Live from Claim University: Behind the Scenes at Travelers’ Flagship Educational Hub

(DESCRIPTION)
An image appears of a laptop on a desk with a plant and a mug with a Travelers logo. The laptop reads "Wednesdays with Woodward (registered trademark) Webinar Series." Text in the corner of the screen reads "Travelers Institute (registered trademark), 15 Years," with a logo of an umbrella. 

[MUSIC PLAYING]

(DESCRIPTION)
Clips flash by of a warehouse, full of vehicles. Workers stand inside a garage in the warehouse, part of a house. In another part of the warehouse, large trucks fill the floor. Elsewhere, workers sit at computers as videos play. 

(SPEECH)
JOAN WOODWARD: Good afternoon, and welcome to Wednesdays with Woodward. I'm Joan Woodward, President of the Travelers Institute. We're so happy you joined us today. 

As you may have noticed from the open and from my background, I'm not in my usual Wednesday location.

(DESCRIPTION)
Joan Woodward stands in front of a recreational vehicle with the Travelers logo emblazoned on the side. The video conference window's text reads: Heavy Equipment and Specialty Lab. 

(SPEECH)
Today, I am thrilled to tell you we are live on-site from Travelers' own Claim University in Windsor, Connecticut. And I did say live, so anything could happen here. Claim U, as it's known, is the flagship education hub for Travelers. It's where we train thousands of our Claim employees from across the country and the organization on the skills they need to really take care of our customers in their most dire time of need.

Today, we're going to get a special behind-the-scenes, sneak-peek look at the state-of-the-art facilities here. And it's huge, my friends.

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A slide with text appears: About Travelers Institute (registered trademark) Webinars. 

(SPEECH)
Before we get started, however, I'd like to share our disclaimer about today's program. 

(DESCRIPTION)
Text: The Wednesdays with Woodward (registered trademark) educational webinar series is presented by the Travelers Institute, the public policy division of Travelers. This program is offered for informational and educational purposes only. You should consult with your financial, legal, insurance or other advisors about any practices suggested by this program. Please note that this session is being recorded and may be used as Travelers deems appropriate. 

A title slide appears: Live from Claim University: Behind the Scenes at Travelers' Flagship Educational Hub. Four corporate logos appear beside the Travelers logo.

(SPEECH)
And I'd also like to thank our webinar partners today, the Risk and Uncertainty Management Center at the University of South Carolina School of Business, the Insurance Association of Connecticut, the Master’s of FinTech Program at UConn School of Business, and the MetroHartford Alliance. Welcome, all. 

I'm thrilled to be joined today by Travelers' own Erika Fleig. Erika is the Vice President of Claim and Learning Effectiveness, where she is responsible for the development and implementation of learning strategies here at Claim U. Erika has been with Travelers over a decade and had leadership roles both in Claim and in Risk Control. So Erika, thanks for joining us. And we're so excited to learn more about Claim University.

ERIKA FLEIG: Thank you for being here. I'm really excited to have you. And congratulations on 15 years with the Travelers Institute.

JOAN WOODWARD: Yes. It's a birthday we're very happy to celebrate. So, this is my third or fourth time, maybe, at Claim University. But I want you to spend a moment and tell our viewers exactly what is this facility? When was it built? How big is it? What kind of labs are in it? Just give us an overview.

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. Let's start with an overview. So this university, Claim University, is really a premier destination for learning for our claim professionals. Travelers is committed and proud of having the best claim workforce in the business. And that means that our claim professionals are knowledgeable. They come with deep technical expertise. They're skilled, they're confident and they're prepared. And the work we do here at Claim University, through our robust learning programs, our robust training curriculum, prepares them to be just that.

JOAN WOODWARD: Wonderful. So how many students come through Claim University in an average year? And what does that person look like? A trainee or a more developed, seasoned person? Would they come back for training throughout the year?

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So, yes to all of that. Claim University is a stop that all of our claim professional trainees make as a part of their new employee experience. Trainees in all of our lines-- property, auto, workers comp and general liability engage in our robust training curriculum, usually sometime within the first six months, working with our instructors here on-site.

You also asked about refresher training, though, as well. And the answer to that is also yes. We also support advanced curriculum as claim professionals progress in their careers and handle more and more complex claims.

JOAN WOODWARD: Let's talk about complex claims because obviously, the knowledge and skills that are needed to assess a claim and decide compensation-- talk to us about those knowledge and skills.

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So there's a lot to learn in the area of claim from a technical perspective. First of all, it's really important for our claim professionals to understand policies and endorsements and how those policies and endorsements apply to different loss scenarios. It's important for them to understand what goes into investigating the facts of a loss. And sometimes that involves determining causality.

They learn how to evaluate damages and prepare estimates. It's also really important to understand jurisdictional requirements and the regulatory environment, all of which is changing really rapidly in today's environment and has a big impact on the claims that we handle.

Technology is also a big part of the claim handling process. Technology is impacting how our customers interact with us. Our claim professionals are using technology throughout the claim process. So learning agility is also a really important skill. How to learn about that technology, adopt it into workflows-- really important part of what folks learn here.

And then from a skills perspective, there's some overarching skills that are reinforced throughout our training and curriculum, skills like problem-solving, critical thinking, communication and obviously, treating our customers with care and empathy.

JOAN WOODWARD: And empathy. That's a really big part of the training. I love that about us, that we're empathetic and understanding when someone has a crisis in their life. It's a big crisis for many people.

ERIKA FLEIG: [INAUDIBLE]

JOAN WOODWARD: So we learned a lot. Thousands of people are coming in. Let's talk about who actually works in this building on a daily basis. Who are these individuals? I know you have different labs. We're going to go through them all. We're going to meet someone soon in the Property Lab over there, as well.

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So on staff here at Claim U, we have about 80 people. Our instructors come to the table with years and years of expertise in the industry and handling business insurance and personal insurance claims themselves. They couple that experience with an in-depth knowledge about how adults learn in the workplace to really bring our programs to life. Also on our Claim U team, we have folks that have a background in instructional design, teaching and learning technology, learning administration and operations. And it really takes all of those disciplines together, Joan, to bring our programs to life, to continuously develop them and create those meaningful learning opportunities for our claim professionals.

JOAN WOODWARD: Wonderful. So those are the people. Tell us about the physical structure. What is inside Claim University?

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah, sure. So you mentioned we're a 200,000-square-foot facility. Claim University itself opened in 2007. And it was really built as that first-of-its-kind educational and training facility to give our claim professionals that hands-on experience.

And what I think is really special and different about Claim University is it's not just a place where people come to acquire all that knowledge that they need to handle claims-- to apply that knowledge. And that's really the basis for creating these interactive, engaging, hands-on learning labs. So we have four immersive learning labs. You're going to see them today. Our Heavy Equipment Lab, our Auto Lab, our Property Lab and our Medical Lab.

We also have connected classrooms adjacent to all those labs. All of our classrooms are equipped with technology that allows us to connect with remote learners, as well as remote faculty that are a part of our programs. And part of the building you're not going to see today is our auditorium. It's our large event venue. It's also equipped with technology to support live and hybrid events. And we use them for large symposiums, large learning events and even community events.

