„This new offering inside our core claims system proactively identifies no lost time segment claims with the highest risk of converting to a lost time injury, escalating at-risk cases to the appropriate staff member for early intervention resulting in better, easier, and faster claims management. Making this available directly in Guidewire is a significant step forward on our AI journey and has been met with incredible success."
Andrea McKinney, Chief Corporate Services and Technology
WSIB
The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) has served Ontario for more than 100 years, providing workers’ compensation insurance to more than 300,000 employers and processing approximately 200,000 claims annually.
As a government agency, WSIB historically relied on outdated processes such as phone, fax, and mail, which were cumbersome and slow for both customers and employees. “Often when you're experiencing the government or government agencies, you've got this very 20th-century vibe,” explains Andrea McKinney, Chief Corporate Services and Technology Officer. “It's very manual. You've got to call, and there are a lot of paper-based processes. For us, the evolution is that movement to the 21st century.”
“When the postal service shut down, we realized how essential our digital options had become,” adds Janine Dyck, Chief Employee Services Officer. “We needed to modernize to ensure continuity of service and meet customer expectations.”
In 2020, WSIB began its journey with Guidewire, migrating from on-premises systems to Guidewire Cloud. With Guidewire Cloud, WSIB saw an opportunity with Jutro Digital Platform (JDP).
“We knew we would be able to drive a better customer experience with JDP and could build whatever we needed for our customers and not be constrained by persona,” noted Greg Morreale, VP of Core Insurance Platforms. “JDP gives us more flexibility to address customer problems and pain points, and build solutions our customers are looking for.”
With JDP, WSIB first built an employee registration solution and continues to build new solutions on the platform.
The new capabilities laid the foundation for a flexible, scalable system capable of meeting modern customer needs.
One of WSIB’s most significant innovations was embedding an artificial intelligence (AI) model directly into Guidewire to identify high-risk, No-Lost-Time claims in an AI-driven process that:
“For the first time, we are leveraging AI directly in Guidewire, maximizing the use of data and technology to support claims management, reducing costs, and improving service experience,” says McKinney. “This is a significant step forward on our AI journey and has been met with incredible success.”
WSIB’s digital transformation has delivered tangible improvements and meaningful interactions for customers and employees. “Digital doesn’t have to mean impersonal,” says Dyck. “By shifting routine tasks online, we’ve freed our team to provide personalized, high-value support when needed most.”
Since partnering with Guidewire, WSIB has experienced:
WSIB has also seen an improvement in employee satisfaction. This is correlated to the investment WSIB made in change management and revamping training programs to help employees adapt. “We’ve established a culture where governance is clear, and decisions move forward collaboratively,” explains McKinney. “Our new steering committee aligns disparate projects into a common roadmap, so every team is working toward the same goals.”
Based on the success of its current transformation, WSIB is preparing to leverage Guidewire Cloud’s advanced capabilities further. Plans include expanding AI use cases to improve decision-making and service delivery and creating a fully integrated digital roadmap to enhance the customer journey across all touchpoints.
Additionally, WSIB intends to share insights across Canada’s workers’ compensation ecosystem to drive innovation nationwide. “We have the value of not being competitors—we are compatriots,” says McKinney. “By sharing our learnings, we can help others modernize more efficiently and improve experiences across the board.”
