The superannuation industry plays a crucial role in supporting Australians during their most vulnerable moments. However, the recent ASIC report, “Taking Ownership of Death Benefits: How Trustees Can Deliver Outcomes Australians Deserve,” highlights several operational failures that undermine trust and hinder service delivery, especially during bereavement.
Key Findings from the ASIC Report
The report identifies systemic failures such as
- excessive delays in claims processing,
- poor service and communication,
- gaps in trustee data and reporting,
- unclear and inconsistent processes, and
- inadequate support for First Nations claimants.
These issues contribute to emotional and financial distress for grieving Australians.
On the positive side, the report also highlights better practices. Trustees with robust processes and proactive communication delivered better outcomes. Binding nominations significantly reduced claims handling times, and trustees who insourced claims handling functions performed faster than those outsourcing.
ActiveOps: A Solution to Superannuation Failures
ActiveOps is uniquely positioned to address the failures identified in the ASIC report by providing tools and methodologies to optimize operations, improve customer engagement and outcomes, and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. By leveraging our solutions, trustees can enhance their operational efficiency, improve service delivery, and build trust with their members.
- Set and monitor performance objectives for claims handling:
Decision Intelligence provides tools to monitor performance and leverage data to predict and prescribe decisions that are critical for service operations. Imagine if every decision is consistently more accurate, timely and planned for. - Reducing Delays in Claims Processing:
Decision Intelligence provides tools to streamline claims processing, ensuring that claims are handled promptly and efficiently. Predictive analytics will keep cases and SLAs on track. Real-time view, real-time decisions. This reduces the emotional and financial burden on grieving families. - Improving Service and Communication:
With Decision Intelligences trustees can implement proactive communication strategies, providing regular status updates and plain language materials to claimants. This transparency builds trust and ensures that members are well-informed throughout the claims process. - Enhancing Data and Reporting:
Decision Intelligence offers robust data management and reporting solutions, enabling trustees to monitor performance objectives and improve oversight of service providers. This ensures that trustees can identify and address any gaps in their processes. - Balancing Risk and Service Efficiency:
Decision Intelligence enables trustees to balance their risk appetite with service efficiency, ensuring that all claimants are treated as potentially vulnerable and that financial hardship is addressed proactively.
Conclusion
The ASIC report underscores the need for trustees to take ownership of their member services and deliver compassionate, efficient outcomes for beneficiaries. By adopting ActiveOps solutions, trustees can address the deficiencies identified in the report and align their operations with the expectations of grieving Australians.
ActiveOps is committed to helping trustees enhance their superannuation services, build trust with their members, and deliver the outcomes Australians deserve.
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