A unit of Cincinnati Financial Corp. will expand its R&D operations at the University of Cincinnati's 1819 Innovation Hub as part of an overall plan to accelerate the company's digital and data transformation.
Cincinnati Insurance Co., a property casualty subsidiary of Cincinnati Financial (Nasdaq: CINF), plans to grow its internal insurtech innovation team and further increase its activities at 1819, the flagship building of the growing Cincinnati Innovation District, in order to meet changing needs of insurance agents and their clients, it said.
The project, announced Tuesday, is being assisted with a $2.5 million JobsOhio R&D Center Grant.
Cincinnati Insurance leased about 3,200 square feet of space on the third floor at 1819 back in 2018 for all its recruiting and engagement activity at UC. The space also allows for offsite innovation ventures for its associates and agents, which complement the company's innovation initiatives at its Fairfield headquarters.
The assistance from JobsOhio will “deepen” Cincinnati Insurance’s innovation capability and expand the team that supports innovation across the company, Wendi Bukowitz, VP and director of strategic innovation for Cincinnati Insurance, said in a release. Per JobsOhio, Cincinnati Insurance has committed to add and retain jobs.
"Big data, advanced analytic modeling and the rise of insurtech present opportunities for us,” Bukowitz said.
Pre-Covid, Cincinnati Insurance Company rotated approximately 12, three-person venture teams through its space at 1819 each year, spokeswoman Betsy Ertel told me. The company plans to return to that format as soon as it’s safe to do so; activity at 1819 has largely been quiet since the onset of the pandemic.
In normal times, the teams spend 12 weeks specifically focused on a business opportunity, exploring and piloting possible solutions, she said. While Cincinnati Insurance Company doesn’t have permanently assigned associates working at 1819, it does plan to add eight additional positions to its current five-person strategic innovation team.
“Our plan includes adding more headcount in 2021, working toward completing all eight new hires by Dec. 31, 2024,” she said. ”As our innovation journey continues, we’ll continue to add depth and breadth to what we’re already doing, while also focusing more on startup partnerships and increasing our involvement within the insurtech and UC innovation ecosystems."
JobsOhio said Ohio is the No. 5 largest financial services industry in the United States. Financial services is also a key economic driver in the Greater Cincinnati region, and the industry represents more than $14.2 billion of activity every year, according to REDI.
Cincinnati Financial Corp. offers primarily business, home and auto insurance. It ranks as the region's fourth-largest public company, according to Business Courier research. Its fellow tenants at 1819 include Fifth Third Bank, Procter & Gamble, Kroger and Cincinnati Bell.
