Workers' compensation insurers must shift from inflexible waterfall development to agile frameworks, which promise enhanced collaboration and responsiveness. Despite the critical role played by workers' compensation, the technology infrastructure supporting it—particularly in state-run insurance organizations—has long relied on legacy systems and plan-based software development (PBSD). These systems are often characterized by rigid architectures, lengthy release cycles, and siloed team structures, which hinder responsiveness and innovation. To meet evolving business needs and improve service delivery, many public insurers are moving from traditional waterfall methodologies to agile frameworks. This shift to agile software development (ASD) promises enhanced collaboration, faster feedback loops, and iterative value delivery—laying the foundation for a more adaptive and customer-centric product ecosystem.
Lavanya Rajamani (Sun,) studied this question.