401(k) Provider

On-Line 401(k)

Galatea Associates helped a 401(k) Provider launch a groundbreaking self-managed on-line 401(k) application.

The Challenge

Develop a system that allows 401(k) participants and plan sponsors to check account balances, update personal information, trade funds, adjust contribution amounts and allocation, and interact with third-party vendors to research investment options. Minimize the need for facilitated customer support and limit ongoing development personnel i.e. create an "out of the box" application requiring minimal maintenance by the 401(k) Provider.

The Obstacles

  • Introducing an application that was one of the first such financial products introduced to the market while keeping development and maintenance costs at a minimum.
  • Managing a development effort that was not delivering the expected results initially.
  • Supplying customer support with a minimal amount of support personnel, while industry standard practice was to employ a "one call at a time" phone support scenario.
  • Supplying investment advice to users without requiring in-house personnel i.e. outsourcing investment advice while still maintaining a single brand and a consistent user experience.
  • Minimizing development upkeep costs of such a complex, multi-usage, transactional website.

The Solution

  • Galatea joined an existing team comprised of client staff and other consulting vendors to asses the impact of missed milestones and manage the changes necessary to meet future milestones.
  • At the suggestion of Galatea, a small focus team broke off the main development path to create a proof of concept using a Netcentric approach and a Rapid Application Development paradigm.
  • Proof of concept exceed expectations after only three days. New approach and RAD methodology was adopted for the entire project and future project milestone were met.
  • Implemented web-based customer support to deliver a high level of service with fewer personnel than a traditional phone based approach. Developed online chat technology for instant support of general customer inquiries, and provided customer service reps with a "mirror" view of customer accounts. Cost Savings: Online support personnel can handle five or more "calls" at once due to large feedback lag times.
  • A key objective when designing the application was to provide seamless integration with external business partners. This was accomplished using XML. As users transitioned between various sites under the 401(k) Provider's umbrella, a simultaneous business to business secure, server side data exchange mechanism allowed for a smooth transition to partners providing enriched services such as advice.
  • Product 401(k) site would be a full package upon initial launch, not so much an "ongoing" project that would result in high overhead and constant non-trivial development costs. By employing people sensitive to the entire scope of the application (business rules, technology issues, design for maintenance), the 401(k) Provider can supply the product to a growing interested market without necessarily taking on a comparable amount of development support.

The Results

  • The 401(k) product was implemented for a pilot customer less than 90 days after development commenced.