Staying Customer-focused in Digital Transformation with Niki Manby, Mutual of Omaha

In this episode of the Life Accelerated ?Podcast, we are joined by Niki Manby , Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer at Mutual of Omaha . Niki shares her extensive experience in financial services and fintech, showcasing how she's driving change and ensuring the company remains competitive and customer-focused. ?

Watch the full podcast episode.

About Mutual of Omaha?

Mutual of Omaha is an insurance and financial services company based in Omaha, Nebraska. Founded in 1909, it offers a variety of products and services, including life insurance, health insurance, Medicare supplement insurance, annuities, and investment products.??

3 Key Pillars of this Episode?????

1. Navigating innovation in insurance?

The long payback period in insurance impacts innovation by making it more challenging to test and learn from new ideas quickly. This requires a careful alignment of innovation efforts with the company's strategic goals to ensure that new initiatives are worthwhile and integrated effectively. Companies must balance the need for innovation with the necessity of demonstrating long-term value and aligning new ideas with the broader corporate strategy.?

Listen to the full podcast episode to explore how Mutual of Omaha is building an innovation culture centered around solving customer problems.??

2. Balancing customer experience with infrequent customer engagement?

The challenge for life insurance companies is creating a meaningful brand relationship with policyholders who may not think about their insurance daily. Unlike banks, which have regular touchpoints with customers through daily transactions, life insurance often involves less frequent interaction. To address this, insurance companies need to focus on building a trusted brand and innovating their value proposition, rather than simply increasing the number of touchpoints. For example, during the podcast, Niki Manby explains how while Mutual of Omaha can rely on its long heritage, it must also creatively expand its approach to keep its relationship with customers meaningful despite the less frequent engagement.?

3. Digital engagement with older demographics?

Engaging digitally is crucial, but companies with older demographics, like Mutual of Omaha, face challenges as their core customers, who are less digitally native, may have adopted technology later in life. As demographics shift and more people become familiar with digital tools, there will be more opportunities for hyper-focused digital engagement. However, it's important to maintain a multi-channel approach to serve those who are not yet comfortable with digital-only communication.?

Conclusion?

In this episode of the Life Accelerated podcast, Niki Manby, Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer at Mutual of Omaha, shares her insights on driving innovation while honoring its legacy. Niki discusses the challenges of aligning innovation with long-term strategic goals and the importance of building meaningful customer relationships in an industry with infrequent interactions. She also highlights the need for a multi-channel approach to engage both digitally native and less tech-savvy customers effectively.?

For a deeper dive into how Mutual of Omaha is navigating these challenges, listen to the full podcast episode here .?