Practice of Management Science—Implementation of Computer Assisted Underwriting

The implementation strategy was the key to success of the Computer Assisted Underwriting System at Equitable (CAUSE). Four goals, demonstrate technical and economic feasibility at an early stage, minimize future shock resulting from the confrontation between underwriters and computers, improve control of the process through appropriate changes in underwriting procedures and management monitoring mechanisms, and minimize input prepared manually and minimize computer running costs, were addressed in turn by dedicating one phase of a four-phase prototype approach to each goal. Implementation went as well and as quickly as could reasonably have been expected, supporting the propositions that: Implementation should be the first concern when planning a project and mobilizing resources; implementation discipline is as important as model-building discipline; a four-phase prototype approach is an attractive discipline for addressing implementation goals in the preferred sequence; and, use of the prototype strategy has a significant impact on system architecture and programming tactics.