JOAN WOODWARD: Wonderful. Yeah, I've been to a few community nonprofit events here. It's wonderful. So that's what about Claim U. Let's talk about the why.

So why is it important to spend-- this is a huge investment of time, of money, of resources and strategy for the company. Having world-class claim professionals is kind of our bedrock, right? Why is that so important? And what does it actually do for the insureds, the person who's on the other end of the phone having the bad day?

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. Well, I think the answer is even in the question itself there. I mean, Travelers is committed to having claim professionals who can respond, again, with that deep technical expertise, that skill and that empathy. And everything you see here is a visible example of that investment in getting our claim professionals prepared to do just that. And hopefully that's what our customers feel from us.

JOAN WOODWARD: Yes. OK, let's get started, folks. So the first hands-on demo is behind us. So obviously, this is our huge-- and it's actually really big-- CAT van. And it lands in disasters all over the country. And talk to us about what this-- what's inside of it, first of all? How fast it can get to locations like wildfires in California, hurricanes in the Southeast, etc.?

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So again, this is a CAT van. It's used by our National Catastrophe Response Team. And it's really deployed as a mobile claims center. So, areas that are impacted by severe weather events like those you mentioned, we actually position these vans, these mobile claim centers, in those areas in advance, so that customers who are impacted by those severe weather events, they can get started on the claim process easily.

The vans themselves are equipped with satellite technology, generators and claim workstations, again, giving our insureds who are impacted by these events the opportunity to get some of their immediate needs met and get on the road to recovery as quickly as possible. This is one of four of our large CAT vans. And when this van is not deployed, it lives here at Claim University.

JOAN WOODWARD: Wonderful, wonderful. I was a few years ago with our CEO, Alan Schnitzer. We went down to Louisiana to do some building of Habitat. And I talked with one of our insureds. And she said, when I saw this van rolling in, she's like, tears came down my eyes because I knew I was going to be OK. But I mean, it's a bad day when this van is coming into your neighborhood. So it's thrilling to have such a great technology and mobility for--

ERIKA FLEIG: Overwhelming, and definitely--

JOAN WOODWARD: It is.

ERIKA FLEIG: --a visible example of that empathy.

JOAN WOODWARD: Yep. OK, folks. We're going to go over to our Heavy Equipment Lab next and talk about some big-- really, really big trucks that had a really, really bad day. So first of all, Erika, tell us about this lab and actually what goes on here.

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The presenters stand in front of a truck with a computer monitor resting on a wall nearby. 

(SPEECH)
ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So this is the first of the four labs that we'll be visiting today, Joan.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. 

ERIKA FLEIG: This is our Heavy Equipment and Specialty Lab. And what you'll find in this lab is a variety of vehicles and pieces of equipment that are involved in common losses experienced by our commercial customers, our business insurance customers, and our construction customers.

JOAN WOODWARD: Wonderful. So tell us about this truck. It looks like it had a very bad day. What type of crash was this involved in, and why do we have it here in this building? How did we get it? Is it one of our insureds, etc.?

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So this is actually one of the newer additions to our Heavy Equipment Lab. I mean, it is a semitractor-trailer. We see these on the road all the time. This particular vehicle struck ice, ran into a barrier with such force that the trailer actually separated from the cab. And you can see the extent of the damage done because of the nature of that force.

But this vehicle is really important to us from a learning perspective, because not only does it give us the chance to give our claim professionals opportunities to practice evaluating and understanding the damage to the vehicle itself, but this vehicle also reflects some of the modern technology over the past few years that was introduced into these tractor trailers. So things like cruise control, telematics.

JOAN WOODWARD: Telematics, OK.

ERIKA FLEIG: I know you were inside the truck earlier.

JOAN WOODWARD: I did. I got in that earlier.

ERIKA FLEIG: Saw there's a bunk bed, there's a closet, there's a fridge. So again, really representative of the types of technologies and features that our claim professionals are likely to encounter.

JOAN WOODWARD: And what can claim people learn from this? So they have to understand all the different components and whether to declare it a total loss. And that process takes a long time. But learning hands-on is invaluable.

ERIKA FLEIG: Exactly. And having the live props here in the lab really allows much more than we could do on a flat screen, on photos and images.

JOAN WOODWARD: Right.

ERIKA FLEIG: Understanding how these vehicles are constructed, understanding the parts, understanding what needs to happen to potentially bring them back to manufacturer specifications and then what is, really, a total loss.

JOAN WOODWARD: Right. OK, now we're going to move over to a huge box truck which is adjacent to us here. So let's walk down this way. 

(DESCRIPTION)
The presenters walk to the back of a box truck with an open cargo door. 

(SPEECH)
And what is about this box truck-- tell us about it, first of all. What can students learn about this box truck here? I see it is non-refrigerated, right? 

ERIKA FLEIG: Yep. This is a non-refrigerated, dry box truck at 26 feet long. This is another one of those vehicles that was a great, new addition to the lab. And the reason why this is so important for us is because this is a really common-- you probably see these on the road all the time--

JOAN WOODWARD: Yes, all the time.

ERIKA FLEIG: --these box trucks. So again, great vehicle to have to the lab. This particular vehicle was actually stolen and recovered.

JOAN WOODWARD: Oh, OK.

ERIKA FLEIG: So there's some damage on this vehicle on the side. You probably can't see it from the angle that we're looking at here. But this is a great opportunity to practice the repairability decisions using some of the damage that's on this vehicle. It represents about 60% of the commercial vehicle claims that we see. So--

JOAN WOODWARD: This type of truck does 60%?

ERIKA FLEIG: 60%

JOAN WOODWARD: So this is a very, very common occurrence, OK.

ERIKA FLEIG: Very common vehicle. And this particular vehicle also has a hydraulic liftgate in the back.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK, in the back.

ERIKA FLEIG: And so we have the opportunity to simulate a variety of different loss scenarios with this, mock it up, and allow our learners opportunity to practice assessing damage and making those repair versus replace decisions.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. And just like with an 18-wheeler, this box truck-- so how do you decide? What's the process for deciding what we need in this lab for students to really gain that knowledge and experience?

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So our instructors here at Claim University really develop a wish list, to be perfectly honest with you, working with our business, understanding loss trends and really staying current with what types of vehicles are being used on the road. When we decide what type of vehicle would be a great addition to the lab, we work with our partners to find out where we're experiencing those losses. And when we can find them, we have a team that actually transports them here, cleans them up and gets them ready for learning here in the lab.

JOAN WOODWARD: What struck me the most is how clean they are. Like honestly, if they'd been through crashes and, I'm sure, mud and snow and other things, they're just-- they're sparkling clean, which to me, that's just another high-quality excellence that Travelers strives for. OK. Oh, go ahead.

ERIKA FLEIG: I was going to say it's a little bit like curating pieces for a museum. This is an interactive museum.

JOAN WOODWARD: A little art that's a little damaged.

ERIKA FLEIG: Exactly.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK, let's move on to these big, huge yellow things.

