John Hancock Signs $25m Annuity Admin ITO Contract Extension with CSC

The six-year agreement includes licensing of the vendor's Customer Service Accelerator and the migration from a mainframe environment to a new z Linux platform.

John Hancock Financial Services (Boston, a unit of Manulife Financial) has signed a six-year extension of its IT outsourcer agreement with CSC for annuity administration related services. Valued at $25 million, the contract calls for CSC to continue to provide applications and infrastructure services for John Hancock's Wealth Management division in support of administration of over 1 million fixed and variable annuities.

The agreement includes licensing of CSC's Customer Service Accelerator, which the vendor describes as a Web 2.0 software application that helps insurers manage diverse communication channels for consistent service regardless of the method of customer contact. Through Customer Service Accelerator, all interactions, such as emails, phone calls, Web chats, correspondence and interactive voice response, are centralized and displayed in a single view, making it easy for customer service representatives to understand customer needs at any point of contact, according to CSC.

Tony Todisco

CSC reports that the new contract authorizes a transition from the current mainframe environment to a new z Linux platform, which the vendor claims will: lower costs through enhanced operational and energy efficiency; improve service through a simplified, integrated environment; and augment risk management via strengthened resiliency and security features.

"Since 1987, CSC has been John Hancock's strategic partner, supporting our wealth management practice and enabling us to improve efficiency, productivity and profitability while we focus on the essential functions of our business," comments Tony Todisco, vice president, John Hancock Annuity Systems. "With the new distributed environment, John Hancock will have greater flexibility and efficiency, and a foundation for the future."

Anthony O'Donnell has covered technology in the insurance industry since 2000, when he joined the editorial staff of Insurance & Technology. As an editor and reporter for I&T and the InformationWeek Financial Services of TechWeb he has written on all areas of information ... View Full Bio