Measuring the managerial efficiency of insurance companies in Saudi Arabia: A data envelopment analysis approach

This paper applies the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to compute the managerial efficiency of 30 insurance companies listed on the Saudi stock exchange for the duration of four years from 2015 to 2018. The companies taken as a sample of study included both conventional and Takaful insurance companies. The insurance sector of KSA is one of the largest sectors in the country, contributing a substantial percentage in the non-oil economy. Efficiency measurement and evaluation will provide a venue to introspect and benchmark frontiers to the sector. In the present study, we have utilized the basic Banker Charnes Cooper and Charnes Copper Rhodes models of DEA. Two inputs, namely, general & administrative expenses and policy & acquisition costs, and two outputs (Net premium earned and Investment Income & other incomes) were taken for efficiency calculations. The final outcomes of the study reveal that a good number of insurance companies operating in KSA are found to be efficient on managerial efficiency scale. Three firms remain the leader on the frontier of the managerial efficiency. And no company found with zero (0) efficiency or a negative efficiency. It is expected that the outcome of the study will provide benchmarks to managers and a road map to further improvement.