Aflac Life Insurance Japan soars with three wins at the Insurance Asia Awards 2021 

Aflac Life Insurance Japan soars with three wins at the Insurance Asia Awards 2021 

It has been implementing digital innovations to provide better services to its stakeholders based on its unique DX strategy.

With the acceleration of digitalisation in recent years, as well as the rapid value and lifestyle changes, Aflac Life Insurance Japan continues to make efforts in meeting the expectations of its stakeholders, including customers, by implementing CSV management based on core values from its founding philosophy “aiding cancer sufferers to save from economic hardship.”

Despite the challenging times, Aflac Japan developed “DX@Aflac,” a strategy for accelerating DX to meet the stakeholders’ expectations in a flexible and agile manner and to provide new values in the “insurance for daily living” area, as well as the new areas beyond the insurance field.

DX@Aflac also builds a framework for promoting DX to support value creation by DX. This is realised through building an infrastructure for efficiency improvement and operations automation as well as data analysis using AI, etc., as well as promoting DX efficiently and effectively by making improvements through customer review and self-evaluation, amongst others.

To implement DX measures flexibly and promptly, a cross-functional team with delegated authority was formed and made them produce output focusing on customer value in short cycles. Even the company’s president and CDIO proactively communicated DX purpose/ strategy to all officers and employees. This led to a change in awareness and behavior toward DX.

As a result, Aflac Japan was certified as the first business operator in Japan set by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, as satisfying the DX certification criteria in terms of developing visions, strategies/structures, amongst others, in the DX certification system. Aflac also topped in the Japanese life insurance category of NPS Benchmark Survey 2020 for making company-wide efforts to improve customer loyalty and promote customer satisfaction.

This strategy has made the company stand out and clinch the International Life Insurer of the Year - Japan award at the Insurance Asia Awards 2021. The prestigious award recognises remarkable milestones and innovations that made the company prosper amidst a challenging time.

At the same time, Aflac Japan also bagged the Digital Insurance Initiative of the Year - Japan and the Insurtech Initiative of the Year - Japan awards, for the company’s cutting-edge innovations and their impact on the industry, as well as the project’s ability to be flexible and progressive.

Amongst these innovations is the development of a system wherein all explanations and taking-out insurances from sales agents are done online. This is done by utilising CallVU. The system was first launched in telemarketing, and the system improvement has made the process to be completely non-contact, as compared before.

By realising a non-contact insurance application method, Aflac Japan was ensured to reduce risks of their customers and sales agents from COVID-19 infection and effectively reduced administrative costs.

Aflac Japan was able to achieve the same close communication as pre-pandemic by establishing communication tools and remote work environments at an early stage, despite the fact that both domestic and international development had to work from home due to COVID-19.

Meanwhile, the insurer has also launched an AI chatbot with 3D avatar that enables natural online communications by a 3D-animated operator responding to policyholders’ enquiries with its motion and speech. Aflac Japan has built an interface that allows flexible and quick updates of expected questions and answers without modifying the program.  

The chatbot has resulted in improved customer service, enabling enquiries 24/7 and having around 56,000 uses. It has also reduced maintenance costs and made maintenance working hours more flexible.