Boosting AssuredPartners’ Growth-Through-Acquisition Strategy
Re-Platform + Migration to Sitecore.
AssuredPartners is among the fastest-growing insurance brokerages in the United States, largely through acquisition. Each acquisition adds a unique website platform and CMS that can frustrate operational efficiency, security, and scalability. To consolidate these disparate systems, AssuredPartners chose Sitecore, a centralized platform known for its security and scalability. They also chose ITX – citing ITX’s extensive Sitecore expertise, security chops, and commitment to digital accessibility – to build their new platform in a performant, secure way.
ITX set up AssuredPartners’ for long-term success with Sitecore, starting with the re-platform of several subsidiary websites and re-development of their corporate site.
Meet AssuredPartners.
AssuredPartners is the 11th largest independent insurance brokerage firm in the U.S. (as ranked by Business Insurance (July/August 2022)), and among the fastest growing. With more than 250 offices across 34 states and England, they partner with regional and local insurance agencies, providing deep network resources, experienced people, and strong carrier relationships.
The ITX team are Sitecore experts; they know Sitecore’s capabilities inside and out, and they make a point to get to know us and gain a deep understanding of our business goals, which drives all their recommendations through final implementation. ITX has been our trusted partner for several years, and they continue to exceed my expectations with every project.
Objective.
Predictably deliver a Sitecore platform that supports AssuredPartners’ long-term growth strategy. Create a smooth process for the subsequent migration of content from more than 100 subsidiary websites to Sitecore. Prioritize security, scalability, and accessibility, and exceed financial services standards throughout. Establish an enduring content strategy to boost SEO performance and ensure compliance with WCAG accessibility standards.
Approach.
ITX remained focused on AssuredPartners’ growth-through-acquisition strategy to create a re-platforming process that was easily transferrable to their subsidiaries. By leveraging Sitecore’s strengths, the ITX delivery team built platform components that are modular, extensible, and reusable. This allowed subsidiaries to use the same components to efficiently launch their own sites. ITX applied modern agile techniques, AI-driven technologies, and 2-day release cycles to deliver consistent value.
Challenge.
- A tall task. AssuredPartners has more than 100 legacy websites to re-platform and rebrand under the Sitecore CMS umbrella.
- Platform security. As AssuredPartners continues to grow, every new acquisition increases the risk of security vulnerabilities threatening their vast website environment.
- User experience. The decentralized nature of AssuredPartners’ subsidiary network introduced design inconsistencies including several instances of non-compliance with WCAG accessibility standards.
- Content maintenance. Content managers for the AssuredPartners’ subsidiary are accustomed to the legacy CMS; a simple, intuitive backend experience is important.
Action.
- Sitecore expertise. ITX leveraged its Sitecore experience, using reusable components to streamline creation of a repeatable process.
- Streamlined efficiency. Early in the development process, ITX incorporated design concepts to account for security, accessibility, and scalability.
- Consistent performance. The ITX product team demonstrated the power of innovative, time-saving tools to automate content migration, securely integrate disparate sites, and perform end-to-end quality assurance.
Performance.
ITX Delivered More Value For The Same Budget.
- ITX demonstrated its Sitecore proficiency, consistently outperforming project plan while delivering 25% greater business value.
- By releasing new features consistently on a steady 2-day cadence, ITX provided AssuredPartners with clear expectations and predictable outcomes.
Result
- With Sitecore in place, AssuredPartners is set up for continued success to align current and future subsidiaries on a centralized platform.
- By embracing AssuredPartners’ business goals, ITX designed the Sitecore framework to deliver high performance, reduce development effort, minimize tech debt, and facilitate growth.
- ITX delivered a highly performant, secure, repeatable process that AssuredPartners can use to re-platform more of its expansive environment within the Sitecore CMS, migrate the content of more than 100 subsidiary websites across its network, and rebrand (as needed) the many distinct websites to align with AssuredPartners.