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Behind the presenters, three construction vehicles sit on the lab floor side by side. 

(SPEECH)
I noticed this one here has some graffiti. What are we looking at here? We got three of them. 

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So we are now in the back part of the Heavy Equipment Lab here. This is where we have our construction equipment. Are you up on your construction equipment, Joan?

JOAN WOODWARD: Yeah, sure. Go ahead. Test me.

ERIKA FLEIG: So when our construction customers experience losses to this type of equipment-- think theft, think damage-- it can have a real impact on their operations. So from a learning perspective, it's really important that our claim professionals understand how to evaluate this damage. Can it be repaired or replaced so that we can get those customers back up in business as quickly as possible?

So we're standing in front of the excavator here. You can see some graffiti damage on it. This particular vehicle was actually stolen and recovered.

JOAN WOODWARD: It was stolen?

ERIKA FLEIG: When it was recovered, it had graffiti on it. 

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. So is that-- a is that an occurrence that happens a lot, that these things are stolen? It seems like it would take a lot to steal this thing.

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. Believe it or not, theft of commercial equipment is not all that uncommon. So again, this is a great example for our claim professionals to learn on.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK.

ERIKA FLEIG: Let's move over to the bulldozer. And Joan, I'm going to actually ask you a question on this one. You can't see any visible damage.

JOAN WOODWARD: No, it looks--

ERIKA FLEIG: I'm going to ask you to guess why this vehicle was a total loss. And I'll give you a hint. It has something to do with the blue line on the vehicle.

JOAN WOODWARD: Blue line. OK, there's the blue line. I see.

(DESCRIPTION)
A thin blue line is drawn across the engine box. 

(SPEECH)
I'm going to guess that probably below the blue line, which has probably the most important parts of the whole thing versus just the cab, had some sort of damage for a total loss. 

ERIKA FLEIG: You're right. So this was actually a loss due to a flood. 

JOAN WOODWARD: Oh, a flood. 

ERIKA FLEIG: So below the blue line, this particular vehicle was submerged in salt water.

JOAN WOODWARD: Oh, salt water. 

ERIKA FLEIG: That salt water caused some corrosion to the hydraulic system, making it a total loss.

JOAN WOODWARD: And does regular water cause as much damage as salt water? Or salt water is worse?

ERIKA FLEIG: Salt water can cause that type of damage to this particular vehicle.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. And this was also-- so this is a flood, this is a stolen. What about our third one over there?

ERIKA FLEIG: The last one over here was also a stolen vehicle. The interesting thing about this vehicle, the backhoe at the end, was that it was stolen and recovered 10 years later.

JOAN WOODWARD: Ten years.

ERIKA FLEIG: Pulled over as a result of a routine traffic accident. And when the arresting officer or the officer pulled the vehicle over, ran the VIN, it was identified as a stolen vehicle paid out by Travelers 10 years prior. And now it lives here at the lab.

JOAN WOODWARD: Wow. So some guy had it on the back of his flatbed, going to a job, had no idea it was stolen.

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah.

JOAN WOODWARD: Wow. OK, so that was our Heavy Equipment area. Folks, we're going to head over to the Auto Lab next. And while we're walking/running, if you know me well-- I'm an athlete, but I'm a golfer. So some people say that's not really an athlete. We're going to run over to the Auto Lab, and we'll see you in a few minutes. Watch this video.

(DESCRIPTION)
A man stands on the floor of a warehouse with vehicles parked nearby. 

[VIDEO PLAYBACK] 

(SPEECH)
Welcome to the Claim University Auto Lab. This is where we provide our claim professionals with hands-on understanding of vehicles, mechanical systems and repair techniques. We train them on specialized equipment and technology as well as various scenarios associated with auto physical damage. 

A lot has changed with vehicles over the years, so we're constantly keeping our lab up to date. For example, you might not think this particular vehicle was a total loss. But with all the embedded sensor technology in the bumper, even minor crashes can make repairs more expensive.

(DESCRIPTION)
An exposed engine sits in a mechanics garage. 

(SPEECH)
Take another example. We use this cutaway view of a hybrid vehicle to help claim professionals understand how the specialized engine components, including the battery, charging and electrical systems, come together. This auto body frame machine uses lasers and computerized measuring to determine if an alignment of a vehicle's frame has been compromised during an accident. 

(DESCRIPTION)
A computer monitor displays colorful schematics. 

(SPEECH)
This data is critical to the repair process, as a few degrees of alignment can make the difference between a repair or total loss determination. 

This exhibit shows different types of auto paint. This is important because paint varies widely in cost. It can be a big driver in repair cost estimates, so it's important to get it right. Over here, you see a working model of a car engine and drivetrain. You can even shift gears in the transmission. We want our claim professionals to understand how to take a car apart and put it back together again so they're working from a place of knowledge when they work with body shops on estimates and repairs.

And of course, cars are getting smarter, too.

(DESCRIPTION)
Traffic drives along both lanes of a highway, day and night. 

(SPEECH)
We're partnering with industry to develop telematics and vehicle data solutions that can not only help drivers stay safer, but help us understand accident causation and liability determination as well. Vehicle and repair technology continue to change. And we continue to invest in having the latest in our lab so our claim professionals stay abreast of changing technology. 

(DESCRIPTION)
A logo, Travelers. 

[END PLAYBACK] 

(DESCRIPTION)
The two presenters stand in a lab with assembled and disassembled vehicles. Behind them, an exposed car body with different colored sections sits on an automotive rotisserie. The video conference window's text reads: Auto Lab. 

(SPEECH)
ERIKA FLEIG: Welcome to the Auto Lab, Joan.

JOAN WOODWARD: Well, thank you. It's really amazing to be here. Look at all these cars. Wow. So thank you for that video, first of all. It was really informative. And I think helped with the transition here. But tell us about the Auto Lab.

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah, so this is the second lab on our tour today.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK.

ERIKA FLEIG: We're now in the Auto Lab. If you look around here, you'll see we have a variety of different makes and models of vehicles, around 20, give or take, at any given time. And the vehicles in this lab, just like the Heavy Equipment Lab, have different types of damage.

So you'll see vehicles that were involved in front-end collisions, rear-end collisions, side-impact collisions. You'll see vehicles that have suffered damage from flood, just like we talked about in the Auto Lab-- or in the Heavy Equipment Lab-- vehicles that have damage to exterior components, interior components, engines, mechanical systems, so again, a really nice buffet of vehicles for our claim professionals to practice on.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. So in that buffet, we also have kind of custom-built props. You're building props so people can get hands-on expertise and learning. Tell us about those props.

ERIKA FLEIG: Exactly. And I think that's a really great feature of all of our labs are the fact that we do have these custom-made, detailed mockups that truly allow our claim professionals to peek underneath the hood and get a close look at the systems, the engine systems, the mechanical systems, the electrical systems. It's important to learn how they work, how they can be damaged, what impact that damage has on the performance of the vehicle, and most importantly, whether or not it can be replaced, what it's going to take to repair them up to manufacturer specifications.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. I noticed this. This is kind of one of my favorite things I saw so far, which is a very, very colorful car, a shell of a car. It's not really a car. It's just the outside skeleton. So what is this, and why so many colors?

