Insurer Aegon does not shy away from digital transformation. At all. In order to take digital developments to the next level and to flesh out further ambitions, Aegon has chosen DEPT® as its strategic partner and agency. Fast forward a couple of years and we have developed a design system, completely renewed the client dashboard and are rebranding aegon.nl. It’s safe to say that both teams have integrated quite well — our Depsters are working across no less than seven digital teams at Aegon. In these teams we efficiently transfer our knowledge and encourage Aegon time and again to go the extra mile.
A design system to accelerate and renew
Central to Aegon’s goals is accelerating day-to-day operations while innovating when the situation calls for it. So setting up a design system — consisting of a collection of the best principles, patterns and components within the organization — was a very logical first step. From the get-go we involved all stakeholders in the innovations, while keeping up the pace. Developers for example could now view and use each other’s code much more easily, which accelerated the entire development process. With this in mind we started looking at multiple branches within the organization and created a more uniform ‘language’ for these teams. We documented all of this in a design system.
A less complex customer portal
For a strategic process like this one, it’s only logical to start at the base. And the base consists of employees. Keeping this in mind, we first focused on the people of Aegon. The ‘My Aegon’ team — which is responsible for the client dashboard — turned out to be the most complex on several levels. We therefore opted for a less complex architecture, less dependence on different teams and more responsibility within the team itself. This resulted in shorter lines, making it possible to communicate faster.
With the same ‘My Aegon’ team we looked into the Aegon app. Which features does the app have right now and what needs to be changed or added to better match customer needs? From here we set up a new strategy for the app which, more so than before, relies on existing environments and knowledge. In short: everything that Aegon already has in-house is now deployed and utilized more optimally.
Acquia: a new CMS system
Currently we’re working on aegon.nl, which will be launched on a new CMS system called Acquia. This CMS platform is built on Drupal with advanced tools that drive engagement from start to finish. “This CMS system will support seven different departments; we are proud that DEPT® can supervise the implementation of this new system from A to Z”, says Tessa Borgman, Project Manager at DEPT®.
Agile way of working
Aegon and DEPT® have a unique partnership. First and foremost because of the long-term project in which many Depsters are involved on a full-time basis spread over all kinds of disciplines. In addition, it’s very admirable how such a large, complex organization finds its way around an agile way of working and is open to change. We will continue to support Aegon in the coming period — if there’s ever something Aegon doesn’t know the answer to, we are ready to help.
Questions?
Managing Director Design & Technology
Rachid Lechheb
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