Meet Our Expert: Sarah Ng, Vendor Ops Lead at Canopy Analytics
Sarah Ng has spent seven years helping insurance providers across Australia and New Zealand select, test, and roll out analytics technology. She’s led vendor selection processes at both boutique brokers and major insurers, and built SOPs for teams ranging from five-person pilot squads to 200+ user deployments.
We sat down with Sarah to get her hands-on insights for entry-level managers in analytics-platform insurance companies. She’s blunt, practical, and constantly looking for what actually works.
Q1: Why are SOPs so critical in insurance vendor selection — can’t teams just follow industry best practice?
Sarah: I love this one. People assume “best practice” is enough, but in insurance, you can’t copy-paste what another company does. For example, privacy requirements for handling claim data are stricter in Australia than in New Zealand because of APP (Australian Privacy Principles). On top of that, every insurer has slightly different workflows — so a good SOP helps you translate general process into something actionable for your business.
Without a written, step-by-step playbook, tasks fall through the cracks. I saw a mid-size insurer try to evaluate five vendors at once without an SOP. They missed two reference calls, forgot to chase up a POC (proof of concept) deliverable, and ended up with incomplete data for their final scoring. Result: they re-ran half the process, wasting two months.
Q2: How do you kick off SOP development for vendor selection in ANZ?
Sarah: Start by mapping the end-to-end journey. Here’s how I break it down:
- Clarify business needs — why do you need this vendor? Are you trying to improve claims fraud detection, or speed up quote generation?
- Set up a cross-functional team — get people from claims, IT, compliance, and, in Australia, someone who knows APRA (the financial regulator).
- Draft your “must-haves” and “nice-to-haves” — a simple spreadsheet works. For example, if you’re evaluating analytics dashboards, must-haves might include real-time data feed (for claims), while nice-to-haves could be embedded AI recommendations.
Concrete example: At Canopy, we mapped a four-step SOP:
- Vendor shortlist
- RFP (Request for Proposal) distribution
- POC evaluation
- Reference checks
We documented who does what at each stage, the timeline, and what “done” means. Anyone can step in and run the process — even if someone’s out sick.
Q3: What criteria actually matter when you’re evaluating vendors for insurance analytics?
Sarah: I see teams get lost in the weeds here. Focus on five buckets:
| Criteria | Why It Matters in Insurance | Example for Analytics Platform |
|---|---|---|
| Security/Compliance | Regulatory risk is huge | Must be ISO27001 certified, stores data in Australia/NZ region |
| Integration | Most insurers have legacy systems | Connects to Guidewire or Duck Creek APIs |
| Scalability | Policies fluctuate seasonally | Handles spikes (e.g. from 2,000 to 20,000 claims/hr) |
| Support/SLAs | Outages can delay entire operations | Guaranteed 99.9% uptime, 1-hour support response |
| Cost Transparency | Overages kill budgets | All fees stated up-front, clear volume discounts |
Tip: During our last platform roll-out, we discovered a major vendor couldn’t supply an Australian data residency guarantee. That disqualified them instantly — even though their features were flashy.
Q4: How do you structure an RFP (Request for Proposal) so it actually surfaces the right vendors?
Sarah: An RFP isn’t just a checklist. Make your questions insurance-specific and scenario-based.
Instead of asking, “Do you support API integration?” say, “Describe a past implementation where you connected with our core policy admin system. What issues came up?” You want details, not marketing fluff.
Sections to include:
- Company background
- Insurance-specific case studies (ideally for ANZ clients)
- Regulatory compliance details (APRA, NZ Privacy Act)
- Technical architecture (data flows, security)
- Implementation/project timeline
- Detailed pricing breakdown
- References from other insurance clients
Stat: A 2024 Forrester report found that 78% of ANZ insurers who switched platforms cited “ambiguous RFPs” as the reason for mismatched vendor fit.
Q5: What does a good Proof of Concept (POC) look like for analytics platforms in insurance?
Sarah: A POC is your reality check. Here’s my analogy: Think of it as a “test drive” before you buy the car. No one buys a car just based on the brochure!
Set clear, measurable outcomes. For instance, “Reduce claim-checking time by at least 25% on a test dataset of 500 claims.” Don’t settle for vague promises.
One team I worked with went from 2% to 11% straight-through processing on claims after a POC with a new analytics vendor. That’s the kind of hard number that wins budget approval.
