"I Didn't Know About That!"

John A. Dirkse

Assistant Vice President

These articles focus on messages and ideas regarding insurance and risk management. when writing these articles it is my hope to bring a universal message to all readers interested in the topics presented. However, with the continued growth and success of the Wisconsin County Mutual Insurance Corporation and the peripheral coverage program endorsed by the Wisconsin Counties Association, the topics presented may appear to be more focused than generic. My involvement with the two programs, does however, provide insight and experience, that I hope will benefit all who read these articles.

In previous articles a considerable amount of space has been devoted to creating awareness of the various techniques used by risk managers and insurance administrators in the handling of their overall insurance programs. We have discussed issues such as the purchase of insurance, contracts, hold-harmless and indemnification language, certificates of insurance and the value of the claims reports you receive from your insurance carrier. More recently, we have focused on the importance of an involved and focused loss prevention and control effort.

In 1991, the Wisconsin County Mutual initiated an aggressive effort to bring to each member county a model for an active, involved county-wide loss control and risk management organization. During initial workshops introducing the idea, we heard comments such as, "My department already has a safety committee!" or the other extreme, "Why do we need to bother with that, we have insurance!." Having been in the industry for sometime, each of the responses came as no surprise, but did demonstrate to us that the real challenge to any county adopting the loss control organization would be changes associated with restructuring the current safety program or creating the organization where it had not existed before. For each of the 38 counties participating in the loss control effort this presented the first challenge.

In May of 1991, the Loss Prevention Committee and Board of Directors of the Wisconsin County Mutual released the new Risk Management Manual to each of the members of the Mutual. This document contained valuable information that would assist both the counties participating in the Loss Control Program and those that chose not to participate. Information such as suggestions for a county-wide fleet management, administration of contractor insurance requirements and certificates of insurance, specific outlines for exposures present in several key departments and examples of forms to be used in the implementation of a risk management program. In short, a document to be used and personalized by each county and their department heads in the administration of their risk management effort.

To summarize to this point, articles have addressed techniques, procedures and organization of the risk management effort, but still there is something missing, one key element to the successful risk management effort. What we have not discussed is truly the reason for organizing in the first place. Still searching? The essential element that separates a successful organization from simply being organized is COMMUNICATION.

In order to properly set the stage, let's look at the Funk & Wagnall's definition of COMMUNICATE and COMMUNICATION.

com-mu-ni-cate - v.

1. To make another or others partakers of; impart; transmit, as news, a disease, or an idea.

2. To administer the communion to. - v.i.

3. To make or hold communication.

com-mun-ni-ca-tion - n.

1. The act of communicating; intercourse; exchange of ideas, conveyance of information, etc.; correspondence.

2. That which is communicated; a letter or message.

3. Means of communicating, as a highway or passage; also, a telephone, telegraph, or radio system, etc.

If the successes and failures of risk management and safety efforts were analyzed and compared, the overwhelming and compelling difference between the success or failure of a program would be measured in the effectiveness of the communication between those asked to participate in the effort. In the case of organizations present within counties, this means the County Board, appointed officials, Department Heads and Supervisors and Employees.

In order for the organization to achieve it's desired goal of involved, focused response to projects, policies and procedures, ideas and input must be communicated effectively to the decision makers. In reverse, once a policy or procedure has been developed, it needs to presented and understood by the participants.

Coordination of outside information important to multiple departments within a county must also be communicated, in order to effectively and efficiently make use of time and personnel. This is another key benefit to becoming organized. Rather than one department educating themselves on a topic, without sharing what was learned, the organization is the ideal conduit for relaying this useful information to others within the county. Often information generated from the outside, such as underground storage tanks, Commercial Drivers License and the Americans with Disabilities Act, is of interest to several departments. Information and training on topics such as these should be made available to departments directly effected by the components of this legislation. This sharing of information not only saves time, but can also save money. Using these as examples, costs associated with studies of present conditions, the availability of cooperative training and use of internal resources for training can be shared by all departments needing to respond to the requirements of this legislation.

One day, while discussing the funding provided from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation for testing the underground storage tanks with a county, it was mentioned that several other departments also had underground storage tanks that would need to be tested. Considering that the much of the expense in doing the testing involves getting the test equipment to the site, it was suggested that the contractor be contacted to determine the cost savings of having the contractor test the other sites in the county during the visit versus having them complete the work for the Highway Department and do the work independently for the other departments. As it turned out, when contacted to explore the potential savings, the contractor had already completed the testing of the underground tanks for the Highway Department. ways counties can save money. The contractor that performed the service did confirm that a savings would have been realized if the work had been coordinated and consolidated with their earlier inspection.

Consider the example of the contract that has gone to bid and the bid accepted without regard for insurance requirements and proper review of indemnification clauses. As many of you are aware, it is extremely difficult to go back and change key provisions in a contract once it has been executed. Without proper communication, this situation creates a real potential for exposure to loss for the county.

Finally, communication with outside providers is equally important in the successful risk management program. Consultation on key issues and techniques used in properly treating risk are not only beneficial, they are essential. Questions regarding procedures, daily operational concerns, loss history or trends and simply, experience from service to other counties are all necessary components to the risk management effort. Given the amount of time our staff spends answering incoming telephone calls, this line of communications is being utilized.

All to often we can be consumed by the technique and function of risk management and safety, that we forget that basic sharing and understanding of an idea, communication, is a fundamental tool in the successful implementation and operation of your continuing effort. Keep up the good work. As always, if this article has raised any questions or you simply want to discuss it's content, please contact me or your current agent.