Business Challenges
Citystate Insurance Corporation felt the need for a software to support their operations in 1994. Their Singaporean partner wanted accurate and updated reports. At the same time, management wanted to use information technology to streamline operations. This is how Citystate became one of the first installations of Non-Life Insurance Information System (NIIS) developed by Computer Professionals, Inc.

The Solution
They chose NIIS over other software packages because it met most of their requirements. Other options were mostly foreign and NIIS was the first general insurance software developed in the Philippines.

Ms. Baby Zafra, Citystate’s EVP and Chief Finance Officer, says that NIIS met their objectives for computerization. She explains, “If not for NIIS, we wouldn’t be able to meet the tight deadlines set by our partners. Accounting and customer service were the two areas which benefited greatly from the NIIS implementation.” The bulk of reports requested were financials. The outputs were accurate so time spent verifying reports was eliminated. Ms. Zafra adds, “As head of finance, I was able to analyze reports better. I did not spend time on preparation anymore”. Before NIIS, Ms. Zafra would sometimes prepare the reports herself just to get the information she needed.

After successfully using NIIS for eight years, Citystate saw the need to take advantage of the additional features of the upgraded version. In February 2002, Citystate upgraded to GenIISys, the gui-based version of NIIS.

Benefits
Citystate is successfully using all the GenIISys modules. Their business has benefited greatly from their software investment. They deliver good service and enjoy good reputation with their customers. The staff is proud of using GenIISys. Executives can immediately make a decision to accept or reject a business. With block accumulation, the tedious work of manually updating block cards is eliminated. GenIISys allows them to decide on the spot if they should limit their exposure in a particular block. By analyzing reports even down to the account level, they can come up with sound business decisions.

Citystate was able to achieve all these, even while reducing their manpower complement. They did not remove people but they no longer felt the need to replace staff who resigned. Thus, from a head count of more than 60 in 1994, they now employ only 40 people, a 33% reduction.

The Future with GenIISys
In July 2003, Citystate will merge with its affiliate Fortune Guarantee & Insurance Corp. which started using GenIISys in January 2003. Ms. Zafra does not foresee any problem in merging the two systems. Fortune is using GenIISys in the head office and two branches. For the merged company, Ms. Zafra is giving herself three months to use GenIISys company-wide and be able to produce comprehensive financial statements.

Ms. Zafra says that they don't feel the need to consider other software
packages because they have already tested GenIISys, and they have proven that it works. She summarizes their
experience with this statement, "We are really happy with GenIISys."