financial data visibility across units
  • COSTS: Higher operational expenses vs. digital-first competitors
  • INTEGRATION: Siloed finance operations between business lines

Opportunities

  • DEMOGRAPHIC: Aging population increasing retirement planning needs
  • ESG: Growing demand for sustainable investment portfolios
  • FINTECH: Strategic partnerships to enhance digital capabilities
  • ANALYTICS: AI-powered financial forecasting and risk assessment
  • EXPANSION: Untapped middle-market customer segments

Threats

  • COMPETITION: Digital-first insurance providers with lower costs
  • INTEREST: Prolonged low interest rate environment pressures margins
  • REGULATION: Increased compliance costs and reporting requirements
  • CYBER: Growing financial fraud and data security threats
  • MARKET: Economic volatility affecting investment returns

Key Priorities

  • MODERNIZE: Transform financial systems for real-time analytics
  • OPTIMIZE: Streamline finance operations to reduce costs by 15%
  • INNOVATE: Develop AI-powered financial forecasting capabilities
  • PROTECT: Enhance financial data security and fraud prevention
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To empower financial security and peace of mind through enduring solutions while building lasting customer trust for generations to come

MODERNIZE FINANCE

Transform our core financial systems for digital excellence

  • PLATFORM: Deploy new cloud-based financial management system across 80% of operations by Q3
  • INTEGRATION: Connect 95% of financial data sources to central data lake by end of Q2
  • AUTOMATION: Implement RPA for 12 high-volume financial processes, saving 5,000 hours quarterly
  • DASHBOARD: Launch executive financial intelligence portal with real-time metrics for top 50 KPIs
COST LEADERSHIP

Optimize finance operations for superior efficiency

  • REDUCTION: Decrease finance operational costs by 15% while maintaining service levels
  • PRODUCTIVITY: Improve finance team output per FTE by 20% through process redesign
  • CONSOLIDATION: Streamline vendor relationships, reducing finance tech providers by 30%
  • ALIGNMENT: Implement zero-based budgeting approach across all finance functions by Q3
AI POWERHOUSE

Harness AI to transform financial forecasting

  • MODELS: Deploy 3 AI-driven financial forecasting models with 85%+ accuracy by Q4
  • TRAINING: Upskill 100% of financial analysts in AI/ML fundamentals and applications
  • AUTOMATION: Reduce financial close process from 8 days to 3 days using AI-assisted tools
  • INSIGHTS: Generate weekly AI-powered recommendations for improving cash flow management
FORTRESS FINANCE

Build world-class financial security and controls

  • DETECTION: Implement AI-powered fraud detection system reducing incidents by 40%
  • COMPLIANCE: Automate 75% of regulatory financial reporting to ensure 100% accuracy
  • SECURITY: Complete SOC 2 Type II certification for all financial data systems
  • RESILIENCE: Conduct quarterly financial crisis simulations with <30min recovery time
METRICS
  • REVENUE GROWTH: 9% year-over-year increase
  • EXPENSE RATIO: Reduce from 11.2% to 9.5%
  • FORECAST ACCURACY: Improve from 82% to 94% across rolling forecasts
VALUES
  • Integrity: Acting with honesty and transparency in all financial operations
  • Human-centered: Making decisions based on what's best for our policyholders
  • Financial strength: Maintaining industry-leading financial stability
  • Long-term perspective: Building sustainable value for generations
  • Agility: Adapting finance operations to changing market conditions
New York Life Insurance logo
Align the learnings

New York Life Insurance Finance Retrospective

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To empower financial security and peace of mind through enduring solutions while building lasting customer trust for generations to come

What Went Well

  • REVENUE: Achieved 6.2% overall growth, exceeding industry average by 1.5%
  • RETENTION: Maintained 94% policyholder retention rate during market volatility
  • INVESTMENTS: Generated 7.8% return on general account, outpacing benchmarks
  • EFFICIENCY: Successfully reduced finance department costs by 4.3% year-over-year
  • COMPLIANCE: Zero material findings in regulatory financial examinations

Not So Well

  • EXPENSES: Operating expense ratio increased by 1.2% due to technology costs
  • DIGITAL: Financial systems modernization project fell behind schedule by 2 months
  • ANALYTICS: Predictive financial models underperformed in volatile market segments
  • RECRUITMENT: Failed to meet finance talent acquisition goals by 15% in key areas
  • INTEGRATION: Post-acquisition financial integration exceeded budget by 12%

Learnings

  • AGILITY: Faster financial decision processes needed during market volatility periods
  • COMMUNICATION: Enhanced financial transparency improves stakeholder confidence
  • TECHNOLOGY: Legacy system limitations significantly impact modernization timelines
  • COLLABORATION: Cross-functional finance teams deliver better forecasting accuracy
  • INNOVATION: Pilot-test emerging financial technologies before full-scale deployment

Action Items

  • ACCELERATE: Fast-track core financial system modernization with additional resources
  • AUTOMATE: Implement robotic process automation for 50% of manual financial tasks
  • ENHANCE: Develop real-time financial dashboard accessible to all leadership teams
  • OPTIMIZE: Redesign financial planning process to reduce cycle time by 30%
  • DEVELOP: Launch finance-focused AI capabilities training program for all analysts
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To empower financial security and peace of mind through enduring solutions while building lasting customer trust for generations to come

Strengths

  • DATA: Vast historical financial data for AI training
  • LEADERSHIP: Executive commitment to AI transformation
  • RESOURCES: Significant budget allocated for AI initiatives
  • TALENT: Growing team of financial data scientists
  • FOUNDATION: Early AI successes in claims processing

Weaknesses

  • LEGACY: Outdated data architecture limits AI deployment
  • SILOS: Fragmented data across financial systems
  • SKILLS: Limited AI expertise within finance teams
  • GOVERNANCE: Underdeveloped AI ethics and oversight framework
  • INTEGRATION: Challenges connecting AI solutions with core systems

Opportunities

  • FORECASTING: AI-powered financial planning and analysis
  • AUTOMATION: Streamline 80% of routine financial processes
  • PERSONALIZATION: AI-driven customized financial reporting
  • RISK: Advanced AI models for market and operational risk
  • EFFICIENCY: Reduce financial close cycle by 40% with AI

Threats

  • COMPETITORS: Fintech firms with advanced AI capabilities
  • TALENT: Fierce competition for AI finance professionals
  • COMPLIANCE: Evolving regulations around AI in financial services
  • BIAS: Risk of embedded bias in financial AI models
  • SECURITY: AI-powered financial fraud targeting insurers

Key Priorities

  • UPSKILL: Develop AI literacy across all finance functions
  • AUTOMATE: Deploy AI to streamline financial reporting processes
  • PREDICT: Implement AI-powered financial forecasting models
  • SECURE: Enhance fraud detection with advanced AI capabilities