SEMA 2019 kicks off with MSO Symposium
The 8th annual MSO Symposium took place at the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas on the 4 November. The conference, scheduled a day before the start of the SEMA Show, saw the North American collision industry come together and hear about the latest trends and challenges, as well as the future state of the sector.
It opened with a market overview of the latest metrics that was kicked off by Romans Group CEO Vincent Romans.
Susanna Gotsch, from CCC Information Services, how collision data can be used to really drive successful outcomes for businesses in the market. She also posed the question, “Are we driving dumber in smarter cars?” based on recent data collected by StateFarm related to ADAS enabled vehicles.
Other highlights during the event included insight to mobility from Uber for Business, and the rise of OEM dealer-branded repairs.
During the afternoon the sessions moved into redefining the consumer experience during a collision claim and how the use of artificial intelligence and digital technology can be leveraged through the supply chain.
The discussion around “the shift-left effect” was fascinating in terms of how the collision claims industry needs to redefine and speed up the sequence of steps when dealing with an incident to meet the demands of a digitally native generation.
Right at the heart of the symposium was hearing from the leaders of some of the most influential bodyshop groups, when the panel discussion took place with senior representatives from Caliber, CARSTAR (Driven Brands), Gerber and CCG discussing key strategies for being a successful MSO.
