Across the insurance industry, there is no shortage of discussion about legacy systems. Should organizations replace them? Modernize them? Layer AI on top of them?
These are important conversations, but they may not be the most important ones, because while technology can become legacy, so can skills, so can mindsets, so can leadership approaches and that is where the real risk lies.
At a recent Insurtech.ie event, I explored this topic during a panel discussion with Insurance Skillnet and AXA, where we discussed how insurers can balance technology transformation with the need to evolve leadership, skills and culture. One theme that emerged throughout the discussion was how legacy systems can sometimes contribute to legacy thinking. Not because people lack capability or ambition, but because over time organizations can become comfortable with the familiar. Processes become established, assumptions go unchallenged, and experience can unintentionally become a reason not to change.
The result is not just ageing technology. It is an organization that finds it harder to attract new talent, adopt new skills and embrace new opportunities.
This challenge is already visible across the industry. Recent insurance workforce research found that the percentage of insurance professionals who would recommend a career in the industry has fallen from 85% in 2021 to 65% in 2024. Other research has shown that eight in ten millennials have limited knowledge of career opportunities in insurance.
For an industry built on expertise, relationships and trust, that should give us pause.
The future of insurance depends not only on modern systems, but on whether we can create modern, compelling environments where people want to build their careers.
Today’s conversations often focus on AI as the answer to legacy challenges. Certainly, AI has enormous potential. It can improve productivity, enhance decision-making and help organizations extract more value from existing technology investments.
Recent commentary has suggested that agentic AI could help modernize insurance core technologies by capturing legacy knowledge, reducing dependency on subject matter experts and improving productivity across parts of the modernization process. That is an exciting development. But it is not the whole answer.
AI may help modernize systems. It cannot modernize culture, it cannot foster curiosity, it cannot build future leaders, it cannot create trust, and it cannot replace the value of bringing together experienced industry professionals and new generations of talent with fresh perspectives and emerging skills.
In fact, if organizations use AI simply to wrap around old processes and outdated ways of working, they risk creating a new layer of technology on top of legacy thinking. That is why leadership matters.
Deloitte’s 2024 Global Insurance Outlook notes that insurers’ shift toward more customer-centric models will require advanced technology adoption, but also changes to company culture, stronger collaboration and augmented skill sets.
That is the real transformation challenge.
The insurance organizations that will thrive over the next decade will not necessarily be those with the newest technology. They will be those that successfully combine deep institutional knowledge with continuous learning, modern capabilities and a willingness to challenge established ways of thinking.
Experience remains one of this industry’s greatest strengths. But experience becomes even more powerful when it is paired with curiosity, adaptability and new skills.
That fusion is where innovation happens.
At FINEOS, we see this every day.
As an employer, we focus on attracting, developing and retaining people who bring diverse experiences and perspectives. As a partner to insurers, we see similar challenges across the industry as organizations balance transformation with the realities of running complex businesses.
We also believe AI should not be treated as a separate layer of innovation that sits outside the business. It should be embedded thoughtfully into the solutions, workflows and experiences that help people do their best work.
Technology transformation matters. AI matters. Core modernization matters.
But leadership transformation matters more.
As a modern organisation or leader, don’t let your legacy become your legacy. It takes courage to challenge old mindsets, rethink how work gets done, and create what comes next. The future belongs to those with the courage to lead true transformation not protect the past.
