We recently spoke to Tom Burroughs, CTO at Synergy Cloud who partners with Claim Technology to deliver simplified and seamless claims processes. He shared his thoughts on the value of collaboration, how partnerships are paving the way for meaningful insurance innovation and the potential of insurtech to transform the insurance industry.
About Synergy Cloud
Synergy Cloud was a technology spin-off from the Claims Consulting Group so has gained first-hand experience of the challenges insurers face in claims handling and digital transformation. Over the past decade, it has evolved into a standalone technology business, offering a modular, cloud-first platform designed to simplify and modernise claims processing. Synergy’s focus on automation and seamless integration enables insurers and partners to overcome the challenges posed by legacy systems, deploying solutions that are quick, cost-effective, and commercially viable.
Tom shared Synergy’s mission to “make it easy for insurers to solve problems” without requiring complete system overhauls. Their approach is centred on delivering pre-integrated, out-of-the-box solutions for common challenges like storm claims.
“Our mission ultimately was to dispel the notion that improving claims processes has to be hard, expensive, or take years. It doesn’t. You can turn things on quickly, realise the benefits immediately, and grow and evolve seamlessly”
Their partnership with Claim Technology
Synergy Cloud joined Claim Technology’s tech partner program in early 2024. Since then, they have fully embraced the ecosystem’s collaborative potential. The key motivation for Synergy Cloud to partner with Claim Technology stemmed from a shared vision of providing modular, API-first solutions that integrate seamlessly into the broader insurance ecosystem.
They found a key benefit of partnering with Claim Technology was their position within Claim Technology’s insurtech marketplace as a trusted “shop window” of pre-validated partners. The marketplace gives customers the confidence that the insurtech they’re recommended is “always with a view to what is the right solution to the job” – fostering collaboration between like-minded insurtech providers and providing customers with the technology and expertise they really need.
Collaboration over competition – The new modus operandi in insurance
Insurance to date has been a siloed industry. Claim Technology and Synergy Cloud are aiming to change that by exemplifying a shift towards collaboration at the intersection of insurance and technology.
Tom notes that “The ethos in technology is very different from traditional claims services. Even when we’re competing for the same customers, it’s about complementing each other’s strengths rather than fighting over every piece of business.”
“Gone are the days of the one-stop shop. We know what we’re good at at Synergy. Equally, we know what we’re not good at and we wouldn’t try to pretend to make a sale on something that we know is not a strong suit. Through the partner programme, we’re able to collaborate with another insurtech provider and ensure we’re all playing to our strengths, ultimately delivering the best result for the insurer and their customers.”
The Future of insurance – disruption and opportunity
When asked what he thought 2025 would hold for the insurance industry, Tom shared two key areas he foresees disruption and opportunity.
Reimagining insurance products
Tom explained “The typical insurance product hasn’t changed much in decades, even though the world has. With technology, insurers can move beyond marginal improvements to fundamentally do business differently—unlocking 10x benefits rather than just 2x or 5x.”
One example of this he gave was parametric insurance:
“Imagine a world where, after a storm, a customer receives their payout five minutes after the wind stops blowing. No claims adjusters, no waiting. Satellite data and parametric models make this possible—it’s a fascinating concept we should build on.”
Embedding Technology at the Core
Insurers have historically used technology to improve existing processes. However, Tom envisions a future where tech transforms the core of insurance itself. By integrating tools like satellite imagery and AI into product design, insurers could achieve exponential gains, moving from incremental improvements to truly transformative changes.
Opportunities for insurtech providers
Partnerships and collaboration will be pivotal for insurtech providers in the coming years. Tom emphasises the value of proof-of-concept trials, enabling companies to test innovative ideas together:
“Innovation accelerates when companies collaborate. Proof-of-concept trials with partners can help create solutions that push the boundaries of what’s possible while demonstrating real ROI. The more we do this, the better the outcomes for insurers and customers.”
“Insurtechs must be absolutely clear about the problems they solve. Insurers face an overwhelming number of choices, so it’s essential to be laser-focused on delivering the right solutions. If it’s not a fit, direct them to someone else who is—that’s how we build trust.”
“I’d love to see a future where someone buys and uses Synergy Cloud without us even knowing until the transaction is done. Through APIs, they could integrate capabilities directly into their solutions in hours, not weeks. That’s the vision we should strive for.”
The path forward for insurtech providers is clear
For Claim Technology, Synergy Cloud and other leading insurtech providers, the path forward is clear. We’ll continue to collaborate, experiment, and push the boundaries of what’s possible, to reshape the insurance industry for the better.
In our conversation, Tom put this perfectly: “It’s about working with like-minded businesses that want to tear up the rulebook, experiment, and iterate. That’s what will drive real change.”
