New services
In 2001, NN launched their first pension savings accounts. However, implementing a typical banking product with all associated processes and documents proved to be a complicated task for the insurer. "Building a banking application in an insurance environment is a systems challenge. Our NN applications are managed from several IT domains. We decided to build a new IT domain, exclusively for pension savings accounts," says Melvin Welters, program manager Pension Savings Accounts at NN.
A New IT Domain
In 2001, NN launched their first pension savings accounts. However, implementing a typical banking product with all associated processes and documents proved to be a complicated task for the insurer. "Building a banking application in an insurance environment is a systems challenge. Our NN applications are managed from several IT domains. We decided to build a new IT domain, exclusively for pension savings accounts," says Melvin Welters, program manager Pension Savings Accounts at NN.
A Specific Output Solution
The backend of the new administrative system is an output environment based on OpenText Exstream solutions. Welters: "We deliberately chose a specific output solution. The administrative system also offers document output capabilities, but we need something more robust. An important principle of NN's approach is that the customer receives real-time confirmation or some other sort of response the moment they submit a request. For example, a customer talking to an intermediary should be able to receive a quote on the spot, straight to their smartphone. That response time, and the integrity that it involves, requires a powerful output environment. In such cases, you need to go with an equally powerful solution.
Optimal Experience
"Our inventory of all processes involved with this savings account product showed that we needed to build 40 documents. These are highly complex – not just because of the numerous business rules and strict regulations regarding tax-related products, but also because output channels overlap. Some situations require handling physical copies, like when sending out annual statements. At other times, sending a document by email is sufficient. Additionally, we need to consider our document exchange with intermediaries: where should specific customer information be sent?
Intermediaries communicate with us through the digital mailbox: a separate output channel connected to NN's extranet. And finally, we also have our service offerings, such as notifying the customer when their deposit has been received. All these transactional and service-oriented communications lead to a set of triggers that control the output streams. The result," Welters concluded, "is an extensive matrix of rules that ensures documents and ultimately mail packs or electronic messages are assembled correctly and efficiently for NN, while still providing optimal customer experience."
Engaging tcf.
It became clear early on that the complexity and scale of the project required external expertise. The insurance company turned to tcf., which specializes in building solutions based on OpenText Exstream. "The building, testing, and delivery of the first five document streams were done in seven days. The next deadline we set was another fifteen documents in fifteen days. They built the complete set of documents according to that schedule," said Welters.
Testing
The system was tested in early 2011, and the new application ran without major hiccups. Since then, Welters has showcased the application within various departments of NN. "It is always good to see how positively surprised people are when their smartphone starts vibrating immediately after pressing the 'Confirm' button in the web environment, because the confirmation email has already been sent. That's where the application shines: the output environment enables one of the most powerful elements of the product. Customers can finish a transaction in under five minutes, because they have immediate access to all the content they need."
