The Futures of Finance Insights from Mad*Pow’s 2021 Financial Experience Design Conference
Mad*Pow’s 5th annual Financial Experience
unravel possible future horizons. This design
Design (FXD) conference kicked off on day
process is used as a means to illuminate
one with a Futures Thinking Workshop.
unexpected implications of present-
By tapping into Futures Thinking, (plural
day issues to empower individuals and
because there is not one single future), a
organizations to actively design desirable
design strategy that prompts practitioners
futures. The emphasis isn’t on what will
to reveal what could happen in the future
happen, but on what could happen, given
due to decisions, actions, and issues
various observed drivers.
occurring in the present, we can begin to
“There is a critical demand for companies to have a best-in-class cust that solves real problems for real people. The challenge is, there’s a v executives who can craft a shared vision, unify the complete end-to-e and have the trust of the people to execute this effectively and at sca
financial wellbeing noun / [ fi-nan-shuhl] [ wel-bee-ing ] : a state of being where individuals can successfully manage their current and ongoing financial obligations, have the capacity to absorb an unexpected expense, and feel optimistic and in control of their financial status. We live within an incredibly complex financial system - Finance is an inescapable force in today’s society. It’s everywhere – both as a force for good and a force for not-so-good. Adding to that, environmental, organizational, social, individual, and demographic factors can also greatly influence financial well-being.
tomer experience vast shortage of end experience, ale.”
— Andrew LaMonica VP, Global Design Executive
In this Futures Thinking workshop, we
current trend toward cryptocurrency and the
challenged FXD attendees to examine
digitization of finance. In our present, social
financial wellbeing by digging deep into:
media and the internet simultaneously offer both fascinating connecting capabilities and terrifying misinformation and bias.
Weight of History By examining the past, we realize that our financial present has been shaped by the biases and missteps of our own systems and structures. Leaders pointed out major historical disadvantages in the way financial service organizations have served their select clientele. In many cases, firms focused their efforts on wealthy customers - opting to serve those who were already enjoying financial success rather than assisting newcomers. For many, these decisions have reinforced an ingrained distrust in incumbent financial organizations. Moreover, the lack of basic financial education in public school systems makes it even harder for struggling citizens to improve their financial situations.
Push of the Present We might imagine that some of these historical factors have ironed themselves
Pull of the Future Across the board, we see trends towards human-centered priorities in our futures. Even the most antiquated financial institutions realize that “profit over people” just doesn’t fly anymore, and are trending towards a Triple Bottom Line (people, planet, profit). Our leaders agreed that sociallyminded decisions will be “cool” in the future - and not just “cool” - imperative to business success. People will want more in their life than just making money - they will want freedom for leisure and adventure, demand remote work options, and value equity and accountability for themselves as well as the businesses they patron.
Editors Note: The outcomes and observations from this particular workshop and these leaders will vary significantly from other workshops with other leaders. It is important to keep in mind that our preferable futures might not all be the same.
out in the present, and we’ve reached a consensus on a path forward - but in fact, we’re more divided than ever. Political and ideological rifts trickle down from a societal level to the finance industry. These friction points can be felt in everything from climate change to AI, and within the very real
“We, as designers, might possibly ha world. But if we aren’t very careful, w — Mariah Hay Chief Experience Officer, Help Scout
Over the course of day two we discovered
“what” (services offered, fees waived or not,
three recurring types of solutions to these
digital currency, advertising mechanisms,
obstacles from our speakers:
etc.) should become shadowed by the “why.” This idea of “why” in design certainly isn’t new, but it’s never been under the intense
Leaning into Empathy
spotlight it is now, and customers have
Great financial service design is more
never pushed back on the “why” in the same
than just an end goal - it includes a holistic,
way they are now, especially in finance.
empathic approach to solving problems and creating change to empower economic dignity. The small changes companies make to treat people with economic dignity have a direct, positive impact on the customer relationship. As we break down the walls of systemic bias within the financial sector, we must intentionally design pathways for inclusion and belonging that drive financial wellbeing. When we look at financial wellbeing holistically, from a designer’s perspective, we also have to consider the root causes – those social determinants - not just the symptoms we see in the form of retirement savings or credit scores. And when we think of empathy-embedded financial design, the
ave the most powerful job in the we can become problem creators.”
Changing Organizational Culture
practitioners of design (whether it’s design,
As more and more companies compete for
design research, strategy, etc.), we have the
customers and continue to improve their
inherent duty to advance human-centered
“whats” and “whys” leaders are needed
approaches within the companies we
who can deliver an end-to-end customer
work with and for, including within the very
experience, galvanize teams, and deliver
organizational structure of the business.
value. At the same time, our practice as designers is evolving with new tools,
Of course, changing culture and behaviors
techniques, and approaches, surfacing at a
within organizations is a complex
pace that can be hard to keep up with.
challenge. Change in one area can significantly impact another area, and it
As leaders of and advocates for human-
typically doesn’t follow a cause-and-effect,
centered approaches, there’s no shortage
linear process… because organizations are
of challenges we encounter – especially
complex adaptive systems. To improve
in the financial services sector. And as
the way we do things and our own
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“We need to solve the upstream problem, versus trying to put bandaids on all the downstream impacts. And then collectively we can start to brainstorm the right solution.” — Mike Aragon UX and Service Design Manager for Transformation Solutions at Charles Schwab effectiveness as shepherds for human-
Service Design, the implementation
centered design approaches, we must:
of design systems and thoughtful UX
consider organizational culture, understand
solutions, offers methodologies to define
behavior and leverage points, and approach
problems and create solutions that serve
change as a continuous experiment, not a
employees and clients alike through
“set it and forget it.” We must reframe how
planning and organizing resources. Service
we think about change as a process.
Design helps design and deliver these solutions with intention, to ensure they are
Connectivity Through Service Design
meaningful and valuable. It offers teams
Change is often slow to come especially
the tools and resources they need to arrive
when time and or resources are in short
at actionable solutions.
supply, and leaders are all too familiar with the challenge of delivering at pace
Often, we tend to focus our energy
and scale. Ensuring that your brand,
and attention on the frontstage experience
design, and implementation is uniform
- how clients and customers engage with
among all your product offerings is a very
the brand - and largely ignore the
challenging task, particularly when complex
backstage operations - processes,
organizations are prone to siloed activities
protocols, communication tools, and
that lose sight of the end-user. Silos operate
resources for internal teams. In reality, you
with the assumption that their outputs only
need both frontstage and backstage to
affect their customers and their team -
work together as an ecosystem to support
but the reality is that they affect the
the business’s goals.
entire organization.
We believe that design is powerful and can help us positively impact people’s lives. We use it to help people set goals and reach them. Our team comes to work each day with a passion for assisting clients in improving health, deliver financial wellbeing, and solve some of the most wicked social problems we face, from poverty to sustainability. This involves a deep understanding of customer behavior, designing for experience innovation, and facilitating the kind of collaboration that makes your dreams a reality.
HOW CAN MAD*POW HELP YOU? FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Ethan Drigotas Business Development Director edrigotas@madpow.net
The FXD conference focuses on improving financial experiences through strategic design. Founded three years ago, the conference attracts more than 150 leaders at the intersection of financial services, experience, and innovation. View the FXD 2021 presentations on the Mad*Pow YouTube Channel. VIEW NOW