ERIKA FLEIG: This is my favorite prop in the lab, too, probably because of the colors. But this is actually affectionately known as the rotisserie car. And I'll tell you and show you why it's named the rotisserie car. But it's actually used to help our claim professionals learn about unibody vehicle construction.

So unibody vehicle construction is actually the standard for most modern passenger cars and SUVs on the road today. And this kind of construction is designed to disperse the impact of a collision across the entire structure of the car, which is really important for safety reasons. From a learning perspective, this prop helps our learning professionals understand that the damage to this type of vehicle construction can extend further than the point of impact. So that makes it a really important learning prop for our claim professionals.

JOAN WOODWARD: All right. And it tilts?

ERIKA FLEIG: I mentioned [INAUDIBLE].

JOAN WOODWARD: Oh, nice. Look at that.

ERIKA FLEIG: And-- 

JOAN WOODWARD: Someone had fun painting this.

ERIKA FLEIG: because we can spin it, allowing everybody to see--

JOAN WOODWARD: See the different components, the different parts.

ERIKA FLEIG: --in 360 degrees. 

JOAN WOODWARD: Wonderful.

ERIKA FLEIG: And then let's talk a little bit about the colors, because you mentioned the colors before. So the colors represent different paint and finishing techniques. And paint and finishing techniques can vary widely in cost and quality. So it's really important for our claim professionals to understand those differences and how they may impact the cost to repair a vehicle.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. Well, thank you for that. That was fun. Now we're going to move over here.

(DESCRIPTION)
The presenters walk to an exposed engine. 

(SPEECH)
And I think I know what this is, which I think is a hybrid engine. It looks very different, folks, than a regular combustion engine. Tell us about this. 

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah, so this is an example of one of the many props that we mentioned, those cutaway props. This is, as you mentioned, a hybrid engine. One of the things I'll talk about before we get to the engine itself is the fact that all of our props are on wheels. Notice that they're on wheels. We can move them easily throughout the labs. We can wheel them in and out of classrooms.

But again, this is just one example of allowing our claim professionals to learn by being able to peek underneath the hood and, in this case, see how the drivetrain in a hybrid engine supplies power to the wheels, understand how that works, and again, how it can be damaged in different kinds of loss scenarios, and what it takes to replace an engine.

JOAN WOODWARD: All right. So obviously, just like we see here with hybrids and EVs, things are changing constantly and very rapidly. How often are we refreshing our inventory to make sure we're up to speed on the latest, latest technologies?

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah, so--

JOAN WOODWARD: And damage scenarios, because the damage scenarios with these different kind of cars and autos are very different, right?

ERIKA FLEIG: Exactly. Exactly. And I mentioned we have, give or take at any point in time, about 20 vehicles in the lab here. And we're constantly looking to refresh that inventory, really based on how technology and features in the vehicles themselves are evolving. Technology in vehicles is evolving at a very rapid pace-- advanced electronics, even interior features, not to mention engines.

So every year, we take a look at our inventory. We make that wish list, decide what we need, again, working really closely with our partners in Claim, and then work to locate those vehicles, bring them in here, clean them up. And in some cases, Joan, we might not get exactly the damage that we want. So we enhance the damage on some of those vehicles to make them [INAUDIBLE] good for learning.

JOAN WOODWARD: Enhancing damage on vehicles-- that sounds like a fun job. Can you make this vehicle less perfect? OK. So now we're going to head over and look at some, I think, EVs and hybrids.

(DESCRIPTION)
The presenters walk to a line of cars parked in a row. 

(SPEECH)
So tell us about these claim professionals learning about EVs and hybrids. This is an EV, I think. 

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. Yeah. So just in general, too, it's really important, again, to keep this inventory fresh to reflect the types of vehicles we see on the road. Obviously, we're seeing more and more hybrid and EV vehicles on the road. So these are two of our newer additions to the Auto Lab here.

Bringing these vehicles into the lab here allows our claim professionals to learn things like how the battery integration systems work. And again, sometimes those-- damage to the vehicles and damage to the battery systems themselves, those are really important from a repair and replace decision perspective.

JOAN WOODWARD: Yeah, very different than a combustion.

ERIKA FLEIG: Exactly.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK, so this is an EV. What happened here? I could see some really nasty damage to this.

(DESCRIPTION)
On one of the cars, the right front tire sits on a mangled wheel. 

(SPEECH)
And this was a total loss as well? 

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah, so this is an all-electric vehicle. Again, it came to the lab late last year. And again, this vehicle struck a curb taking a right-hand turn. Really, really simple kind of accident, but again, great vehicle to understand how damage like this might have caused damage to the interior, to the battery compartment as well.

I mentioned features and technology in cars also giving us great learning opportunities. It's hard to believe that this vehicle actually has a third-row seat in it--

JOAN WOODWARD: It does? 

ERIKA FLEIG: --which is an option, so again, another great vehicle to add to the lab.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. Wonderful. 

(DESCRIPTION)
The next car in the line has a crumpled hood and dented front bumper. 

(SPEECH)
OK, hybrid. So is this plug-in, non-plug-in? Does it matter from a claim-loss perspective? 

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So this is a hybrid, a hybrid plug-in vehicle. This is a 2023 model year. There's some damage to the front end of this vehicle.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. 

ERIKA FLEIG: It was actually involved in a collision in an intersection. In addition to the nature of it being a plug-in hybrid vehicle and the learning that comes along with that, this vehicle actually has headlights that use some advanced technology to adjust. You've probably seen [INAUDIBLE].

JOAN WOODWARD: Oh, when your turn your steering wheel, they turn?

ERIKA FLEIG: Exactly. They adjust in direction and intensity based on the driving conditions. And so, when these are damaged, that's obviously an implication from a cost perspective, so again, a great opportunity for learning.

One other thing I'll mention that I didn't mention when we were talking about rotating inventory, one of the things that we're able to do when we rotate vehicles out of the inventory is take photos, take digital images, 3D digital images of those vehicles. And we can turn those into digital learning assets now that go into our libraries, our practice activities, that are built into our on-demand and digital learning experiences.

JOAN WOODWARD: So repurpose to repurpose, and try to get the learnings out digitally as well as hands-on?

ERIKA FLEIG: Exactly.

JOAN WOODWARD: So our claim professionals, it seems to me with all this learning, come away with a tremendous amount of understanding of the new technologies, assessing damage claim and then taking care of our insureds. And so, go ahead.

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, you can see just by walking through the lab here the exposure that our claim professionals get not only to different types of vehicles, learning how they work, how they operate, how different types of damage can impact different parts of the vehicles, and how all that comes together to help them develop the skills they need to understand that damage, create those estimates, make those really important repair and replace decisions, and work with our customers to get them up and running.

JOAN WOODWARD: Wonderful. And I know we have a partnership with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, where they crash test cars. And if you haven't seen it, folks on the line here, we did a live, behind-the-scenes look at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. We crashed a car, a vehicle there. And that was another Wednesdays, if you haven't seen the IIHS. And we love that partnership. It's an excellent one.

