Solution Offers “Ultimate in Configurability”

Edison, NJ, May 15, 2012.  FAST is announcing the release of version 3.0 of FAST Policy Administration – a truly component based policy administration solution.  The solution is comprised of a complete suite of business process driven software components based on a services oriented architecture (SOA).

This release adds:

• Expansion of our industry leading insurance product configuration, which includes support for a broad range of insurance products
• Improved workflow and task management, including adaptive case management
• Increased real-time business monitoring and metrics
• Continued improvement of our user interface

Also in this release are pre-built integration adapters for enterprise systems, providing innovative ways to manage business process flows (for example, merging customer service, workflow, and human resources components into a cohesive department management dashboard).

FAST Policy Administration is available under either JAVA or .Net and has been developed using FAST 8x®, the breakthrough software development framework created by FAST.  Clients are able to configure business processes on their terms while staying on the base software.

“FAST is committed to providing insurers with software that offers the ultimate in configurability,” said Tom Famularo, FAST’s Chief Executive Officer.  “Our team has an unmatched track record for delivering great policy administration systems and FAST Policy Administration takes that to a whole new level.”

About FAST

FAST, which stands for “Flexible Architecture, Simplified Technology”, is a privately-held company located inEdison,NJfounded by the former leaders of NaviSys. FAST’s team of passionate, experienced entrepreneurs focuses on solving the challenges our financial services clients face as they seek to modernize their systems environments or completely replace legacy systems.   In addition to strategic IT consulting and a deep team of insurance systems experts, FAST offers a breakthrough technology framework (called FAST 8x®) and pre-built FAST Insurance Components to dramatically reduce the time, cost and risk associated with major systems initiatives.

Contact:

John Gorman, COO

FAST

732.513.1400 (cell)

732.238.0005 (office)

www.fasttechnology.com

FAST is pleased to attend the 2012 ACORD LOMA Conference in Orlando, Florida.  We’ll be participating in the Demo Theatre (Wed 5/16 at 5:10pm).  Our tagline for the session is “FAST will change your perception of what’s possible for policy administration and other core systems” and we plan to live up to that.

We’re also exhibiting in booth #323.  We’re bringing a strong team – we’ll need it with a 20 x 20 booth – to connect with industry leaders on their challenges and how FAST might help.

Maybe the most different thing we’re doing is giving away two tickets to the 2013 Super Bowl in New Orleans.  As Tom Famularo our CEO puts it “We really wanted to do something more original and interesting than giving away an iPad.”  Based on the reaction so far, it looks like we did.

FAST recently attended the Core Systems Summit Event held in Chicago, IL on April 11th & 12th. This active conference was organized by Novarica and CDM Media and served as a meeting point for people who are actively in the core systems arena. The format of the conference allowed the members of FAST to have one-on-one meetings with a select number of professionals. In addition, FAST was able to present a “case study” presentation to the broader group as well as participate in a panel on vendor-client relationships.

The overall feedback from this Summit is word is getting out about FAST and our message is very compelling.

As demand and requests for information surrounding FAST’s products and offerings continues to surge, Flexible Architecture and Simplified Technology, Inc. (“FAST”) took immediate action resulting in the on-boarding of Jeffrey Sloan as FAST’s Vice President of Sales.

Jeff, a senior level Sales Professional, brings 20 plus years of experienced sales pursuits to FAST.  Sales initiatives span diverse industry verticals, but Jeff’s true expertise lies within Financial Services.  Notably Jeff served as the Vice President of Sales for SunAmericia, a California-based company listed on the New York Stock Exchange.  Throughout his career Jeff has been tasked with leading major start-up sales initiatives to completion.  In addition, Jeff distinguished himself at Copeland Companies, now State Street, by winning Copeland’s “Sales Manager of the Year” award.

Mr. Sloan has a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing and Management from Rutgers University and Jeff is an active member of the Sales Management Executive Group.

FAST is thrilled to announce Jeff as one of the newest members of the FAST team.

To support intensified sales activities and imminent business demands, Flexible Architecture and Simplified Technology, Inc. (“FAST”) has hired Oliver Koernig.

Oliver is a renowned IT Insurance Industry professional with 18 plus years of Solutions Sales and Consulting for the Insurance Industry in both the United States and Europe.  Oliver has demonstrated success defining and implementing innovative, cutting edge solutions for major insurance clients.  Oliver’s expertise includes the use of prominent technologies such as IBM’s Insurance Application Architecture (IAA), Services Oriented Architecture (SOA), and now FAST’s Insurance Components & FAST 8x.  Oliver has extensive experience planning and implementing large-scale projects from a business and technological perspective.

