Willard Lee on CIO role
From Hanover Insurance Group Executive Willard Lee on Innovation Through Co-Creation | Technovation 670 · · Metis Strategy
“In today's world, the CIO role is hybrid: you must understand infrastructure and security but also be a change agent driving the company forward with enabling technologies.”
On , Willard Lee, Executive Vice President, Chief Information & Innovation Officer at HANOVER INSURANCE GROUP INC, spoke about CIO role during Hanover Insurance Group Executive Willard Lee on Innovation Through Co-Creation | Technovation 670 on Metis Strategy.
About Willard Lee
Willard Lee, Executive Vice President and Chief Information & Innovation Officer at Hanover Insurance, discussed the company's technology strategy and innovation approach in a September 2022 interview on the Technovation podcast. Lee stated that Hanover has invested over $200 million to upgrade major platforms including policy administration, billing, and claims systems to create flexibility for future innovation. He described the modern CIO role as hybrid, requiring both technical expertise and the ability to act as a change agent. Lee noted that Hanover's innovation team works closely with business leaders to balance current operational needs with long-term development. Lee outlined several focus areas for the company, including using data analytics to reduce repetitive data entry for agents and improve underwriting accuracy. He said Hanover's approach to insurtech startups involves building deep, smaller partnerships to pilot solutions within the company's ecosystem. On employee retention, Lee highlighted efforts to maintain culture and career development in a hybrid work environment. He also described Hanover's strategy of developing "T-shaped" IT employees who combine deep technical skills with broad business understanding, noting that his own experience in multiple business roles provides financial acumen and empathy for different parts of the organization.