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 A
Success Story
Thursday, December 20, 2001, was not a good day for Fabian
Di Stefano and the
citizens of Argentina. On that day, the government devalued
the peso, with
a dramatic impact on an already-suffering economy and the day-to-day
lives of
its people.
“That morning,” said Di Stefano, an account executive
with Liberty ART, Liberty
Mutual’s workers compensation business in Argentina, “I
awoke to discover
that my income was one-third of what it was the night before,
relative to the U.S.
dollar. The only consolation was that I was not alone.” For
Di Stefano, the devaluation
meant a close look at his financial situation, with cutbacks
wherever
possible – entertainment and travel among the more obvious
targets.
Just as affected were Di Stefano’s customers, such as
the Argentine operations of
Sherwin -Williams, the global producer of paints and coatings. “In
times of a
major currency devaluation,” said Jose Luis Eyzaguirre,
manager of Safety, Health
and Environment for the company’s Buenos Aires-based
business, “putting food
on the table takes precedence over enhancing the beauty of
your home.”
From a business standpoint, Mr. Eyzaguirre had a decision to
make: stay with
Liberty or go with a lower-priced provider. He stayed. “We
have been a Liberty
Mutual customer since the government first introduced workers
compensation
in 1996,” he said. “Since then we have seen dramatic
improvement in the
frequency and severity of accidents, thanks not only to Liberty’s
loss prevention
programs, but to the day-to-day service of employees like Fabian.”
“Our country’s economic downturn won’t last forever,” Di
Stefano said, “and as it
comes back, we will both benefit, Liberty Mutual and Sherwin
-Williams.”
Liberty Focus
How does Liberty International succeed in a
region like South America, where political and
economic instability is a fact of life?
The answer is a combination of excellent underwriting,
superb execution of key strategies, and
high-quality employees dedicated to superior
customer service despite the disruptions in their
personal lives. In fact, our employees will tell
you that superior customer service during difficult
times can often translate into profitable
long-term customer loyalty.
In Latin America, for example, we institutionalize
our best practices across countries, and
we probably do this better than anybody in the
world. The Lojack auto theft recovery system,
claims services centers and electronic business-to-
business communications with agents and
brokers are all examples of best practices developed
at one of our local companies and “exported”
to others.
In addition, each of our local companies compares
its performance regularly with the competition
to determine exactly where it stands in
its market. In South America, a focus on the
basics, like processing a claim rapidly and transparently,
can sometimes be the difference
between being a leader and one of the pack. In
other cases, very personal service and sophisticated
electronic interfaces are necessary.
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"The devaluation of the peso
made insurance costs an even more important
issue for our customers. Fortunately, because we developed
a good
working relationship with Sherwin-Williams over many years,
they
took both costs and results into account before making
their renewal
decision.”
Fabian Di Stefano, Account Executive,
Liberty ART, Buenos Aires, Argentina. “ |
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