Mr. Koernig is a frequent presenter at industry conferences and a recognized expert of enterprise architecture within the insurance industry.  Oliver earned a MS in Computer Science from Universität Passau and a MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business.  FAST is excited to have Oliver as a new member of the FAST team.

FAST is featured in an SMA perspective, A New Day For Life and Annuities Solutions – Achieving the SOA Vision, written by Deb Smallwood and Mary Ann Garwood of SMA. The perspectives discusses the pressing need for business agility and products in the market that will help insurers reach this goal. Per SMA, “FAST is leading the way for the modern implementation of SOA in the life and annuities insurance industry.”

To read the full perspective, visit: http://www.fasttechnology.com/SMA-Perspective.pdf

For more information on FAST services, please email us at contactus@FastTechnology.com

The focus of Release 4.1 was around additional options and patterns that can be configured to create an awesome experience for the end user of applications built using FAST 8x.  Our UX Engineers came together to figure out what features could enhance the experience for the end users of applications built with FAST 8x (including FAST Insurance Components) and concluded that having more information and functions available with less clicks was the theme.  The following features represent a small subset of what was done to achieve this goal:

• One-click-navigation to get back to the exact page you left off for your recent work (policy, transaction, person, etc.)
• Grids and lists with a summary level of information and ability to hide/show details in a single click
• Better organized information in sections, tabs, grids
• More personal preferences
• Ability to see consolidated views of similar information across multiple entities (e.g. policies, people, transactions, cases, requirements, etc.)
• Data encryption and masking options to support privacy and  regulations
• Better access and configuration for Wikis for collaboration and documentation of business processes

By adding these features as configuration options for FAST 8x, the component designers can be more efficient and iterate faster with their business partners.  In addition, this reduces the (already miniscule) amount of code that has to be written as an overlay – which helps with upgrades, maintenance, and allows for more flexibility within IT.

We will have some surprises for you with release 4.2 as we will be implementing some breakthrough ideas to make the user experience that much more awesome.

FAST is developing a state-of-the-art brokerage management system for a leading marketer of individual insurance products.  The new FAST system, designed as a full replacement for a series of industry point solutions, will leverage many of FAST’s existing Insurance Components as a starting point. These robust components deliver the needed functionality for producer management, new business and underwriting, and commission processing, while new components will be added to support campaign management, producer recruiting, sales/opportunity management, and a few other functions. The new system will seamlessly integrate with industry data providers, streamlining job functions and eliminating the inefficiencies common to today’s current systems.

FAST will spend one month building an initial starting point for all of these processes, and then will iterate with the marketer using the AGILE methodology to arrive at a feature-rich solution meeting the customer’s prioritized business needs. Initial design work has focused on the sales process – how to organize and manage campaigns and the sales leads/opportunities that arise from those – and how that process transitions into new business in a brokerage environment. Other features built in this first month will include:

• Ability for producers to access new business and commission data from their smart phones,
• Facility to set up and manage complex business processes and workflows in support of sales, recruiting, and new business,
• Reporting of comprehensive production metrics based on data access rules established at the user level,
• And the ability to organize and present the marketer’s content library.

Project work completed thus far exemplifies the level of reuse that is attainable when SOA standards are strictly followed. Using FAST 8x, the team has been able to configure several new components, modify a few existing FAST Insurance Components, and use others as-is to create a comprehensive starting point involving over 35 components integrated with a Web 2.0 rich user interface. At the end of one month the marketer will have a working, testable application that can be exercised using their business processes to define the next set of work that needs to get done. Stay tuned…

FAST was recognized as a finalist in the Emerging Business of the Year category during the 2011 NJBIZ Business of the Year awards dinner on December 5, 2011.  The Business of the Year awards program celebrates New Jersey’s most dynamic businesses and business leaders who share a commitment to professional excellence, business growth and the community. FAST was recognized for its innovative approach to software development, rapid growth in the marketplace, and an outstanding commitment to their employees and community.

Edison, NJ, November 17, 2011. FAST will be sponsoring an Insurance & Technology webcast, Leveraging the Latest Technology Advances To Modernize Core Systems, on November 30, 2011 at 1pm EST.  This one-hour free webcast will feature, Matthew Josefowicz, Partner and Managing Director of Novarica, Mike Hydanus, SVP and CAO of National Western Life, and Tom Famularo, CEO & Founder of FAST; as they share their insight on modern approaches to transforming legacy systems with more options and less risk.

In this webcast, attendees will learn how carriers can modernize core systems by leveraging and combining:

• Configurable systems
• Externalizing business rules
• Services Oriented Architecture (SOA) and Componentization

These approaches result in lower cost projects that achieve business results faster, while reducing long term cost of ownership.

For more information and to register for the webcast, please visit: https://www.techwebonlineevents.com/ars/eventregistration.do?mode=eventreg&F=1003811&K=CAA1CC