Customer

Delta Dental of California

Location

San Francisco, California, USA

Industries

Healthcare Insurance

Offerings

Consulting & Engineering Services

Partner

Microsoft

Customer Stories | September 20, 2025 

Turning a legacy system into an opportunity for growth


The healthcare insurance industry is undergoing a profound transformation. And legacy IT systems, which were once the backbone of operations, are becoming barriers to growth.  

For insurers, these limitations directly affect their ability to manage member data, streamline claims, and deliver the kind of digital-first experience today’s policyholders expect.

As customer expectations rise and regulatory requirements tighten, healthcare insurers must balance reliability, security and improved patient outcomes, all while maintaining uninterrupted service.

The legacy system challenge

Using modern technology to transform or replace legacy technology can have a transformative effect on operations and customer experience.

Take the nation’s largest dental insurance provider, Delta Dental of California (DDC), for example. It saw increasing market competition and evolving customer expectations as a clear signal to modernize its core systems. 

However, the company faced a fundamental challenge: its core administrative platform—integral to critical business activities like claims processing, member management, benefits administration and provider payments—was approaching the end of its support life cycle. 

Any disruption posed a significant business continuity risk, potentially affecting the care of the 36 million people who depend on DDC for coverage.

The need to change was imperative

DDC needed to change. Doing nothing risked increased operational costs, system failures, security vulnerabilities and lost customers.

DDC’s leadership initially explored a full system replacement. However, due diligence revealed that no off-the-shelf solutions could match the specific functionalities the company had built over the years for its specialized dental payer operations.

Moreover, replacing the core system (which was connected to 75 other applications) would have been an incredibly complex and expensive undertaking. So, Delta turned to DXC Technology in pursuit of a modernization strategy that would extend the existing system without disrupting core business operations.

Delta Dental Sripadh Parthasarathy Interview | DXC Technology Customer Stories

Instead of a costly rip-and-replace, DDC partnered with DXC to modernize its core system while keeping business operations running smoothly.

Watch this video with Sripadh Parthasarathy, VP of Enterprise Business Applications, Delta Dental of California, to learn more. 

Transitioning to cloud

Together, DDC and DXC developed a modernization strategy to incrementally replatform the core administrative system while maintaining uninterrupted service for all members and providers. The team transitioned the legacy system to a cloud-friendly, containerized architecture on Microsoft Azure, introducing automation, observability and enhanced security features to ensure the platform remained robust, scalable and future-ready.

The process took just 12 months and was completed with zero functional defects in the initial testing phase.

Delta Dental Shan Swaminathan Interview | DXC Technology Customer Stories

Legacy systems were reengineered into a modern, cloud-ready platform built for scale and resilience.

Watch this video with Shan Swaminathan, VP of Enterprise Architecture, DDC, to learn more.

A faster, cost-saving system

As a result of this transformation, Delta operates faster and has saved millions in maintenance costs. By leveraging a cloud-native approach, its IT foundation has become more agile, secure, scalable and resilient for the future.

Moreover, by choosing a replatforming approach over a full system replacement, DDC was able to mitigate business risks while unlocking the potential to expand its digital services, improve customer engagement and continue delivering high-quality care. The project has also opened the door for future legacy modernizations, ensuring long-term sustainability and ongoing improvements in service delivery.

Delta Dental Pivotal Moments Video | DXC Technology Customer Stories

This transformation not only cut costs but also paved the way for continuous modernization and long-term sustainability.

Watch this video with Marty Sheetz, VP of Operations, DDC, to hear the full story of how the company navigated critical decisions and achieved lasting impact. 

Impact at a glance:

  • 12x faster software releases: From 2–3 per year to 12 annually
  • 70% reduction in maintenance costs: Savings of over $350 M
  • Improved user satisfaction: Enhanced tools and functionality for customers and administrators
  • Future-readiness: Scalable, cloud-based architecture supports long-term growth

 

The big picture

Delta Dental’s successful digital transformation demonstrates how DXC is empowering organizations to deliver better services and outcomes in the digital age and reflects DXC’s broader role in reimagining healthcare IT to keep the world working.

By combining deep engineering expertise with a strong customer-first mindset, DXC helped DDC turn an aging IT system into a cloud-native, future-ready platform—one that supports its mission to help provide millions of people with essential dental care. The essence of great technology is not just in the code, it’s in the impact it has on people’s lives.

Go deeper