Customer Experience, Design & Engagement.
Human Factors – Product Design – Prototype Testing
Executive Summary
Orchestrated and led customer driven design of product road map to incorporate customer feedback and respond to critical technology and productivity challenges of the wealth management industry.
Client: Enterprise software and IT solutions firm
Insights
No one repository or owner of “voice of the customer,” existed.
Product development and management teams had previously developed new products with limited market research and customer input to identify priorities, options and nice to have items. These practices contributed to considerable re-work post release and unplanned, customization.
- Product planning and design documentation was limited and only communicated internally to a limited few.
- Business requirements were not put in context to customer strategy or functional specifications.
All market segments needs were considered generic versus variable and none were statistically validated.
Actions
- Prepared, delivered, and gained buy-in to a multi-stage disciplined approach to “Customer – Driven Product Design.”
- Recommended program covered: idea generation, concept vetting/validation, prototype design and testing processes/initiatives to help drive the future organic and acquisition growth of this $ 150+ million wealth business.
- Initiatives led and key outputs from this program included:
- Competitive analysis/research study to identify key customer work flow and technology pain points and rationalize independent and combined value proposition required at the wealth management: enterprise, financial advisor and end customer level.
- One on one and focus group discussions with customers to ascertain user needs and software interface experience. Tested prototypes at various stages of development.
- Organization-wide build out of product strategy and roadmap leveraging the inputs and outputs of over 40 product managers, strategists, developers and M&A team members.
- Initiated simple progress report for ongoing management, at the functional responsibility levels. – Formation of client strategy roundtables, analyst briefings, and reinvigorated annual user conference to stress strategic partnership and client-driven product design.
Value/Impact
- These business re-engineering efforts involved input and coordination of over 100 employees/customers and led to highest strategic client advisory board feedback in five years and requests for more senior– level partnership exchange .
One major brokerage client noted, “the Firm is really turning the corner, now looking like a strategic partner to our business and we welcome that.”
- Product road map was summarized and shared internally and externally at numerous senior executive and product management team levels.
A former development list of over 200 items was streamlined into 10 critical priorities with time-lines, accountabilities and plans.