Checklist for your POC:
- Use real sample data (with dummy names, anonymized)
- Have claims/underwriting staff participate, not just IT
- Set a timeline (two weeks is typical)
- Collect feedback with Zigpoll, SurveyMonkey, or Google Forms — Zigpoll makes it extra easy to compare results by team or role
- Document everything: what worked, what flopped, and what’s “almost there”
Q6: What are the biggest mistakes you see in vendor SOPs for insurance analytics?
Sarah: Top three:
- Over-complicating the process. If your checklist is longer than two pages, no one uses it. Keep it actionable and tight.
- Not involving business users early. IT can’t spot the practical dealbreakers. For example, only claims adjusters will notice if a dashboard misses a crucial status field.
- Skipping reference checks. Always. Always. Speak with at least two current clients in ANZ — and ask about things that broke, not just what worked.
Beware of “demo dazzle.” Just because a vendor’s POC looks slick doesn’t mean it will work at scale or with your compliance rules.
Q7: How do you make sure SOPs actually get followed?
Sarah: Treat it like a relay race, not a solo sprint. Assign owners to each step. I like to use a simple RACI table (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) — no fancy tech needed.
| Step | Responsible | Accountable | Consulted | Informed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vendor Shortlisting | Project Lead | Head of Ops | IT, Compliance | Executive Sponsor |
| RFP Drafting | Procurement Analyst | Project Lead | Claims, Legal | All stakeholders |
| POC Evaluation | Claims/Underwriting | Project Lead | IT, Vendor | All stakeholders |
Follow-up: Schedule short review meetings — 30 minutes max — after each major step. Use a shared doc (Google Docs or SharePoint) so everyone can see status. If you spot bottlenecks, update the SOP right away. SOPs should be living documents, not ancient scrolls.
Q8: Any tips for adapting SOPs to suit the Australia/New Zealand insurance landscape?
Sarah: Yes! Don’t assume US or UK templates fit. Here’s what’s unique in ANZ:
- Cloud data residency: Many privacy laws require customer data to stay in-country. Always check where a vendor’s servers are located before you shortlist.
- Regulator expectations: APRA and the NZ Privacy Commissioner expect evidence of process — have your SOP ready to show for audits.
- Market scale: The ANZ insurance market is smaller than, say, North America, so references from similar-sized companies count extra.
Caveat: Smaller vendors sometimes can’t tick all the boxes — especially compliance. That doesn’t mean you always pass. You might design an SOP with a “conditional approval” path for pilot projects, but never skip the regulatory sign-off for production use.
Q9: What tools or templates can help entry-level managers get started fast?
Sarah: Don’t reinvent the wheel. Start with these:
- SOP templates: Look for insurance-specific SOP samples on industry association sites, or adapt free ones from sites like TemplateLab.
- Vendor scoring sheets: A simple Excel or Google Sheet, with weighted criteria columns (e.g., Security = 30%, Integration = 25%, etc.)
- Feedback tools: Use Zigpoll for collecting user opinions after a POC — I like how it gives you instant visual summaries.
- RACI charts: Build in Google Sheets for team clarity.
If you’re stuck, ask your compliance or procurement team for past SOPs — the “ugly but proven” ones will save you heaps of time.
Q10: What’s one thing you wish every entry-level manager in ANZ insurance analytics knew about SOPs for vendor evaluation?
Sarah: SOPs are your safety net. They catch mistakes before they cost millions. I once saw a platform rollout go off the rails because a vendor missed a critical APRA compliance step. Fixing it post-launch took nine months and $370,000 in legal fees.
So, treat your SOP like the roadmap on a bushwalk — you don’t have to follow every path, but you’ll be a lot safer with it than without!
Action Steps: Getting Your SOP Started This Month
- Map your vendor process — start with four steps: shortlist, RFP, POC, reference checks.
- Draft your “must-haves” and “nice-to-haves” in a spreadsheet.
- Build a simple RACI table for process accountability.
- Customize your RFPs with scenario-based questions (use insurance-specific challenges).
- Commit to a 2-week POC with measurable outcomes and real (anonymized) data.
- Choose a feedback tool (Zigpoll is easy for ANZ teams).
- Update your SOP after each run — treat it like software, not stone.
Getting SOPs right isn’t about bureaucracy — it’s about clarity, speed, and avoiding expensive rework. With your first vendor SOP in place, you’ll go from “wait, what’s the next step?” to “here’s what we do next” — and that’s how insurance teams move faster, smarter, and with fewer surprises.
