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Managing our client commitments

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1) Product innovation

Both individuals and businesses are having to face up to new risks, some of which have become global issues, calling for concrete responses, including climate change, the aging of the population, and new global health issues. Drawing on its professional expertise, AXA is committed to creating and developing products and services in line with the requirements of its clients. Clients are looking to protect themselves against risks with cover adapted to their situations. Product innovation notably involves segmenting our offering. On this area, the Group's size represents an undeniable competitive advantage, enabling it to reuse products that have already proven their value in another country, often with a quicker time to market.

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2) Listening to our clients - the Customer Scope survey

Improving quality of service hinges primarily on AXA's ability to continue listening to its clients and pinpoint any grounds for dissatisfaction. This is what the Customer Scope aims to achieve, with a survey carried out every six months in 30 countries.

Thanks to the Customer Scope survey, the satisfaction of our clients is measured in a consistent way across the entire Group, with questions looking at clients' relations with their contacts, the quality of advice provided and the adaptation of the response in line with the client's actual requirements. From 2002 driven by efforts to innovate on products, improve quality of service and offer even more effective distribution channels, client satisfaction increased.

Among other things, this survey measures the perception of service by clients both at the time of the sale and when the service is actually being delivered. This survey therefore represents an excellent way of identifying factors that can be leveraged in order to increase the level of satisfaction. Various actions have been carried out with a view to improving the customer experience, notably in terms of claims handling, with an expansion of the network of service providers, the development of management platforms, making it possible to respond even more quickly, and even a reduction in settlement times. As a priority, the Group is also focusing on setting up service commitments, notably in relation to distributors. Thanks to this survey, AXA in Germany is accompanying intermediaries offering its healthcare products from the initial contact for quotes through to the issuing of policies.

AXA Germany customers better informed in the event of a claim

Recent findings from the Customer Scope survey showed that, for 80% of AXA's customers in Germany, the most important issue is information on the handling of their claims, with 55% of them preferring to receive this information by mail within one week of the claim being filed. However, only 22% of clients were actively receiving letters within this timeframe, while 31% received them later, and 47% did not receive anything at all. Why? Because this information process had been designed to meet the company's needs, rather than those of its clients. To remedy this situation, a project team set out to create a standard information letter based on clients' most frequently asked questions. The decision to systematically send out this letter has led to three significant improvements: a reduction in the number of calls by around 50%, a better quality of responses, and a higher level of loyalty among homeowner policyholders who have filed claims. The organization and processes have been rethought, and the resulting increase in satisfaction levels has been a key differentiating factor for the company. Indeed, it has been reflected in a 75% increase in new business.

AXA PPP healthcare: customer satisfaction up 10 points over one year

At AXA PPP healthcare in the UK, the client satisfaction KPI shot up from 69 to 79 between 2004 and 2005, reflecting the comprehensive work carried out since 2004, as Helen Greenwood, head of strategic marketing, explains: "We focused our efforts on building a customer service capable of meeting the objectives set for Ambition 2012". For this, AXA PPP healthcare was able to draw on the monthly Customer Scope surveys carried out with some 1,000 clients, looking at three categories: new clients, clients who have had a claim within the past month, and clients who have not had any claims for the last six months. This significant improvement in our result compared with the previous year is down to a series of actions under the Client Experience Program. Carried out within the dedicated customer service department, these efforts focused on planning the handling of customer complaints more effectively and offering better service over the phone. A new sales strategy is also being rolled out, with a six-stage sales process introduced, enabling customers to subscribe for policies directly without having to fill out any paper questionnaires.

 

2007

2006 

2005 

Customer satisfaction rate

79%

79% 

76%

3) Distribution channel expertise and satisfaction

The quality of the relationship between AXA and its distribution channels has an impact on its relations with its clients. AXA therefore decided to measure the level of satisfaction among its distributors in order to build up a clearer picture of their expectations. Following a test phase, the Distributor Scope survey was launched at the end of 2005.

This survey has been carried out in 14 countries to date. 32 distribution channels, including 17 non-exclusive ones, have been called upon to give their feedback, and nearly 19,000 questionnaires looking at distribution management, product innovation and quality of service have been analyzed. This research has made it possible to map out areas for improvement over the next few years.

 

2007

2006 

2005 

Distributor satisfaction rate (KPI Distributor Scope survey) 

42% 

39% 

35% 

Strengthening the expertise of sales channels in France

On the complex market for small and medium-sized businesses and industries, expertise is needed in a certain number of areas in order to provide effective and efficient advice for business leaders. In France, the École de l'entreprise business school, launched in 2004, offers training for tied agents, combining technical and field-focused content in order to better accompany these clients. At the end of 2005, 13 seven-week "schools" had been organized for 520 trainees and a total of 15,500 days of training. In addition, to enable distributors to be even more responsive and effective, AXA is providing them with a number of new tools. With the Net Collectives extranet, tied agents and partner brokers are able to issue proposals, set up new business and track their portfolios across the entire range of collective pensions, healthcare and personal protection solutions. Clients are now able to enjoy quicker access to the various simulations needed to help them make their choices, in addition to information on their policies. Thanks to this extranet, AXA won the Argus d'or "gold" award in the "innovation and services" category.

The quality of the relationship between AXA and its distribution channels has an impact on its relations with its clients. AXA therefore decided to measure the level of satisfaction among its distributors in order to build up a clearer picture of their expectations. Following a test phase, the Distributor Scope survey was launched at the end of 2005. This survey has been carried out in 12 countries to date, representing 86% of AXA's business. 26 distribution channels, including 11 non-exclusive ones, have been called upon to give their feedback, and nearly 18,000 questionnaires looking at distribution management, product innovation and quality of service have been analyzed. This research has made it possible to map out areas for improvement over the next few years in terms of coordinating sales efforts, sales-support tools, training and communication.

Measuring broker expectations

In France, strong expectations have been identified among brokers, who are notably calling for a reduction in the time needed to draw up sales proposals and underwrite policies. For its channels and clients, AXA has therefore made a commitment to processing all subscriptions for policies within three working days. Delivering on this commitment has made it possible to improve the level of broker satisfaction by 17 points, paving the way for strong growth in new business, up +13.5% over 2005.

4) AXA Way and the differentiation strategy

The AXA Way process involves introducing methods that have been used in industry for some time into a service-based business. It involves listening to the voice of the customer at all times, enabling us to improve our processes in order to meet their requirements. Notably used when setting up service commitments, this process is enabling AXA to stand out from its rivals, helping it become the "preferred company".

AXA Way is built around three key objectives: putting the client at the heart of our actions, optimizing our operational performance, in other words revising our processes in line with an optimization method common to all of the Group's companies, and developing a continuous improvement culture.

AXA Way is gradually extended throughout the Group and is becoming the foundation underpinning AXA's culture. As of September 2006 :

  • All AXA entities (36) were involved in the programme;
  • 530 AXA Way experts ("black belts");
  • 18.000 employees trained to AXA Way;
  • Projects finalised;
  • Over 700 projects pending.