ERIKA FLEIG: I saw that. It's a good one.

JOAN WOODWARD: Yeah. OK, so folks, we are going to take another walk clear across the 200,000-square-foot building here and go to the Property Lab. And as you know, the Property Lab is just as it sounds. We're going to look at houses, commercial buildings, roofing products, everything that goes into a property claim. And so watch a short video, and we'll see you on the other side.

[VIDEO PLAYBACK]

(DESCRIPTION)
People meet and work in various office spaces and rooms. On the warehouse sit two large models of houses. 

[UPBEAT MUSIC] 

(SPEECH)
Welcome to the Claim University Property Lab. The first thing you notice when you enter the lab is our two fully functioning, freestanding homes, along with several smaller mockups, including a solar panel array, roofing and framing mockups, and plumbing and electrical systems.

We also have fire-damaged structures where claim professionals practice determining cause and origin and learn what can be cleaned versus what needs to be repaired or replaced. These buildings and mockups allow our claim professionals to practice writing estimates and use estimating software for some of the most common damage situations, like roof or siding damage, water damage and content replacement.

(DESCRIPTION)
A person crouches on a carpeted floor, holding a laptop. 

(SPEECH)
We also do a lot of role-playing scenarios, which allow our students to practice as if they were actually at our customer's home. 

(DESCRIPTION)
A group of people stand outside a damaged house in a field. 

(SPEECH)
These skills are especially important when interacting with customers who may have suffered a devastating loss due to a natural disaster, like a hurricane or tornado. 

[UPBEAT MUSIC] 

(DESCRIPTION)
A group stands on the roof of a model house in the warehouse. 

(SPEECH)
Let's first take a look at our ranch home. It's about 1,200 square feet, built on a slab using fairly simple construction. And the rooms are more or less square, making it easy to measure-- perfect for new claim professionals just learning the job. We also outfitted this home with several do-it-yourself connected home automation devices, wireless security cameras, connected thermostats, smoke detectors and CO2 alarms, as well as water and moisture sensors, and smart garage door openers.

Now we'll move over to our tri-level home. In addition to being larger, it has higher-end building materials. And its rooms are more complex in shape-- cathedral ceilings and angled walls-- which make them more challenging to measure. This home also has smart technology. We're testing these devices to learn if they can keep customers safer, prevent losses, and help us underwrite and estimate claims more precisely.

This is also where we train our drone pilots to assess losses in the field.

(DESCRIPTION)
A drone flies around the curved roof of a house of worship. 

(SPEECH)
Drones help us safely inspect hard-to-access areas, eliminating the need for specialized roof contractors. As building technology continues to evolve, we want to ensure our claim professionals have up-to-date knowledge and skills and the best tools to estimate losses quickly and accurately, either in person or virtually. 

(DESCRIPTION)
A logo: Travelers. 

[END PLAYBACK] 

(DESCRIPTION)
Joan Woodward stands beside a man in front of a model house. The video conference window's text reads: Property Lab. 

(SPEECH)
JOAN WOODWARD: All right. So folks, joining me now-- first of all, we're in the Property Lab. And so we're going to go through different stations and look at lots of different things. But Lamelle Williams, a highly respected and seasoned trainer here in the Property Lab, joins me today. So Lamelle, tell me about your day. What do you do on a daily basis? And tell me about the lab here. 

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: Well, first and foremost, Joan, let me say thank you for having me. It's a privilege to be here with you. So a little bit about what I do-- well, I work on a team that focuses primarily on developing activities and programs for our claim professionals. What that allows them to do is make sure they have the knowledge and the skill set to interpret policy language, evaluate and estimate property damage, and most importantly, help our customers through the claim process.

Now, I'm just one of several instructors that have the opportunity to bring these programs and activities to life, whether I'm delivering live here in a building at Claim University or delivering virtual instruction.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK, great.

(DESCRIPTION)
The inside of the garage of the model house is damaged, with exposed wiring. 

(SPEECH)
All right. So it looks like to be a garage, or it used to be a garage. Tell us about this structure. And how is it used to instruct students, more importantly? 

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: Absolutely. So this is really cool because we had an opportunity to partner up with a local fire department to create this damage. And what this allows our claim professionals to do is scope and estimate smoke and fire damage. They get to make those important repair versus replace decisions due to the structural integrity of the building material that's left behind. Also important for them is to understand the relationship that we have with our internal investigative department that actually helps us determine the cause and the origin of the fire itself.

JOAN WOODWARD: Wow, OK. Interesting. So we actually burn that?

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: We actually burn-- in a controlled environment.

JOAN WOODWARD: Controlled environment.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: We actually did burn it. So this is real fire and smoke damage. And they get to make those decisions.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK, excellent. Now I want to talk about roofing.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: OK.

JOAN WOODWARD: So a lot of us mere mortals don't understand roofing products and what type of roofing products make a difference in different-- Southwest, California, the different regions of the country. So I want to walk through each of these. And tell us what we're looking at.

(DESCRIPTION)
The presenters approach wheeled carts carrying sections of roof. 

(SPEECH)
LAMELLE WILLIAMS: Absolutely. So as you see, sometimes we have structures like that. We also have throughout the lab what we call A-frame mockups. And what this allows us to do is to share with our claim professionals some of the most common roof surfaces that they're going to encounter when they're in the field. 

So for example, this is our very common asphalt shingles. Here, we call this three-tab shingles, very common, like we said, out in the field. But not only do they get to see the roof surface material itself, they get to see what could possibly go under it. Depending on where I live, is it a little thicker? Do I need that? What goes around the roof, the actual construction in how we build this up?

Up top, we have ridge cap shingles. How are they installed? Those things make a difference. So again, we have our three-tabs here. We also have-- what you may see quite often are laminated shingles. So these are very common. In most areas that you'll see these. But these are just a few of the samples that we have. We also can teach things like slate roof. Right behind you, Joan, you'll notice that we even have some metal roofing there.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. 

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: We can also see, hey, what type of decking is that built on? Really just helping them with that building material identification. As they advance in their career, claim reps also get to come back. And we teach them about low-slope roofing material, commonly found in commercial applications.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. 

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: So again, just a few of the many props that we have throughout the lab here.

JOAN WOODWARD: A few months ago, we were at the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety, IIBHS. And we actually shot a hail cannon into one of the roofs and assessed the damage. And I think some of the partnerships we have outside of just Travelers really enhance what we're doing here at Claim U. So it's actually pretty fun when I shot the hail thing. You'll have to do it someday.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: I look forward to it.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. So we're going to move to another building here. And this is flood damage. And I want to spend a little time here because there's a lot of flooding out there. It's very important to understand what we're looking at here.

(DESCRIPTION)
The presenters stand at the side of a model house. 

(SPEECH)
So Lamelle, tell us what we're looking at. I'll get out of the way. 

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: Yeah, so actually, we'll stand here for a second. I'm going to tell you, Joan, a word that I'm going to use pretty often from here forward is cutaway, OK, because we use it all the time just to show the components that go into actually constructing.

