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How a graduate bootcamp in Manila cut a US insurer's claims backlog by 77%.
After a heavy storm season, a US insurer had thousands of claims waiting and couldn't hire claims staff fast enough. Skillfi built the Claims Academy, an 8-week bootcamp that trained graduates in Manila in three cohorts and placed them on the insurer's claims team. Licensed US adjusters kept every decision, while the new team took on the work that was slowing them down. It's how our career accelerator works: new careers for graduates, ready talent for employers.
Storm season left thousands of customers waiting on their claims.
The insurer covers homes and cars across six US states. A run of severe storms doubled claim volumes, and its team of licensed adjusters was buried in paperwork, follow-up calls and document chasing.
Open claims climbed past 4,200. Customers waited days for a first call back and complaints were rising. Hiring more claims staff in the US took months and most new hires left within a year. Outsourcing to a large vendor had been tried before, but staff turned over so fast that quality never settled.
Our adjusters were spending their days chasing photos and repair quotes instead of settling claims. Customers felt forgotten.
VP of Claims, client
Train a dedicated team, not a rented one, and keep decisions in the US.
Skillfi designed the role split with the insurer's claims leaders: licensed US adjusters would make every coverage and payment decision, while the new team handled everything around it. The offshore operating setup and handover were planned with a fractional COO.
Graduates who fit the work
2,400 applicants screened for written English, attention to detail and a customer call role-play, with 60 chosen across three cohorts.
An academy built on real claims
Eight weeks on US insurance basics, the insurer's claims system and real call scenarios, using anonymised past claims.
Live work with a safety net
A four-week supervised start, daily quality checks and US adjusters signing off every decision, all on secure, monitored desktops.
7 months, cohort by cohort
From a growing backlog to a trained claims team working alongside US adjusters every day. Here's how the academy unfolded.
- Week 1–411 tasks moved
Role split & site setup
Claims tasks split between US adjusters and the new team, with a secure delivery site arranged in Manila.
- Week 3–72,400 applicants
Sourcing & selection
Outreach through universities and graduate networks, then tests, role-plays and interviews.
- Month 2–317 hired
Cohort one
20 graduates through the 8-week academy, then a supervised start on first notice of loss and document collection.
- Month 4Backlog falling
First results
Same-day first contact on most new claims, and US adjusters freed to focus on settlements.
- Month 4–648 hired total
Cohorts two & three
Two more cohorts, adding payments processing and repair estimate checks as the team proved itself.
- Month 74 team leads
Handover
Team leads promoted from cohort one and the academy playbook handed to the insurer for future intakes.
Eight weeks, from graduate to claims team
Most graduates had never worked in insurance. The academy taught them the work, the systems and how to speak to a stressed customer after a storm.
How US insurance works
- Home & auto policies
- The life of a claim
- Privacy & data rules
The claims desk
- The insurer's claims system
- Documents & photos
- Spotting fraud flags
Calls that calm people
- First notice of loss calls
- Empathy after a storm
- Clear written updates
Ready for live claims
- Anonymised past claims
- Quality checks daily
- Final assessment
Five months after cohort one went live
Average days to close a claim
So customers are paid sooner and complaints fall.
We didn't rent a call centre, we built our own team. They know our policies and our customers, and our adjusters finally have time to do the work only they can do.
VP of Claims, clientNeed a trained team, not just more headcount?
Our career accelerator designs and runs bootcamps around your real work, in the US or offshore, so new hires join ready to deliver. Setting up an offshore team for the first time? A fractional COO can plan the operation with you.
- Role design & task split
- Graduate sourcing & selection
- Bootcamp delivery, cohort by cohort
- Supervised start & handover
30 minutes. No obligation.
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