For nearly a century, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina (Blue Cross NC) has had one mission: Make healthcare better for all of North Carolina. From customer support to patient payment portals, sales and mobile account access, technology touches every part of the health insurance journey. It is also the connector between the almost 5,000 North Carolinians the insurance leader employs to serve more than 3.81 million members.
So when Blue Cross NC end users (sales reps, agents, account managers) were facing a technology challenge of their own — password management problems — a solution was needed. Calls to the help desk to reset passwords were growing exponentially. Blue Cross NC knew it was time to explore new password management options and set out to find a new Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solution.
Why SaaS?
A SaaS solution for Blue Cross NC would more easily:
- Keep technology current with automatic upgrades included
- Ensure the application is always on and available
- Provide immediate and proactive support response to any issues
With the SaaS infrastructure and application both managed by Hitachi ID, Blue Cross NC could streamline and strengthen processes. But SaaS was just one piece of the password puzzle. To achieve success, the new password management solution must address all of Blue Cross NC’s needs.
Sufficient Self Service
With the introduction of a modern password management solution, Blue Cross NC needed to check a litany of features off its list, but few were as important as providing a self service solution. The time lost to support line calls to reset passwords was mounting quickly. This not only put undue pressure on the help desk, it also slowed other business processes while end users struggled to gain access to critical systems.
To combat this perpetual problem Blue Cross NC chose Hitachi ID Bravura Pass, which gave its team members an integrated solution to resolve password problems quickly without help from the IT Team. Its self-service password and PIN reset, strong authentication, and federated access ensures end users stay off the support line and focused on more critical tasks.
Reliable Mobile Access
Mobile access is an essential element in maintaining access for users and aiding in self-service for password resets and management. Blue Cross NC desired a mobile app that is easy for team members to use and also integrates seamlessly with its existing solutions and abides by specific healthcare compliance and security requirements. With Hitachi ID Bravura Pass, Blue Cross NC checked both of these must-haves off its list.
Hands-Off Upgrades and Management
Blue Cross NC also wanted more agility to improve scalability and ensure upgrades were completed in a timely fashion. This last piece was essential to avoid falling into the trap of being behind — something the team had struggled with previously. Upgrading the legacy solution was challenging and time consuming, not to mention prone to oversights. With the introduction of the SaaS solution, Blue Cross NC could more easily keep their technology current (with upgrades included) with a more agile and automatic approach to system updates.
Strong SaaS Implementation + Ongoing Support = A Winning Cybersecurity Solution
The positive impact of the SaaS implementation of Hitachi ID Bravura Pass was seen very quickly, according to Blue Cross NC’s Director Enterprise Tools, End User Computing & Support, Mitchell Weiner. “We began to see improvements almost immediately and the results have been incredible. PasswordPlus registration has increased at almost the same ratio as calls to the service desk have dropped.”
During the first three months, password-related calls to the help desk dropped by nearly 40%. This incredible transformation was accompanied by strong enthusiasm for the mobile app among end users and continued collaboration with the Hitachi ID team to ensure Blue Cross NC’s password management solution remains successful on an ongoing basis. Blue Cross NC’s Senior IT Design Engineer Phillip Boyd recalls, “The Hitachi ID engineers were a true extension of our own team. Quick communication and flexibility was essential to success and they delivered on both time and time again. Their willingness to meet with our team to answer and address questions made all the difference.”
Learn more about how Hitachi ID helped Blue Cross NC overcome its password management challenges in the full case study.