So we affectionately call this structure here our flood house because we, at one point in time, actually did flood this house. And with this cutaway here, it allowed us to see-- when that water was running for a long time, the water actually penetrated through the floor, through the subfloor, into the crawl space, and created a good amount of damage.

Now, this damage signifies what you will commonly see from household appliances, internal plumbing structures or systems, and things of such. What it allows our claim professionals to do as they're walking through this house here is they actually get to prepare estimates for water mitigation. They get to make those repair versus replace decisions again. Do I keep the carpet, dry it in place, or now do I have to remove and replace that carpet? And very importantly, it also helps them understand how to prevent further water damage, so an important structure there that we have.

JOAN WOODWARD: We had a flooded basement. Our hot water heater burst.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: Yes. Oh. 

JOAN WOODWARD: We didn't know it for a little while. And so that was a nightmare.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: And unfortunately, that's how it sometimes happens, where it's unforeseen. You're not there. And it goes for a while. But we understand how we can mitigate those damages.

JOAN WOODWARD: Yeah, we had a sensor, so that set us off.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: Awesome!

JOAN WOODWARD: Sensor, yeah.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: We'll talk about some of that stuff coming up soon.

JOAN WOODWARD: Excellent. OK, so now I know we're moving into different homes-- fully functional homes, different though.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: Yep.

JOAN WOODWARD: We have a ranch over here. And then we have a-- it looks like a bi-level, a split-level? What is this? Explain what we're looking at.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: So first off, you absolutely nailed it. They are fully functional, meaning that everything inside of these homes work, OK? So let's start here with our split-level, or as we call it, our tri-level. We do have a basement. We do have an upstairs bedroom. And this house here is approximately 1,500 square feet. It's a little bit more complex in design.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: You mentioned you have a sensor. We have professionally installed smart home devices in there, including a water sensor, solar panels on the roof. Our rooms-- like I said, complex finishes, bump-outs. We have peak ceilings, tray ceilings, so just a little bit more complex and more modern appliances.

Now, in comparison, we can take a step over here. We also do have our ranch. So this is kind of like your starter beginner home. It's a one-story ranch home built on a concrete slab. It does have an attached garage on it. And just more basic and simple in design, not as modern by way of appliances. The smart home devices are kind of do-it-yourself. The rooms are more square. The ceilings are flat, so again, just a little bit more simple in design.

JOAN WOODWARD: And what do students learn-- first of all, I love the flowers, that we put shrubbery and flowers around that. And I'm sure there's lots of teachings about wildfires as well here. But what are students learning in these homes? I mean, are we simulating any kind of water damage or fire damage? I know there's sensors. So tell us about when students come here, what do they do?

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: You nailed it. So basically, we can simulate just about anything in these two homes, whether we're talking fire damage, water damage, wind damage or even theft claims. And the really cool thing is that when they're in these homes-- and I'm going to use that word again-- we have cutaways. So they really get to see the construction of this material.

And I'll give you an example. So in this split-level home, there's a cutaway of the chimney. So if they are writing an estimate for that chimney, they get to see behind it, look into the flue. How is that thing really made? The ranch, we have the same principle in our bathroom. We have a cutaway of the drywall so they can see the plumbing system that actually feeds the shower.

And last but not least, just about any flooring material that you step on in any of these houses, we have a cutaway that shows, what's the subfloor under there? How is this thing put together? So that when they're scoping and estimating these damages, they become really confident and comfortable with those building materials.

JOAN WOODWARD: So you mentioned plumbing. You mentioned electrical, HVAC. So I'm sure we have-- or tell us about this-- those specialties and experts in electrical, plumbing, HVAC, and teaching students how to assess a damage, right?

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: Well, you know what? I'm giving you a personal invitation right now to come see one of our residential mechanical classes because that's exactly what we teach in those classes. So I talked a lot about the interior of these homes. But on the exterior of these homes, as claim reps actually advance in their career, they come back for a more advanced class, like residential mechanical, where we have damage to condenser units out there.

They have to make those repair versus replace decisions again. Hey, is that condenser unit compatible with the air handler unit that's on the inside? We have simulated overhead meter masts that bring the electrical into the house. They actually get to trace the wires from the circuit boxes to the outlet switches and, again, prepare those scopes and estimates for even that type of damage.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK, so when is that class? What did you call it? Mechanical--

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: Residential mechanical?

JOAN WOODWARD: I don't know if I'm smart. I think I need the 101.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: You will be after you come. We'll have you certified and ready to go.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. This is really fascinating. Anything else in this side of the house before we move on to commercial?

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: Yeah. So the last thing that I'll add is attached to this Property Lab, we have three classrooms. At least two of them have overhead garage doors. This is where we do our facilitation and instruction.

And what those garage doors allow us to do is to roll mockups and props in and out of the classroom. So as we're teaching and instructing, we actually have the opportunity to point and show the material that we're talking about. And then, once we're finished with that instruction, the claim reps actually get to come out here into the lab and put that to application.

JOAN WOODWARD: Excellent. Fascinating. Lamelle, I can't thank you enough. Thank you so much. And you're such a good teacher. And there's a smile on his face the whole time.

LAMELLE WILLIAMS: It's been my pleasure. Thank you so much. Have a good one.

JOAN WOODWARD: All right. All right. Next, folks, we're going to move over to the commercial building, with Erika joining us again.

ERIKA FLEIG: I'm back.

JOAN WOODWARD: You're back. OK, good, because I learned a lot in the first session.

(DESCRIPTION)
The presenters stand in front of a commercial model with a medical logo printed on the glass door. 

(SPEECH)
So this commercial building, what is it used for, and how is it-- this is now a business insurance claim. So we switched from personal insurance and houses. Now we're on the business insurance side, which we have a lot of business in commercial building. Tell us the difference between a residential and a commercial. 

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So this building in back of us here is-- it’s a medical lab. So it represents a commercial building. So all of those skills and exercises that Lamelle just talked about that apply to residential construction, this is a chance for our claim professionals to practice those same skills, only on a commercial building.

You'll see here there's actually some damage on the exterior of the building, simulating probably a place where a vehicle may have hit the building. This building features those same cutaways that Lamelle talked about. But commercial construction obviously differs in many ways from residential construction. So the cutaways allow our claim professionals to learn about the materials used in commercial construction. There's even a commercial heating and cooling system up on the roof, again giving our claim professionals a great opportunity to practice those same skills, only with commercial building.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK, so we're in business insurance. We're in commercial building. Let's go inside, or near outside, inside. And I want to talk about-- you mentioned it's a medical-- you mentioned that it's a learning lab. It has a medical twist to it. Tell us about that.

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So this is the fourth lab.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK.

ERIKA FLEIG: We visited Heavy Equipment. We visited Auto. We're in the Property Lab. This is actually a lab within the lab.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK.

ERIKA FLEIG: Because from the outside, this is the commercial building that's part of the Property Lab. On the inside, it's actually our Medical Lab.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK.

ERIKA FLEIG: And this lab is used in the training and continuous development of our claim professionals who handle injury claims and the nurses who support them in the management of those claims.

(DESCRIPTION)
A display monitor in the building shows a highlighted rotating chest muscle on an avatar. 

(SPEECH)
JOAN WOODWARD: So-- 

ERIKA FLEIG: Actually, let me go a little bit further there.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK, yeah. Go ahead.

ERIKA FLEIG: So medical costs are obviously a significant portion of the total claim expense, where injuries may be involved in our workers compensation line, auto liability, general liability. So it's really important that the folks that are managing those claims, our claim professionals who handle those injury claims, have the skills and the knowledge they need to understand those injuries, understand causality, understand the treatment plans that are associated with those claims as a part of the overall claim process. And our robust medical curriculum helps them do just that.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK, so not only are we in business insurance and commercial property, now we're inside, and we're talking about workers comp. And we have hundreds of nurses, right, working on medical case every year.

Medical inflation has also been an issue. So we have medical doctors. We have a chief medical advisor here as well. So understanding what's actually in there-- and tell us about the touchscreens and some of the learning-- the technology, which, of course, in health care and technology, that's a whole different ball of wax.

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So I'm really happy that you asked about the technology in this lab because we actually recently made some upgrades to this lab, specifically with the technology that you see in there. All of the monitors that you see in here are actually touchscreen monitors. So think of them, Joan, like learning stations or learning kiosks.

This now actually creates an entirely collaborative, digital, interactive space for our claim professionals who handle those injury claims. We lean into creating activities that allow them to explore injuries using 3D models of different parts of the anatomy so they can explore how those injuries happen, explore causality and explore treatment plans. And again, this is just an example of the investment in technology and how technology can aid the learning process.

If you would permit me to go a little bit further about technology, I'd like to talk a little bit more about technology overall and learning. Earlier in our discussion, we talked about how technology is a bigger and bigger part of the claim process. Technology is also a big part of the learning process. We can do things with technology that we can't do in a physical space.

And think about injuries. Injuries may last weeks, months or even longer. And so the decisions to manage claims that involve those injuries may take time to play out. We can simulate that and accelerate that with our use of technology.

Technology allows us to create libraries of digital practice activities that folks can engage in here, but they can also engage in those activities on the job in our on-demand learning resources. Technology allows them to get feedback, immediate feedback, on their progress-- what they're learning, what they need to work on. So Travelers Claim University-- real big believer in how technology can aid the learning process. And we make those investments to make that happen.

JOAN WOODWARD: Wonderful. Now, what are we standing here? Why is this here?

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. Well, I mentioned, this is a commercial building. And this is an example of a barrier-- imagine nose-in parking-- to actually prevent the type of damage you see over here, to keep vehicles from rolling into the front of the building.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK, excellent.

ERIKA FLEIG: It's actually a safety feature.

JOAN WOODWARD: All right. So I have a lot of agents and brokers that join our webinars each Wednesday. And we've seen four different stations here at Claim U. What are the top takeaways for our agent and broker community that you've told us about that you want to make sure they've heard loud and clear?

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah. So I think-- and I've said it many times as we've been going throughout the facility today-- Travelers is really committed to making sure that we have the best claim workforce in the business, that they have the knowledge and the skills that they need to be there when our customers need us.

I think everything that you saw here in the building-- it's been true for 18 years. We opened in 2007. And that same mission holds true, to make sure that whether you're new to the industry and new to handling claims, that you actually have all of the resources, all of the support you need, to become really confident, knowledgeable, have that deep, technical expertise, and have that skill.

When you take that, and you couple it with Travelers' strong business processes, our technical capabilities and our culture, you really have all the ingredients to deliver on that promise. I'm really proud to be a part of this facility and a part of this mission to develop just the best claim workforce in the world.

JOAN WOODWARD: Yeah, and I saw a bunch of students walking around. Actually, there's three different groups up here this week for training. So you bring them back. I love the fact-- and Lamelle also said-- we have the basics, claim 101. And we continue to bring people back. Are these just Hartford-based employees? Are these throughout the--

ERIKA FLEIG: They come from all over the country. We also host some of our claim professionals that are working in our international locations. And I should also mention, Joan, that we hear over and over again how valuable our claim employees feel their time at Claim U is, the skills that they walk away with, the confidence that they walk away with. They're really prepared to continue learning when they go on the job. And we've also heard that same feedback from our distribution partners, that this investment in our claim professionals, it's really evident in the marketplace.

JOAN WOODWARD: It is cutting edge. I've heard that. I was walking around today, and there was a student here. She's only been with the company six months remotely. She's not in the Hartford office. And they've sent her up here three different times. And she was very grateful that someone invested in her as a young woman, right, for this kind of-- this is an investment in our people.

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah.

JOAN WOODWARD: It's very exciting. OK, so I'm going to move on. We have some audience questions, if that's OK. We'll take a few audience questions. They submit them when they register. So by the way, when you register for a webinar, submit your questions because-- and then also, we take them live. So in the chat, the Q&A section-- not the chat, the Q&A section, we have a bunch of questions. And I hope-- just say pass.

ERIKA FLEIG: I'll do my best.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK. First one coming in from Allen Laman of Wells Media Group in Washington, the state of Washington. What is the most important thing claims professionals learn at Claim University?

ERIKA FLEIG: That's a hard question because there are a lot of really important things that they learn. So I'll even bubble it up a little higher here.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK.

ERIKA FLEIG: I think the most important thing that folks learn when they come and experience any part of our curriculum is that continuous learning is important. And they learn how to learn, right? Learning just doesn't happen in the constraints of a classroom or a training program. That's where we concentrate that. But we also give them the skills to learn, to learn on the job, develop that curiosity.

And I think they also learn that they have a tremendous support system here at Travelers. I think our workforce overall in claim is one of the most generous out there in terms of sharing their knowledge and their expertise. So I think that's a really important thing that they learn in addition to all those technical and professional skills that are a part of the curriculum.

JOAN WOODWARD: Great. OK, another question. Kristin O'Leary of JM Wilson asked, I would love to hear about your processes around upskilling and how you assess the quality of the training provided.

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah, that's a great question. And we talk about upskilling a lot.

JOAN WOODWARD: What is upskilling?

ERIKA FLEIG: Upskilling is about developing new skills as the work changes. As the work changes, you want to make sure that your skills are changing with the work. And so we mentioned, again, a couple times today how things like technology and even changing customer expectations are changing the role, are changing the work.

So part of the work that we do at Claim University is to partner really closely with our business partners to understand how the work is changing. And what is the impact of those changes on the skills people need? We then go back to our programs and our curriculum to make sure that they're indexing on those skills in the right way. We're building the right practice opportunities in there.

I also want to mention data. Data is a really important input signal for us to make sure that what we're doing is effective. We have a number of different means of tapping into data about what learners are learning, maybe what they're struggling with, what kind of progress they're making towards those learning objectives. And that data allows us to intervene in the moment and make adjustments, as well as continue to improve and refine our programs at a macro level.

JOAN WOODWARD: OK, great. Another question from an agent, Cheryl Streib of Global Credit Union Insurance Brokers in Washington state, how long is the claim training program? And can agents visit Claim University? I get that a lot. Can agents come up here and visit? First of all, that's why we're doing this webinar today, so you can get an inside look behind your computers. You don't have to come up here. But can they come up? And then how long is the typical training for a property appraisal or auto or commercial building? What would you say?

ERIKA FLEIG: Yeah, so I'll answer both of those questions separately. So I'd actually encourage everybody to think about not a program, but a journey, because it's really about the journey. And depending upon the role that you are in, whether or not you are a trainee, or you're advancing in your career, the length of those programs can differ, but on average, anywhere from two months to six months. You could be engaged in a formal part of your training curriculum if you're coming in as a trainee. And again, you got to see all the great opportunities our trainees get as a part of that.

In terms of visiting Claim University, we love to share our capabilities not just in Claim U, but in the Claim organization overall with our distribution partners. So I would say if you want to learn more, reach out to your Travelers representative--

JOAN WOODWARD: OK.

ERIKA FLEIG: --to make that happen.

JOAN WOODWARD: Good. All right. Another question here-- I think it might be last question-- from Bruce Lant at AAA Northway Insurance Agency in New York asked, what job postings should a student that is interested in a career in claims keep an eye out for?

ERIKA FLEIG: Well, we all know that many a great career at Travelers have started in Claim. So Claim trainee roles are a great place to start, whether it be auto, property, general liability or workers compensation. You saw what our trainees get to experience in terms of learning about our business, learning about our customers, and really learning some solid skills that will be valuable throughout their careers. So to answer that question more directly, if you're interested in a career in claims, I would say go to the travelers.com website, the career section, and search for trainee roles in Claim.

JOAN WOODWARD: And if you train, say, in property, and you do that for two or three years, and you want to move to auto or commercial buildings, that's easy, right?

ERIKA FLEIG: It's actually very easy, and it's very common. And again, we talked about skills. Those skills that are important for our claim professionals are so transferable across our lines of business.

JOAN WOODWARD: I did hear from several people-- I didn't start in Claim. But I heard it is a great place to start because you get an overview of the whole company.

ERIKA FLEIG: And you get to work with our customers.

JOAN WOODWARD: Right, and fun people like you.

ERIKA FLEIG: And fun people like us and Lamelle. Wasn't Lamelle great?

JOAN WOODWARD: Lamelle's great. Lamelle is great. That smile's still on his face over there. So look, this has been amazing. The hour has just flown by. Thank you for your hospitality for having us here today. You're fantastic, and your team's fantastic to work with. There's a lot of people behind these cameras, folks. This doesn't just happen overnight.

So I want to thank my whole team and everyone for joining us and let you know also we're going to come back here. We're going to talk about the CAT Center, the Catastrophe Center. And that is just a wall of videos and computer, huge screen TVs monitoring every movement of the weather on satellite, etc. So we'll be back looking at the CAT Center. We'll be at the forensics lab, lots of other things to-- throughout the year, so watch your inboxes for that. Thank you.

ERIKA FLEIG: We'll look forward to having you back.

JOAN WOODWARD: Absolutely.

ERIKA FLEIG: Thanks so much, Joan. It's been a pleasure.

JOAN WOODWARD: All right.

(DESCRIPTION)
A slide appears: Wednesdays with Woodward (registered trademark) Webinar Series. Take Our Survey, link in chat. 

(SPEECH)
So don't forget to take our survey about today's program. We read every single word. So let us know what you thought and what else you'd like to see. I like to read those-- you should do this differently, Joan, or, this might be an interesting speaker for one of your shows. 

So we also have an amazing lineup for you coming up.

(DESCRIPTION)
Titles of upcoming webinars appear with dates. March 12: Unlocking Your Potential: Lessons in Leadership and Influence. March 19: How Did You Sleep Last Night? Understanding the Fascinating Science of Sleep. April 7: Forces at Work Symposium at the New York Stock Exchange, (Special Monday edition 10 am-12:30 pm Eastern Time). Text: Register, travelersinstitute.org. 

(SPEECH)
So on your screen, you'll see on March 12, as part of Women's History Month-- something I'm terribly interested in-- my friend and former Capitol Hill colleague, Laura Cox Kaplan, she has a fabulous podcast called She Said/She Said. I said that correctly. She's interviewed hundreds of women, from the C-suite to politics to nonprofits. 

And what she talks a lot about is influencing, having influencing even when you don't have the title, knowing how to negotiate even when you don't have authority to negotiate. So she's learned throughout talking to all of these people on her podcast some tricks of the trade. And I always like to shortcut things to be a more engaged employee and a more engaged manager. So watch that one.

Also, another thing I care a lot about, on March 19, I'm going to be joined by Dr. Matthew Walker, who wrote a book about sleeping. And so we spend about a third of our lives sleeping, folks. We're going to look at the implications for getting a good night's sleep. And this can be hard, especially as you get older. Your health, your immune system, your brain-- we're going to learn a lot more about techniques to get you a better night's sleep.

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A photo appears of a group of people in business attire standing on a podium labeled New York Stock Exchange in front of a backdrop with the Travelers logo. 

(SPEECH)
Lastly, on our agenda over the next month-- a very, very special livestream we're going to do from the New York Stock Exchange. So we are celebrating our 15th anniversary at the Travelers Institute. And on April the 7th, we're going to ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange to commemorate that anniversary. It is an honor of my lifetime to ring an opening bell at the Stock Exchange. And we're going to livestream our program. 

And our program is going to be based on our new platform at the Travelers Institute. It's called Forces at Work. And what that means for us-- actually, we talked about it today-- workers compensation, mental well-being, bringing your whole self to work, and understanding as managers there's a lot of challenges in the workplace today for our young people, for people of all ages. And so we're going to talk about the forces of work, what's happening outside of our four walls of our businesses, and how to have strategies to really help you with your workforce.

So there's a labor shortage out there, we all know, in the macroeconomic environment. And we want to be able to give you tools and tips to help your employees stay well mentally and physically. So join us on April 7 for that very, very special webinar. I'm going to be joined by the former surgeon general, Jerome Adams, as well as other leading experts.

(DESCRIPTION)
Slide. An image of a condenser microphone appears below text: Travelers Institute Risk & Resilience. 

(SPEECH)
So if you're a podcast person, you probably know we have a podcast. It's called the Travelers Institute Risk & Resilience podcast. So as you're gardening, skiing, golfing, just driving down the road, join us on Apple or Spotify. 

(DESCRIPTION)
Slide: Wednesdays with Woodward (registered trademark) Webinar Series. Images appear of a YouTube icon, a LinkedIn icon, and a Podcast icon. Text: Watch, travelersinstitute.org. Connect, Joan Kois Woodward. Listen, wherever you get your pods. 

(SPEECH)
Thank you again to Erika and Lamelle and everyone here at Claim U. It's been an amazing experience. Take care, my friends. Thanks for joining us. And we'll see you in a few weeks. 

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Text: Travelers Institute (registered trademark), Travelers. travelersinstitute.org.